Thurston Hall

Ernest Thurston Hall (May 10, 1882 – February 20, 1958) was an American actor who worked across stage, film, and television over a career spanning more than five decades. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Hall began performing with New England stage companies during his teenage years before traveling to London, where he organized a small theatrical troupe. His early career also took him to New Zealand and South Africa.

Hall made his Broadway debut in 1904 at the age of 22, appearing in the first stage production of Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch. In 1925, he led a troupe to Australia to perform So This Is London. His Broadway career, which extended from 1904 to 1934, encompassed a wide range of productions, including The Only Girl (1914), Have a Heart (1917), Civilian Clothes (1919), The French Doll (1922), Still Waters (1926), Buy, Buy, Baby (1926), Mixed Doubles (1927), Behold the Bridegroom (1927), The Common Sin (1928), Sign of the Leopard (1928), Security (1929), Fifty Million Frenchmen (1929), Everything's Jake (1930), Philip Goes Forth (1931), Chrysalis (1932), and Thoroughbred (1933). His final Broadway season in 1934 was particularly active, with five productions opening that year: Re-Echo, They Shall Not Die, Spring Freshet, All Rights Reserved, and Rain from Heaven.

Hall's screen career began in silent films in 1915, during which he supported Theda Bara in her vamp-costume dramas. Between 1915 and 1957, he appeared in approximately 250 films and became recognized in the later portion of his career for portraying pompous or blustering authority figures. On television, he is best remembered for playing Mr. Schuyler, the boss of Cosmo Topper as portrayed by Leo G. Carroll, in the series Topper, which ran from 1953 to 1956. Hall was married to Quenda Hackett at the time of his death on February 20, 1958.