Tenen Holtz

Tenen Holtz

Born: February 17, 1887
Died: July 1, 1971
in Volin - Russia
Elihu "Elye" Tenenholtz was born in the Russian hamlet of Azran, near the city of Rovne, in 1887 and came to the US at the age of ten. His first appearance in amateur Yiddish theatricals occurred in 1903, in staged readings of the works of Yiddish author Sholom Aleichem, the first person to do that. He augmented his theater appearances by writing for and editing a Yiddish satirical magazine under the pen-name "Moishe McCarthy". In 1916 he made the leap to the professional Yiddish stage and, befriended by the great doyenne Bessie Thomashevsky, helped her pen her memoirs, the first publication documenting a Yiddish actor's life. By 1920 he was appearing on both the Yiddish art stage with Maurice Schwartz and on Broadway, quickly rising to the top leadership of the Hebrew Actors' Union, the first arts union in America. In 1925 he co-founded a theater company with Celia Adler, half-sister of Luther Adler and "Method" teacher Stella Adler. In 1926 he was summoned to Hollywood and given a five-year contract at MGM. Like most Jewish actors, when he arrived in Hollywood he changed his name (choosing to bifurcate it into "Tenen Holtz"). During that time he regularly appeared in films alongside such stars as Greta Garbo, Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow and Marion Davies and under directors like King Vidor and Victor Fleming. This period would prove to be Tenenholtz's most prolific and would account for the majority of the 50+ films in which he would appear.

While in Hollywood he helped jump start its fledgling Yiddish theater, founding a popular Yiddish theater company that included other transplanted Yiddish actors including Muni Weisenfreund (aka Paul Muni, father and son Rudolph Schildkraut and Joseph Schildkraut. When his contract at MGM ended, he moved over to Warner Brothers where he made films with Leslie Howard under the direction of Michael Curtiz. By the late 1930s the only calls he got were from Poverty Row studios, so Tenenholtz moved to nearby Monrovia and opened a chicken ranch. Though he would occasionally go back in front of the camera, he retired from film. By the time TV emerged, he landed a few roles on shows such as Perry Mason (1957) and Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955). He died in 1971.

Movies for Tenen Holtz...

Title: The Barbara Stanwyck Show
Character: Bronsky
Released: September 19, 1960
Type: TV
The Barbara Stanwyck Show is an American anthology drama television series which ran on NBC from September 1960 to September 1961. Barbara Stanwyck served as hostess, and starred in all but four of the half-hour productions. The four she did not star in were actually pilot episodes of potential series programs which never materialized. Stanwyck won the Emmy Award in 1961 for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Series. Three of the shows in which Stanwyck starred were an attempt at spinning off a dramatic series of her own, in which she appeared as "Josephine Little", an American woman running an import-export shop in Hong Kong. The series, produced at Desilu Studios, was directed by Stuart Rosenberg. The Barbara Stanwyck Show lasted one season. It aired at 10 p.m. Eastern on Mondays opposite Jackie Cooper's military sitcom Hennesey on CBS and the second half of Gardner McKay's Adventures in Paradise on ABC.
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Title: Peter Gunn
Released: September 22, 1958
Type: TV
Peter Gunn is an American private eye television series. Filmed in a film noir atmosphere and featuring Henry Mancini music that could tell you the action with your eyes closed, Peter Gunn worked in style. Known as Pete to his friends and simply as Gunn to his enemies, he did his job in a calm cool way.
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Title: Perry Mason
Character: Mr. Gilfain
Released: September 21, 1957
Type: TV
The cases of master criminal defense attorney Perry Mason and his staff who handled the most difficult of cases in the aid of the innocent.
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Title: Perry Mason
Character: Otto Joseph
Released: September 21, 1957
Type: TV
The cases of master criminal defense attorney Perry Mason and his staff who handled the most difficult of cases in the aid of the innocent.
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Title: Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Character: Sol Dankers
Released: October 2, 1955
Type: TV
A television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock featuring dramas, thrillers, and mysteries.
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Henry Goes Arizona
Title: Henry Goes Arizona
Character: Boris - a Ranch Hand (uncredited)
Released: December 8, 1939
Type: Movie
A New Yorker moves West when he inherits an Arizona ranch.
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Mutiny on the Blackhawk
Title: Mutiny on the Blackhawk
Released: July 31, 1939
Type: Movie
Story deals with slave-running between Hawaii and California in 1840, featuring a wild mutiny aboard a slave ship on the high seas, the bartering of natives for slavery in a tropical paradise, and battle scenes between enraged California settlers and the Mexican Army.
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Bridal Suite
Title: Bridal Suite
Character: Hotel Runner at Train Station
Released: May 26, 1939
Type: Movie
A carefree playboy with an aversion to marriage falls for a lass he meets in the French Alps.
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Let Freedom Ring
Title: Let Freedom Ring
Character: Hunky (uncredited)
Released: February 24, 1939
Type: Movie
A Harvard man fights a railroad baron with a disguise and the power of the press.
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Cipher Bureau
Title: Cipher Bureau
Character: Simon Herrick
Released: October 25, 1938
Type: Movie
The younger brother of an officer in a secret government code-breaking unit gets involved with a gang of spies and a beautiful double agent.
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International Crime
Title: International Crime
Character: Starkhov
Released: April 23, 1938
Type: Movie
The second and final Grand National Pictures film to feature The Shadow, played again by Rod La Rocque. In this version, Lamont Cranston is an amateur detective and host of a radio show with his assistant Phoebe (not Margo) Lane. Cabbie Moe Shrevnitz and Commissioner Weston also appear.
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Nothing Sacred
Title: Nothing Sacred
Character: Tearful Waiter (uncredited)
Released: November 25, 1937
Type: Movie
When a small-town girl is incorrectly diagnosed with a rare, deadly disease, an unknowing newspaper columnist turns her into a national heroine.
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British Agent
Title: British Agent
Character: Lenin
Released: September 15, 1934
Type: Movie
An Englishman falls in love with a Russian spy.
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Hollywood Mystery
Title: Hollywood Mystery
Character: Benjamin Vogel
Released: June 20, 1934
Type: Movie
A PR man for a low-budget movie studio comes up with what he believes is the perfect gimmick--to make a gangster picture with a real mobster in the lead role.
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Money Means Nothing
Title: Money Means Nothing
Character: Mr. Silverman
Released: June 14, 1934
Type: Movie
At Joe's Roadside, a popular but rundown New York roadhouse where the wealthy and not-so-wealthy hang out, a wealthy Manhattan girl and a struggling Brooklyn boy meet and fall in love. She marries him against the wishes of her family, believing that love can solve everything, but she soon wonders if she made the right choice when she finds herself living in a manner, and with the kinds of people, she hadn't counted on.
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Dinner at Eight
Title: Dinner at Eight
Character: Butler (uncredited)
Released: December 22, 1933
Type: Movie
An ambitious New York socialite plans an extravagant dinner party as her businessman husband, Oliver, contends with financial woes, causing a lot of tension between the couple. Meanwhile, their high-society friends and associates, including the gruff Dan Packard and his sultry spouse, Kitty, contend with their own entanglements, leading to revelations at the much-anticipated dinner.
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The Chief
Title: The Chief
Character: Bald Henchman at Cabin
Released: November 3, 1933
Type: Movie
The dim-witted son of a heroic fire chief tries to follow in his late father's footsteps, only to become the unknowing pawn of corrupt politicians.
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Big Executive
Title: Big Executive
Character: Pawnbroker
Released: October 19, 1933
Type: Movie
Big Executive
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Bombshell
Title: Bombshell
Character: White - Lola's Agent (uncredited)
Released: October 13, 1933
Type: Movie
A glamorous film star rebels against the studio, her pushy press agent and a family of hangers-on.
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Broadway to Hollywood
Title: Broadway to Hollywood
Character: Booking Agent
Released: September 15, 1933
Type: Movie
In this through-the-years saga about a show business family, the fame of husband and wife vaudeville headliners of the 1880s is eclipsed by their son.
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Hard to Handle
Title: Hard to Handle
Character: Tailor (uncredited)
Released: January 28, 1933
Type: Movie
A hustling public relations man promotes a series of fads.
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Whistling in the Dark
Title: Whistling in the Dark
Character: Herman
Released: January 21, 1933
Type: Movie
A mystery writer and his sweetheart are held hostage by a fugitive gangster, who hopes to enlist their help in devising the perfect crime.
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Faithless
Title: Faithless
Character: Diner Proprietor
Released: October 15, 1932
Type: Movie
Socialite Carol Morgan romps through the Depression and her wealth while breaking up with Bill Wade and getting back together with him.
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Cock of the Air
Title: Cock of the Air
Character: Tall Waiter
Released: January 23, 1932
Type: Movie
An opera diva sets her sights on a womanizing army officer.
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Devotion
Title: Devotion
Character: Waiter
Released: September 25, 1931
Type: Movie
A young Londoner disguises herself to become governess of the son of the barrister she loves.
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Sporting Blood
Title: Sporting Blood
Character: Gus, Bald Gambling Mobster (uncredited)
Released: August 8, 1931
Type: Movie
A horse with great potential is reluctantly sold by the breeder and by chance passes through multiple hands who do not treat him well.
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Laughing Sinners
Title: Laughing Sinners
Character: Poker-Playing Salesman
Released: May 30, 1931
Type: Movie
Ivy Stevens is a cafe entertainer in love with a shifty salesman who deserts her. In attempting to commit suicide, she is saved by Carl, a Salvation Army officer. Encouraged by Carl, Ivy joins the Salvation Army. When her old flame re-enters her life, Ivy finds she is still attracted and begins another affair with him.
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Gentleman's Fate
Title: Gentleman's Fate
Character: Tony
Released: March 7, 1931
Type: Movie
A bootlegger falls apart when his wife leaves him.
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All Teed Up
Title: All Teed Up
Character: Senator Brown
Released: April 16, 1930
Type: Movie
Thelma invites Charley to play golf at her father's exclusive country club.
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Whispering Whoopee
Title: Whispering Whoopee
Character: Mr. Holtz
Released: March 8, 1930
Type: Movie
Charlie hires three "party girls" to help him land a business deal.
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The Kibitzer
Title: The Kibitzer
Character: Meyer
Released: January 11, 1930
Type: Movie
In this comedy, a Yiddish fellow cannot keep from kibitzing into other people's lives. Trouble ensues when he is mistakenly given a huge fortune in stocks that he can spend any way he pleases. At the same time, his daughter has fallen in love with an impoverished, but good hearted boy. When the kibitzer suggests he bet all his money on a dog of a racehorse, the lad does it. Against all odds, the horse wins, and suddenly the young man is quite wealthy.
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Lilies of the Field
Title: Lilies of the Field
Character: Paymaster
Released: January 5, 1930
Type: Movie
Mildred Harker loses custody of her child in a messy divorce settlement. Leaving her hometown in disgrace, Mildred heads to New York, where after a crash course in the school of hard knocks she joins the chorus of a Ziegfeld-like musical revue. Now a full-fledged gold-digger, she enjoys the favors of backstage johnnies and elderly sugar daddies, but finally finds true love in the form of Park Avenue socialite Ted Willing.
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House of Horror
Title: House of Horror
Character: Brown
Released: April 28, 1929
Type: Movie
House of Horror is a 1929 American comedy-horror mystery film directed by Benjamin Christensen. The film stars Louise Fazenda and Chester Conklin and was released in both a silent and sound version which featured a Vitaphone soundtrack with talking sequences, music and sound effects. Both the silent and sound versions of House of Horror are now presumed lost.
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The Duke Steps Out
Title: The Duke Steps Out
Character: Jake, Duke's manager
Released: March 19, 1929
Type: Movie
Millionaire's son Duke wants to be a champion boxer but takes time out to enroll in college when he sees co-ed Susie. The students wonder about his having a chauffeur and house full of servants. Susie likes him but, to get rid of her, his manager tells her Duke already has a New York chorus girl. As the students listen to a radio broadcast of his victorious fight from San Francisco, she learns that the student Duke is the boxer Duke and that there is no chorus girl.
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Show People
Title: Show People
Character: Casting Director
Released: November 20, 1928
Type: Movie
Hollywood hopeful Peggy Pepper arrives at a major studio, from Georgia, to become a great dramatic star. Things don't go entirely according to plan.
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The Ol' Gray Hoss
Title: The Ol' Gray Hoss
Character: Man with Sooty on Face
Released: October 19, 1928
Type: Movie
This story revolves around an old man who feels alone in the world aside from the gang who keeps him company and his old horse. He runs a horse and buggy business, but he has new competition: an auto taxi. The gang helps him to maintain his job by sabotaging the other man's.
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The Cardboard Lover
Title: The Cardboard Lover
Character: Albine
Released: September 2, 1928
Type: Movie
A ditzy American girl visiting Monte Carlo is hired by a tennis champ to be his "cardboard lover"--to pretend to be in love with him so he can teach his two-timing fiancé a lesson and win her back. What he doesn't realize is that the girl isn't pretending --she actually is in love with him, and she sets out to win him for herself.
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Detectives
Title: Detectives
Character: Orloff
Released: June 9, 1928
Type: Movie
Lois, a stenographer at a luxury hotel, is being pursued by the hotel's house detective and a bellhop. When some valuable jewels are stolen, the bellhop--who has always dreamed of being a detective--sees his chance to both solve the jewel robbery and impress the woman he loves. The house detective, however, has other ideas.
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The Trail of '98
Title: The Trail of '98
Character: Mr. Bulkey
Released: March 20, 1928
Type: Movie
Fortune hunters from all over the country rushing to the Klondike in 1897 to seek their fortunes in the gold are tested by hardships of the journey.
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Bringing Up Father
Title: Bringing Up Father
Character: Ginsberg Feitelbaum
Released: March 18, 1928
Type: Movie
The wealthy Jiggs is tired of being left out of the swanky parties thrown by his social-climbing wife Maggie and their daughter. He decides to teach them a "lesson" by faking his own suicide, but things don't quite turn out the way he planned.
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The Garden of Eden
Title: The Garden of Eden
Character: Headwaiter at Palais de Paris (uncredited)
Released: February 4, 1928
Type: Movie
Toni Le Brun, a beautiful Viennese singer, becomes the ward of the wardrobe mistress of a Monte Carlo nightclub. Her benefactor, however, is actually a baroness incognito. Toni falls in love with the handsome Richard, but as they prepare to marry, she comes to believe he is only after the wealth accompanying her new noble status. But truth, like true love, will not be kept secret long.
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The Latest from Paris
Title: The Latest from Paris
Character: Abe Littauer
Released: February 4, 1928
Type: Movie
The Latest from Paris takes place in New York's garment district, where business rivals Blogg and Littauer have been carrying on a feud for years. In the tradition of Romeo and Juliet, heroine Ann Dolan works for Blogg, while her sweetheart Joe Adams is employed by Littauer.
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The Law of the Range
Title: The Law of the Range
Character: Cohen
Released: January 21, 1928
Type: Movie
Jim Lockhart is out to capture the robbing and murdering "Solitaire Kid".
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Frisco Sally Levy
Title: Frisco Sally Levy
Character: Isaac Solomon Lapidowitz
Released: April 2, 1927
Type: Movie
Sally Lapidowitz is the daughter of an Orthodox Jewish father and an Irish Catholic mother and the girlfriend of motorcycle cop Patrick Sweeney. Sally finds herself attracted to the fancy Stuart Gold, a young Jewish boy who charms her father but raises Patrick's suspicions, which are soon justified.
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The Demi-Bride
Title: The Demi-Bride
Character: Gaston
Released: February 19, 1927
Type: Movie
Trouble begins when Mme. Girard steps out on her husband, Criquette's father, to fool around with rakish Phillippe Levaux. When Monsieur Girard finds out, Criquette saves her stepmother from scandal by tricking Levaux into a hasty marriage.
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Upstage
Title: Upstage
Character: Sam Davis
Released: November 6, 1926
Type: Movie
Dolly Havens, a small-town girl with big-town ambitions that are larger than her talents, hooks up with Johnny Storm, a vaudeville performer, whose talents make the act a success. Dolly, thinking she is the reason, meets a handsome leading man and joins up with him but, before long, he discovers 'she ain't a trouper' and she is soon performing with 4th-class acts in Tank Town America
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Exit Smiling
Title: Exit Smiling
Character: Tod Powell
Released: November 6, 1926
Type: Movie
The travails of a third-rate traveling theatre company and its wardrobe lady / maid who dreams of stepping in as their melodramatic production's (Flaming Women) female lead.
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Salome of the Tenements
Title: Salome of the Tenements
Character: Banker Ben (as Elihu Tenenholz)
Released: February 23, 1925
Type: Movie
A young East Side Jewish reporter gets into a sticky situation when she finds that her new beau is indicting a banker she owes money to.