Did you know that John Barrymore drank so much that he needed cue cards to remember his lines, and that his famous granddaughter Drew Barrymore claims that his body was stolen from the morgue by a trio of performers that included W.C. Fields? John Barrymore was a legendary Hollywood actor that started out in the era of silent films and managed to be just as successful when films with sound were introduced. This made John stand out from many of his silent-film contemporaries, though the actor wouldn’t have such great luck later in his life. As a result of alcoholism, John suffered greatly in the later years of his life and died a shell of his former self. In the years leading up to his death, the actor had become a parody of the man that he used to be.
▬Contents of this video▬ 00:00 - Intro 00:27 - John Barrymore’s Early Life 01:35 - John Showed His First Signs of Hedonism as a Teen 02:56 - John Watched His Father Have a Public Breakdown 04:32 - John Survived the Introduction of Talkies 05:48 - The End of John’s Life Was Humiliating 07:05 - Outro
John was born into a show-business family and was the youngest of three children. The actor made his debut on the stage at the turn of the century, appearing in a play that was directed by his father. John Barrymore was 18 years old at the time, and he would go on to become one of the defining film stars of Hollywood’s earliest years. Before that, however, John became a sensation on Broadway thanks to numerous hit roles in Shakespeare productions.
John retired from Broadway during the 1920s and decided to dedicate himself to the screen full time. The peak of the actor’s success came in 1930 when he appeared in Moby Dick. Over the course of the 1930s, John’s celebrity status became compromised as a result of the actor’s alcoholism. By the end of his life, the actor was a shell of his former self. Join Facts Verse as we explore how John Barrymore’s final years were downright humiliating.
John Barrymore’s Final Years Were Downright Humiliating
By: Facts Verse Title: John Barrymore’s Final Years Were Downright Humiliating Sourced From: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwtdQEY9UG4
