Richard Haydn

The Man Who Talked Through His Nose

Richard Haydn didn't need to be watched to dominate a scene. His voice was a nasal, pedantic instrument he perfected on British radio before moving into film. In 1941 he made his debut in Ball of Fire, playing Professor Oddly. That role set the mold for what Hollywood would expect from him over four decades.

He perfected a character of his own called Edwin Carp: a stiff, pompous man, an expert at imitating birdsong, with an innate talent for being elegantly annoying. Yet behind this facade of a comic supporting player was an artist with absolute control over the rhythm of comedy.

And the gamble paid off.

The Director Who Handled the Stars

In the late 1940s he decided that being in front of the camera was not enough. He moved behind it to direct comedies that are now studied as examples of the mechanics of classic humor. In 1948 he directed Miss Tatlock’s Millions, and a year later Dear Wife.

But his most ambitious project came in 1950 with Mr. Music. On that production he had to deal with Bing Crosby at the peak of his popularity. Haydn proved that a character actor could have the firm hand needed to manage the biggest stars of the studio system of the era.

Many directors of the era feared the egos of their leading stars. Not him. He used his British composure to keep order on Paramount sets without ever raising his voice. So his move into directing was far more natural than the trade press predicted at the time.

And then came the role that fixed him in the collective memory.

In 1965 he played Max Detweiler in The Sound of Music. His character was the cynical, pragmatic counterpoint amid the Von Trapp family drama. He made a man who essentially sought to exploit others' talent charming to global audiences thanks to a subtle irony that few others could pull off.

A Refuge in Abstract Characters

He voiced the Blue Caterpillar in the 1951 version of Alice in Wonderland. His diction was perfect for that kind of abstract, slightly irritating character who smokes a pipe while tossing out riddles. In 1974 Mel Brooks cast him in Young Frankenstein as the family's will-reading solicitor.

He lived a solitary life in Pacific Palisades and avoided industry parties. He preferred gardening and writing humor books about fish to the glare of premiere spotlights. In 1985 he suffered a heart attack that ended his life at the age of 80 years old.

His personal library and private papers were auctioned after his death in California.