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Howard Da Silva

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Actor

The Resume

    (May 4, 1909-February 16, 1986)
    Born in Cleveland, Ohio
    Birth name was Howard Silverblatt
    Acted in 'Sergeant York,' 'Reunion in France,' 'The Big Shot,' 'The Lost Weekend,' 'Blue Dahlia,' 'Unconquered,' 'They Live by Night,' 'Border Incident,' 'David and Lisa,' 'The Great Gatsby,' '1776,' 'Garbo Talks,' and 'Mommie Dearest'
    Acted in the TV movies, 'The Missiles of October,' 'Verna: U.S.O Girl,' and 'The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover'
    Performed in 'Golden Boy' (1937), 'The Cradle Will Rock' (1937), 'Oklahoma!' (1943), 'Burning Bright' (1950), 'Fiorello!' (1960), '1776' (1969 - 1972), and 'The World of Sholom Aleichem' (1982)
    Made guest appearances on the TV series, 'The Outer Limits,' 'Ben Casey,' 'The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,' 'The Fugitive,' 'Gentle Ben,' 'Mannix, Love,' 'American Style,' 'Kung Fu,' and Archie Bunker's Place
    Narrator for the British TV Program, 'Doctor Who'

Why he might be annoying:

    He was blacklisted.
    He married three times and divorced twice.
    He tried to hide his Jewish ancestry by changing his name to the Portuguese 'Da Silva,' although it did little to make him 'a leading man.'
    He took part in both Joseph Losey's ill-advised remake of the Fritz Lang classic, 'M' and the overblown Joan Crawford hit-piece (and cult classic), 'Mommie Dearest.'
    He filmed scenes as an airport official for Stanley Kramer's 'It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World' comedy but they ended up on the cutting room floor.
    He acted in a film adaptation of Fitzgerald's 'The Great Gatsby' twice; in 1949 with Alan Ladd and in 1974 with Robert Redford (neither very successful as adaptations).
    Robert Taylor testified against him at the HUAC Hearings by saying 'I can name a few who seem to sort of disrupt things once in a while. Whether or not they are communists I don't know. One chap we have currently, I think is Howard da Silva. He always seems to have something to say at the wrong time' (1947).
    He made over 60 films but will only ever be remembered for his portrayal of Benjamin Franklin in '1776.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He is one of the few Hollywood character actors to survive the Hollywood Blacklist and continue to work on film/television for decades.
    He suffered a heart attack during the Broadway run of '1776,' but he recovered enough to be able to play Ben Franklin in the film adaptation.
    Along with Van Heflin and Bill Bendix, he was counted among Alan Ladd's few close friends in Hollywood (they made 4 films together).
    He was nominated for a BAFTA Film Award for Best Foreign Actor for 'David and Lisa' (1962).
    He was nominated for a Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for 'Fiorello!' (1960)
    He won an Emmy for Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Special for 'Verna: U.S.O. Girl' (1978).
    For all the problems with the original 'Gatsby' film, he and Shelley Winters made for the ultimate George and Myrtle Wilson.
    He was the first actor to play the psychotic Jud Fry in the original production of Rodgers& Oscar Hammerstein 'Oklahoma.'
    He was a versatile performer, equally gifted and adept in both serious drama and high-brow comedy.

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 15 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 14 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 72.73% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 20 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 160 Votes: 65.00% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 10 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 13 Votes: 38.46% Annoying