Harold Lang (British actor)
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{EngvarB|date=February 2020}}
{{Short description|British character actor (1923–1970)}}
{{Infobox person
|image = Actor_Harold_Lang.jpg
|caption =
|imagesize =
| name = Harold Lang
| birth_name = Harold Richard Lang
| birth_date = 1923
| birth_place = London, England
| death_date = 16 November 1970 (aged 47)
| death_place = Cairo, Egypt
| othername =
| alma_mater = RADA
| occupation = Actor, writer, theatre director, acting teacher
| yearsactive =
}}
Harold Lang (1923 – 16 November 1970) was a RADA-trained British character actor of stage and screen.{{cite web|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/97436|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116003101/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/97436|url-status=dead|archive-date=2009-01-16|title=Harold Lang}} During the 1950s, in particular, played many sly or menacing roles in B-films.
At one time he managed his own theatrical company.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lXnXDQAAQBAJ&dq=harold+lang+The+Encyclopedia+of+British+Film%3A+Fourth+edition&pg=PA434|title=The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition|first=Brian|last=McFarlane|date=16 May 2016|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=9781526111975|via=Google Books}} From 1960, Lang, a devotee of Stanislavski, also taught acting at Central School of Speech and Drama; and director John Schlesinger filmed his work in a documentary, The Class, for BBC TV's Monitor, in 1961.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/jul/30/guardianobituaries.film|title=Appreciation: John Schlesinger|first=Humphrey|last=Burton|date=30 July 2003|website=The Guardian}}{{cite web|url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/150145775|title=Collections Search – BFI – British Film Institute|website=collections-search.bfi.org.uk}} He died of a heart attack in Cairo, Egypt, shortly before he was due to give a lecture.
Partial filmography
{{Div col}}
- The Man from Morocco (1945) – Soldier (uncredited)
- Floodtide (1949) – Mac – the draughtsman (uncredited)
- The Spider and the Fly (1949) – Belfort – The Pickpocket
- Cairo Road (1950) – Humble
- The Franchise Affair (1951) – Bus inspector
- Calling Bulldog Drummond (1951) – Stan (uncredited)
- Cloudburst (1951) – Mickie Fraser / Kid Python
- Wings of Danger (1952) – Snell, the blackmailer
- So Little Time (1952) – Lt. Seger
- It Started in Paradise (1952) – Mr. Louis
- Folly to Be Wise (1952) – Soldier in Pub (uncredited)
- The Long Memory (1953) – Boyd's Chauffeur
- The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan (1953) – Singer
- Street Corner (1953) – Len
- Laughing Anne (1953) – Jacques
- The Saint's Return (1953) – Jarvis
- The Intruder (1953) – Bill
- A Day to Remember (1953) – Stan's Accomplice (uncredited)
- 36 Hours (1953) – Harry Cross, desk clerk
- Star of My Night (1954) – Carl
- Murder by Proxy (1954) – Travis/Victor Vanno
- Dance, Little Lady (1954) – Mr. Bridson
- The Passing Stranger (1954) – Spicer
- The Men of Sherwood Forest (1954) – Hubert
- Adventure in the Hopfields (1954) – Sam Hines
- The Men of Sherwood Forest (1954) – Hubert
- The Quatermass Xperiment (1955) – Christie
- It's a Wonderful World (1956) – Mervyn Wade
- The Flesh Is Weak (1957) – Henry
- The Betrayal (1957) – Clay
- Carve Her Name with Pride (1958) – Commandant Suhren
- Man with the Gun (1958) – John Drayson
- Chain of Events (1958) – Jimmy Boy
- Links of Justice (1958) – (uncredited)
- Paranoiac (1963) – RAF Type
- West 11 (1963) – Silent
- Dr. Terror's House of Horrors (1965) – Roy Shine (segment "Voodoo") (uncredited)
- The Psychopath (1966) – Briggs
- The Baron (1967) – (episode "Countdown")
- Two Gentlemen Sharing (1969) – Camp Neighbour (final film role)
{{div col end}}
Other works
(21 July 1947) He acted in the musical, "Best Foot Forward," at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Ogunquit, Maine with Edith Fellows, Alice Pearce, Hugh Martin, Michael Hall and Beverly Janis in the cast. John Cecil Holm wrote the book. Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane wrote the music and lyrics.{{cite web|url=http://www.ogunquitplayhouse.org/archive/|title=Archive|website=Ogunquit Playhouse}}
(1952) He acted in Jean Anouilh's play, "Thieves' Carnival", at the Arts Theatre Club in London, England with John Laurie, Robin Bailey, Wyndham Goldie, Judith Furse, Maxine Audley, David Bird, Gerald Harper and Tutte Lemkow in the cast. Roy Rich was the director. John Hotchkis was the musical director.{{cite web|url=http://www.phyllis.demon.co.uk/theatricalia/08plays/plays5059.htm|title=ROB WILTON THEATRICALIA – Other Plays 1950–59|website=phyllis.demon.co.uk|access-date=15 September 2018|archive-date=8 March 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030308112426/http://www.phyllis.demon.co.uk/theatricalia/08plays/plays5059.htm|url-status=dead}}
(1955) He acted in Marcelle Maurette's stage adaptation and translation of Émile Zola's novel, "Therese Raquin", to the stage as "The Lovers", at the Opera House in Manchester, England with Eva Bartok, Sam Wanamaker, Helen Haye, Kynaston Reeves and Peter Copley in the cast. Sam Wanamaker was also the director.
(November 1955 – December 1955) He played Edmund and Borachio respectively, in William Shakespeare's plays, "King Lear" and "Much Ado About Nothing", at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford, England, and on a UK and European tour; with John Gielgud, Peggy Ashcroft, Moira Lister, Helen Cherry, Anthony Nicholls, George Devine, Raymond Westwell, David O'Brien and Richard Easton in the cast. George Devine and John Gielgud were the directors. Isamu Noguchi and Mariano Andreu were the designers. Roberto Gerhard and Leslie Bridgewater were the musical directors.{{cite web|url=https://theatricalia.com/play/y/king-lear/production/xt|title=Production of King Lear – Theatricalia|website=theatricalia.com}}{{cite web|url=https://theatricalia.com/play/1/much-ado-about-nothing/production/xv|title=Production of Much Ado About Nothing – Theatricalia|website=theatricalia.com}}
(1958) He acted in Bernard Kops' play, "The Hamlet of Stepney Green", at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith, London, England with John Fraser, Thelma Ruby, John Barrard and George Selway in the cast.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4bYlDwAAQBAJ&dq=the+hamlet+of+stepney+green+harold+lang&pg=PT119|title=Making a Noise: Getting It Right, Getting It Wrong in Life, Arts and Broadcasting|first=John|last=Tusa|date=22 February 2018|publisher=Orion|isbn=9781474607100|via=Google Books}}
(1959) He acted in Georg Büchner's play, "Danton's Death", at the Lyric Opera House in Hammersmith, London, England in a 59 Theatre Company production with Patrick McGoohan, Patrick Wymark, James Maxwell, John Turner, Fulton Mackay, Peter Sallis, Lee Fox, Maxwell Shaw, Dilys Hamlett, Avril Elgar and June Bailey in the cast. Caspar Wrede was the director.{{cite web|url=http://wymark.org.uk/lang.html |title=Bio |website=wymark.org.uk |format=PDF}}
(March 1959) He acted in Thomas Otway's translation of Molière's play, The Cheats of Scapin, at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith, London, England with Maxwell Shaw, Peter Sallis OBE, Patrick Wymark, Fulton Mackay and Helen Montagu in the cast. Peter Dews was the director.{{cite web|url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1304535/lyric-hammersmith-poster-poster-ae-king-jackson/|title=Lyric Hammersmith poster – A.E. King & Jackson Ltd. – V&A Search the Collections|publisher=Victoria and Albert Museum}}
(1959) He acted in Michael Meyer's translation of Henrik Ibsen's play, "Brand", at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith, London, England with the 59 Theatre Company featuring Patrick McGoohan, Dilys Hamlett, Patrick Wymark, Fulton Mackay, Peter Sallis OBE, Frank Windsor and June Bailey in the cast. Michael Elliott was the director.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2vfOBAAAQBAJ&dq=harold+lang+brand+1959&pg=PA90|title=Post-War British Theatre Criticism (Routledge Revivals)|first=John|last=Elsom|date=14 October 2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317557517|via=Google Books}}
(1965) He directed William Shakespeare's play, "As You Like It", at the Open Air Theatre in Regents Park, London, England with Ann Morrish, Gary Raymond, Phyllida Law, Edward Atienza, John Justin, Andrew Downie and Alfred Burke in the cast. The crew included Peter Rice (designer) and Elisabeth Lutyens (music).{{cite web|url=https://openairtheatreheritage.com/productions/as-you-like-it/WnHmGCMAAENcIBpX|title=As You Like It (1965) – Our Heritage – Open Air Theatre|website=openairtheatreheritage.com}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|0485763}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lang, Harold}}
Category:Male actors from London
Category:British male stage actors
Category:British male film actors
Category:British male television actors
Category:20th-century British male actors