Dell Henderson
Born: 1877-07-04 in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
Died: 1956-12-02
Known For: Acting
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia George Delbert "Dell" Henderson (July 5, 1877 – December 2, 1956) was a Canadian-American actor, director, and writer. He began his long and prolific film career in the early days of silent film. Born in the Southwestern Ontario city of St. Thomas, Dell Henderson started his acting career on the stage, but appeared in his first movie Monday Morning in a Coney Island Police Court already in 1908. Henderson was a frequent associate of film pioneer D.W. Griffith since 1909 and appeared in numerous of his early shorts in Hollywood. He also acted on a less prolific basis in the movies of producer Mack Sennett and his Keystone Studios. In addition to acting, Henderson also directed nearly 200 silent films between 1911 and 1928. Most of those films are forgotten or lost, but he also directed movies with silent stars like Harry Carey and Roscoe Arbuckle. Henderson also worked as a writer on numerous screenplays. After retiring from directing in 1927, Henderson turned to acting full-time and played important supporting roles in King Vidor's The Crowd (1928) and as General Marmaduke Pepper in Show People (1928). The advent of sound film damaged his acting career, and he often had to play smaller roles. In the 1930s, the comedic character actor appeared on several occasions as a comic foil for such comedians as The Three Stooges, W. C. Fields and Laurel and Hardy. He often played somewhat pompous figures like judges, businessmen, detectives or mayors. Modern audiences will remember Henderson as annoyed hospital president Dr. Graves in The Three Stooges film Men in Black and the put-upon chaperone in the Little Rascals film Choo-Choo!. He also appeared as a Night Court Judge in Laurel and Hardy's Our Relations (1936) and as a friendly Car salesman in Leo McCarey's drama Make Way for Tomorrow (1937). Henderson ended his film career after numerous small roles in 1950. Henderson died of a heart attack in Hollywood at the age of 79. He was married with actress Florence Lee until his death, they made several silent films together.
Filmography
1950
- Annie Get Your Gun as Hotel Guest in Hammock (uncredited)
1949
- Once More, My Darling as Hotel Clerk
1946
- Undercurrent as Party Guest (uncredited)
1945
- Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Hollywood as Benson (uncredited)
- Main Street After Dark as Plainclothesman (uncredited)
- The Great Morgan as Film Character (uncredited)
1944
- The Missing Juror as Train Conductor (Uncredited)
1943
- Slightly Dangerous as Doorman (uncredited)
- Du Barry Was a Lady as Flunky (uncredited)
1942
- The Major and the Minor as Doorman (uncredited)
- Arizona Terrors as President McKinley
- Once Upon a Honeymoon as American Attaché (uncredited)
1940
- Stranger on the Third Floor as Detective (uncredited)
- Abe Lincoln in Illinois as Minor Role (uncredited)
- Millionaires in Prison as Dell, Deputy Taking Vander to Prison (uncredited)
- Little Orvie as Mr. Brown
- Young People as Eddie's Father
- You Can't Fool Your Wife as Ritz Amsterdam Manager
1939
- The Chump Takes a Bump as Elias J. Smart
- Love Affair as Cafe Manager (uncredited)
- Frontier Marshal as Dave Hall
- Fifth Avenue Girl as Headwaiter (uncredited)
1938
- Arsène Lupin Returns as Plainclothes Detective (uncredited)
- Rebellious Daughters as Mr. Stanley - First Victim
- Men with Wings as Chairman
- The Girl of the Golden West as Stagecoach Passenger
1937
- The Awful Truth as Vance's Butler (uncredited)
- The Grand Bounce as Harry Briggs (uncredited)
- Make Way for Tomorrow as Ed Weldon - Auto Salesman (uncredited)
- Wells Fargo as Customer
- Artists & Models as Lord (uncredited)
- We Who Are About to Die as Blake's Associate (uncredited)
1936
- The Texas Rangers as Citizen (uncredited)
1935
- Ruggles of Red Gap as Sam
- The Mystery Man as Mr. Clark, Hotel Manager
- Hot Tip as Sheriff
- Hitch Hike Lady as Williams
- 3 Kids and a Queen as Reporter
- Diamond Jim as Gambler
- Here Comes Cookie as Lloyd
- Slightly Static as Mr. Campbell (as Del Henderson)
- Steamboat Round the Bend as Salesman
- Thunder in the Night as Ambassador - Party Guest
- Little Big Shot as Policeman
- The Daring Young Man as Mayor
1934
- Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch as House Manager
- The Notorious Sophie Lang as House Detective
- Bottoms Up as Lane Worthing
- It's a Gift as Mr. Abernathy
- Men in Black as Dr. Graves (uncredited)
- You're Telling Me! as Mayor (as Del Henderson)
- Something Simple as Tanhauser
1933
- Goldie Gets Along as Mr. Moon
- Lone Cowboy as Mr. Burton (uncredited)
- Rainbow Over Broadway as Bowers
- The Big Brain as (uncredited)
- Too Much Harmony as Small Town Theatre Manager
- On Your Guard as Detective Calvin Carter - aka O'Hara
- Stolen by Gypsies or Beer and Bicycles as The Masque
1932
- Free Eats as Mr. Moran
- Mr. Bride as J. P. Henderson
- Choo-Choo! as Mr. Henderson
- In Walked Charley as Delbert Henderson
1931
- Windy Riley Goes Hollywood
- The Champ as The Doctor (uncredited)
- Helping Grandma as Henderson
- Newly Rich as Director
- Haunted at Midnight as Housekeeper
- Skip the Maloo! as Mr. Benson
- Thundering Tenors as Senator D.H. Henderson
1930
- The Laurel-Hardy Murder Case as Housekeeper (uncredited)
- Getting a Raise
- Whispering Whoopee as Mr. Henderson
- Fast Work as Old Faithful
- Big Money
- All Teed Up as Judge Quirt
- The Sins of the Children as Ted Baldwin
- Looser Than Loose as Mr. Henderson
- Night of Goblins as Housekeeper
- Bigger and Better as Mr. Kornman
- Up a Tree as Del - Publicity Promoter
- Chiselers of Hollywood
1929
- Wrong Again as Painting owner
- Hit the Deck as Admiral
- Off to Buffalo as Charley's boss
1928
- The Power of the Press as Bill Johnson
- The Patsy as Pa Harrington
- The Crowd as Dick
- Show People as Colonel Pepper
- Riley the Cop as Judge Coronelli
- Is Everybody Happy?
1927
- Getting Gertie's Garter as Barry Scott
- The Rambling Ranger ... (Director)
1926
- The Clinging Vine as B. Harvey Doolittle
1925
- The Bad Lands ... (Director)
- Accused ... (Director)
- Pursued ... (Director)
1924
- One Law for the Woman ... (Director)
- Gambling Wives ... (Director)
- Battling Brewster ... (Director)
1923
- Jacqueline, or Blazing Barriers ... (Director)
1922
- Sure-Fire Flint ... (Director)
- The Broken Silence ... (Director)
1921
- The Girl from Porcupine ... (Director)
- Dynamite Allen ... (Director)
- Dead or Alive ... (Director)
1920
- The Dead Line ... (Director)
1919
- Three Green Eyes ... (Director)
- Love in a Hurry ... (Director)
- Courage for Two ... (Director)
- Hit or Miss ... (Director)
1918
- My Wife ... (Director)
- The Beloved Blackmailer ... (Director)
- The Golden Wall ... (Director)
- Who Loved Him Best? ... (Director)
- The Road to France ... (Director)
- By Hook or Crook ... (Director)
- Hitting the Trail ... (Director)
- The Impostor ... (Director)
1917
- Outcast ... (Director)
- Please Help Emily ... (Director)
- The Beautiful Adventure ... (Director)
- Her Second Husband ... (Director)
- A Girl Like That ... (Director)
1916
- Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages as Extra (uncredited)
- Rolling Stones ... (Director)
- Wife and Auto Trouble ... (Director)
- A Coney Island Princess ... (Director)
- The Rejuvenation of Aunt Mary as Aunt Mary's Sweetheart
- Because He Loved Her ... (Director)
1915
- For Better - But Worse as The Police Chief's Daughter's Romeo
- Ambrose's Fury ... (Director)
- A Bear Affair ... (Director)
- Ambrose's Nasty Temper ... (Director)
- Merely A Married Man ... (Director)
- Those Bitter Sweets as The Rival
1914
- Bertha, the Buttonhole-Maker ... (Director)
- The Plumber ... (Director)
- Liberty Belles ... (Director)
- 'Curses!' They Remarked ... (Director)
- Gussle, the Golfer ... (Director)
1913
- What Is the Use of Repining? ... (Writer)
- The Widow's Kids as The Traveling Man
- The Power of the Camera as Second Convict
- A Woman in the Ultimate ... (Director)
- Red Hicks Defies the World ... (Director)
- Almost a Wild Man ... (Director)
- Pa Says ... (Director)
- A Modest Hero ... (Director)
- Those Little Flowers ... (Director)
- The Lady in Black ... (Director)
- The Suffragette Minstrels ... (Director)
- Papa's Baby as Papa Binks
- Father's Chicken Dinner ... (Director)
- For the Son of the House ... (Director)
- Black and White ... (Director)
- Highbrow Love ... (Director)
1912
- When the Fire-Bells Rang as An Actor
- The Massacre as In Wagon Train
- The Sunbeam as The Bachelor
- The Speed Demon as Racing Official
- The Tragedy of a Dress Suit as Dick
- Won by a Fish as The Woman's Father
- For His Son as Dopokoke Factory Employee (uncredited)
- A Dash Through the Clouds ... (Writer)
- Hot Stuff as Cigar Drummer
- The Mender of Nets as The Rival's Brother
- The Furs as The Husband
- The Brave Hunter as The Brave Hunter's Rival
- The Engagement Ring as Redmond
- Helen's Marriage as Friend
- Mr. Grouch at the Seashore ... (Director)
- Help! Help! as Office Worker
- The Fickle Spaniard ... (Director)
- A Voice from the Deep as On Roller Coaster
- Getting Rid of Trouble ... (Director)
- The Fatal Chocolate as The City Beau
1911
- The Last Drop of Water as Undetermined Role
- The Long Road as Wedding Guest
- The Making of a Man as Leading Man
- His Trust as Col. Frazier
- The Primal Call as The Creditor
- His Trust Fulfilled
- When a Man Loves as Mr. Bach
- The Lonedale Operator as A Tramp
- Teaching Dad to Like Her as Harry's Father
- The Adventures of Billy as Rich Man
- The Baron as The Baron / A Waiter
- Love in the Hills ... (Writer)
- The Ghost as A Crook
- A Victim of Circumstance as The Husband
- Bobby the Coward ... (Writer)
1910
- The Song of the Wildwood Flute as A Suitor
- The Oath and the Man as Aristocrat
- Unexpected Help
- Faithful as Bystander
- Muggsy Becomes a Hero as A Tramp
- The Unchanging Sea as The Rescuer
- In the Border States as Union Officer
- The Usurer as First Mover
- The Lesson as Policeman
- Wilful Peggy
- A Child of the Ghetto as The Proprietor
- A Child's Impulse as At First Party / At Second Party
- The Message of the Violin as The Baron
- The Modern Prodigal as At Post Office
- Ramona as Man at Burial
- A Gold Necklace as In Cafe
- The Tenderfoot's Triumph as A Cowboy
- The Gold Seekers as The Claim Agent
- Over Silent Paths as The Wanderer
- Gold Is Not All
- The Newlyweds as A Friend / On Train
- The Two Brothers as Manuel
- A Plain Song as The Manager
- The Converts as In Bar
- That Chink at Golden Gulch as Gentleman Jim Dandy