- Born
- Died
- Birth nameWilliam Crosby Piercy Austin
- Height6′ 1″ (1.85 m)
- William Austin was born on June 12, 1884 in Georgetown, British Guiana [now Guyana]. He was an actor, known for It (1927), Redheads on Parade (1935) and The Marriage Playground (1929). He died on June 15, 1975 in Newport Beach, California, USA.
- RelativesAlbert Austin(Sibling)
- William Austin's being cast as Alfred the Butler in the Columbia Pictures' Batman (1943) serial proved to have a profound effect on the character. Prior to the serial, Alfred had been portrayed as being a very portly character. In order to rectify the disparity between Comics Page and Film, the Editors at DC Comics had Alfred put on a diet; which resulted in a slimmer Butler, who mirrored the movie version.
- Austin was the first actor to play Batman's butler Alfred in a live-action adaptation when he portrayed the character in Batman (1943).
- Came from a well-to-do English background (his father owned a sugar plantation). Acted for three years on the stage, before breaking into movies. Secured a five-year contract with Paramount in 1927, usually typecast as monocled upper-crust Britishers.
- Actor brother of actor Albert Austin.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content
