Actor
Henry Travers
Born 4 March 1874 · Prudhoe, Northumberland, England, UK — died 18 October 1965
Henry Travers was an English-born character actor who moved from the British and Broadway stage to Hollywood in the 1930s. He specialised in gentle, grandfatherly roles and is best remembered as the angel Clarence in It's a Wonderful Life. He retired from the screen in 1949.
Key films
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)On Cinespective
His best-known role: Clarence, the bumbling guardian angel who helps James Stewart's George Bailey.
Mrs. Miniver (1942)
Wartime drama in which his supporting performance as a gentle station master and rose grower earned an Oscar nomination.
Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
Showed his warmth in a Hitchcock thriller, as a neighbour who obsesses over murder mysteries.
The Invisible Man (1933)
Early Hollywood role in James Whale's horror classic, as the scientist Dr. Cranley.
High Sierra (1941)
Played a kindly, observant relative in a landmark crime drama starring Humphrey Bogart.
Key awards
No major award wins are documented here; he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for Mrs. Miniver (1942).
On Cinespective
Full filmography · 53
- 1933The Invisible Man · as Dr. CranleyActor
- 1933Reunion in Vienna · as Father KrugActor
- 1933Another Language · as Pop HallamActor
- 1933My Weakness · as Ellery GregoryActor
- 1934Death Takes a Holiday · as Baron CesareaActor
- 1934Born to Be Bad · as FuzzyActor
- 1934Ready for Love · as Judge PickettActor
- 1934The Party's Over · as TheodoreActor
- 1935After Office Hours · as CapActor
- 1935Seven Keys to Baldpate · as Lem PetersActor
- 1935Four Hours to Kill! · as Mac MasonActor
- 1935Pursuit · as Tom ReynoldsActor
- 1935Captain Hurricane · as Capt. BenActor
- 1935Maybe It's Love · as Mr. HalevyActor
- 1935Escapade · as ConciergeActor
- 1936Too Many Parents · as WilkinsActor
- 1938The Sisters · as Ned ElliottActor
- 1939Dark Victory · as Dr. ParsonsActor
- 1939Dodge City · as Dr. IrvingActor
- 1939On Borrowed Time · as Dr. EvansActor
- 1939The Rains Came · as Rev. Homer SmileyActor
- 1939You Can't Get Away with Murder · as PopActor
- 1939Stanley and Livingstone · as John KingsleyActor
- 1939Remember? · as Judge MillikenActor
- 1940Edison, the Man · as Ben ElsActor
- 1940Primrose Path · as GrampActor
- 1940Anne of Windy Poplars · as MateyActor
- 1940Wyoming · as SheriffActor
- 1941High Sierra · as PaActor
- 1941Ball of Fire · as Prof. JeromeActor
- 1941A Girl, a Guy, and a Gob · as Abel MartinActor
- 1941The Bad Man · as Mr. HardyActor
- 1941I'll Wait for You · as Mr. MillerActor
- 1942Mrs. Miniver · as Mr. BallardActor
- 1942Random Harvest · as Dr. SimsActor
- 1942Pierre of the Plains · as Percival WellsbyActor
- 1943Shadow of a Doubt · as Joseph NewtonActor
- 1943Madame Curie · as Eugene CurieActor
- 1943The Moon Is Down · as Mayor OrdenActor
- 1944None Shall Escape · as Father WareckiActor
- 1944Dragon Seed · as Third CousinActor
- 1944The Very Thought of You · as Pop WheelerActor
- 1945The Bells of St. Mary's · as Horace P. BogardusActor
- 1945The Naughty Nineties · as Capt. Sam JacksonActor
- 1945Thrill of a Romance · as Hobart GlennActor
- 1946It's a Wonderful Life · as ClarenceActor
- 1946The Yearling · as Mr. BoylesActor
- 1946Gallant Journey · as Thomas LoganActor
- 1947The Flame · as Dr. MitchellActor
- 1948Beyond Glory · as Pop DewingActor
- 1949The Accused · as Blakely - Romley's Assistant (uncredited)Actor
- 1949The Girl from Jones Beach · as Judge BullfinchActor
- 1987James Stewart: A Wonderful Life · as Self (archive footage)Actor
Filmography data from TMDB. The profile text is a draft written for Cinespective.