Theater and film actor Paul Mooney is known for his work in such cult films as Scarface and The Tale of Louis Pasteur. A successful film career in Hollywood could not overshadow his true passion - acting on the stage. He managed to achieve recognition and become the star of Broadway productions.
Biography
Paul Mooney, née Frederic Meshilem Meyer Weisenfreund, was born on September 22, 1895 in the city of Lemberg in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Now this city is known as Lviv, Ukraine.
Paul was brought up in a creative family of actors Philip and Sally Weisenfreund. When he and his two brothers were young, their parents decided to emigrate to America.
The Yiddish Theater building (now the Village East Cinema) Photo: Beyond My Ken / Wikimedia Commons
In New York, Philip and Sally joined the Yiddish Theater, where the 12-year-old Paul made his debut a few years later. The boy was to play the character of an 80-year-old man. His performance caught the attention of Yiddish Theater founder, theater producer and director Maurice Schwartz. Soon he invited young Paul to his theater.
Career
In 1918 Paul Mooney joined the Yiddish Theater. The young actor mastered the art of makeup - a skill that served him throughout his theatrical and film career. He often played characters older than his age. By 1920, Mooney became the star of the theater, on the stage of which he made his debut. They paid attention to him. Soon the young actor was offered a role in the Broadway production of We Are Americans (1926 - 1927).
Paul Mooney shone on the stage at a time when Hollywood was looking for talented actors. Very soon his performance was appreciated by a representative of the film industry. In 1929, he signed a contract with one of the largest American film studios, 20th Century Fox. It was during this period that Frederick Weisenfreund began to use the stage name Paul Mooney.
American Film Studio 20th Century Fox Photo: Fox Corporation / Wikimedia Commons
His film career began with a performance in The Brave (1929), which earned him an Oscar nomination. But despite the brilliant acting of the actor, the picture turned out to be a failure at the box office. His second film, Seven Faces (1929), also suffered financial ruin. Frustrated by the setbacks, Mooney returned to Broadway.
He reappeared on the big screen in 1932, starring in a series of successful films. In the classic of American gangster cinema "Scarface" Paul Mooney appeared in the form of the brutal mafia Tony Camonte. The film became a box office sensation of the time, striking critics with its cruelty, darkness and an abundance of scenes of violence. Nevertheless, this work propelled the actor to the pinnacle of fame.
Mooney then reincarnated as World War I veteran James Allen in I Am a Fugitive Convict (1932). The image of an impoverished sergeant, who embarked on the path of a life of crime in search of himself, brought the actor a second nomination for the prestigious Oscar.
After the success of movies starring Mooney, America's largest film producer Warner Bros. signed a long-term contract with him. So, Paul Mooney became one of the brightest and most sought-after Hollywood stars of the 1930s.
In 1935, Mooney starred in Black Rage as a coal miner fighting for his rights with trade union organizations. For this performance, he received his third Oscar nomination. In parallel, the actor tried to convince Warner Bros. to create a biographical drama "The Tale of Louis Pasteur". In 1936, a picture with a meager budget about the life of a French microbiologist was presented to the general public. The film received rave reviews from film critics and was a commercial success. And Paul Mooney finally won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
In 1937, the actor took part in the filming of several films at once. After Good Land and The Woman I Love, the biopic The Life of Emile Zola was released. The acclaimed drama about a French novelist won an Oscar for Best Picture, and Mooney received the New York Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor.
Paul Mooney and Erin O'Brien as Moore in The Life of Emile Zola Photo: trailer screenshot (Warner Bros.) / Wikimedia Commons
In 1939, he portrayed Mexican national hero Benito Juarez in the film Juarez. However, the drama, which also starred Hollywood's greatest actress Bette Davis, was not as successful as Mooney's previous biopic.
For his commitment to the acting profession, Paul Mooney was highly respected by his colleagues. He carefully prepared for roles, especially biographical ones. His sincere, bright, powerful performances spoke of the outstanding skill of the actor. But despite his highly successful Hollywood career, his film work attracted fewer stage appearances. Therefore, he decided not to renew the contract with Warner Bros. and returned to the theater.
Warner Bros. Water Tower Photo: Fabio Mori a.k.a BUDA / Wikimedia Commons
In the following years, Mooney performed on stage and also starred in several films and television projects. His theatrical works of the 1940s and 1950s include A Flag is Born (1946), Death of a Salesman (1949) and Inherit the Wind (1955 - 1956).
Among the most recent and notable works of the actor are the comedy about gangsters "Angel on My Shoulder" (1946) and the drama "The Last Angry Man" (1959), for which he received an Oscar nomination.
Mooney has also had several successful television roles. But in 1962, after appearing on the show "Saints and Sinners", he was forced to retire from the profession due to health problems.
Personal life
In real life, Paul Mooney, who shone in the cinema and on the stage, was a very reserved and shy person. He was married for 45 years to the theatrical actress Bella Finkel, whom he married in 1921. The couple were together until the death of Mooney.
Suffering from various diseases, including low vision and rheumatism of the heart, he died on August 25, 1967 at the age of 71.
