Richard Garrick

Biography

Born Richard Thomas O'Brien in Portlaw, Ireland, in 1878, Richard Garrick became an Irish-born American actor and director who worked across the New York stage, silent cinema and, decades later, a second career in sound films as a supporting player.

His family emigrated to Massachusetts when he was a child, where his father, a tailor, settled in North Adams. After serving in the Philippines with the U.S. Army, he turned to acting in New York, appearing in plays such as The Flag Lieutenant. By 1912 he was in Los Angeles, a founding member of The Reel Club, and he acted and directed silent films there, including Colonel Custard's Last Stand (1914).

In 1915 he joined Gaumont and ran its Jacksonville, Florida, studios before founding his own company. Local opposition to the film industry in Jacksonville led him to work in Britain and France. Back in the United States he returned to the stage and, in 1947, reached Broadway with A Streetcar Named Desire, alongside Marlon Brando and Jessica Tandy. He reprised his role in the 1951 film, and went on to take small parts in many productions during the 1950s.

Garrick is remembered mainly as a supporting actor who shared the screen with major names. He taught at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and, in 1930, opened an acting studio in Santa Ana, California. He died in 1962 and was buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego.

Key films

• A Streetcar Named Desire (1951): he reprised the doctor role he had played on stage.
• Viva Zapata! (1952): he plays the Old General in Elia Kazan's drama.
• East of Eden (1955): a brief uncredited turn as Dr. Edwards.
• The Three Faces of Eve (1957): an uncredited role as Mr. Fox, and his final film appearance.