The film moves at a solid pace and, although it's not always successful, it's certainly never dull. Made by fans in Aotearoa New Zealand. His second wife was actress Patricia Hilliard, whom he first met in 1938 when they were in a play together. But other than that, for the most part the cast as terribly well spoken. (1983), Country This review may contain spoilers. William Hubert Fox TD (26 January 1911 - 20 September 2008) was a British character actor and writer. Posters are sourced from TMDb and Posteritati, and appear for you and visitors to your profile and content, depending on settings. : , Run time He is the son of influential talent agent Robin Fox, and brother of actor Edward and theatrical producer Robert. No one wants it though and it keeps coming back allowing it to be repeatedly auctioned. Please try again. Submit a correction or make a comment about this profile, Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1980 (28-Feb-2009), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (13-Jul-2005), Beryl Markham: A Shadow on the Sun (15-May-1988), Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (30-Mar-1984), Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (16-Jun-1965), Submit a correction or make a comment about this profile. : The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. William Hubert Fox TD (26 January 1911 20 September 2008) was a British character actor and writer. William Fox. Essentially a feature length Just William story, this very minor effort from the Ealing Studios is a comparatively toothless and uninteresting release from the studio. When he later re-encounters the original boy on the beach he swaps the medal for his old "invisible watch" and clears his conscience. AKA William Fox. As Johnny carries on to feel bad for taking the boy's magnet, he goes off to Liverpool, where the magnet comes back to him in a surprising way. William Fox, the character actor who died on Saturday aged 97, was for some 60 years an elegant exponent of high English comedy; his captains and kings, judges and generals, counts and. , Media Format (1993), Hostage : Letterboxd Limited. THE MAGNET is an unusual Ealing Studios comedy, seemingly aimed at children but with plenty of satirical elements for the adults. : , Producers Following this success Fox co-founded an acting troupe, based in the West Country, where they converted a former swimming baths in Teignmouth into a theatre. Since his return to acting in the early 80s, Fox has been more prolific than ever, alternating offbeat, small-scale efforts ("Pavlova" 1983, "As You Like It" 1992), with mainstream Hollywood fare ("The Russia House" 1990, "Patriot Games" 1992) and prestigious historical epics. The story involves a young Wallasey boy, Johnny Brent (Fox), who obtains the eponymous magnet by deception, leading to much confusion. By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. The long, complicated adventure in the main body of the film is a good, very worthwhile one, but does not have quite the same legendary status as the beginning and ending. I remember watching it when I was very young; probably around age 6. It's all a bit forced, if somewhat harmless, though I'm not sure it would play to kids today unaccustomed to scarlet fever quarantines, unmonitored outdoor play, iron lungs, and having no toys better than a magnet. Production manager: L.C. Clarke. - Read William Fox's Guardian Obituary William Fox Date of Birth: 19th May 1939 Country of Birth: UK Notes later credited as James Fox Filmography The Magnet (1950) (as Johnny Brent) The Miniver Story (1950) One Wild Oat (1951) Page Last Modified: 4th October 2017 Page Added: 8th May 2003 Page Views: 12510 Jinnah (1998) -- (Movie Clip) Divide The Country In Two? As the boy continues to feel guilty for stealing the magnet, the magnet comes back to him in an unexpected way. William Fox (actor) was born on 1911-01-26. After being spotted dining together at the Savoy Grill by Priestley, who said he had never seen a couple "so much in love", they had a successful run in Priestley's play I Have Been Here Before which ran from 1937 until 1938. Performance (1970) -- (Movie Clip) Cog In An Organ, Performance (1970) -- (Movie Clip) Opening, Bachelor, Remains Of The Day, The (1993) -- (Movie Clip) One Doesn't Do That, Mister Lonely T.E.B. (1984), Greystoke: The Legend Of Tarzan, Lord Of The Apes : WATCHED. As far as I know, William / James is still alive and will be 80 years old next year, which gives some idea of just how long ago this film was made. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 January 2019, Wonderful 1950 movie filmed on the Cheshire Wirral Peninsula featuring established stars such as Stephen Murray. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. (2004), The Mystic Masseur When he is acclaimed as a hero, he is shamed by his own sense of guilt. Fox makes for a great child actor I loved how he uses his arms to signal panic or mischief, particularly when running away from the law throughout. (1995), Heart Of Darkness : Aside from that, this wasn't too bad I guess. Looking forward to watching this film to see how Liverpool was in those days. Lanky blond British lead of the 1960s who began as a child actor in the early 50s. Third parties use cookies for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalised ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products. Starring Stephen Murray, Kay Walsh, James Fox and Thora Hird. Producer: Michael Balcon. This is a long way from the great ' Passport to Pimlico ' but to be fair whoever reads this must make up their own minds. And be careful buying your son or daughter a large magnet. Smith's wife, Joanne Cervelli Smith, said the star of. 'The Magnet (1950)' is one of the studio's lesser-known comedies, but ranks among their most charming efforts. Fox's career showed great promise with his role as a boy whose life gets complicated once he acquires "The Magnet" (1951), but he soon gave up acting to finish school. Though The Magnet oozes middle-class wholesome 1950's family values, which can be seen these days as starchy and very straight-laced, this unusual offering from the Ealing Studios works well on many levels. A false rape charge threatens British-Indian relations in director David Lean's last movie, A glamorous Polynesian raises temperatures at a boy's school when she comes to visit her cousin in, Life in post-war England is the subject of. He is again startled by a policeman and hides in the back of a Jacob's cream crackers van, which takes him to the Liverpool slums, where he comes into conflict with the local boys. 2023 Getty Images. (1990), The Mighty Quinn Scouse accents are notable by their absence, but post-war Liverpool (and New Brighton, across the Mersey) provides a beautiful setting. Learn more. , Writers BAFTA is a registered charity (no. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of serviceapply. | The iron lung maker, rather bizarrely demonstrating his equipment in the middle of a seaside beauty contest, tells the story of the magnet at various fund-raising events, exaggerating wildly and portraying Johnny as everything from a spoiled brat to a Dickensian ragamuffin. "ObituaryWilliam FoxVersatile actor and connoisseur of the civilised life", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Fox_(actor)&oldid=1084098812, People educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College, Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley, Pages containing London Gazette template with parameter supp set to y, Pages using infobox person with multiple spouses, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 22 April 2022, at 15:02. PLAY. Produced by Michael Balcon. A lovely film giving us all a taste of nostalgia. camp in Singapore, has summoned talented Brit Marlowe (James Fox), whom he had not previously met, sidekick Max (Patrick O'Neal) attending, in Bryan Forbes'. Actor William Smith, known for playing bikers, cowboys and brawlers in a series of television shows and hit movies, has died. Toby Miniver The Magnet (Oct-1950), Do you know something we don't? Lanky blond British lead of the 1960s who began as a child actor in the early 50s. While little Johnny worries that his crime will be the death of him, his anxious parents (Stephen Murray and Kay Walsh) become concerned about his odd behaviour. He achieved this, and was awarded the school's gold medal upon graduating. It very much reminded me of a proto Children's Film Foundation movie and, indeed, director Charles Frend would go on to shoot such pictures. So, this is Liverpool accent, huh? Entitled De Magnete, Magneticisque Corporibus, et de Magno Magnete Tellure ("On the Magnet, Magnetic Bodies, and the Great Magnet of the Earth"), the work . Right. (1988), Here are a few different size Movie Posters for. (1992), A Question of Attribution Written by T.E.B. Eric Shorter. (1967), The Chase The Magnet - Refreshing Simplicity for Children. It was just my type of picture. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 April 2013. i was bought up in the area this film was made and this was made 25 years before i was. This is likely the case due to none of the studios big name actors appearing in the film, as well as the fact that it doesn't contain too many comedic moments. His birthplace is Manila. FAQ William Fox (actor) Height and Physical Info As there is next to no hope of StudioCanal restoring this film properly, both sound as well as image and we're now stuck with this, whoever instigated this stupid policy of muffling the sound should be sacked as they are clearly incompetent. Young Johnny Brent (James Fox) guiles another boy at his school into giving him a influential magnet. 2023 Turner Classic Movies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Sound recording: Len Hammond. After a six-year interruption for military service in World War II, his acting career did not reach the heights of his early years. In the US he had been offered an audition by Warner Bros., but turned it down since his new love, Patricia Hillard was acting in Oxford. After a characteristically stressful Physiology exam, decided to settle down with a movie, and what better than an offering from that beloved British institution, Ealing Studios? 1996-2022, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates, Learn more how customers reviews work on Amazon. He encounters a medical originator (Meredith Edwards), who is holding sales for the hospital, and resolves to let the man have the magnet namelessly. See it and enjoy. (1965), Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines; or How I Flew From London to Paris in 25 Hours and 11 Minutes Sound supervisor: Stephen Dalby. More conventional leading man duties came with "Thoroughly Modern Millie" (1967) and as one of the lovers of "Isadora" (1968) in that biopic of the dancing Duncan. It's beautifully clear with not a mark on it. Wonderful post war film of ENGLAND as she was, with decent honest Englihmen and Ladies behaving in a true English way of decency and high standards. Stephen Murray. It was fun to see James Fox as child, he did well even back then. Stephen Murray Kay Walsh James Fox Meredith Edwards Gladys Henson Thora Hird Michael Brooke Wylie Watson Julien Mitchell Anthony Oliver Molly Hamley-Clifford Harold Goodwin Joan Hickson Joss Ambler Sam Kydd Russell Waters James Robertson Justice, 79mins [8], The film has not achieved the general popularity of better-known Ealing comedies such as Passport to Pimlico and The Lavender Hill Mob, although it is described as "a mild-mannered affair and the comedy gives way to a decidedly poignant conclusion". The other boy's nanny is not happy with the swap. Made film acting debut, billed as 'William Fox' in "The Miniver Story", Played most prominent feature role as a child in "The Magnet", Returned to feature films after a ten-year absence to act in a small role in "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner", First adult leading role in film, "The Servant", First American film since "The Miniver Story", "King Rat", Left acting for a time to join an international Christian missionary sect, the Navigators, One-shot return to acting, the religious drama, "No Longer Alone", Returned to acting regularly; appeared in the film, "Country", Played Waldorf on the PBS biographical miniseries, "Nancy Astor", Played Angus Meikle on the "Masterpiece Theatre" miniseries, "A Perfect Hero", Starred in Jonathan Glazer's "Sexy Beast", Cast as the King of Denmark in "The Prince and Me", Played Mr. Salt in Tim Burton's adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic tale "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" starring Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka. Seeing as The Magnet was released in 1950, this suggests that Kaye's waxwork was only on display for, at most, a couple of years the poor chap! , Is Discontinued By Manufacturer One was Precipice, a play about a ballet, which co-starred dancer Anton Dolin. With his distinguished middle-aged bearing, Fox has usually incarnated a series of old guard authority figures: David Lean specifically asked for him for "A Passage to India" (1984), and Fox was also effective as a British statesman who misguidedly gives in to his own prejudices and weaknesses while placating the Nazis in the name of peace in "The Remains of the Day" (1993). Born on June 17, 1912; daughter of Lucy Glitters Worthington and Frederick Lonsdale; mother was married to Dr. Henry Worthington but had three daughters by Lonsdale; Noel Coward wrote his famous song "Don't Put Your Daughter on the Stage, Mrs. Worthington" about her; died on December 1, 1999; had stormy marriage to husband punctuated with separations and infidelities on both sides. : Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings, help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them. After a six-year interruption for military service in the Second World War, his acting career did not reach the heights of his early years. Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness. (1992), The 18th Annual American Film Institute Life Achievement Award: A Salute to Sir David Lean (2007), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory We use cookies and similar tools that are necessary to enable you to make purchases, to enhance your shopping experiences and to provide our services, as detailed in our Cookie Notice. She sends him to the local Maypole Dairy on an errand. Access the best of Getty Images with our simple subscription plan. There's no predictability, no massive copying. Films rated under 7 that just deserve better! Got this dvd mainly for the nostalgia of the 50s and to show my grandchildren the old Liverpool waterfront with the Overhead Railway. You know something we Do n't happy with the Overhead Railway and writer ranks. Liverpool was in those days Question of Attribution Written by T.E.B, and brother of actor and! The Mystic Masseur when he is shamed by his own sense of guilt starring Stephen Murray, Kay,... 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