Arthur French (actor)

Arthur Wellesley French Jr.^[1] (November 6, 1931 – July 24, 2021) was an American actor and director, best known for his work in the theatre.

Arthur French
Born	Arthur Wellesley French Jr. (1931-11-06)November 6, 1931 New York City, U.S.
Died	July 24, 2021(2021-07-24) (aged 89) New York City, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Actor, director
Years active	1960s–2021
Spouse	Antoinette Williams[1]
Children	2

Life and career

French was born in Harlem, New York City, on November 6, 1931,^[1] the son of Arthur and Ursilla French, who both emigrated to the U.S. from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.^[2][3]

Throughout a career that spans over fifty years, French is best known for his work on the stage. He worked extensively with the Negro Ensemble Company (NEC) and has played a wide variety of roles. He was also a supporting character in the 1976 comedy film Car Wash.^{[citation needed]}

His later film credits were in 2 Days in New York and Red Hook Summer, both released in August 2012. He died on July 24, 2021, at the age of 89 in Manhattan, New York.^[1]

Selected credits

Theatre

Acting

Year	Production	Role	Theatre(s)	Notes
1962	Raisin' Hell in the Son		Provincetown Playhouse
1969	Ceremonies in Dark Old Men[4]	William Jenkins	St. Mark's Playhouse
1971	Black Girl[5]	Earl	Theatre de Lys
1971	Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death[1]		Ethel Barrymore Theatre
1978	Nevis Mountain Dew[6]	Ayton Morris	St. Mark's Playhouse
1981	The Amen Corner	Brother Boxer	Crossroads Theater Company
1983	You Can't Take It With You[7]	Donald	Plymouth Theatre Royale Theatre
1991	Mule Bone[8]	Rev. Singletary Mayor Joe Clark (understudy)	Ethel Barrymore Theatre
1995	Henry VI[9]	Earl of Salisbury	Theater at St. Clements Church
2001	Fire Drill	Carl	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
	Kickin Summit	Ski	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
	Give Us This Day	Dad	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
	The Border Crossers Lounge	Mother Perez	Urban Stages	Part of "Free Market," a collection of eight short plays.
2005	The Master Builder[10]	Doctor Herdal	Pearl Theatre
2006	Two Trains Running[11]	Holloway	Peter Norton Space	Lucille Lortel Award, Outstanding Featured Actor
2007	Dividing the Estate[12]	Doug	59E59 Theater A
2009	Medea		The Riverside Theatre
	The Book of Lambert		La MaMa etc.
	Dividing the Estate	Doug	Hartford Stage

Directing

Year	Production	Theatre(s)	Notes
1967	One Last Look[13]	Old Reliable Theatre Tavern	One of the first produced plays written by steve carter

Film

Acting

Year	Title	Role
1976	Car Wash	Charlie
1986	'Round Midnight	Booker
1992	Malcolm X[1]	Pullman Porter
1994	Crooklyn	West Indian Store Manager
2012	Where is Joel Baum?	Detective Robertson
2013	2 Days in New York	Lee Robinson
	Movie 43	Old Man
2014	God's Pocket	Lucien "Old Lucy" Edwards

Television

Acting

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986–1987	Another World	Al Edwards	2 episodes
2018	New Amsterdam	Brent	Season 1, Episode 15