It’s hard not to know Edward Everett Horton once you’ve seen him, and, considering the number of classics he practiced his scene-stealing mastery in, I’d be surprised if you haven’t caught him at least once. Of his nearly 200 screen performances, more than 30 of them came during the pre-Code era, and they include bits in classic Lubitsch films like Trouble in Paradise and Design for Living, as well as pre-Code classics like Smarty and The Front Page. He was ubiquitous, the perfect stuffy foe or friend for a handsome leading man, and, on occasion, he played a fussy leading man himself.
Edward Everett Horton’s Pre-Code Filmography
- Wide Open (1930)
- Holiday (1930)
- Once a Gentleman (1930)
- Reaching for the Moon (1930)
- Kiss Me Again (1931)
- Lonely Wives (1931)
- The Front Page (1931)
- Six Cylinder Love (1931)
- Smart Woman (1931)
- The Age for Love (1931)
- The Great Junction Hotel (1931)
- -But the Flesh Is Weak (1932)
- Roar of the Dragon (1932)
- Trouble in Paradise (1932)
- The Woman in Command (1933)
- A Bedtime Story (1933)
- Professional Sweetheart (1933)
- It’s a Boy (1933)
- The Way to Love (1933)
- Alice in Wonderland (1933)
- Design for Living (1933)
- Easy to Love (1934)
- The Poor Rich (1934)
- Success at Any Price (1934)
- Uncertain Lady (1934)
- Sing and Like It (1934)
- Smarty (1934)
- Kiss and Make-Up (1934)
- Ladies Should Listen (1934)
- The Merry Widow (1934)
- The Gay Divorcee (1934)
Studios
- Pathe
- Paramount
- Warner Brothers
Videos of Edward Everett Horton
An interview with Horton from 1977:
Horton and a young Bette Grable share a number in The Gay Divorcee:
Edward Everett Horton Sites and Links
Other Famous Pre-Code Actors
