Lewis Sealy

William Armiger Sealy Lewis (1851 – March 19, 1931), known professionally as Lewis Sealy,^[1] was an Irish actor and a film exhibitor.

Career

Sealy was a character actor.^[2] A native of Ireland, he worked on the London stage for years. He co-wrote and performed in the play A Heathen Goddess at the West London Theatre in 1894.^[3]

In the 1890s, he was a film exhibitor, known for the "Royal Cinematoscope", which was the name under which he exhibited Birt Acres' Kineopticon.^[4]^[5]^[6]

He first came to New York in 1908, working as a stage manager and occasional actor as he had in London. His first play in New York was Captain Brassbound's Conversion. He had been a stage director for Lily Langtry and Olga Nethersole.^[7]

Having left family in Ireland and England, he apparently returned to work as a stage actor in London, before travelling once more to New York around 1915 to begin a career in film.

His film career included appearances in a number of silent features, in The Witching Hour (1916). A Variety review noted that Sealy "brought a dignity commensurate with the role".^[8]

Death

He died on March 19, 1931. He was survived by a daughter and two sons. He was buried at Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York.^[9]^[7]

In popular culture

Sealy was portrayed by Sean O'Bryan in Chaplin (1992).

Stage work

London

As a stage manager:

As You Like It (St James' Theatre; February 24, 1890 - April 30, 1890)
Esther Sandraz (St James' Theatre; May 3, 1890 - June 7, 1890)
Your Wife (St James' Theatre; June 26, 1890 - July 7, 1890)
Miss Hoyden's Husband (Shaftesbury Theatre; July 4, 1890)

As an actor:

A Heathen Goddess (also co-writer; West London Theatre; October 12, 1894)
The Man in the Iron Mask (The Adelphi, March 11, 1899 - May 20, 1899) as Officer ^[10]
The Chetwynd Affair (Royalty Theatre; August 29, 1904 - September 24, 1904)
The Merchant of Venice (Terry's Theatre; March 9, 1905 - March 11, 1905) ^[11]
Fanny's First Play (Little Theatre April April 19, 1911 - December 29, 1911; Kingsway Theatre December 30, 1911 December 20, 1912) as Cecil Savoyard
John Bull's Other Island (Kingsway Theatre, December 26, 1912 - March 1, 1913) as Corney Doyle ^[12]

Broadway

Margaret Schiller (January 31, 1916 – Closing date unknown)
The Fountain of Youth (April 1, 1918 – April 1918)
A Marriage of Convenience (May 1, 1918 – June 1918)
King Richard III (March 6, 1920 – March 1920) as Lord Hastings
The Awful Truth (September 18, 1922 – January 20, 1923) as Jayson
Merry Wives of Gotham (January 16, 1924 – April 1924) as Pomeroy
Lass O'Laughter (January 8, 1925 – February 1925) as Richards
The Merchant of Venice (January 16, 1928 – March 1928) as Balthasar
Dishonored Lady (February 4, 1930 – May 1930) as Sims

Filmography

Barbara Frietchie (1915) as Judge Frietchie
The Unborn (1916) as Mr. Worthy
The Witching Hour (1916) as Justice George Prentice
The Primitive Call (1917) as John Malcolm
Draft 258 (1917) (credited as Lewis Sealey)
His House in Order (1920)
The Fatal Hour (1920) as Felix (credited as Louis Sealey)
A Virgin Paradise (1921) as Peter Latham (credited as Lewis Seeley)

References

^ Room, Adrian (2014-01-10). Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins, 5th ed. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-5763-2.
^ Morrison, Michael A. (1997-09-28). John Barrymore, Shakespearean Actor. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62028-4.
^ "A Heathen Goddess". The Era. 1894-10-20. p. 12. Retrieved 2020-08-01.
^ "Collins's". The Era. 1896-11-14. p. 18. Retrieved 2020-08-02.
^ "Hammersmith Varieties". The Era. 1897-04-03. p. 18. Retrieved 2020-08-02.
^ Barnes, John (1976). The beginnings of the cinema in England. New York: Harper & Row. pp. 74–76. ISBN 0-06-490317-6. OCLC 2686691.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
^ ^a ^b "Lewis A. Sealy, Actor, Dies". New York Times. 21 Mar 1931. p. 14 – via Proques..
^ "Film Reviews: The Witching Hour". Variety. Vol. 44, no. 13. Los Angeles. Nov 24, 1916. p. 30 – via Proquest.
^ "Obituary". Variety. March 25, 1931. p. 69 – via Proquest.
^ Wearing, J. P. (2013-11-21). The London Stage 1890–1899: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-9282-8.
^ Wearing, J. P. (2013-12-05). The London Stage 1900-1909: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-9294-1.
^ Wearing, J. P. (2013-12-19). The London Stage 1910-1919: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-9300-9.

External links

Lewis Sealy at IMDb
Lewis Sealy at the Internet Broadway Database
Lewis Sealy at Find a Grave
Lewis Sealy at Who's Who of Victorian Cinema

[1] Room, Adrian (2014-01-10). Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins, 5th ed. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-5763-2.

[2] Morrison, Michael A. (1997-09-28). John Barrymore, Shakespearean Actor. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62028-4.

[3] "A Heathen Goddess". The Era. 1894-10-20. p. 12. Retrieved 2020-08-01.

[4] "Collins's". The Era. 1896-11-14. p. 18. Retrieved 2020-08-02.

[5] "Hammersmith Varieties". The Era. 1897-04-03. p. 18. Retrieved 2020-08-02.

[6] Barnes, John (1976). The beginnings of the cinema in England. New York: Harper & Row. pp. 74–76. ISBN 0-06-490317-6. OCLC 2686691.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)

[:0-7] "Lewis A. Sealy, Actor, Dies". New York Times. 21 Mar 1931. p. 14 – via Proques..

[8] "Film Reviews: The Witching Hour". Variety. Vol. 44, no. 13. Los Angeles. Nov 24, 1916. p. 30 – via Proquest.

[9] "Obituary". Variety. March 25, 1931. p. 69 – via Proquest.

[10] Wearing, J. P. (2013-11-21). The London Stage 1890–1899: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-9282-8.

[11] Wearing, J. P. (2013-12-05). The London Stage 1900-1909: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-9294-1.

[12] Wearing, J. P. (2013-12-19). The London Stage 1910-1919: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-9300-9.

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