Arthur French (actor)

Arthur Wellesley French Jr.^[1] (November 6, 1931 – July 24, 2021) was an American actor and director, best known for his work in the theatre.

Arthur French
Born	Arthur Wellesley French Jr. (1931-11-06)November 6, 1931 New York City, U.S.
Died	July 24, 2021(2021-07-24) (aged 89) New York City, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Actor, director
Years active	1960s–2021
Spouse	Antoinette Williams[1]
Children	2

Life and career

French was born in Harlem, New York City, on November 6, 1931,^[1] the son of Arthur and Ursilla French, who both emigrated to the U.S. from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.^[2][3]

Throughout a career that spans over fifty years, French is best known for his work on the stage. He worked extensively with the Negro Ensemble Company (NEC) and has played a wide variety of roles. He was also a supporting character in the 1976 comedy film Car Wash.^{[citation needed]}

His later film credits were in 2 Days in New York and Red Hook Summer, both released in August 2012. He died on July 24, 2021, at the age of 89 in Manhattan, New York.^[1]

Selected credits

Theatre

Acting

Year	Production	Role	Theatre(s)	Notes
1962	Raisin' Hell in the Son		Provincetown Playhouse
1969	Ceremonies in Dark Old Men[4]	William Jenkins	St. Mark's Playhouse
1971	Black Girl[5]	Earl	Theatre de Lys
1971	Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death[1]		Ethel Barrymore Theatre
1978	Nevis Mountain Dew[6]	Ayton Morris	St. Mark's Playhouse
1981	The Amen Corner	Brother Boxer	Crossroads Theater Company
1983	You Can't Take It With You[7]	Donald	Plymouth Theatre Royale Theatre
1991	Mule Bone[8]	Rev. Singletary Mayor Joe Clark (understudy)	Ethel Barrymore Theatre
1995	Henry VI[9]	Earl of Salisbury	Theater at St. Clements Church
2001	Fire Drill	Carl	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
	Kickin Summit	Ski	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
	Give Us This Day	Dad	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
	The Border Crossers Lounge	Mother Perez	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
2005	The Master Builder[10]	Doctor Herdal	Pearl Theatre
2006	Two Trains Running[11]	Holloway	Peter Norton Space	Lucille Lortel Award, Outstanding Featured Actor
2007	Dividing the Estate[12]	Doug	59E59 Theater A
2009	Medea		The Riverside Theatre
	The Book of Lambert		La MaMa etc.
	Dividing the Estate	Doug	Hartford Stage

Directing

Year	Production	Theatre(s)	Notes
1967	One Last Look[13]	Old Reliable Theatre Tavern	One of the first produced plays written by steve carter

Film

Acting

Year	Title	Role
1976	Car Wash	Charlie
1986	'Round Midnight	Booker
1992	Malcolm X[1]	Pullman Porter
1994	Crooklyn	West Indian Store Manager
2012	Where is Joel Baum?	Detective Robertson
2013	2 Days in New York	Lee Robinson
	Movie 43	Old Man
2014	God's Pocket	Lucien "Old Lucy" Edwards

Television

Acting

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986–1987	Another World	Al Edwards	2 episodes
2018	New Amsterdam	Brent	Season 1, Episode 15

References

1. Roberts, Sam (August 5, 2021). "Arthur French, Negro Ensemble Company Pioneer, Dies at 89". The New York Times. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
2. "United States Census, 1940, index and images, Arthur Franch in household of Arthur Franch, Assembly District 22, Manhattan, New York City, New York, New York, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 31-1938, sheet 13A, family 323, NARA digital publication T627, roll 2671". United States: FamilySearch. April 15, 1940. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
3. "U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 2 [database on-line]". Provo, Utah: The Generations Network. 2010. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
4. "Ceremonies in Dark Old Men". New York, New York: Lortel Archives: The Internet Off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved November 25, 2009.
5. "Black Girl". New York, New York: Lortel Archives: The Internet Off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2009.
6. "Nevis Mountain Dew". New York, New York: Lortel Archives: The Internet Off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on September 13, 2007. Retrieved November 25, 2009.
7. "You Can't Take It With You". New York, New York: Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved December 4, 2009.
8. "Mule Bone". New York, New York: Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved December 4, 2009.
9. "Henry VI". New York, New York: Lortel Archives:The Internet off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2009.
10. "The Master Builder". New York, New York: Lortel Archives:The Internet off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on September 11, 2007. Retrieved December 5, 2009.
11. "Two Trains Running". United States: Lortel Archives:The Internet off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on October 19, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2009.
12. "Dividing the Estate". United States: Lortel Archives:The Internet off-Broadway Database. Archived from the original on September 8, 2007. Retrieved December 5, 2009.
13. Carter, Steve (1986). Plays by Steve Carter (First ed.). New York, New York: Broadway Play Publishing, Inc. pp. 81–104. ISBN 0-88145-043-X.

External links

• Arthur French at the Internet Broadway Database
• Arthur French at IMDb
• Arthur French at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Arthur French at the Internet Theatre Database