American actor (1876–1962)For other people named Victor Moore, see Victor Moore (disambiguation).

Victor Fred Moore (February 24, 1876 – July 23, 1962) was an American actor of stage and screen, a major Broadway star from the late 1920s through the 1930s. He was also a writer and director, but is best remembered today as a comedian, playing timid, mild-mannered roles. Today's audiences know him as the star of a Christmas-themed movie that has become a perennial: It Happened on 5th Avenue (1947). Moore plays a vagrant who occupies a millionaire's mansion -- without the millionaire's knowledge -- while the owner is vacationing.

Contents

• 1 Career
• 2 Personal life
• 3 Legacy
• 4 Filmography
  • 4.1 Silent films
  • 4.2 Sound films
• 5 Radio appearances
• 6 References
• 7 External links

Career

Victor Moore appeared in 21 Broadway shows and more than 50 films. His first appearance on Broadway was in Rosemary (1896). He also appeared in George M. Cohan's Forty-five Minutes from Broadway, which opened January 1, 1906, and its sequel, The Talk of New York (1907). He went on to star in shows such as Oh, Kay! (1926) as Shorty McGee, Hold Everything! (1928) as Nosey Bartlett, Gershwin's Of Thee I Sing (1931) as Vice-president Alexander Throttlebottom, Let 'Em Eat Cake (1933), Cole Porter's Anything Goes (1934) as Moonface Martin, and Irving Berlin's Louisiana Purchase (1940) as Oliver P. Loganberry. Moore often appeared with actor William Gaxton, with Gaxton's self-*ured slicker playing opposite Moore's worried friend.

Moore's talent was first recognized by screenwriter Beatrice deMille. He made his film debut in 1915. He starred in three films that year, two of which were directed by Cecil B. DeMille – Chimmie Fadden and Chimmie Fadden Out West. He also appeared in Swing Time (1936) with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Make Way for Tomorrow (1937), The Heat's On with Mae West, Duffy's Tavern (1945), Ziegfeld Follies (1946), On Our Merry Way (1948), A Kiss in the Dark (1949), and We're Not Married (1952), working with Ginger Rogers for a second time. His last screen appearance was a role as a plumber in The Seven Year Itch (1955).

He worked in film twice with Bob Hope, first in Louisiana Purchase (1941) and again in Star Spangled Rhythm (1942). In the film Ziegfeld Follies (1946), Moore enacted the famous "Pay the Two Dollars" sketch (in which Moore is arrested on a minor charge, only to have his lawyer steamroll the case into higher courts). Edward Arnold played the William Gaxton lawyer role.

Moore made a guest appearance as himself on The Martin and Lewis radio show on August 16, 1949, and was a regular (as himself) on The Jimmy Durante Show.

In 1945 Moore appeared in the Daffy Duck cartoon Ain't That Ducky. He was so pleased with his caricature he offered to add his voice free of charge -- on the condition that the animators draw him with a little more hair.

Personal life

He was married twice – first to actress Emma Littlefield from June 23, 1903, until her death on June 23, 1934, and then to Shirley Paige on January 16, 1942, when Moore was 65 and Paige was 20. The marriage was not publicly announced for a year and a half. They remained married until Victor Moore's death 20 years later.

He had three children with his first wife: an adopted son Victor, Jr., Ora Victora, and Robert Emmett.

Victor Moore was well liked by his colleagues. In 1915, among the actors' colony in Long Island, New York, he established a social group called L.I.G.H.T.S. (Long Island Good Hearted Thespian's Society), based in Freeport. The membership included many show-business notables, including John Philip Sousa, Irving Berlin, Al Jolson, Will Rogers, and the Ringling Bros.. Moore noted that people in show business often had to work during the Christmas season, so he ins*uted annual "Christmas in July" celebrations especially for actors.

Moore died of a heart attack on July 23, 1962. He was 86 years old. He is interred at Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York, United States.

Legacy

The Victor Moore Bus Terminal and business arcade at the New York City Subway's Roosevelt Avenue / 74th Street station in Jackson Heights, Queens was named for him when it opened in 1941. In 2005, the arcade was replaced by an Intermodal Transportation Complex serving the same subway and bus lines.

Filmography

The Clown (1916) Nutty Knitters (1917) Moore in trailer for Louisiana Purchase (1941)

Radio appearances

References

External links

• Biography portal

• Victor Moore at IMDb
• Victor Moore at the Internet Broadway Database
• Victor Moore at Find a Grave
• Victor Moore papers, 1864–1958 Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library.