called Outside Looking In, co-star James Cagney (in his first Broadway role) and he received rave reviews. He was offered a role in Herbert Brenon's 1926 film of Beau Geste, but anxious not to give up his newfound Broadway stardom, refused it, a decision he later came to regret. Following his appearance in the critically praised but unsuccessful Maxwell Anderson-Harold Hickerson drama about the Sacco and Vanzetti case Gods of the Lightning (Bickford was the Sacco character), he was contacted by filmmaker Cecil B. DeMille and offered a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) studios to star in DeMille's first talking picture: Dynamite. He soon began working with MGM studio chief Louis B. Mayer on a number of projects. Bickford became a star after playing Greta Garbo's lover in Anna Christie (1930), but never developed into a leading man. Always independent minded, exceptionally strong-willed, and quick with his fists, Bickford frequently argued and nearly came to blows with Mayer and any number of other MGM authority figures during the course of this contract with the studio. During the production of Dynamite, he punched out his director following a string of heated arguments, primarily related to the interpretation of his character's role. Throughout his early career on both the stage and later films, Bickford rejected numerous scripts and made no secret of his disdain for much of the material he was offered. Not surprisingly, his association with MGM was short-lived, with Bickford asking for and quickly receiving a release from his contract. He soon found himself blacklisted at other studios, though, forcing him to take the highly unusual step (for that era) of becoming an independent actor for several years. His career took another turn in 1935, when he was mauled by a lion and nearly killed while filming East of Java. While he recovered, he lost his contract with Twentieth Century-Fox and his leading-man status owing to extensive neck scarring suffered in the attack, coupled with his advancing age. Soon, he made a very successful transition to character roles, which he felt offered much greater diversity and allowed him to showcase his talent to better effect. Much preferring the character roles that became his forte, Bickford appeared in many notable films, including The Farmer's Daughter, Johnny Belinda, A Star Is Born, and Not as a Stranger. Finding great success playing an array of character roles in films and later in television, Bickford