H.B. Warner
Acting
Born: October 25, 1876 · London, England, UK
Died: December 21, 1958 (aged 82)
Highest Rated
Biography
Henry Byron Warner (often credited as H.B. Warner) was an English actor. He was the definitive cinematic Jesus Christ in Cecil B. DeMille's The King of Kings (1927). He was born into a prominent theatrical family on October 26, 1875 in London. His father was Charles Warner, and his grandfather was James Warner, both prominent English actors. He replaced J.B. Warner as Jesus in The King of Kings (1927) when J.B. died of tuberculosis at age 29. (J.B. was not Henry's brother. J.B. had taken the professional last name "Warner" because Henry's family took him in.) Henry Warner's family wanted him to become a doctor, and he graduated from London University but eventually gave up his medical studies. The theater was in his blood, and he studied acting in Paris and Italy before joining his father's stock company, making his debut in the English production of "Drink." It was from his father that he honed his craft. Warner made it to America in the early 1900s, after touring the British Empire. Billed as Harry Warner, he made his Broadway debut in the American colonial drama "Audrey" at Hoyt's Theatre on November 24, 1902, starring James O'Neill, the father of playwright Eugene O'Neill. He was billed as H.B. Warner in his next appearance on Broadway, in the 1906 comedy "Nurse Marjorie." He appeared in 13 more Broadway productions in his career, from the twin-bill of "Susan in Search of a Husband" & "A Tenement Tragedy" (also 1906) to "Silence" in 1925. He moved into motion pictures, making his debut in the Mutual short Harp of Tara (1914). Also in 1914, he appeared in a film written by Cecil B. DeMille for Famous Players Lasky, The Ghost Breaker (1914), in which he had played on Broadway the year before. Warner became a leading man and a star in silent pictures, reaching the zenith of his career playing Jesus in DeMille's The King of Kings (1927). His excellent performance was actually enhanced by the silent screen, allowing the audience to imagine how Jesus would sound. Warner could be extremely moving in silent pictures, notably in the melodrama Sorrell and Son (1927) as a war veteran father who sacrifices all for his son. When talkies arrived, he became a busy supporting player. A favorite of Frank Capra , appeared in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936). Cast again by Capra, he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in Lost Horizon (1937). He also appeared in You Can't Take It with You (1938), and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939). Other major talkies included The Devil and Daniel Webster (1941) and Topper Returns (1941). Other than Jesus, the role he is best remembered role for today is in It's a Wonderful Life (1946), in which he played Mr. Gower, the druggist who is saved from committing a lethal medication error by the young George Bailey (the James Stewart character as a child). H.B. Warner appeared in Sunset Blvd. (1950) as himself. His last credited role was as Amminadab in DeMille's The Ten Commandments (1956), a remake of the earlier silent The Ten Commandments (1923). He last role was an uncredited bit part in Darby's Rangers (1958).
Known for
It's a Wonderful Life
1946
Sunset Boulevard
1950
The Ten Commandments
1956
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
1939
You Can't Take It with You
1938
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
1936
Lost Horizon
1937
All That Money Can Buy
1941
A Tale of Two Cities
1935
The King of Kings
1927
Topper Returns
1941
Five Star Final
1931
Photos (3)
Movies (126)
It's a Wonderful Life
Mr. Gower
Sunset Boulevard
H.B. Warner
The Ten Commandments
Amminadab
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Senate Majority Leader
You Can't Take It with You
Ramsey
Lost Horizon
Chang
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Judge May
All That Money Can Buy
Justice Hawthorne
The Show of Shows
The Victim - Guillotine Sequence (uncredited)
Driftwood
Rev. Hollingsworth
The Adventures of Marco Polo
Chen Tsu
Strange Impersonation
Dr. Mansfield, plastic surgeon
The Resurrection of Christ
2026
The Rains Came
Maharajah
A Tale of Two Cities
Theophile Gabelle
New Moon
Father Michel
The Corsican Brothers
Dr. Enrico Paoli
The King of Kings
Jesus, The Christ
Army Girl
Col. Armstrong
Topper Returns
Mr. Carrington
French Dressing
Phillip Grey
High Wall
Mr. Slocum
Zaza
Bernard Dufresne
Victoria the Great
Lord Melbourne
The Gamblers
James Darwin
The Phantom of Crestwood
Priam Andes
Wedding Rings
Lewis Dike
Nurse Edith Cavell
Hugh Gibson
The Toy Wife
Victor Brigard
Hitler's Children
The Bishop
The Son-Daughter
Sin Kai
Five Star Final
Michael Townsend
Felix O'Day
Felix O'Day
El Paso
Judge Fletcher
The Gray Wolf's Ghost
Doctor West / Harry West
Justice Takes a Holiday
John Logan
Behold My Wife!
Hubert Carter
The Menace
Inspector Tracy
Kidnapped
Angus Rankeiller
The Prince of Thieves
Gilbert Head
Captain Tugboat Annie
Judge Abbott
Moonlight Murder
Godfrey Chiltern
The Ghost Breaker
Warren Jarvis
South of Tahiti
High Chief Kawalima
Action in Arabia
Abdul al-Rashid
Viva Villa!
Man
The First Legion
Father José Sierra
The Judge Steps Out
Chief Justice Hayes
Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime
Ray Jardin
Sorrell and Son
Stephen Sorrell
A Woman of Experience
Hugh Schmidt
One Hour Before Dawn
George Clayton
Wild Company
Henry Grayson
Hellfire
Brother Joseph
Crossroads
Prosecuting Attorney
For a Woman's Honor
Captain Clyde Mannering
Rose of the Rancho
Don Pasqual Castro
The Gracie Allen Murder Case
Richard Lawrence
Rogues' Gallery
Professor Reynolds
Here Comes the Groom
Uncle Elihu
Arrest Bulldog Drummond
Colonel Nielsen
Sorrell and Son
Captain Stephen Sorrell
Charlie Chan's Chance
Inspector Fife
The Reckless Hour
Walter Nichols
Savage Drums
Maou
The Girl of the Golden West
Father Sienna
The Lost Paradise
Reuben Warren
City of Missing Girls
Capt. McVeigh
Liliom
Chief Magistrate
Expensive Women
Melville Raymond
Silence
Jim Warren
The Pagan God
Bruce Winthrop
The Divine Lady
Sir William Hamilton
Journey Into Light
Wiz, the Wino
A Yank in Libya
Herbert Forbes
The Trial of Mary Dugan
District Attorney Galway
Supernatural
Dr. Carl Houston
Unholy Love
Dr. Daniel Gregory
Whispering Smith
'Whispering Smith'
Tiger Rose
Dr. Cusick
The Garden Murder Case
Major Fenwicke-Ralston
The Man Who Turned White
Captain Rand / Ali Zaman
Bulldog Drummond in Africa
Colonel J. A. Nielsen
A Woman Commands
Col. Stradimirovitsch
Conquest
James Farnham
Romance of a Rogue
Bruce Lowry
Faces in the Fog
Defense Attorney Rankins
Blackmailer
Michael Rankin
A Fugitive from Matrimony
Stephen Van Courtlandt
Man-Made Women
Jules Moret
Women in Bondage
Pastor Renz
The Boss of Big Town
Jeffrey Moore
Tom Brown of Culver
Dr. Brown
Let Freedom Ring
Rutledge
Grand Canary
Dr Ismay
Shell 43
William Berner
Cross-Examination
Gerald Waring
Stark Mad
Prof. Dangerfield
Gentleman Joe Palooka
Sen. McCarden
Bulldog Drummond's Bride
Colonel Nielson
Night Alarm
Henry B. Smith
The Doctor's Secret
Richard Garson
Jennie Gerhardt
William Gerhardt
Lux Æterna: The Art of Filmmaking
The Son of God
In Old Santa Fe
Charlie Miller
Along Came Love
Dr. Martin
Prospecting for Petroleum
The Voice of History (voice)
Christopher Bean
Maxwell Davenport
Born to Gamble
Carter Mathews
The Market of Vain Desire
John Armstrong
Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police
Colonel Nielson
Seven Deadly Sins: Wrath
Feodor
Enemy of Women
Col. Eberhart Brandt
When We Were Twenty-One
Richard Carewe
The Princess and the Plumber
Prince Conrad of Daritzia
The Second Floor Mystery
Inspector Bray
The Green Goddess
Major Crespin
Is Love Everything?
Jordan Southwick
The Raiders
Scott Wells
The Furies
Oliver Bedlow
On Your Back
Raymond Pryor
Danger Trail
John Howland
The Argyle Case
Hurley
The Man from Broadway
James Sanford Richardson
God's Man
Arnold L'Hommedieu
The Seventh Sin
Feodor
