Bonar Colleano
American actor (1924–1958)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bonar William Sullivan (14 March 1924 – 17 August 1958), known professionally as Bonar Colleano, was an American actor, long based in the United Kingdom.[2]
14 March 1924
Bonar Colleano | |
|---|---|
| |
| Born | Bonar William Sullivan 14 March 1924 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | 17 August 1958 (aged 34)[1] Birkenhead, Cheshire, England |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1944–1958 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2, including Robbie McIntosh |
| Relatives | Con Colleano (uncle) Jack Stehlin (great-nephew) |
Early life
Colleano was born Bonar Sullivan in New York City. He was from a well-known Australian circus family and was a nephew of Con Colleano, the first tightrope walker to perform a forward somersault on the wire. He had childhood experiences with the Ringling Brothers Circus and in his family's circus.[3]
He moved to the United Kingdom when he was 12 so his family could appear at the London Palladium.[4] He spent several years performing in music halls. When war broke out in 1939, he began entertaining troops in Britain.[5] In 1941, he was in a revue titled Piccadixie.[6] As a US citizen residing overseas, he was not required to do military service by the US or UK.
Career
Colleano's first important role came with the popular wartime drama The Way to the Stars (also known as Johnny in the Clouds, 1945), playing an American airman.
He played American servicemen in Wanted for Murder (1946), A Matter of Life and Death (1946), and While the Sun Shines (1947).
Colleano played an Italian in One Night with You (1948), and was in Good-Time Girl (1948) and Sleeping Car to Trieste (1948) and Broken Journey (1948). He worked regularly in radio, appearing in a revue Navy Mixture,[7] and had a lead part in Once a Jolly Swagman (1949).
Leading roles
Colleano's reputation shot up when cast in the role of Stanley Kowalski in the original English stage production of A Streetcar Named Desire (1949) at the Aldwych Theatre, London, directed by Laurence Olivier and co-starring Vivien Leigh.[8][9]
His film parts got better. Give Us This Day (1949) was set in the U.S. but shot in England. He was a romantic lead in Dance Hall (1950).
It led to lead roles in films starting with Pool of London (1951) and A Tale of Five Cities (1952). The latter enabled him to display some of his circus skills.[10] He went to the US and starred in a Hollywood production, Stanley Kramer's Eight Iron Men (1952).[11]
He went back to Britain to play the lead in Is Your Honeymoon Really Necessary? (1953), a comedy with Diana Dors, and in Escape by Night (1953).
Support parts
Colleano had another Hollywood role, a support, in Flame and the Flesh (1954), shot in England and Italy.
He went back to support parts in British films with Time Is My Enemy (1954) and The Sea Shall Not Have Them (1955).
Colleano had good support roles in the oddball Shakespeare derivation Joe MacBeth (1955) and Stars in Your Eyes (1956).
Warwick Productions
Warwick Productions used him in Zarak (1956). They liked his work and kept him on for Interpol (1957), Fire Down Below (1957), No Time to Die (1958) and The Man Inside (1958).[12] He was also in Death Over My Shoulder (1958).
Personal life
Colleano married actress Tamara Lees in 1946, but the couple divorced in 1951. His second wife was actress Susan Shaw, who descended into alcoholism after his death. Their son Mark Colleano is also an actor.[13]
In 1950, he fathered future Average White Band drummer Robbie McIntosh. Colleano was not married to McIntosh's mother.
Death
Colleano died in 1958 at the age of 34, when he crashed his sports car (a Jaguar XK140) in Birkenhead shortly after leaving the Queensway Tunnel.[14] He was driving back from Liverpool's New Shakespeare Theatre, where he had been appearing in a stage production of Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?. His passenger, fellow actor and friend Michael Balfour, required 98 stitches,[14] but eventually recovered.[14][15]
Partial stage credits
| Year | Title | Role | Venue | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1943–46 | Sweet and Low | Ambassadors Theatre, London | [9] | ||
| While the Sun Shines | Lt. Mulvaney | UK tour | Replacement | ||
| 1944–46 | Sweeter and Lower | Ambassadors Theatre, London | |||
| 1945 | A Bell for Adano | Sgt. Leonard Borth | Phoenix Theatre, London | ||
| Manchester Opera House, Manchester | |||||
| 1947 | Separate Rooms | Taggert | Strand Theatre, London | ||
| 1948 | Burlesque | Skid | UK tour | ||
| 1949–50 | A Streetcar Named Desire | Stanley Kowalski | Aldwych Theatre, London | ||
| Manchester Opera House, Manchester | |||||
| 1951–52 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Simple Simon | UK tour | ||
| 1952 | The Blue Lamp | Tom Riley | |||
| 1957 | A Hatful of Rain | Johnny Pope | |||
| 1958 | Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? | George MacCauley |
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1944 | Starlight Serenade | Himself | |
| 1945 | The Way to the Stars | Joe Friselli | |
| 1946 | Wanted for Murder | Cpl. Nick Mappolo | |
| A Matter of Life and Death | An American Pilot | ||
| 1947 | While the Sun Shines | Joe Mulvaney | |
| 1948 | One Night with You | Piero Santellini | |
| Good-Time Girl | Micky Malone | ||
| Sleeping Car to Trieste | Sergeant West | ||
| 1949 | Once a Jolly Swagman | Tommy Possey | |
| Give Us This Day | Julio | ||
| 1950 | Dance Hall | Alec | |
| 1951 | Pool of London | Dan MacDonald | |
| A Tale of Five Cities | Bob Mitchell | ||
| 1952 | Eight Iron Men | Pvt. Collucci | |
| 1953 | Is Your Honeymoon Really Necessary? | Cmdr. Laurie Vining | |
| Escape by Night | Tom Buchan | ||
| 1954 | Flame and the Flesh | Ciccio | |
| Time Is My Enemy | Harry Bond | ||
| The Sea Shall Not Have Them | Sgt. Kirby | ||
| 1955 | Joe MacBeth | Lennie | |
| 1956 | Stars in Your Eyes | David Laws | |
| Zarak | Biri | ||
| 1957 | Pickup Alley | Amalio | |
| Fire Down Below | Lt. Sellars | ||
| 1958 | Them Nice Americans | Joe | |
| No Time to Die | The Pole | ||
| Death Over My Shoulder | Joe Longo | ||
| The Man Inside | Martin Lomer |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | In the Zone | Davis | TV film |
| 1957 | ITV Television Playhouse | Sam Pickens | Episode "The Confidence Man" |
| 1958 | East End, West End | 1 episode | |
| Doomsday for Dyson | Jackston | TV film | |
| Sunday Night Theatre | Guy Moore | Episode: "Statue of David" |
