Known For
Acting
Born
Jan 29, 1882
Died
Oct 14, 1949
Place of Birth
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Credits
55 titles
Fritz Leiber
Biography
Fritz Reuter Leiber Sr. was an American actor. A Shakespearean actor on stage, he also had a successful career in film. He was the father of science fiction and fantasy writer Fritz Leiber Jr., who was also an actor for a time. Leiber and his wife spent much of their time touring in a Shakespearean acting company, known by the 1930s as Fritz Leiber & Co. Leiber made his film bow in 1916, playing Mercutio in the Francis X. Bushman version of “Romeo and Juliet.” With his piercing eyes and shock of white hair, Leiber seemed every inch the priests, professors, musical professors, and religious fanatics that he was frequently called upon to play in films. His many silent-era portrayals included Caesar in Theda Bara's 1917 “Cleopatra” and Solomon in the mammoth 1921 Betty Blythe vehicle “The Queen of Sheba.” He thrived as a character actor in sound films, usually in historical roles. In the film “Champagne Waltz” he portrayed an orchestra maestro; the role required him to play classical music on a violin and jazz on a clarinet. One of Leiber's larger assignments of the 1940s, and his most notable musical role, was as Franz Liszt in the Claude Rains' remake of “Phantom of the Opera” (1943). Leiber appears together with his son Fritz Leiber Jr. in the wedding-feast scene of Greta Garbo's film “Camille” (1936) and in Warner Bros.' “The Great Garrick” (1937). Leiber also appeared with his son Fritz Leiber Jr. in “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1939), but Fritz Leiber Jr. was not credited for his small speaking part. Late in his career, Leiber performed briefly opposite Charles Chaplin as the priest who visits Monsieur Verdoux in his prison cell.
Known For
Filmography
Devil's Doorway
Mr. Poole
Samson and Delilah
Lord Sharif
Bagdad
Emir
Bride of Vengeance
Filippo
Song of India
Nanaram
Inner Sanctum
Dr. Valonius
Another Part of the Forest
Col. Isham
To the Ends of the Earth
Binda Sha
Adventures of Casanova
D'Anneci
Monsieur Verdoux
Father Fareaux
High Conquest
Priest
The Web
Leopold Kroner
Dangerous Venture
Chief Xeoli
Bells of San Angelo
Padre
Humoresque
Hagerstrom
Strange Journey
Prof. Jenner
Angel on My Shoulder
Chemist Who Poisoned Wife (uncredited)
A Scandal in Paris
Painter
Scarlet Street
Evangelist (uncredited)
This Love of Ours
Dr. Bailey
The Spanish Main
Bishop
The Cisco Kid Returns
The Padre
Youth Runs Wild
Judge (uncredited)
Cry of the Werewolf
Dr. Charles Morris
Cobra Woman
Phantom of the Opera
Franz Liszt
First Comes Courage
Dr. Aanrud
Crossroads
Foreign Minister Deval (uncredited)
Aloma of the South Seas
High Priest
Lady with Red Hair
Mr. Foster
The Sea Hawk
Inquisitor
All This, and Heaven Too
Abbe Gallard
The Way of All Flesh
Max
Pack Up Your Troubles
Pierre Ferrand
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Old Nobleman
Nurse Edith Cavell
Sadi Kirschen
They Made Her a Spy
Dr. Krull
Gateway
Dr. Weilander
Flight Into Nowhere
Ti-Ana
The Jury's Secret
John Morrow
The Great Garrick
Horatio in 'Hamlet'
The Prince and the Pauper
Father Andrew
Under Southern Stars
Stonewall Jackson
Champagne Waltz
Franz Strauss
Anthony Adverse
Ouvrard
Sins of Man
Father Prior
Down to the Sea
Gregory Pappas
Hearts in Bondage
Capt. John Ericsson
The Story of Louis Pasteur
Dr. Charbonnet
A Tale of Two Cities
Gaspard