Editing Henry Wilcoxon (section)

===Early screen work===
[[Image:Cleopatra 1934 film screenshot1.jpg|thumb|right|225px|Wilcoxon and [[Claudette Colbert]] in ''[[Cleopatra (1934 film)|Cleopatra]]'' (1934)]]
In 1931, Wilcoxon made his screen debut as "Larry Tindale" in ''[[The Perfect Lady]]'', followed by a role opposite [[Heather Angel (actor)|Heather Angel]] in ''[[Self Made Lady]]'', alongside [[Louis Hayward]] and others.<ref name="Whizzbang13"/> In 1932, he appeared in a remake of the 1929 film ''[[The Flying Squad (1932 film)|The Flying Squad]]'' (based on the novel by [[Edgar Wallace]]), reprising the role originated by future-[[Alfred Hitchcock|Hitchcock]] regular [[John Longden]].<ref name="Whizzbang13"/> Altogether he made eight films in [[UK|Britain]] prior to 1934.

Also in 1933, "while acting on stage in ''Eight Bells'', a [[talent scout]] for [[Paramount Pictures]] reportedly arranged a [[screentest|screen test]] which came to the attention of producer-director [[Cecil B. DeMille]] in Hollywood."<ref name="Whizzbang13"/> DeMille recalls in his autobiography:

{{blockquote|One of my longest and closest professional and personal associations began because I was impatient about waiting my turn for the use of a projection room at the studio, while I was casting ''[[Cleopatra (1934 film)|Cleopatra]]''. I had already engaged [[Claudette Colbert]] for the title role, but had not yet found a satisfactory [[Mark Antony]] to play opposite her.

However, I did have some film footage of horses that I wanted to see, for possible use in the picture. I took it to the projection room, but found the room in use... While waiting in the booth, I heard, come from the soundtrack of the test film [being shown], a resonant, manly voice, with only a pleasant trace of an English accent... I asked who the young actor was.

'Oh,' I was told, 'he's a young Englishman that Paramount signed from the London stage. Name of Harry Wilcoxon, but the executives don't think Harry is dignified enough, so we're changing his name to Henry Wilcoxon.'

'Harry or Henry,' I said, 'he is Marc Antony.' "<ref>Cecil B. DeMille quoted by [[Don Daynard|Daynard, Don]] ''Henry Wilcoxon'' in Peter Harris (ed.) ''The New [[Captain George's Whizzbang]]'' No. 13 (1971), pp. 2–7</ref>}}

So he was renamed by DeMille for the role of Marc Antony in ''Cleopatra'', and from then on he was '''Henry Wilcoxon'''.

Wilcoxon was next given the lead role of [[Richard I of England|Richard the Lionheart]] in DeMille's big-budget film ''[[The Crusades (1935 film)|The Crusades]]'' (1935) opposite [[Loretta Young]]. That film, however, was a financial failure, "losing more than $700,000".<ref name="Whizzbang13"/> After the lack of success of ''The Crusades'', Wilcoxon's career stalled; although he featured—and starred—in a number of films, most were "minor [[B-movie|B's]] like ''[[The President's Mystery]]'' and ''[[Prison Nurse]]'' for [[Republic Pictures|Republic [Pictures]]]."<ref name="Whizzbang13"/> Wilcoxon himself deemed his worst acting job to be in ''[[Mysterious Mr. Moto]]'' (1938), in which year he played in ''[[If I Were King]]'' and featured in ''[[Five of a Kind]]'' with the [[Dionne quintuplets]].<ref name="Whizzbang13"/>