Melville Cooper

After appearing in a number of stage productions in England, British-born actor Melville Cooper re-established himself in Hollywood in the early 1930s. His first notable performance was in Alexander Korda's swashbuckling comedy "The Private Life of Don Juan," starring Douglas Fairbanks. Cooper's haughty, patrician demeanor was used to great effect in much of his work during this period. Arguably his most famous role came in 1938 when he starred in the sweeping action film "The Adventures of Robin Hood," playing the gutless High Sheriff of Nottingham opposite the dashing Errol Flynn and the nefarious Basil Rathbone. Cooper re-teamed with Flynn and Rathbone again in the World War I aerial combat film "The Dawn Patrol," released that same year. Many of Cooper's roles were in prestigious productions such as Alfred Hitchcock's "Rebecca" and "Pride and Prejudice," but one of his finest roles was playing a suave conman who works with grifter Barbara Stanwyck in an attempt to bilk the gullible Henry Fonda in Preston Sturges's screwball comedy classic "The Lady Eve." One of his best late roles can be seen in the family-oriented comedy "Father of the Bride," starring Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor. By the end of the 1950s, Cooper left Hollywood and returned to the stage.