Paul Michael Kelly (August 9, 1899 – November 6, 1956) was an American stage, film, and television actor. His career survived a manslaughter conviction, tied to an affair, that caused him to spend time in prison in the late 1920s. Early life Paul Michael Kelly was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a Roman Catholic family of Irish descent, the ninth of 10 children. His father owned a saloon, Kelly's Kafe, in the shadow of Vitagraph Studios, on E. 14th St. in Midwood, Brooklyn. After his father's death, he began his career as a child actor at age seven and was appearing on the stage. In 1911, at age 12, Kelly began making silent films with Vitagraph Studios, where he was billed as Master Paul Kelly. Kelly was possibly the first male child actor to be given any starring roles in American films, antedating better-remembered child stars such as Bobby Connelly and Jackie Coogan. Career Kelly alternated between stage and screen as an actor. He was a handsome and popular male lead or costar in Broadway plays from the late 1910s and throughout the 1920s. Kelly made his talking film debut in 1933's Broadway Through a Keyhole. In the course of his career, and relatively short life, it has been estimated that Kelly worked on stage, screen, and television in over four hundred roles. Later in his film career, as an adult, Kelly appeared in films mostly as a character actor playing tough guys – some sympathetic, some not – during the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. In 1948, Kelly won a Best Actor Tony Award for his role in Command Decision. Clark Gable later played the same role in the film version of the play. Kelly shared the award with Henry Fonda for Mister Roberts and Basil Rathbone for The Heiress. Manslaughter conviction On April 16, 1927, a drunk Kelly confronted fellow actor Ray Raymond over his affair with and love for Raymond's wife, actress Dorothy Mackaye. Raymond, who was also drunk, was no match for Kelly, who was considerably larger than him. During their confrontation, Kelly hit him several times and left him on the floor. Mackaye denied claims in court that she had been romantically involved with Kelly before Raymond's death, but Kelly's love letters to her were introduced as evidence. She was charged with felony conspiracy for the attempted coverup, and sentenced to one to three years,