Rare and magnificent vintage 11x14-inch sepia-tone portrait by Hixon-Weise Studios, boldly signed and inscribed in black fountain pen in the late 1910s or early 1920s. In fine condition, with minor edgewear. Best remembered by international audiences for his Oscar-nominated turn as Japanese P.O.W. camp commander Sato in The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Sessue Hayakawa was one of the first Japanese actors to enjoy a successful career in Hollywood. During the silent era, he abandoned the tendency of other male leads to histrionically broaden every movement, instead exhibiting fascinating subtlety in both exotic and sympathetic roles. After a marvelous turn as the villain in Cecil B. De Mille's The Cheat (1915), he settled into playing bad guy roles-- and quite unforgettably. 

• Tweet