Anderson Lawler

Anderson Lawler (May 5, 1902 – April 6, 1959) was an American actor and producer whose work spanned film and theatre from the 1920s through the 1950s. Born Sidney Lawler in Russellville, Alabama, he relocated to New York City before 1927 and adopted the professional name Anderson Lawler.

Lawler's stage career began in 1927 with a featured role in Her First Affaire, which opened at the Nora Bayes Theatre in August of that year. His Broadway work continued through 1936 and included appearances in Forsaking All Others and O Evening Star.

In 1929, Lawler left New York for Los Angeles, where he entered the film industry. His screen debut came that same year in River of Romance, and over the following decade he accumulated nearly thirty film credits, the majority in supporting roles. He transitioned away from acting in 1939, moving to the production side of the industry. During his Hollywood years, he maintained close associations with figures including William Haines, George Cukor, Gary Cooper, and Katharine Hepburn.

Among his producing credits was the 1946 film Somewhere in the Night, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and starring John Hodiak, Nancy Guild, and Lloyd Nolan, with Lee Strasberg serving as both screenplay adapter and assistant director. Following that production, Lawler and Strasberg were both transferred to the New York office of Twentieth Century-Fox, where Lawler worked in the talent department. The two men developed a close personal friendship, with Lawler serving as godfather to Strasberg's daughter, Susan Strasberg.

Alongside his work at Fox, Lawler pursued a parallel career as a producer of legitimate theatre in the late 1940s and 1950s. One of those productions, Oh Men, Oh Women, was later adapted into a film by Fox in 1957.

Lawler owned a West Hollywood residence designed by architect Edward B. Rust in the Streamline Moderne style, originally built for Donald L. Linder. After relocating to New York City, he rented the property to actors Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth.

Lawler died unexpectedly of a heart attack on April 6, 1959.