H.B. Warner

Biography

H. B. Warner was an English stage and film actor who started out in the theater and became a leading man in the silent era. Born in London, he was the son of an actor and made his screen debut in 1914 with The Lost Paradise. His biggest success was playing Jesus in Cecil B. DeMille's The King of Kings (1927), a part critics received well. When sound arrived he moved into supporting roles, usually dignified ones. These included Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Lost Horizon (1937), which brought him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, You Can't Take It with You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), The Rains Came (1939), and Topper Returns (1941). He played the druggist Mr. Gower in It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and appeared as himself in Sunset Boulevard (1950). He died in 1958.

83years old at death

Born October 26, 1875London
Died December 21, 1958Woodland Hills
Star sign: ScorpioThe sign runs October 23 to November 21
Henry Byron Charles Stewart Warner-Lickford (birth name)Also credited as Henry Byron Warner and Harry Warner

Movie Career

Films: 23
Career span: 27 years1923 to 1950

Genres

Drama70%, 16 films
Romance39%, 9 films
Comedy30%, 7 films
Crime30%, 7 films
Mystery30%, 7 films

First and latest

Did you know?!

Big break
Warner's greatest success was playing Jesus in Cecil B. DeMille's silent epic The King of Kings in 1927, a role that earned him good reviews.

H.B. Warner movies on Netflix

Sunset Boulevard1950IMDb rating 8.4as H.B. Warner
El Paso1949IMDb rating 5.9as Judge Fletcher
High Wall1947IMDb rating 6.9as Mr. Slocum
It's a Wonderful Life1946IMDb rating 8.6as Mr. Gower
Strange Impersonation1946IMDb rating 6.3as Dr. Mansfield, plastic surgeon
Crossroads1942IMDb rating 6.7as Prosecuting Attorney
All That Money Can Buy1941IMDb rating 7.5as Justice Hawthorne
City of Missing Girls1941IMDb rating 4.9as Captain McVeigh
Topper Returns1941IMDb rating 6.8as Mr. Carrington
Bulldog Drummond's Bride1939IMDb rating 5.9as Colonel Nielson
Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police1939IMDb rating 6.1as Colonel Nielson
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington1939IMDb rating 8.1as Senate Majority Leader
The Rains Came1939IMDb rating 6.9as Maharajah
Bulldog Drummond in Africa1938IMDb rating 6.0as Colonel J.A. Nielson
You Can't Take It with You1938IMDb rating 7.8as Ramsey
Lost Horizon1937IMDb rating 7.6as Chang
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town1936IMDb rating 7.8as Judge May
In Old Santa Fe1934IMDb rating 5.8as Charlie Miller
Supernatural1933IMDb rating 6.1as Dr. Carl Houston
Five Star Final1931IMDb rating 7.3as Michael Townsend
The Divine Lady1928IMDb rating 6.1as Sir William Hamilton
The King of Kings1927IMDb rating 7.3as Jesus, The Christ
Zaza1923IMDb rating 6.6as Bernard Dufresne

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

Top

It's a Wonderful Life1946 Drama, Family, Fantasyas Mr. Gower
IMDb rating 8.6559K votes
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington1939 Comedy, Dramaas Senate Majority Leader
IMDb rating 8.1130K votes
Sunset Boulevard1950as H.B. Warner
IMDb rating 8.4264K votes
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town1936as Judge May
IMDb rating 7.825K votes
The King of Kings1927as Jesus, The Christ
IMDb rating 7.32.7K votes
Lost Horizon1937as Chang
IMDb rating 7.616K votes
You Can't Take It with You1938as Ramsey
IMDb rating 7.831K votes
Five Star Final1931as Michael Townsend
IMDb rating 7.33.0K votes

Most often with

Frank Capra directed five of these films, James P. Hogan two. John Howard appears in four of them, more than any other actor. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

Top

John Howard

James Stewart

Thomas Mitchell

Reginald Denny

E.E. Clive

Edward Arnold

Frank CapraDirector, 5 films James P. HoganDirector, 2 films

Films together

John Howard4 films together, 1937 to 1939
John Howard's page
- Bulldog Drummond's Bride1939IMDb rating 5.9Warner as Colonel NielsonHoward as Captain Hugh C. 'Bulldog' Drummond
- Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police1939IMDb rating 6.1Warner as Colonel NielsonHoward as Captain Hugh C. 'Bulldog' Drummond
- Bulldog Drummond in Africa1938IMDb rating 6.0Warner as Colonel J.A. NielsonHoward as Captain Hugh C. 'Bulldog' Drummond
- Lost Horizon1937IMDb rating 7.6Warner as ChangHoward as George Conway
James Stewart3 films together, 1938 to 1946
James Stewart's page
- It's a Wonderful Life1946IMDb rating 8.6Warner as Mr. GowerStewart as George Bailey
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington1939IMDb rating 8.1Warner as Senate Majority LeaderStewart as Jefferson Smith
- You Can't Take It with You1938IMDb rating 7.8Warner as RamseyStewart as Tony Kirby
Thomas Mitchell3 films together, 1937 to 1946
Thomas Mitchell's page
- It's a Wonderful Life1946IMDb rating 8.6Warner as Mr. GowerMitchell as Uncle Billy
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington1939IMDb rating 8.1Warner as Senate Majority LeaderMitchell as Diz Moore
- Lost Horizon1937IMDb rating 7.6Warner as ChangMitchell as Barnard
Reginald Denny3 films together, 1938 to 1939
Reginald Denny's page
- Bulldog Drummond's Bride1939IMDb rating 5.9Warner as Colonel NielsonDenny as Algy Longworth
- Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police1939IMDb rating 6.1Warner as Colonel NielsonDenny as Algy Longworth
- Bulldog Drummond in Africa1938IMDb rating 6.0Warner as Colonel J.A. NielsonDenny as Algy Longworth
E.E. Clive3 films together, 1938 to 1939
E.E. Clive's page
- Bulldog Drummond's Bride1939IMDb rating 5.9Warner as Colonel NielsonClive as Tenny
- Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police1939IMDb rating 6.1Warner as Colonel NielsonClive as Tenny
- Bulldog Drummond in Africa1938IMDb rating 6.0Warner as Colonel J.A. NielsonClive as Tenny
Edward Arnold3 films together, 1938 to 1941
Edward Arnold's page
- All That Money Can Buy1941IMDb rating 7.5Warner as Justice HawthorneArnold as Daniel Webster
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington1939IMDb rating 8.1Warner as Senate Majority LeaderArnold as Jim Taylor
- You Can't Take It with You1938IMDb rating 7.8Warner as RamseyArnold as Anthony P. Kirby
Frank CapraDirector, 5 films, 1936 to 1946
All films by Frank Capra
- It's a Wonderful Life1946IMDb rating 8.6Warner as Mr. Gower
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington1939IMDb rating 8.1Warner as Senate Majority Leader
- You Can't Take It with You1938IMDb rating 7.8Warner as Ramsey
- Lost Horizon1937IMDb rating 7.6Warner as Chang
- Mr. Deeds Goes to Town1936IMDb rating 7.8Warner as Judge May
James P. HoganDirector, 2 films, 1939
All films by James P. Hogan
- Bulldog Drummond's Bride1939IMDb rating 5.9Warner as Colonel Nielson
- Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police1939IMDb rating 6.1Warner as Colonel Nielson
Also three films together3 more actors
- Jean ArthurMr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), You Can't Take It with You (1938) and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)
- Heather AngelBulldog Drummond's Bride (1939), Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police (1939) and Bulldog Drummond in Africa (1938)
- Neil FitzgeraldBulldog Drummond's Bride (1939), Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police (1939) and Bulldog Drummond in Africa (1938)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.

Box office

What H.B. Warner's films earned in cinemas worldwide.

Top

Combined worldwide box office

$37.5 million

7 of the 23 films have a worldwide figure.

7Worldwide figure
1US gross only
15Figure not found

Top grosser

It's a Wonderful Life1946Mr. Gower$9.6 million

Highest grossing

The seven biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.

1
It's a Wonderful Life1946as Mr. Gower
$9.6M25.7% of the total
2
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington1939as Senate Majority Leader
$9.6M25.6% of the total
3
You Can't Take It with You1938as Ramsey
$7.4M19.8% of the total
4
Sunset Boulevard1950as H.B. Warner
$5.0M13.3% of the total
5
The King of Kings1927as Jesus, The Christ
$2.6M7.1% of the total
6
Crossroads1942as Prosecuting Attorney
$2.3M6.2% of the total
7
Five Star Final1931as Michael Townsend
$822K2.2% of the total