Roman Bohnen

• Name — Roman Bohnen • Birth Name — Roman Aloys Bohnen • Born — 24 November 1901 • Birthplace — Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S. • Died — 24 February 1949 • Place of death — Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S. • Resting Place — Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California • Education — University of Minnesota • Occupation — Actor • Years Active — 1931–1949 • Children — 1 • Father — Carl Bohnen

Bohnen was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, the son of Carl Bohnen, a portrait painter. Carl Bohnen has been described as "perennially impoverished" during Bohnen's youth, and Roman Bohnen "spent his youth thinking of ways to keep the family solvent." He attended the University of Minnesota, where he was a cheerleader. After graduating in 1923 with a B.A., Roman served his acting apprenticeship in theater companies in St. Paul and Chicago, eventually spending five years with the Goodman Theatre. At the Goodman, he met fellow actor Hildur Ouse, who became his wife.

• Illustration — Roman Bohnen (left, beside Luther Adler) with members of the Group Theatre in 1938 The Bohnens moved to New York City, where he made his Broadway debut in 1931 in As Husbands Go. Bohnen, In the summer of 1932, at the behest of his friend from the Goodman Theatre Art Smith, he was invited to join the Group Theatre, which became his artistic home for the next nine years. As a member of the Group, he appeared in numerous plays and was active in all aspects of the company. In her book on the Group Theatre, author Wendy Smith observes that Bohnen "fit easily and naturally into the Group" and was appreciated for his sense of humor, generosity and hard work. Smith wrote that Bohnen, a former cheerleader, "was still a cheerleader for any cause that attracted him." On January 2, 1933, Bohnen took over a lead part in the Group's hit play, Success Story by John Howard Lawson. The very next day, Incubator, a play Bohnen had written with John Lyman, opened on Broadway (produced by another organization). Although Incubator received favorable reviews, it closed quickly. In the plays written by his friend, Clifford Odets, for the Group Theatre, he created the roles of Dr. Barnes in Waiting for Lefty, Schlosser in Awake and Sing!, Gus Michaels in Paradise Lost, Tom Moody in Golden Boy and Mr. Tucker in Night Music. Bohnen spent the summer of 1936 at Pine Brook Country Club in Nichols, Connecticut. Pinebrook is best known for that year's summer rehearsal venue of the Group Theatre. Some of the other artists who summered there were Elia Kazan, Harry Morgan, John Garfield, Lee J. Cobb, Will Geer, Clifford Odets, Howard Da Silva and Irwin Shaw. The Group Theatre disbanded in 1941, the same year that Hildur died.

With other former Group Theatre actors, he was co-founder of the politically active Actors' Laboratory Theatre, serving on its executive board. The Actors' Laboratory was accused of Communist leanings, and in February 1948 Bohnen and other members of the group were subpoenaed to appear before a California Senate committee. He and the others refused to answer questions about whether or not they had ever been Communists. Subsequently, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service revoked the Actors' Laboratory's tax-exempt status. Bohnen worked hard to keep the group alive, and was recognized as the "driving force behind all of its activities. The Actors' Laboratory folded in 1950.

The Bohnens had a daughter in 1936, Marina. Hildur died in 1941. While performing in a Lab production, Bohnen collapsed as the curtain fell on the second act. He had been suffering from a heart ailment. Bohnen was survived by his daughter, father, sister, and brother. In her book on the Group Theater, Real Life Drama, author Wendy Smith wrote that the stress of the Lab's difficulties, and his personal problems as a single parent, contributed to his death.

• Walter Wanger's Vogues of 1938 (1937) as Morgan's Lawyer (uncredited) • 52nd Street (1937) as James • Of Mice and Men (1939) as Candy • So Ends Our Night (1941) as Mr. Kern • They Dare Not Love (1941) as Baron Shafter • The Tell-Tale Heart (1941, Short) as Old Man • Appointment for Love (1941) as Dr. Gunther • The Bugle Sounds (1942) as Mr. Leech • Young America (1942) as Mr. Barnes • The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine (1942) as Tom Forbes/Jimmy Valentine • Grand Central Murder (1942) as Ramon • The Hard Way (1943) as Sam Chernen (uncredited) • Edge of Darkness (1943) as Lars Malken • Mission to Moscow (1943) as Mr. Krestinsky • The Song of Bernadette (1943) as François Soubirous • The Hitler Gang (1944) as Captain Ernst Röhm • The Hairy Ape (1944) as Paddy • None But the Lonely Heart (1944) as Dad Pettyjohn • Counter-Attack (1945) as Kostyuk • A Bell for Adano (1945) as Carl Erba • Miss Susie Slagle's (1946) as Dean Wingate • Deadline at Dawn (1946) as Frantic Man with Injured Cat • Two Years Before the Mast (1946) as Macklin • The Hoodlum Saint (1946) as Father O'Doul • Winter Wonderland (1946) as Timothy Wheeler • The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) as Mr. O'Neil • Mr. Ace (1946) as Prof. Joshua L. Adams • The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) as Pat Derry • California (1947) as Col. Stuart • Brute Force (1947) as Warden A.J. Barnes • Song of Love (1947) as Dr. Hoffman • For You I Die (1947) as Smitty • Open Secret (1948) as Roy Locke • Arch of Triumph (1948) as Dr. Veber • Night Has a Thousand Eyes (1948) as Melville Weston, Special Prosecutor • Joan of Arc (1948) as Durand Laxart (Joan's uncle) • Kazan (1949) as Maitlin • Mr. Soft Touch (1949) as Barney Teener (final film role)