Cyril Delevanti

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Cyril Delevanti
Delevanti in The Phantom of 42nd Street (1945)
Born
Harry Cyril Delevanti

(1889-02-23)23 February 1889
London, England
Died13 December 1975(1975-12-13) (aged 86)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California, US
Other namesCyril Delavanti
Syril Delevanti
OccupationActor
Years active1921–1974
Spouse
Eva Kittie Peel
​
​
(m. 1913; died 1975)​
Children2

Harry Cyril Delevanti (23 February 1889 – 13 December 1975) was an English character actor with a long career in American films, perhaps best know for his portrayal of Nonno, the grandfather in the 1964 film of Tennessee Williams' The Night of the Iguana.[1][2] He was sometimes credited as Cyril Delavanti or Syril Delevanti.[3][4]

Early years

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Delevanti was born on 23 February 1889 in London, to Anglo-Italian music professor Edward Prospero Richard Delevanti and his wife Mary Elizabeth (née Rowbotham).[5][6]

Career

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Delevanti had a career as an actor on the English stage and, after his emigration to the United States in 1921, performed on the American stage throughout the 1920s. His first film appearance was in Devotion (1931). In 1938, credited with his first name misspelled 'Syril', Delevanti portrayed Wing Fu in the serial Red Barry;[4] shortly thereafter, the film's director, Ford Beebe, would marry Delevanti's daughter, Kitty.[7] From the 1940s, Delevanti appeared in many small roles, frequently uncredited, in such films as Phantom of the Opera (1943), Confidential Agent (1945), Deception (1946) and Forever Amber (1947), Charlie Chaplin's Monsieur Verdoux (1947) and Limelight (1952), David and Bathsheba (1951),, Les Girls (1957), Bye Bye Birdie (1963), and Mary Poppins (1964).[8]

In 1957 he played a superstitious king (with John Banner as his concerned valet) in Adventures of Superman.[9] In 1958, Delevanti was cast as the printer Lucius Coin in all twenty-six episodes of the NBC western television series, Jefferson Drum, starring Jeff Richards.[10] He made two guest appearances on Perry Mason during the first and final (ninth) seasons of the series. In 1957 he played florist Mr. Tulloch in "The Case of the Silent Partner".[11] In 1965, he played bookie Craig Jefferson in "The Case of the Silent Six".[12]

Delevanti made guest-starring appearances on Dennis the Menace, US Marshal, The Fugitive,[13] Gunsmoke,[14] The Dick Van Dyke Show,[15] Have Gun – Will Travel,[16] The Tall Man, Bourbon Street Beat, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea,[17] The Virginian, Daniel Boone,[18] Alfred Hitchcock Presents,[19] Mission: Impossible,[20] It Takes a Thief,[21] Ironside, The Untouchables, Science Fiction Theater, The Twilight Zone (in the episodes "A Penny for Your Thoughts", "The Silence", "Passage on the Lady Anne", and "A Piano in the House"),[22] Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (in the episodes "Time for Elizabeth", "Cops and Robbers", and "The Game"),[23][24][25] Peter Gunn,[26] and Dragnet.[27]

He continued to act in films, such as The Night of the Iguana (1964, nominated for a Golden Globe Award as Best Supporting Actor),[2] Mary Poppins (1964), The Killing of Sister George (1968), and Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971).[8]

Personal life

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In January 1913, Delevanti married fellow performer—and recent Arcadians co-star[28]—Eva "Kitty" Peel;[29][30][5][31] they had two children:[5] Kitty Winnifred Delevanti and Cyril Harold Delevanti Jr.[32][33][34] In the early 1950s, they operated a toy shop in the Los Angeles area.[35]

Death

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After losing his wife four months prior,[36] Delevanti died of lung cancer on 13 December 1975, in Hollywood.[1] He was survived by his daughter and by Cyril Jr., who died in November 1977.[37]

Credited filmography

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Obituaries: Cyril Delevanti". Variety. 24 December 1975. p. 47. ProQuest 1286001888. Cyril Delevanti, 86, British-born actor who played the grandfather in the screen version of 'Night of the Iguana,' died Dec. 13 in Hollywood of lung cancer. Delevanti, on the London stage prior to coming to U.S. in 1921 [...] Son and daughter survive
  2. ^ a b "Cyril Delevanti". Golden Globes. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  3. ^ "Cyril Delevanti (a.k.a. Cyril Delavanti) Credits". AFI Catalog. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
  4. ^ a b c Mayer, Geoff (2017). Encyclopedia of American Film Serials. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 248. ISBN 978-0-7864-7762-3. "RED BARRY (1938) [...] The 1935 Neutrality Act forms a key component of the plot. This aspect is articulated in chapter 76ers ("Midnight Tragedy") when Wing Fu (Cyril Delevanti, billed as Syril Delevanti) tells his son 'Hong Kong Cholly (Philip Ahn) that the 'United States does not permit the sale of combat plans to warring nations.'"
  5. ^ a b c Bynum, Kay (22 November 1948). "On Stage and Screen: Delevanti Played With Most of Film Greats". Corpus Christie Times. p.13. Retrieved August 10, 2025. "He was born Feb. 23, 1889, in London, where his father was director of a music school. Cyril intended to be a concert pianist, but his father discouraged him "because there was no money in it. [...] Breaks, good and bad, had much bearing on the career of Cyril Delevanti [...] In the early days of motion pictures his blue eyes were three strikes against him [...] With the development of 'talkies' and improved methods of photography. his years of stage experience opened every studio door in Hollywood, which had suddenly become a city of inarticulate stars. [...] Mrs. Delevanti, too, has a stage background. The former Kittie Peel, she was a well known concert and musical singer and once sang a command performance before the royal family. They were married in 1912 and have two children, Cyril, Jr., a chemist living in New England, and Kitty, wife of Ford Beebe, Hollywood director."
  6. ^ "Cyril Delevanti". MyHeritage. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
  7. ^ "United States, Census, 1940", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K9HL-RRY : Fri Mar 08 04:09:41 UTC 2024), Entry for Ford I Beebe and Kitty W Beebe, 1940.
  8. ^ a b Aaker, Everett (1997). Television Western Players of the Fifties: A Biographical Encyclopedia of All Regular Cast Members in Western Series, 1949 – 1959. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 168. ISBN 978-0-7864-3087-1.
  9. ^ Muir, John Kenneth (2008). The Encyclopedia of Superheroes on Film and Television, 2d ed.. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 570. ISBN 978-0-7864-3755-9. "83. 'The Man Who Made Dreams Come True' [...] A con man claiming he can make the wishes of others come true snares a gullible ruler of a foreign country. Can Superman cure the King's reliance on superstition and save his throne from the flim flam artist? Guest Cast: Cyril Delevanti (King Leo); Keith Richards, John Banner, Sandy Harrison, Hal Hoover, Laurie Mitchell, Nancy Boyd."
  10. ^ Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 528. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
  11. ^ Gianakos, Larry James (1987). Television Drama Series Programming: A Comprehensive Chronicle. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 621. ISBN 9780810818767.
  12. ^ Hill, Ona (1994). Raymond Burr: A Film, Radio, and Television Biography. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 277. ISBN 9780899508719.
  13. ^ Deane, Bill (1996). Following The Fugitive: An Episode Guide and Handbook to the 1960s Televison Series. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 60. ISBN 0-7864-2631-4.
  14. ^ Armstrong, Stephen B. (2011). Andrew V. McLaglen: The Life and Hollywood Career. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-7864-4977-4.
  15. ^ "Cyril Delevanti – Starlights". Detroit Fee Press. Fort Worth Star-Telegram. 4 November 1962. p. TV-19. Retrieved 10 August 2025. "DICK VAN DYKE: Ritchie finds his birth certificate and. much to his dismay, sees that his full legal name is Richard Rosebud Petrie. Rob then must explain how all the in-laws, including his own father (played by Cyril Delevanti) insisted on naming the child (4)."
  16. ^ "Saturday Evening – July 29, 1961". Detroit Free Press. July 23, 1961. p. . Retrieved 10 August 2025.
  17. ^ "Highlights: Music and Drama". Chicago Tribune. July 10, 1966. p. 8.
  18. ^ "Looking Ahead at TV Fare". Staten Island Advance. 14 October 1965. p. 25. Retrieved 10 August 2025. "DANIEL BOONE 7:30 'The Old Man and the Cave' features cute, little Darby Hinton, who finds an old Indian (Cyril Delevanti) awaiting death in a burial cave and "rescues" him. This angers the man's tribe, humiliates the old Indian, and endangers Daniel (Fess Parker), who is to be sacrificed if the old man is not returned to his tribe. But the old man has a trick or two up his sleeve and Mingo (Ed Ames) proves a real life saver with, his whip in an exciting climax."
  19. ^ Karman, Harvey (15 December 1959). "Reviews of Television Shows: Alfred Hitchcock Presents ('Specialty of the House')". The Hollywood Reporter. p. 14. ProQuest 2338238787. John Harrison produced, Norman Lloyd assisted, Edward W. Williams edited, Frederick Herbert scored, Julia Herron designed, George Keymas and Cyril Delevanti supported. The result was an amusing helf-hour.
  20. ^ "Saturday: Carnival to Get An Old Man Out". Tampa Bay Times. 8 October 1966. p. 6-B. Retrieved 10 August 2025. "BEST BET - MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE takes on the gay trappings of a carnival to begin a two parter, 'Old Man Out.' The gentleman in question is a cardinal who for years has been a political prisoner of the Communists. To get near his fortress jail, Steven Hill heads a motley crew of circus performers. [...] Suspense mounts as Landau, using a calliope for a clock, edges close to rescuing the confused father, Cyril Delevanti, only to meet a startling surprise."
  21. ^ "Tuesday April 1". Monrovia Daily News-Post. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
  22. ^ Presnell, Don; McGee, Marty (1998). A Critical History of Television's The Twilight Zone, 1959-1964. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. pp. 84–85, 94, 121, 156–157. ISBN 978-0-7864-3886-0.
  23. ^ "Groucho Marx & Wife, Eden, On 'Hope-Chrysler Theatre'". The Times-Mail. April 18, 1964. p. . Retrieved 11 August 2025. "Groucho Marx and his wife Eden will make their first TV dramatic appearance together in an adaptation of Groucho's own 1948 stage comedy, 'Time for Elizabeth' [...] In the story, Ed Davis (Marx), general manager of a washing machine company — after enduring a pompous boss, Walter Schaeffer (Roland Winters) for 28 years - yearns for leisure. He is impressed by an employee (Cyril Delevanti), retiring to Elizabeth, N. J."
  24. ^ "Bert Lahr Stars As Safecracker On Hope Theatre". The Taylorville Daily Breeze Courier. February 13, 1965. p. 12. Retrieved 11 August 2025. "Cesare attempts to locate his former partners in crime but finds they are all dead. He then surveys the hotel and finds Valentin (Rains), 75, retired actor; Capt. Magro (Cianelli), 80, exarmy officer; Vicenzo (Murray), 77, retired cab driver who is deaf; Mario (Delevanti), 90, forgetful former bookkeeper; and Petro (Qualen), 85, senile and serene. The senior citizens are intrigued by Cesare and beg him to teach them secrets of his profession."
  25. ^ Naomi (September 15, 1965). "What's on the Air". The Times Recorder. p. 12-B. Retrieved 11 August 2025. "CLIFF Robertson, Dina Merrill, Cyril Delevanti, Nehemiah Persoff, and special guest Maurice Evans star in The Game, a drama of gambling for the highest possible stakes, which opens the third season of BOB HOPE PRESENTS THE CHRYSLER THEATRE [...] Quincey is befriended by a venerable bartender, Toulouse (Delevanti) and by chief steward Abelard (Evans)."
  26. ^ Chance, Norman (2011). Who Was Who on TV, Volume 3. Philadelphia, PA: Xlibris. p. 25. OCLC 701808919.
  27. ^ Hayde, Michael J. (2001). My Name's Friday: The Unauthorized But True Story of Dragnet and the Films of Jack Webb. Nashville, TN: Cumberland House. p. 295. ISBN 1-58182-190-5.
  28. ^ "Public Notices: Hippodrome". The Runcorn Guardian. March 5, 1912. p. 1. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
  29. ^ "California, Naturalization Records, 1883-1991", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6RTJ-NFVX : Tue Apr 29 19:02:54 UTC 2025), Entry for Harry Cyril Delevanti and Eva Kitty, 6 Sep 1940.
  30. ^ "England and Wales, Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:26ZL-1Q3 : 13 December 2014), Harry C Delevanti and null, 1913; from "England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing 1913, quarter 1, vol. 1D, p. 23, Southwark, London, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.
  31. ^ "Miss Kitty Peel". Birkenhead News. February 10, 1912. p. 12.
  32. ^ "United States, Census, 1930", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XC87-ZZ8 : Wed Jul 24 00:56:59 UTC 2024), Entry for Arthur ? Delevanti and Mary E Delevanti, 1930.
  33. ^ "New York, Passenger Arrival Lists (Ellis Island), 1892-1925", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J6L9-SZW : Tue Apr 15 05:52:41 UTC 2025), Entry for Kitty Winifred Delevanti and Mrs Peel, 30 Sep 1921.
  34. ^ "Wisconsin, County Naturalization Records, 1807-1992", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6FC4-79BG : Sun Mar 10 11:24:54 UTC 2024), Entry for Cyril Harold Delevanti, Jr., 12 Feb 1941.
  35. ^ Broomfield, Fred (15 October 1951). "Delevanti Would Start Little Theater In Valley". Valley Times. California, North Hollywood. p. 7. Retrieved 27 August 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  36. ^ "California, Deaths and Burials, 1776-2000", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HGWY-FHZM : Mon Jun 09 17:10:52 UTC 2025), Entry for Eva Kittie Delevanti and William Peel, 4 Aug 1975.
  37. ^ "California, Death Index, 1940-1997", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VPHB-JB8 : Tue Feb 25 18:52:01 UTC 2025), Entry for Cyril Delevanti, 14 Nov 1977.
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