BIO

Victor McLaglen was born Victor Andrew de Bier Everleigh McLaglen in 1886 in London, England.   His father, a bishop, moved the family to South Africa when McLaglen was still young.

He left home at 14 to join the Army with the intention of fighting in the Second Boer War (1899-1902).   However, much to his chagrin, he was stationed at Windsor Castle and was later forced to leave the regiment when it was discovered he was underage.

In 1900, he moved to Canada, where he earned a living as a wrestler and heavyweight boxer.   One of his most famous fights was against heavyweight champion Jack Johnson.   He toured with a circus which offered $25 to anyone who could last three rounds with him.

McLaglen returned to England in 1913 where he served as an regimental captain during World War I.   He also served as the chief of military police for the city of Baghdad, Iraq.   McLaglen continued to box and was named Heavyweight Champion of the British Army in 1918.

After the end of World War I, he appeared in British silent films, making his first in a starring role for I.B. Davidson in 1920, at the age of 34.   McLaglen moved to Hollywood in 1924 and appeared in his first U.S. silent film in a co-starring role for Vitagraph.

A popular character actor, he received an Academy Award for Actor for his role in John Ford’s The Informer (1935).   Near the end of his career he was nominated again, this time for Actor in a Supporting Role, for his performance opposite John Wayne in The Quiet Man (1952).

After a career spanning more than 110 feature films, his last picture was released in 1958.

Many of his younger brothers also became actors.   They include:

• Arthur McLaglen (1888-1972),
• Clifford McLaglen (1892-1978),
• Cyril McLaglen (1899-1987) and
• Kenneth McLaglen (1901-1979).

McLaglen married three times:

1. Enid Lamont, 1919-1942, two children, widowed.   One child became the film director Andrew V. McLaglen.
2. Suzanne Breuggeman, 1943-1948, divorced;
3. Margaret Pumphrey, 1948-1959.

His grandchildren include:

• Mary McLaglen, producer/production manager;
• Josh McLaglen, producer/assistant director and
• Gwyneth Horder-Payton, director.

He died of a heart attack in Newport Beach, California, in 1959.   He was 72 years old.

Additional biographical information is available at:

NOTED FILMS

Complete filmography at: