William Gillespie

Acting

William Gillespie

Born — Died

1894-01-23 — 1938-06-23

Place of birth

Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, UK

Known for

Acting

Credits

60 titles

William Gillespie (24 January 1894 – 23 June 1938) was a Scottish actor. Gillespie started in Hollywood films from the silent era. He played in about 180 films between 1915 and 1939, although his appearances were often uncredited. Gillespie frequently appeared in Hal Roach comedies from 1917, usually as stuffy official or manager. He supported such "slapstick comedians" as Charlie Chaplin, Charley Chase, Our Gang, and Laurel and Hardy, but was most prolific supporting Harold Lloyd in 60 films.

Known for

Safety Last! poster
7.7

When a store clerk organizes a contest to climb the outside of a tall building, circumstances force him to make the perilous climb himself.

Safety Last!

1923

They Won't Believe Me poster
6.6

On trial for murdering his girlfriend, philandering stockbroker Larry Ballentine takes the stand to claim his innocence and describe the actual, but improbable sounding, sequence of events that led to her death.

They Won't Believe Me

1947

Sure-Mike! poster
7.0

Vermuda, a saleswoman in a department store, is very late for work. She relies on a ruse to fool the floorwalker, and when that doesn't work, she relies on her friendship with the store manager. But she is soon disillusioned as to where she really stands with the manager.

Sure-Mike!

1925

Isn't Life Terrible? poster
6.1

Charley is plagued with failure and with his brother-in-law, who's allergic to labor. When he decides to take the family on a camping trip, his wife learns about a contest sponsored by a pen company, with the first prize being an ocean trip. To win the prize Charley has to sell those pens - surprisingly he wins, but the ship turns out to be a wreck on it's last trip to the scrapyard. To make things worse they accidentally leave their young daughter on the dock and the ship sails without her. What else can go wrong on this trip?

Isn't Life Terrible?

1925

Cabin in the Sky poster
6.5

When compulsive gambler Little Joe Jackson dies in a drunken fight, he awakens in purgatory, where he learns that he will be sent back to Earth for six months to prove that he deserves to be in heaven. He awakens, remembering nothing and struggles to do right by his devout wife, Petunia, while an angel known as the General and the devil's son, Lucifer Jr., fight for his soul.

Cabin in the Sky

1943

The Immigrant poster
7.3

A European immigrant endures a challenging voyage only to get into trouble as soon as he arrives in New York.

The Immigrant

1917

Film credits

1920s · 42 titles

Safety Last! poster
7.7

When a store clerk organizes a contest to climb the outside of a tall building, circumstances force him to make the perilous climb himself.

Safety Last!

1923

Sure-Mike! poster
7.0

Vermuda, a saleswoman in a department store, is very late for work. She relies on a ruse to fool the floorwalker, and when that doesn't work, she relies on her friendship with the store manager. But she is soon disillusioned as to where she really stands with the manager.

Sure-Mike!

1925

Isn't Life Terrible? poster
6.1

Charley is plagued with failure and with his brother-in-law, who's allergic to labor. When he decides to take the family on a camping trip, his wife learns about a contest sponsored by a pen company, with the first prize being an ocean trip. To win the prize Charley has to sell those pens - surprisingly he wins, but the ship turns out to be a wreck on it's last trip to the scrapyard. To make things worse they accidentally leave their young daughter on the dock and the ship sails without her. What else can go wrong on this trip?

Isn't Life Terrible?

1925

Double Whoopee poster
6.8

Stan and Ollie wreak havoc at an upper class hotel in their jobs as footman (Hardy) and doorman (Laurel). They partially undress blonde bombshell Jean Harlow (in a brief appearance) and repeatedly escort a stuffy nobleman into an empty elevator shaft.

Double Whoopee

1929

Horse Shy poster
7.0

Despite his fear of horses, Eddie Hamilton takes part in a fox hunt, in order to impress the daughter of his host, Colonel Calhoun.

Horse Shy

1928

Scorching Sands poster
5.9

The misadventures of two intrepid explorers in the Egyptian desert.

Scorching Sands

1923

Your Own Back Yard poster
6.5

Your Own Back Yard is a 1925 American short silent comedy film directed by Robert F. McGowan. It was the 43rd Our Gang short subject released. Farina is having a very bad day, especially by his friends-very cruel playing nasty tricks, etc. Heeding his mother's advice to stay "in your own back yard," he does just that, feeding jumping beans to his chickens.

Your Own Back Yard

1925

Dogs of War! poster
5.8

The gang wages war using old vegetables as munitions. Later, they ruin a movie in progress when they double-expose the film.

Dogs of War!

1923

Exit Smiling poster
7.9

The travails of a third-rate traveling theatre company and its wardrobe lady / maid who dreams of stepping in as their melodramatic production's (Flaming Women) female lead.

Exit Smiling

1926

Don Key (Son of Burro) poster
8.0

The head of a big movie studio is pulling his hair out because the company is bankrupt unless they can find a writer for a smash comedy. An aspiring writer is awaiting outside the office and the producer agrees to see him. He listens while the writer tells his story and acts the numerous parts. The story is rotten, but the producer lets him escape while vowing vengeance on any other author who would read his story aloud.

Don Key (Son of Burro)

1926

Do Me a Favor poster
6.0

Marie's inebriated husband refuses to go to bed, so she asks Snub, a homeless man she finds sleeping in the park, to assist.

Do Me a Favor

1922

Wrong Again poster
6.8

Stable hands Stan and Ollie are tending a thoroughbred named "Blue Boy." But when they overhear two men talking about a $5000 reward for the return of the stolen "Blue Boy," they miss the part about it being the painting, not the horse. They take the horse to the owner's house to claim the reward. The owner instructs them to put "Blue Boy" on the piano and Ollie explains, "these millionaires are peculiar."

Wrong Again

1929

Why Worry? poster
6.5

A hypochondriac vacations in the tropics for the fresh air - and finds himself in the middle of a revolution instead.

Why Worry?

1923

It's a Gift poster
6.5

A group of oil magnates are trying to think of new ways to attract business. One of them suggests that they contact the inventor Pollard, who has devised a new gasoline substitute. Pollard himself lives in a home filled with his eccentric inventions. When he gets the message from the oil company, he is excited about the opportunity to demonstrate his innovation.

It's a Gift

1923

Madame Mystery poster
6.5

A female secret agent has gotten ahold of a new type of explosive gas. She has to avoid the efforts of two men who are trying to steal it. They succeed in doing so, but the gas turns out to be not quite what they expected.

Madame Mystery

1926

Grandma's Boy poster
6.4

A meek young man must find the courage within when a rogue tramp menaces his hometown.

Grandma's Boy

1922

No artwork available
6.0

Snub and his wife give up their bungalow and allow another couple to move in. Then it develops that they can't find another home, and must live in an improvised tent.

Raise the Rent

1920

Bromo and Juliet poster
5.8

A young man puts on the play "Romeo and Juliet" as a fundraiser, but has to keep a close eye on his dad, who's had several drinks too many, and a pesky cab driver who's determined to collect his fare.

Bromo and Juliet

1926

No artwork available
6.5

Eddie suspects his wife of having an affair with Snub. Snub, meanwhile, just wants to get to work on time.

Punch the Clock

1922

Among Those Present poster
6.0

An ambitious coat-room checker impersonates an English nobleman.

Among Those Present

1921

Never Weaken poster
6.9

A young man schemes to drum up business for his girlfriend's employer but after seeing her being intimate with another man, he attempts to commit suicide.

Never Weaken

1921

Dr. Jack poster
6.8

Country doctor Jack Jackson is called in to treat the Sick-Little-Well-Girl, who has been making Dr. Saulsbourg and his sanitarium very rich after years of unsuccessful treatment.

Dr. Jack

1922

No artwork available
7.0

'Snub' Pollard as a eccentric movie director.

It's a Joy!

1923

The Rat's Knuckles poster
6.8

Charley Chase is a hapless inventor with a better mouse trap in this silent comedy from 1925.

The Rat's Knuckles

1925

Brothers Under the Chin poster
7.0

Twin "babies" left at an orphanage bear the same birthmark under the chin. One of them is adopted and then the scene shifts to "twenty years later." The other as captain of a sailing vessel needs an extra hand. It does not develop until the end that the well dressed man he has abducted is his own brother.

Brothers Under the Chin

1924

Haunted Spooks poster
6.4

After numerous failed attempts to commit suicide, our hero (Lloyd) runs into a lawyer who is looking for a stooge to stand in as a groom in order to secure an inheritance for his client (Davis). The inheritance is a house, which her scheming uncle "haunts" so that he can scare them off and claim the property.

Haunted Spooks

1920

Is Marriage the Bunk? poster
6.0

Charley has in-laws that look down on him because he's not rich. So, to try to keep up, he rushes out to buy a car—but no matter, they still think he's a drip—as does his wife. Later, when he's given a simple job to do by his boss, he screws it up—and loses face once again with his family.

Is Marriage the Bunk?

1925

White Wings poster
7.2

Pursued by the law, a street cleaner finds refuge by impersonating a dentist.

White Wings

1923

High and Dizzy poster
6.6

A tipsy doctor encounters his patient sleepwalking on a building ledge, high above the street.

High and Dizzy

1920

No artwork available
7.5

Don't Park There was one of a series of two-reel comedies Will Rogers made for producer Hal Roach during the 1923-4 season. The story amounts to little more than a one-joke anecdote, but oddly enough the joke is more relevant now than it was in 1924: this is the tale of a man who can't run a simple errand in the city because he can't find a parking space.

Don't Park There

1924

Should Sailors Marry? poster
5.8

No synopsis available yet.

Should Sailors Marry?

1925

Fifteen Minutes poster
6.0

While his wife is shopping, Snub attempts to take a fifteen minute break.

Fifteen Minutes

1921

Sold at Auction! poster
6.8

Snub gets a job helping an auctioneer. He’s instructed to sell off a household estate, but goes to the wrong house. After everything is sold, the real owner returns, and forces Snub to track down all the buyers to restore the property.

Sold at Auction!

1923

Now or Never poster
6.2

A young man, unaccustomed to children, must accompany a young girl on a train trip.

Now or Never

1921

Wide Open Spaces poster
6.3

Wide Open Spaces is a 1924 Western silent film starring Stan Laurel.

Wide Open Spaces

1924

Get Out and Get Under poster
6.4

The comic adventures of a new car owner.

Get Out and Get Under

1920

I Do poster
6.0

Comic adventures of newlyweds and children.

I Do

1921

Wandering Papas poster
5.4

A cook for bridge constructors is told to collect food for dinner-Ritz style trout, Palmer house rabbit and a 15cm frosted cake. He sets off into the wide open spaces to collect the food, coming into contact with a mad hermit, who hates anybody seeing his daughter, before returning to cook dinner.

Wandering Papas

1926

Her Dangerous Path poster
10.0

Corinne Grant, a wealthy society girl, is forced, upon the physical and financial break-down of her father, to choose her future path in life. Her Chinese cook, Wong, offers to read her future in the sands, and the rest of each episode shows what would happen if she decided upon the different careers open to her, coming back at the finish to the girl and the Oriental pouring over the box of shifting sand. Episode titles: 1. What the Sands Told 2. Fetters of Gold 3. At the Brink 4. Should She Become a Politician's Wife? 5. Should She Marry an Artist? 6. Should She Marry a Rancher? 7. Should She Become a Society Reporter? 8. Should She Marry a Scientist? 9. Should She Become Assistant to a Detective? 10. [unknown].

Her Dangerous Path

1923

The Goofy Age poster
8.0

The hero's loved one is threatened with marriage with a rival, due to the machinations of her mother. The simplest solution of the situation is to marry her, and upon being reminded of it, the hero lays plans for a hurried ceremony in the goldfish store where he works. But as it is a case of true love, things don't move smoothly. Customers interrupt and so forth, as the justice of the peace tries to spiel off the fateful words. The culminating disaster is when firemen smash in the door, but a simple solution presents itself and the lovers, justice of the peace and witnesses make off with the hook and ladder wagon and the knot is tied before they are caught.

The Goofy Age

1924

Innocent Husbands poster
7.0

Despite his faithfulness, Melvin is always under suspicion by wife Mame. Complications erupt when a woman from a party across the hall passes out in Melvin's bedroom just before Mame returns.

Innocent Husbands

1925

Chasing the Chaser poster
6.5

A very good as a faithful husband, whose wife is looking for proof that more than his eyes have been roving. She hires a private detective to provide it.

Chasing the Chaser

1925

1910s · 15 titles

The Immigrant poster
7.3

A European immigrant endures a challenging voyage only to get into trouble as soon as he arrives in New York.

The Immigrant

1917

Here Come the Girls poster
2.0

Bebe and girlfriend go shopping for new corsets. Harold sneaks into the corset shop and a customer asks him to take her measurements - a ticklish task, as the brash young man suddenly becomes playfully bashful.

Here Come the Girls

1918

Bees in His Bonnet poster
NR

Bees in His Bonnet is a 1918 American short comedy film featuring Harold Lloyd. It is presumed to be lost.

Bees in His Bonnet

1918

The Cure poster
6.8

An alcoholic checks into a health spa and his antics promptly throw the establishment into chaos.

The Cure

1917

Hey There poster
6.7

In this early short Harold Lloyd sneaks into a movie studio in order to locate an attractive young lady he's just met at a snack bar. He's retrieved a letter she dropped and wants to return it to her, but it's pretty clear that his interest extends beyond mere politeness. (She's the adorable young Bebe Daniels, so this is easy to understand.) The movie studio setting provides Harold with lots of opportunities to do what comedians do in comedies like this one: flirt with actresses, anger the studio brass, and dash through sets disrupting everything.

Hey There

1918

Take a Chance poster
6.2

It's a classic boy-meets-girl story, boy-loses-girl, boy gets mistaken for an escaped convict and ruthlessly chased by armies of cops across the countryside in a thrill-packed stunt-addled climax.

Take a Chance

1918

A Gasoline Wedding poster
5.8

A rich man's daughter has more suitors than she's interested in, and he's going to marry her off -- even if she doesn't know about it.

A Gasoline Wedding

1918

Move On poster
4.7

Our hero is a police officer who gets involved in a crap game, flirting with a nurse and other amusements.

Move On

1917

Look Pleasant, Please poster
5.8

A photo studio operator seems only interested in flirting with women. Hilarity ensues.

Look Pleasant, Please

1918

Do You Love Your Wife? poster
5.7

Stan plays a janitor at a hotel dropping letters and trying to retrieve them with a vacuum, getting wet, helping a lady shoot her cheating husband and being chased by the police.

Do You Love Your Wife?

1919

The City Slicker poster
5.2

Our hero gets a job at a hotel in the country and proceeds to introduce some changes, installing gadgets and time-saving devices.

The City Slicker

1918

Step Lively poster
4.6

Snub Pollard plays a drunken man-about-town who believes Harold has robbed him. Meanwhile, Bebe has her hands full with a lounge lizard who won't take no for an answer.

Step Lively

1917

Bashful poster
6.8

In order to claim his inheritance, our hero must first produce a wife and family.

Bashful

1917

It's a Wild Life poster
5.0

Harold invades the "Gilded Guzzle" café, where he appropriates a lady's roll of money, hides under a table and impersonates a cigar store Indian.

It's a Wild Life

1918

Somewhere in Turkey poster
6.0

Our hero, a professor in Turkey, challenges a Sultan for the affections of a girl.

Somewhere in Turkey

1918