James Stephenson

A tall, often mustachioed character actor with clipped phrasing and a dignified, intelligent manner, James Stephenson was a typically crisp British type and had acted onstage in his native land for a number of years before being signed by Warner Bros. in Hollywood. He had played in films in England produced by Warner Bros.' subsidiary First National, including such modest fare as "The Man Who Made Diamonds," "The Perfect Crime," and "Transatlantic Trouble" (all 1937) before performing in his first US release, "White Banners" (1938). For several years he played supporting roles in programmers and star vehicles like the Dick Powell musical, "The Cowboy from Brooklyn" (1938) and "B" pictures including a Dick Foran Western, "Heart of the North" (1938), a minor but enjoyable astrology-themed mystery, "When Were You Born?" (1938) and a failed attempt to launch a film series around a well-known cartoon heroine, "The Adventures of Jane Arden" (1939). Stephenson played smooth professional types like doctors and businessmen, alternately sympathetic and criminal, acquitting himself competently in routine roles, though not well-cast in Westerns given his accent.