Pedro de Cordoba (September 28, 1881 – September 16, 1950) was an American actor.

Pedro de Cordoba
Cordoba, c. 1909
Born
Pietro de Cordoba

(1881-09-28)September 28, 1881
New York City, US
DiedSeptember 16, 1950(1950-09-16) (aged 68)
Resting placeHoly Cross Cemetery, Culver City
OccupationActor
Years active1901–1951
Spouses
Antoinette Glover
(m. 1917; died 1921)
Eleanor M. Nolan
(m. 1928)

Biography

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Katharine Cornell and Pedro de Cordoba in the 1924 Broadway production of George Bernard Shaw's Candida

De Cordoba was born in New York City to parents who were French and Cuban in origin. He was a classically trained theatre actor who confessed he did not enjoy appearing in silent films nearly as much as he liked working on stage, but his career during the silent film era was extensive.

In 1913 he was a member of the resident summer stock cast at Elitch Theatre in Denver, Colorado.[1][2]

His first film was Cecil B. DeMille's version of Carmen (1915), and he soon became a regular leading man in Hollywood. His Broadway career cast him with such stage actresses as Jane Cowl and Katharine Cornell.

In the sound era, his deeply resonant speaking voice made him perfectly suited to talking pictures and was active as a character actor in Hollywood, from the mid-1930s through to the end of his life. He was most often cast as aristocratic, or clerical characters of Hispanic origin, as in The Keys of the Kingdom (1944), because of his last name as well as his royal bearing. On rare occasions, he would be cast in the role of a villain. His "living skeleton" sideshow character hides fugitive Robert Cummings (and Priscilla Lane) in his carnival wagon overnight in the Alfred Hitchcock film Saboteur (1942).

He was a devout Catholic and served for a time as president of the Catholic Actors Guild of America. The last film in which he appeared, a political drama set in an unnamed South American dictatorship, Crisis (1950), was released shortly after his death.

Selected filmography

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With Marjorie Rambeau in the play Sadie Love by Avery Hopwood (1915), later made into a 1919 film starring Billie Burke.
 
Pedro de Cordoba, Marion Davies, and Forrest Stanley in a scene still from the 1922 silent drama The Young Diana.
 
As Antoine in Escape to Paradise (1939)
Year Film Role Director Notes
1915 The Little White Violet Phillip Randall Silent; Short
1915 Jeanne of the Woods Hugh Travers N.W.M.P. Silent; Short
1915 Carmen Escamillo Cecil B. DeMille Silent
1915 Temptation Julian Cecil B. DeMille Silent
1916 Maria Rosa Ramon Cecil B. DeMille Silent
1916 Just a Song at Twilight Carlysle Turner Silent
1917 Sapho Flamant Hugh Ford Silent
1917 One Law for Both Count de Fernac Ivan Abramson Silent
1917 Barbary Sheep Benchaalal Maurice Tourneur Silent
1917 Runaway Romany Zinga George W. Lederer Silent
1918 A Daughter of the Old South Pedro de Alvarez Émile Chautard Silent
1919 The New Moon Prince Michail Koloyar Chester Withey Silent
1919 The Dark Mirror Mario Silent
1920 The World and His Wife Don Severo Robert G. Vignola Silent
1920 The Sin That Was His Father Aubert Hobart Henley Silent
1921 The Inner Chamber Dr. George Danilo Edward José Silent
1922 The Young Diana Dr. Dimitrius Robert G. Vignola Silent
1922 When Knighthood Was in Flower Duke of Buckingham Robert G. Vignola Silent
1923 Enemies of Women Atilio Castro Alan Crosland Silent
1923 Fires of Fate Prince Ibrahim Silent
1923 The Purple Highway Joe Renard Henry Kolker Silent
1923 I Will Repay Paul Deroulede Henry Kolker Silent
1924 The Desert Sheik Prince Ibrahim Tom Terriss Silent
1924 The Bandolero Dorando Tom Terriss Silent
1925 The New Commandment Picard Howard Higgin Silent
1929 Hunt the Tiger short
1935 The Crusades Karakush Cecil B. DeMille
1935 Condemned to Live Dr. Anders Bizet Frank R. Strayer
1935 Captain Blood Don Diego Michael Curtiz
1935 Professional Soldier Stefan Bernaido Tay Garnett
1936 Rose of the Rancho Gomez Marion Gering
1936 Robin Hood of El Dorado Hacendado Wanting to Cooperate William A. Wellman uncredited
1936 Moonlight Murder Swami Edwin L. Marin
1936 Frankie and Johnny Undetermined Supporting Role Chester Erskine[3]
John H. Auer[3]
uncredited
1936 Trouble for Two Sergei J. Walter Ruben
1936 The Devil-Doll Charles Matin Tod Browning
1936 Anthony Adverse Brother Francois Mervyn LeRoy
1936 His Brother's Wife Dr. Capolo W. S. Van Dyke
1936 Ramona Father Salvierderra Henry King
1936 The Garden of Allah Gardener Richard Boleslawski uncredited
1937 Maid of Salem Mr. Morse Frank Lloyd
1937 Girl Loves Boy Signor Montefiori W. Duncan Mansfield
1937 Damaged Goods Dr. Edward B. Walker Phil Goldstone
1937 The Firefly Spanish General Robert Z. Leonard uncredited
1938 International Settlement Maurice Zabello Eugene Forde
1938 Gold Diggers in Paris Mons. Cambret Busby Berkeley uncredited
1938 Keep Smiling J. Howard Travers Monty Banks
1938 Storm Over Bengal Abdul Mir Sidney Salkow
1938 Dramatic School LeMaistre in "Joan of Arc" Robert B. Sinclair uncredited
1938 Heart of the North Father Claverly Lewis Seiler
1939 Devil's Island Marcal William Clemens
1939 Winner Take All Pantrelli Otto Brower
1939 Juarez Riva Palacio William Dieterle
1939 Man of Conquest Oolooteka George Nicholls Jr.
1939 Chasing Danger Gurra Din Ricardo Cortez
1939 Five Came Back Latin Ambassador John Farrow uncredited
1939 Range War Padre Jose Lesley Selander
1939 Law of the Pampas Jose Valdez Nate Watt
1939 Charlie Chan in City in Darkness Antoine Herbert I. Leeds
1939 Escape to Paradise Don Miguel Erle C. Kenton
1939 The Light That Failed Monsieur Binat William A. Wellman
1940 My Favorite Wife Dr. Kohlmar Garson Kanin
1940 Earthbound Minister Irving Pichel
1940 The Ghost Breakers Havez George Marshall
1940 The Sea Hawk Capt. Mendoza Michael Curtiz
1940 South of Pago Pago Chief Alfred E. Green
1940 Before I Hang Victor Sondini Nick Grinde (ad Nick Grindé)
1940 The Mark of Zorro Don Miguel Rouben Mamoulian
1940 The Phantom Submarine Henri Jerome Charles Barton
1941 Romance of the Rio Grande Don Fernando de Vega Herbert I. Leeds
1941 Blood and Sand Don Jose Alvarez Rouben Mamoulian
1941 Million Dollar Baby Verali, Orchestra Conductor Curtis Bernhardt uncredited
1941 Aloma of the South Seas Raaiti Alfred Santell
1941 The Corsican Brothers Count Gravini Gregory Ratoff
1941 Paris Calling Speaker Edwin L. Marin uncredited
1942 Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake Feenou John Cromwell
1942 Shut My Big Mouth Don Carlos Montoya Charles Barton
1942 Saboteur Circus Troupe Alfred Hitchcock
1942 The Falcon Takes Over Irving Reis
1943 Tarzan Triumphs Patriarch Wilhelm Thiele
1943 White Savage Candlemaker Arthur Lubin
1943 Background to Danger Old Turk Raoul Walsh uncredited
1943 For Whom the Bell Tolls Colonel Miranda Sam Wood
1943 The Song of Bernadette Dr. LeCramps Henry King
1944 Uncertain Glory Executioner Raoul Walsh uncredited
1944 Once Upon a Time Lepidopterist Alexander Hall uncredited
1944 The Falcon in Mexico Don Carlos Ybarra William Berke
1944 Kismet Meuzin William Dieterle uncredited
1944 The Keys of the Kingdom Father Gomez John M. Stahl scenes deleted
1944 Tahiti Nights Tonga Will Jason uncredited
1945 The Picture of Dorian Gray Blue Gate Fields Pianist Albert Lewin uncredited
1945 In Old New Mexico Father Angelo Phil Rosen
1945 Club Havana Charles, Headwaiter Edgar G. Ulmer
1945 They Were Expendable Priest John Ford scenes deleted
1945 San Antonio Ricardo Torreon David Butler
Robert Florey (uncredited)
Raoul Walsh (uncredited)
1945 Adventure Felipe Victor Fleming
1946 Night in Paradise Magus Arthur Lubin uncredited
1946 Cuban Pete Perez Jean Yarbrough
1946 A Scandal in Paris Priest Douglas Sirk
1946 Swamp Fire Tim Rousseau William H. Pine
1946 Two Years Before the Mast Don Sebastian John Farrow uncredited
1946 The Beast with Five Fingers Horatio Robert Florey
1947 Carnival in Costa Rica Papa Castro Gregory Ratoff
1947 Robin Hood of Monterey Don Carlos Belmonte Christy Cabanne
1947 Green Dolphin Street Priest Victor Saville uncredited
1948 The Time of Your Life Arab Philosopher H. C. Potter
1948 Mexican Hayride Señor Martinez Charles Barton
1948 Adventures of Don Juan Pachecho Vincent Sherman uncredited
1949 Daughter of the West Chief Wykomas Harold Daniels
1949 Omoo-Omoo, the Shark God Chief Tari Leon Leonard
1949 The Daring Caballero Padre Leonardo Wallace Fox
1949 Joe Palooka in the Counterpunch Museum Caretaker uncredited
1949 Samson and Delilah Bar Simon Cecil B. DeMille
1950 Comanche Territory Quisima George Sherman
1950 The Lawless Mr. Garcia Joseph Losey
1950 Crisis Father Del Puento Richard Brooks uncredited
1951 Oh! Susanna Pactola Joseph Kane uncredited
1951 Cuban Fireball Don Perez William Beaudine
1951 When the Redskins Rode Chief Shingiss Lew Landers final film role

Radio appearances

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Year Program Episode/source
1937 Lux Radio Theatre Madame Butterfly
1946 Hollywood Star Time The Song of Bernadette[4]

References

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  1. ^ "Pedro de Cordoba (1913) – Historic Elitch Theatre". hetden.org. Retrieved 2024-01-19.
  2. ^ "Pedro de Cordoba (1913) – Historic Elitch Theatre". historicelitchtheatre.org. Retrieved 2024-09-08.
  3. ^ a b "Frankie and Johnnie Credits". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29.
  4. ^ "Those Were the Days". Nostalgia Digest. 41 (2): 32–41. Spring 2015.
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