Tom Terriss
actor, director, writer
- Birth name:
- Theodore Herbert Friend Lewin
- Born:
- 1872-09-28, London, England, UK
- Died:
- 1964-02-08, New York City, New York, USA
- Professions:
- actor, director, writer
Biography
London’s foggy autumn welcomed Tom Terriss on 28 September 1872, and from that first breath he seemed destined to orchestrate stories rather than merely live them. Behind the camera he conjured shadows and whispers for *The Mystery of Edwin Drood* in 1914, then traded gas-lit gloom for the bright intrigue of *His Buddy’s Wife* a decade later and crowned the silent era with the playful scandal of *The Naughty Duchess* in 1928. Off-set he shared his life with Mildred Corneille Smith—known to Broadway crowds as Mildred Devere, Follies—an alliance of wit and footlights. Nearly nine decades after his London sunrise, Terriss drew his final curtain in New York City on 8 February 1964, leaving two capitals and countless reels to remember him by.
