Ronald Colman
Encyclopedia
Ronald Charles Colman was an English
actor.
, England, the second son and fourth child of Charles Colman and his wife Marjory Read Fraser. His siblings included Eric, Edith, and Marjorie. He was educated at boarding school
in Littlehampton
, where he discovered he enjoyed acting. He intended to study engineering
at Cambridge University
, but his father's sudden death from pneumonia
in 1907 made this financially impossible.
He became a well-known amateur actor, and was a member of the West Middlesex
Dramatic Society in 1908-09. He made his first appearance on the professional stage in 1914.
After working as a clerk at the British Steamship Company in the City of London
, he joined the London Scottish Regiment in 1909 and was among the first of Territorial Army to fight in World War I
. During the war, he served with fellow actors Claude Rains
, Herbert Marshall
, Cedric Hardwicke
and Basil Rathbone
. On 31 October 1914 at the Battle of Messines
Colman was seriously wounded by shrapnel
in his ankle, which gave him a limp that he would attempt to hide throughout the rest of his acting career. He was invalided from the service in 1916.
; at the Playhouse in December that year as Stephen Weatherbee in Charles Goddard & Paul Dickey
's play The Misleading Lady; at the Court Theatre
in March 1917 he played Webber in Partnership and at that theatre the following year appeared in Eugène Brieux
's play, adapted from the French, Damaged Goods
; at the Ambassadors Theatre in February 1918 he played George Lubin in The Little Brother
, and during 1918 toured as David Goldsmith in The Bubble.
In 1920, Colman went to America and toured with Robert Warwick in The Dauntless Three, and subsequently toured with Fay Bainter
in East is West; at the Booth Theatre
, New York
, in January 1921 he played the Temple Priest in William Archer
's play The Green Goddess
, with George Arliss
; at the 39th Street Theatre in August 1921 he appeared as Charles in The Nightcap; and in September 1922 he made a great success as Alain Sergyll at the Empire Theatre (New York City)
in the hit play La Tendressse.
, and subsequently with the old Broadwest Film Company in The Snow of the Desert. While appearing on stage in New York in La Tendress, Director Henry King
saw him, and engaged him as the leading man in the 1923 film, The White Sister
, opposite Lillian Gish
, and was an immediate success. Thereafter Colman virtually abandoned the stage for film. He became a very popular silent film
star in both romantic and adventure films, among them The Dark Angel (1925), Stella Dallas
(1926), Beau Geste
(1927), and The Winning of Barbara Worth
(1926). His dark hair and eyes and his athletic and riding ability (he did most of his own stunts until late in his career) led reviewers to describe him as a "Valentino
type". He was often cast in similar, exotic roles. Towards the end of the silents era, Colman was teamed with Hungarian actress Vilma Bánky
under Samuel Goldwyn
and the two were a popular movie team rivalling Greta Garbo
and John Gilbert
.
Although he was a huge success in silent films, he was unable to capitalize on one of his chief assets until the advent of the talking picture, "his beautifully modulated and cultured voice", also described as "a bewitching, finely-modulated, resonant voice". His first major talkie success was in 1930, when he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
for two roles — Condemned
and Bulldog Drummond
. He thereafter appeared in a number of notable films including Raffles
, The Masquerader, Clive of India, A Tale of Two Cities in 1935, Under Two Flags, The Prisoner of Zenda
and Lost Horizon in 1937, If I Were King
in 1938, and The Talk of the Town in 1941. He won the Best Actor Oscar
in 1948 for A Double Life
. At the time of his death, Colman was contracted by MGM for the lead role in Village of the Damned
. However, Colman died and the film became a British production starring George Sanders
, who had married Colman's widow, Benita Hume
.
on radio, alongside his second wife, stage and screen actress Benita Hume
. Their comedy work as Benny's next-door neighbors led to their own radio comedy
The Halls of Ivy
from 1950 to 1952, created by Fibber McGee & Molly mastermind Don Quinn, on which the Colmans played the literate, charming president of a middle American college and his former-actress wife. On the 27 September 1950 installment, the audience was treated to a surprise---Colman himself had written the script, poking a little fun at himself at the finish when he himself gave the episode's credits. The Halls of Ivy moved to television from 1954 to 1955.
in Santa Barbara, California
, and was interred in the Santa Barbara Cemetery. He had a daughter, Juliet, by his second wife.
(1929), Condemned
(1930), Random Harvest (1942), and A Double Life
(1947), for which he won the Academy Award for his role of "Anthony John," an actor playing "Othello" who comes to identify with the character. He also won the Golden Globe award for Best Actor in 1947 for his role in A Double Life
. In 2002, Colman's Oscar statuette was sold at auction by Christie's
for US$174,500.
Colman has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
, one for motion pictures
at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. and one for television
at 1625 Vine Street.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
actor.
Early years
He was born in Richmond, SurreySurrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, England, the second son and fourth child of Charles Colman and his wife Marjory Read Fraser. His siblings included Eric, Edith, and Marjorie. He was educated at boarding school
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
in Littlehampton
Littlehampton
Littlehampton is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England, on the east bank at the mouth of the River Arun. It lies south southwest of London, west of Brighton and east of the county town of Chichester....
, where he discovered he enjoyed acting. He intended to study engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
at Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, but his father's sudden death from pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
in 1907 made this financially impossible.
He became a well-known amateur actor, and was a member of the West Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
Dramatic Society in 1908-09. He made his first appearance on the professional stage in 1914.
After working as a clerk at the British Steamship Company in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
, he joined the London Scottish Regiment in 1909 and was among the first of Territorial Army to fight in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. During the war, he served with fellow actors Claude Rains
Claude Rains
Claude Rains was an English stage and film actor whose career spanned 66 years. He was known for many roles in Hollywood films, among them the title role in The Invisible Man , a corrupt senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington , Mr...
, Herbert Marshall
Herbert Marshall
Herbert Marshall , born Herbert Brough Falcon Marshall, was an English actor.His parents were Percy F. Marshall and Ethel May Turner. He graduated from St. Mary's College in Old Harlow, Essex and worked for a time as an accounting clerk...
, Cedric Hardwicke
Cedric Hardwicke
Sir Cedric Webster Hardwicke was a noted English stage and film actor whose career spanned nearly fifty years...
and Basil Rathbone
Basil Rathbone
Sir Basil Rathbone, KBE, MC, Kt was an English actor. He rose to prominence in England as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in over 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers, and, occasionally, horror films...
. On 31 October 1914 at the Battle of Messines
First Battle of Ypres
The First Battle of Ypres, also called the First Battle of Flanders , was a First World War battle fought for the strategic town of Ypres in western Belgium...
Colman was seriously wounded by shrapnel
Fragmentation (weaponry)
Fragmentation is the process by which the casing of an artillery shell, bomb, grenade, etc. is shattered by the detonating high explosive filling. The correct technical terminology for these casing pieces is fragments , although shards or splinters can be used for non-preformed fragments...
in his ankle, which gave him a limp that he would attempt to hide throughout the rest of his acting career. He was invalided from the service in 1916.
Theatre
He had sufficiently recovered to appear at the London Coliseum on 19 June 1916, as Rahmat Sheikh in The Maharani of Arakan, with Lena AshwellLena Ashwell
Lena Ashwell, OBE was a British actress and manager, known as the first to organize large-scale entertainment for troops at the front, which she did during World War I....
; at the Playhouse in December that year as Stephen Weatherbee in Charles Goddard & Paul Dickey
Paul Dickey
Paul Dickey , was an American playwright and silent screen writer. He wrote 17 films between years 1914 and 1953.He was born in Chicago, Illinois and died in New York, New York, aged 50....
's play The Misleading Lady; at the Court Theatre
Court Theatre
Court Theatre or Royal Court Theatre may refer to:*Court Theatre , Chicago, Illinois*Court Theatre , a theatre company in Christchurch, New Zealand*Court Theatre of Buda, Budapest, Hungary...
in March 1917 he played Webber in Partnership and at that theatre the following year appeared in Eugène Brieux
Eugène Brieux
Eugène Brieux , French dramatist, was born in Paris of poor parents.A one-act play, Bernard Palissy, written in collaboration with M...
's play, adapted from the French, Damaged Goods
Damaged Goods
Damaged Goods is an original Doctor Who novel, released by Virgin Publishing in their New Adventures range of Doctor Who books in 1996...
; at the Ambassadors Theatre in February 1918 he played George Lubin in The Little Brother
The Little Brother
The Little Brother is a 1917 American silent drama directed by Charles Miller and starring William Garwood and Australian actress Enid Bennett...
, and during 1918 toured as David Goldsmith in The Bubble.
In 1920, Colman went to America and toured with Robert Warwick in The Dauntless Three, and subsequently toured with Fay Bainter
Fay Bainter
Fay Okell Bainter was an American film and stage actress.-Early life:She was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Charles F. Bainter and Mary Okell. In 1910, she was a traveling stage actress...
in East is West; at the Booth Theatre
Booth Theatre
The Booth Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 222 West 45th Street in midtown-Manhattan, New York City.Architect Henry B. Herts designed the Booth and its companion Shubert Theatre as a back-to-back pair sharing a Venetian Renaissance-style façade...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, in January 1921 he played the Temple Priest in William Archer
William Archer (critic)
William Archer , Scottish critic, was born in Perth, and was educated at the University of Edinburgh, where he received the degree of M.A. in 1876. He was the son of Thomas Archer....
's play The Green Goddess
The Green Goddess (stage play)
The Green Goddess was a popular stage play of 1921 by William Archer.In the three years after its publication, the play toured in both America and England....
, with George Arliss
George Arliss
George Arliss was an English actor, author and filmmaker who found success in the United States. He was the first British actor to win an Academy Award.-Life and career:...
; at the 39th Street Theatre in August 1921 he appeared as Charles in The Nightcap; and in September 1922 he made a great success as Alain Sergyll at the Empire Theatre (New York City)
Empire Theatre (New York City)
The Empire Theatre in New York City was a prominent Broadway theatre in the first half of the twentieth century. It opened in 1893 with a performance of The Girl I Left Behind Me by David Belasco. The Empire continued to present both original plays and revivals until 1953. Its final show, in May...
in the hit play La Tendressse.
Film
Ronald Colman had first appeared in films in England in 1917 and 1919 for Cecil HepworthCecil Hepworth
Cecil Milton Hepworth was an English film director, producer and screenwriter. He was among the founders of the British film industry and continued making films into the 1920s....
, and subsequently with the old Broadwest Film Company in The Snow of the Desert. While appearing on stage in New York in La Tendress, Director Henry King
Henry King (director)
Henry King was an American film director.Before coming to film, King worked as an actor in various repertoire theatres, and first started to take small film roles in 1912. He directed for the first time in 1915, and grew to become one of the most commercially successful Hollywood directors of the...
saw him, and engaged him as the leading man in the 1923 film, The White Sister
The White Sister (1923 film)
The White Sister is a 1923 drama film starring Lillian Gish, directed by Henry King, and released by Metro Pictures about nine months before its merger into Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was based on the 1909 novel by F. Marion Crawford...
, opposite Lillian Gish
Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987....
, and was an immediate success. Thereafter Colman virtually abandoned the stage for film. He became a very popular silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
star in both romantic and adventure films, among them The Dark Angel (1925), Stella Dallas
Stella Dallas (1925 film)
Stella Dallas is a 1925 film that was adapted by Frances Marion and directed by Henry King. It stars Ronald Colman, Belle Bennett, Lois Moran, Alice Joyce, Jean Hersholt, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr.-Cast:*Ronald Colman - Stephen Dallas...
(1926), Beau Geste
Beau Geste
Beau Geste is a 1924 adventure novel by P. C. Wren. It has been adapted for the screen several times.-Plot summary:Michael "Beau" Geste is the protagonist. The main narrator , by contrast, is his younger brother John...
(1927), and The Winning of Barbara Worth
The Winning of Barbara Worth
The Winning of Barbara Worth is a silent western film, released by United Artists in 1926, and starring Ronald Colman, Vilma Bánky, and Gary Cooper . The film is based on the novel of the same name by Harold Bell Wright and was filmed in the Black Rock Desert, Nevada...
(1926). His dark hair and eyes and his athletic and riding ability (he did most of his own stunts until late in his career) led reviewers to describe him as a "Valentino
Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino was an Italian actor, and early pop icon. A sex symbol of the 1920s, Valentino was known as the "Latin Lover". He starred in several well-known silent films including The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle and Son of the Sheik...
type". He was often cast in similar, exotic roles. Towards the end of the silents era, Colman was teamed with Hungarian actress Vilma Bánky
Vilma Bánky
Vilma Bánky was a Hungarian-born American silent film actress, although the early part of her acting career began in Budapest, spreading to France, Austria, and Germany...
under Samuel Goldwyn
Samuel Goldwyn
Samuel Goldwyn was an American film producer, and founding contributor executive of several motion picture studios.-Biography:...
and the two were a popular movie team rivalling Greta Garbo
Greta Garbo
Greta Garbo , born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson, was a Swedish film actress. Garbo was an international star and icon during Hollywood's silent and classic periods. Many of Garbo's films were sensational hits, and all but three were profitable...
and John Gilbert
John Gilbert (actor)
John Gilbert was an American actor and a major star of the silent film era.Known as "the great lover," he rivaled even Rudolph Valentino as a box office draw...
.
Although he was a huge success in silent films, he was unable to capitalize on one of his chief assets until the advent of the talking picture, "his beautifully modulated and cultured voice", also described as "a bewitching, finely-modulated, resonant voice". His first major talkie success was in 1930, when he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for two roles — Condemned
Condemned (film)
Condemned is an American black and white melodrama film. It stars Ronald Colman, Ann Harding, Dudley Digges, Louis Wolheim, William Elmer, and Wilhelm von Brincken. The movie was adapted by Sidney Howard from the novel by Blair Niles. It was directed by Wesley Ruggles...
and Bulldog Drummond
Bulldog Drummond (1929 film)
Bulldog Drummond is a detective film which tells the story of Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, a British officer bored with civilian life, who investigates an extortion case for a beautiful girl. The film stars Ronald Colman, Claud Allister, Lawrence Grant, Montagu Love, Wilson Benge, Joan...
. He thereafter appeared in a number of notable films including Raffles
Raffles (1930 film)
Raffles is a film starring Ronald Colman as the popular title character, a gentleman who is also secretly a notorious jewel thief. Kay Francis plays the woman who Raffles falls in love with. It is based on the 1906 play Raffles, the Amateur Cracksman by E. W...
, The Masquerader, Clive of India, A Tale of Two Cities in 1935, Under Two Flags, The Prisoner of Zenda
The Prisoner of Zenda (1937 film)
The Prisoner of Zenda is a 1937 black-and-white adventure film based on the Anthony Hope 1894 novel of the same name and the 1896 play. Of the many film adaptations, this is considered by many to be the definitive version....
and Lost Horizon in 1937, If I Were King
If I Were King
If I Were King is a 1938 American biographical historical drama film starring Ronald Colman as medieval poet François Villon, and featuring Basil Rathbone and Frances Dee...
in 1938, and The Talk of the Town in 1941. He won the Best Actor Oscar
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
in 1948 for A Double Life
A Double Life
A Double Life is a 1947 film noir which tells the story of an actor whose mind becomes affected by the character he portrays. The movie starred Ronald Colman and Signe Hasso...
. At the time of his death, Colman was contracted by MGM for the lead role in Village of the Damned
Village of the Damned (1960 film)
Village of the Damned is a 1960 British science fiction film by German director Wolf Rilla. The film is a fairly faithful adaptation of the novel The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham. The lead role of Professor Gordon Zellaby was played by George Sanders. This film was #92 on Bravo's 100 Scariest...
. However, Colman died and the film became a British production starring George Sanders
George Sanders
George Sanders was a British actor.George Sanders may also refer to:*George Sanders , Victoria Cross recipient in World War I...
, who had married Colman's widow, Benita Hume
Benita Hume
Benita Hume was an English film actress. She appeared in 44 films between 1925 and 1955.She was married to actor Ronald Colman from 1938 to his death in 1958; they were the parents of a daughter, Juliet...
.
Radio and television
Beginning in 1945, Colman made many guest appearances on The Jack Benny ProgramThe Jack Benny Program
The Jack Benny Program, starring Jack Benny, is a radio-TV comedy series that ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th-century American comedy.-Cast:*Jack Benny - Himself...
on radio, alongside his second wife, stage and screen actress Benita Hume
Benita Hume
Benita Hume was an English film actress. She appeared in 44 films between 1925 and 1955.She was married to actor Ronald Colman from 1938 to his death in 1958; they were the parents of a daughter, Juliet...
. Their comedy work as Benny's next-door neighbors led to their own radio comedy
Radio comedy
Radio comedy, or comedic radio programming, is a radio broadcast that may involve sitcom elements, sketches and various types of comedy found on other media. It may also include more surreal or fantastic elements, as these can be conveyed on a small budget with just a few sound effects or some...
The Halls of Ivy
The Halls of Ivy
The Halls of Ivy is an NBC radio sitcom that ran from 1950-1952. It was created by Fibber McGee & Molly co-creator/writer Don Quinn before being adapted into a CBS television comedy produced by ITC Entertainment and Television Programs of America...
from 1950 to 1952, created by Fibber McGee & Molly mastermind Don Quinn, on which the Colmans played the literate, charming president of a middle American college and his former-actress wife. On the 27 September 1950 installment, the audience was treated to a surprise---Colman himself had written the script, poking a little fun at himself at the finish when he himself gave the episode's credits. The Halls of Ivy moved to television from 1954 to 1955.
Death
Ronald Colman died on 19 May 1958, aged 67, from acute emphysemaEmphysema
Emphysema is a long-term, progressive disease of the lungs that primarily causes shortness of breath. In people with emphysema, the tissues necessary to support the physical shape and function of the lungs are destroyed. It is included in a group of diseases called chronic obstructive pulmonary...
in Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
, and was interred in the Santa Barbara Cemetery. He had a daughter, Juliet, by his second wife.
Awards and honours
He was nominated for four Academy awards: Bulldog DrummondBulldog Drummond (1929 film)
Bulldog Drummond is a detective film which tells the story of Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, a British officer bored with civilian life, who investigates an extortion case for a beautiful girl. The film stars Ronald Colman, Claud Allister, Lawrence Grant, Montagu Love, Wilson Benge, Joan...
(1929), Condemned
Condemned (film)
Condemned is an American black and white melodrama film. It stars Ronald Colman, Ann Harding, Dudley Digges, Louis Wolheim, William Elmer, and Wilhelm von Brincken. The movie was adapted by Sidney Howard from the novel by Blair Niles. It was directed by Wesley Ruggles...
(1930), Random Harvest (1942), and A Double Life
A Double Life
A Double Life is a 1947 film noir which tells the story of an actor whose mind becomes affected by the character he portrays. The movie starred Ronald Colman and Signe Hasso...
(1947), for which he won the Academy Award for his role of "Anthony John," an actor playing "Othello" who comes to identify with the character. He also won the Golden Globe award for Best Actor in 1947 for his role in A Double Life
A Double Life
A Double Life is a 1947 film noir which tells the story of an actor whose mind becomes affected by the character he portrays. The movie starred Ronald Colman and Signe Hasso...
. In 2002, Colman's Oscar statuette was sold at auction by Christie's
Christie's
Christie's is an art business and a fine arts auction house.- History :The official company literature states that founder James Christie conducted the first sale in London, England, on 5 December 1766, and the earliest auction catalogue the company retains is from December 1766...
for US$174,500.
Colman has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
, one for motion pictures
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. and one for television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
at 1625 Vine Street.
External links
- http://www.ronaldcolman.com