John Barrymore

From Philosopedia

Barrymore, John (15 February 1881 - 29 May 1942)

A matinee idol for playgoers and movie fans that liked his dashing nature and good looks, Barrymore in 1922 electrified the public with his portrayal of Hamlet. He was married four times, stunned people by revealing the intimate details of his lovemaking techniques, boozed during much of his waking hours, and, once, vomited into the footlights during a scene.

Two Christian believers—Sean Kelly and Rosemary Rogers, who wrote Who in Hell—consign Barrymore to Hell because he was slothful:

• Barrymore, John: Prototype of the ham actor, the Great Profile indulged in such debauchery that he laid waste his considerable talents. His drunkenness was legendry even in Hollywood—his makeup, costumes, and hairpiece were often applied by film crews while the star was dead drunk. When asked what he thought of Prohibition, he replied, “Fortunately, I don’t think of it.” A cynical libertine, he once observed that “love is the delightful interval between meeting a beautiful girl and discovering that she looks like a haddock.”

His sins of pride, gluttony, overacting, sloth, and lust (he was kicked out of high school for frequenting a bordello) culminated in this final impenitence: his dying words, to longtime friend Gene Fowler, were “Tell me, Gene, is it true that you’re the illegitimate son of Buffalo Bill?

Many think he actually was a non-believer who enjoyed mocking religion. For example, on his deathbed when a priest came by and offered to give him the last rites, Barrymore was asked, “Is there anything else you wish to tell me?” Barrymore replied, “Father, I have carnal thoughts.” “About whom?” the startled priest asked. Knowing he was about to die, having been inculcated with the doctrine that it is a sin to lust, and mindful that he soon was supposed to see and be judged by Saint Peter and God Himself, the legendary actor and playboy Barrymore looked across the room to a nurse. “Her,” he replied.

During a rehearsal on the Rudy Vallee radio program, Barrymore collapsed. He was taken to Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital, where he was diagnosed with bronchial pneumonia, hardening of the arteries, hemorrhaging ulcers, and cirrhosis of the liver. For ten days he faded and rallied, drifting in and out of consciousness until May 29, when at 10:20 p. m. he died in his sleep. {Michael O’Regan, New York Daily News, 14 April 1996}