Wilfred Van Norman Lucas (January 30, 1871 â€" December 13, 1940) was
a Canadian American stage actor who found success in film as an actor,
director, and screenwriter.Lucas was born in Norfolk County, Ontario
on January 30, 1871, most likely in the township of Townsend where at
the time his father served as a Wesleyan Methodist minister. He was
the youngest of three sons to be raised by Daniel Lucas and the former
E. Adeline Reynolds, in Townsend and later Montreal, Quebec. Lucas
attended the High School of Montreal and McGill University before
immigrating to America in the late 1880s. His early career there was
that of a baritone singer performing at church functions and at small
venues.Wilfred Lucas eventually made a name for himself performing in
light and grand opera in America and abroad. He made his Broadway
debut on April 4, 1904, at the Savoy Theater playing in both the
curtain raiser "The Blue Grass Handicap" and The Superstition of Sue
in which he played Sue's brother, Percy Flage. Following his 1906 role
in the highly successful play The Chorus Lady, Lucas was recruited to
the fledgling Biograph Studios by D. W. Griffith. At the time, the
film business was still looked down upon by many members of the
theatrical community. In her 1925 book titled When the Movies Were
Young, Griffith's wife, actress Linda Arvidson, told the story of the
early days at Biograph Studios. In it, she referred to Lucas as the
"first real grand actor, democratic enough to work in Biograph
movies."
a Canadian American stage actor who found success in film as an actor,
director, and screenwriter.Lucas was born in Norfolk County, Ontario
on January 30, 1871, most likely in the township of Townsend where at
the time his father served as a Wesleyan Methodist minister. He was
the youngest of three sons to be raised by Daniel Lucas and the former
E. Adeline Reynolds, in Townsend and later Montreal, Quebec. Lucas
attended the High School of Montreal and McGill University before
immigrating to America in the late 1880s. His early career there was
that of a baritone singer performing at church functions and at small
venues.Wilfred Lucas eventually made a name for himself performing in
light and grand opera in America and abroad. He made his Broadway
debut on April 4, 1904, at the Savoy Theater playing in both the
curtain raiser "The Blue Grass Handicap" and The Superstition of Sue
in which he played Sue's brother, Percy Flage. Following his 1906 role
in the highly successful play The Chorus Lady, Lucas was recruited to
the fledgling Biograph Studios by D. W. Griffith. At the time, the
film business was still looked down upon by many members of the
theatrical community. In her 1925 book titled When the Movies Were
Young, Griffith's wife, actress Linda Arvidson, told the story of the
early days at Biograph Studios. In it, she referred to Lucas as the
"first real grand actor, democratic enough to work in Biograph
movies."
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