Edward S. Brophy was born on February 27, 1895 in New York City and
educated at the University of Virginia. He became a bit and small-part
in the movies starting in 1919, but switched to behind-the-scenes work
for job security, though he continued appearing in small parts. While
serving as a property master for
Buster Keaton's production unit at
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Brophy appeared in a memorable sequence in
Keaton's classic
Buster Keaton, der Filmreporter (1928), in which
Buster and Brophy both try to undress simultaneously in a tiny wardrobe
room. Keaton cast Brophy in larger parts in two of his talkies, and by
1934, Brophy abandoned the production end of the movies altogether and
was acting full-time.
Possessed of a chubby, bald-headed face with pop-eyes, and blessed with
(for a comic) a high-pitched voice, Brophy appeared in scores of comic
roles. He also played straight dramatic parts, but was less effective
in them. Typical of his work was his memorable turn providing comic
relief in the small supporting role of the Marine in Manila who adopts
the dog "Tripoli" in Howard Hawks' war
propaganda masterpiece
In die japanische Sonne (1943).
In the 1950s, Brophy began taking fewer roles. His last role was in
director John Ford's Western
Zwei Ritten Zusammen (1961),
during the production of which, he died on May 27, 1960 in Pacific
Palisades, California. He will always be remembered to film-lovers as
the voice of Timothy Mouse in Walt Disney's
classic 1941 cartoon Dumbo, der fliegende Elefant (1941).
