It is a rare thing that I cry over the death of a celebrity, but when I heard that Norman Lloyd had died on May 11 2021 at the age of 106, I shed several tears. I realize that 106 is a ripe old age to live to. I realize that Mr. Lloyd had a full life, appearing on Broadway, in film, on radio, and on television. His career lasted nearly 90 years and his marriage to his beloved wife Peggy lasted 75 years, until her death in 2011. He worked with such legends as Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, and Alfred Hitchcock. Still, in my selfishness I had hoped we might have Norman Lloyd a bit longer. It was not simply because he was a living repository of entertainment history. It was not simply because he was an immensely talented actor and an incredible public speaker. It was because he was an impeccable gentleman filled with congeniality, warmth, and an incredible wit. In some ways he seemed as much like a friend's beloved uncle as he did a legendary star. Indeed, it seems to me that classic film buffs are mourning Norman Lloyd's death much more than many bigger named stars.
Norman Lloyd was born Norman Perlmutter on November 8 1914 in Jersey City, New Jersey. He grew up in Brooklyn. His mother loved the theatre, and so she took him to elocution lessons to get rid of his Brooklyn accent. She also enrolled him in lessons for singing and dancing. His debut came when he was still a child, performing "Father, Get the Hammer, There's a Fly on Baby's Head" at a local ladies club. As a child he performed in vaudeville and at women's clubs, and he was a professional performer by age nine. He made his debut on Broadway when he was still a teenager, in the play
Crime in 1927. At age 15, while still in high school, he had started studies at New York University, but he left after his sophomore year.
It was in the early Thirties that he apprenticed with the Civic Repertory Theatre in New York City, the home of the stage company of actress Eva La Gallienne. In 1935 he appeared in the play
Noah on Broadway. He acted as part of the Work Progress Administration's Federal Theatre Project. This included the Living Newspaper Unit of the Federal Theatre Project of the WPA, which dramatized current affairs. He appeared in the Living Newspaper Unit's production of
Power on Broadway in 1937. He met Orson Welles and John Houseman trough the Living Newspaper Unit, and they asked him to join their new acting company, the Mercury Theatre. He appeared in the Mercury Theatre's 1938 productions
Julius Caesar and
Shoemaker's Holiday. In the late Thirties Norman Lloyd appeared in a variety of broadcasts of New York City experimental television station W2XBS, including the production
The Streets of New York in 1939. In 1940 he appeared on Broadway in
Medicine Show, a production staged by Jules Dassin. On radio he appeared on
Columbia Workshop in the October 27 1937 episode "I've Got the Tune" and on
The Listener's Playhouse in the June 13 1940 episode "No Program Tonight, or The Director's Dilemma."
Norman Lloyd made his film debut in the short "The Forgotten Man" in 1941. His feature film debut would be an auspicious one, playing Frank Fry in Alfred Hitchcock's movie
Saboteur (1942). It would the beginning of a long friendship between Messrs. Lloyd and Hitchcock. In the Forties Norman Lloyd would also appear in Alfred Hitchcock's film
Spellbound (1945). During the decade he also appeared in the movies
The Unseen (1945),
Within These Walls (1945),
The Southerner (1945),
A Walk in the Sun (1945),
A Letter for Evie (1946),
Young Widow (1946),
The Green Years (1946),
The Beginning or the End (1947),
No Minor Vices (1948),
Calamity Jane and Sam Bass (1949),
Reign of Terror (1949),
Scene of the Crime (1949),
Buccaneer's Girl (1949), and
The Flame and the Arrow (1950). Norman Lloyd continued appear on Broadway, appearing in the productions
Liberty Jones,
Village Green, and
Ask My Friend Sandy. He appeared on radio in such shows as
Columbia Workshop,
Cavalcade of America,
Words at War,
Arthur Hopkins Presents,
Suspense, and
Columbia Presents Corwin.
In the Fifties Norman Lloyd appeared on television in the shows
The United States Steel Hour,
Kraft Television Theatre,
On Trial,
General Electric Theatre,
One Step Beyond,
New Comedy Showcase, and
Alfred Hitchcock Presents. He also became a television producer during the decade. In 1957 he became an associate producer on
Alfred Hitchcock Presents. In 1960 he also produced an episode of
Startime. He also began directing television, including episodes of the shows
Chevron Playhouse,
Gruen Guild Theatre,
The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse, and
Omnibus, as well as several episodes of
Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Norman Lloyd appeared in the movies
Flame of Stamboul (1951),
M (1951),
He Ran All the Way (1951),
The Light Touch (1952), and
Limelight (1952). He appeared on Broadway in
King Lear;
Madam, Will You Walk;
The Golden Apple;
Measure for Measure; and
The Taming of the Shrew.
Norman Lloyd spent most of the Sixties as a television producer. In the early part of the decade he continued to serve as an associate producer on
Alfred Hitchcock Presents. He served as a producer and executive producer on the hour-long continuation of
Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. He was an executive producer on the show
Journey into the Unknown and a producer on the show
The Name of the Game. He appeared in episodes of both
Alfred Hitchcock Presents and
The Most Deadly Game. He directed episodes of
Alfred Hitchcock Presents and
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and the TV movies
Companions in Nightmare and
The Smugglers.
In the Seventies Norman Lloyd was a producer on several TV movies, including such telefilms as
What's a Nice Girl Like You...?,
The Bravos,
Incident at Vichy,
The Carpenters,
The Last of Mrs. Lincoln, and
Philemon. He directed the
Columbo episode "Lady in Waiting," as well as such TV movies as
Awake and Sing,
The Carpenters,
Knuckle,
Philemon, and
Actor. He guest starred on the show
Night Gallery;
O' Hara, U.S. Treasury; and
Kojak. He appeared in the TV movies
The Scarecrow,
Gondola,
The Dark Secret of Harvest Home, and
Beggarman, Thief. He appeared in the films
Audrey Rose (1977),
FM (1978), and
The Nude Bomb (1980).
It was in 1982 that Norman Lloyd began playing the role of Dr. Daniel Auschlander, the Chief of Services at St. Eligius Hospital on the classic TV show
St. Elsewhere. He remained with the show for the entirety of its run. He also guest starred on the shows
Quincy, M.E.;
The Paper Chase;
The Twilight Zone;
Murder, She Wrote; and
Wiseguy. He was a producer on the syndicated series
Tales of the Unexpected. He directed episodes of
Tales of the Unexpected; and
Insight;. He appeared in the movies
Jaws of Satan (1981) and
Dead Poets Society (1989).
In the Nineties Mr. Lloyd was a regular on the short-lived sitcom
Home Fires and on the science fiction series
Seven Days. He guest starred on the shows
Civil Wars;
Star Trek: The Next Generation;
Murder, She Wrote;
The Practice; and
Wings. He appeared in the TV movies
Fail Safe. He appeared in the movies
Kabuto (1991),
The Age of Innocence (1993), and
The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (2000). He appeared in the short subject "The Song of the Lark."
In the Naughts Norman Lloyd guest starred on
The Practice and
Modern Family. From the Naughts into the Teens he appeared in the movies
In Her Shows (2005),
A Place for Heroes (2014), and
Trainwreck (2015).
Norman Lloyd worked extensively with Turner Classic Movies. He attended every single TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood except one. He also attended the TCM Classic Cruise in 2011 and 2013. Mr. Lloyd was well known for his talent for storytelling as well as his remarkable memory.
Norman Lloyd had an utterly unique career. He did nearly everything one could in the entertainment industry. He acted on stage, on radio, on film, and in television. He produced TV shows and TV movies. He directed TV shows and TV movies. What is more, he served as a living repository of information on the entertainment industry during the Golden Age of Hollywood and beyond. Not only was his career remarkably long, perhaps longer than any other performer, but he was also prolific for most of that career.
As an actor Norman Lloyd was a singular talent. Throughout his career he gave a number of great performances, beginning with his feature film debut in
Saboteur. In Jean Renoir's
The Southerner he played the rather odd, somewhat dull nephew of Henry Devers (J. Carroll Naish), Finley. In
Spellbound he played Mr. Garmes, one of the inmates at the mental hospital Green Manors. In Charlie Chaplin's
Limelight he played Mr. Bodalink, the dance instructor. In
Dead Poets Society he played the overly traditional headmaster Gale Nolan. His television performances were no less remarkable than his appearances on film. In the comedic
Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode "Design for Loving," he played a frustrated husband who gets a robot duplicate of himself to spend time with his wife. In the
Murder , She Wrote episode he played an old friend of main character Jessica Fletcher. If Mr. Lloyd is well remembered as Dr. Auschlander on
St. Elsewhere, it is not simply because it is one of his later roles, but because he was so very good in it. Norman Lloyd played a wide variety of roles, from those who were mildly neurotic to those who were downright mentally disturbed, from villains to heroes.
Of course, Norman Lloyd worked behind the scenes as well. He was an associate producer on
Alfred Hitchcock Presents and a producer on
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. He directed episodes of everything form
Alfred Hitchcock Presents to several television movies. And he did all of this while continuing to act.
Norman Lloyd is being mourned by the classic film community in a way usually reserved for much bigger names. This is not because he worked with some of the biggest names in film history or even because he was one of the last ties to the Golden Age of Hollywood. It is because he was such a remarkable man. He worked extensively with TCM and it was not unusual to see him a the TCM Classic Film Festival. As someone who was a regular at the TCM Classic Film Festival, I then have several friends who had the opportunity to meet him in person. Every single one of them said the same thing. Norman Lloyd was congenial and charming, and possessed a great sense of humour and an incredible wit. He was a man who realized his fans loved him and who loved them back. In the end, Norman Lloyd was not simply an incredible talent with a remarkably long and diverse career, he was a true gentleman well known for his friendliness and kindness. For that TCM fans and classic film buffs will miss him.
