| Claude Rains | |
|---|---|
 In the Mr. Skeffington trailer (1944) |
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| Born | William Claude Rains 10 November 1889 London, England |
| Died | 30 May 1967 (aged 77) Laconia, New Hampshire, USA |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1920-1966 |
| Spouse(s) | Rosemary Clark Schrode (1960-1964) Agi Jambor (1959-1960) Frances Propper (1935-1956) Beatriz Thomas (1924-1935) Marie Hemingway (1920-1920) Isabel Jeans (1913-1915) |
William Claude Rains (10 November 1889 – 30 May 1967) was an English award-winning actor and film star. Mr Skeffington is a 1944 Drama film which portrays a woman whose many love affairs cost her the love of her husband and her daughter Events 1444 - Battle of Varna: The crusading forces of King Vladislaus III of Varna (aka Ulaszlo I of Hungary and Wladyslaw Year 1889 ( MDCCCLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Events 1416 - The Council of Constance, called by the Emperor Sigismund a supporter of Antipope John XXIII burns Jerome of Prague following Year 1967 ( MCMLXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. For the Laconian dialect see Doric Greek For the Ancient Kingdom see Sparta For the laconic expression see Laconic New Hampshire ( is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works Isabel Jeans ( September 16, 1891 &ndash September 4, 1985) was an English stage and Film actress. Events 1444 - Battle of Varna: The crusading forces of King Vladislaus III of Varna (aka Ulaszlo I of Hungary and Wladyslaw Year 1889 ( MDCCCLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1416 - The Council of Constance, called by the Emperor Sigismund a supporter of Antipope John XXIII burns Jerome of Prague following Year 1967 ( MCMLXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works For other uses including various songs titled "Movie Star" see Movie star (disambiguation. He later held American citizenship and was best known for his many roles in Hollywood films. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
Contents |
Biography
Early life
Rains was born in Camberwell, London on November 10, 1889. Camberwell is a district of London, England and forms part of the London Borough of Southwark. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Events 1444 - Battle of Varna: The crusading forces of King Vladislaus III of Varna (aka Ulaszlo I of Hungary and Wladyslaw Year 1889 ( MDCCCLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common He grew up with, according to his daughter, "a very serious cockney accent and a speech impediment". The term Cockney has both geographical and linguistic associations [1]
His acting talents were recognised by Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree, founder of The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ( 17 December 1852 – 2 July 1917) was an English Actor -manager The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art ( RADA) in Bloomsbury, London, is generally regarded as one of the most prestigious Drama schools in the world The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art ( RADA) in Bloomsbury, London, is generally regarded as one of the most prestigious Drama schools in the world Tree paid for the elocution lessons that Rains would need to succeed as an actor. Elocution is the study of formal speaking in Pronunciation, Grammar, style and tone. Later, Rains taught at the institution, working with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, among others. Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH ( 14 April, 1904 – 21 May 2000) known as Sir John Gielgud, was an Laurence Kerr Olivier Baron
Rains served in the First World War with the London Scottish Regiment,[2] alongside fellow actors Basil Rathbone, Ronald Colman and Herbert Marshall. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The London Scottish is a unit of the British Army. Formerly a Regiment, the unit is now a company of The London Regiment. Basil Rathbone, MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967 was a South African-born English Actor most famous for his portrayal of Sherlock Ronald Colman ( February 9 1891 &ndash May 19 1958) was an English Academy Award and Golden Globe -winning actor Herbert Marshall, born Herbert Brough Falcon Marshall, in London, England, ( May 23, 1890 - January 22, 1966 Rains was involved in a gas attack that left him almost blind in one eye for the rest of his life. Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of Chemical substances to kill injure or incapacitate an enemy. Blindness is the condition of lacking Visual perception due to Physiological or Neurological factors However, the war did aid his social advancement, and by its end, he had risen from the rank of Private to Captain. A Private is a Soldier of the lowest Military rank (equivalent to NATO Rank Grades OR-1 to OR-3 depending on the force served in
Career
Rains began his career in the theatre in London, having a success in the title role of John Drinkwater's play Ulysses S. Grant, the follow-up to the playwright's major hit Abraham Lincoln, and traveled to Broadway in the late 1920s to act in leading roles in such plays as The Constant Nymph, The Apple Cart, and (somewhat improbably) as a Chinese farmer in the dramatization of Pearl S. Buck's novel The Good Earth. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. John Drinkwater ( June 1 1882 - March 25 1937) was an English Poet and Dramatist. Ulysses S Grant, born Hiram Ulysses Grant (April 27 1822 &ndash July 23 1885 was an American general and the eighteenth President of the United States Abraham Lincoln (February 12 1809 &ndash April 15 1865 the sixteenth President of the United States, successfully led his country through its greatest internal Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located The Constant Nymph is a Novel by Margaret Kennedy which tells the story of a teenage girl who falls in love with a family friend who eventually marries The Apple Cart: A Political Extravaganza is a 1929 play by George Bernard Shaw. Pearl S Buck ( Traditional Chinese: 賽珍珠 Simplified Chinese: 赛珍珠 Pinyin: Sài Zhēnzhū ( June 26, The Good Earth is a Novel by Pearl S Buck published in 1931 and awarded the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1932. Rains came relatively late to film acting and his first screen test was a failure, but his voice won him the title role in James Whale's The Invisible Man (1933) when someone accidentally overheard his screen test being played in the next room. For the BBC TV series see Screen Test. A screen test is a method of determining the suitability of an Actor or actress for James Whale ( July 22, 1889 – May 29, 1957) was a British born Film director, best known for his work in the The Invisible Man is a 1933 Horror film based on H G Wells ' Science fiction novel The Invisible Man, published [3] Rains later credited director Michael Curtiz with teaching him the more understated requirements of film acting, or, "what not to do in front of a camera". Michael Curtiz ( December 24, 1886 - April 10, 1962) was an Academy Award -winning Hungarian-American Film director [4]
Following The Invisible Man, Universal Studios tried to typecast him in horror films, but he broke free, starting with the role of Prince John in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), then with his Academy Award-nominated role as the conflicted corrupt senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), and followed with probably his most famous role, the suave French police Captain Renault in Casablanca (1942). Notorious ( 1946) is a thriller directed and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, and starring Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman as Universal Studios (sometimes called Universal Pictures or Universal City Studios) a subsidiary of NBC Universal, is a major Global American Horror films are Movies that strive to elicit Fear, Horror and terror responses from viewers The Adventures of Robin Hood is an American swashbuckler film released in 1938 and directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. Mr Smith Goes to Washington is a Drama film directed by Frank Capra about one man's effect on American politics. Legal residents and citizens To be French according to the first article of the Constitution is to be a citizen of France regardless of one's origin race or religion ( Casablanca ( is an American Romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and In 1945, Rains became the first actor to receive a million dollar salary for his role as Julius Caesar in Caesar and Cleopatra. Caesar and Cleopatra is a 1945 film starring Claude Rains and Vivien Leigh, produced and directed by Gabriel Pascal from the
He appeared in his only singing and dancing role, as the Mayor in a television musical version of Robert Browning's The Pied Piper of Hamelin, opposite Van Johnson as the Piper. Robert Browning (7 May 1812 - 12 December 1889 was an English poet and playwright whose mastery of Dramatic verse, especially Dramatic monologues made him one of The Pied Piper of Hamelin is a legend about the abduction of many children from the town of Hamelin ( Hameln) Germany. Charles "Van" Johnson (born August 25, 1916) is an American film and television actor and dancer This 1957 NBC colour special, shown as a film rather than a live or videotaped programme, was highly successful with the public. The National Broadcasting Company ( NBC) is an American Television network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Sold into syndication after its first telecast, it was repeated annually by many local TV stations. In Broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast Radio shows and Television shows to multiple individual stations without going through
Rains remained a popular character actor in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in many films. A character actor is an Actor who predominantly plays a particular type of role rather than leading ones Two of his well-known later screen roles were as Dryden, a cynical British diplomat in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), and King Herod in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965). Lawrence of Arabia is a 1962 Epic film based on the life of T Herod (הוֹרְדוֹס Horodos, Greek: Herōdes) also known as Herod I or Herod the Great (73 BC – 4 BC in Jericho The Greatest Story Ever Told is a United Artists 1965 film about the life of Jesus, directed by George Stevens (with some scenes The latter was his final film role.
Personal life
Rains became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1939. Naturalization is the acquisition of Citizenship or Nationality by somebody who was not a citizen or national of that country when he or she was born The United States of America —commonly referred to as the He married six times, the first five of which ended in divorce: Isabel Jeans (1913-1915); Marie Hemingway (1920-1920); Beatriz Thomas (1924 –April 8, 1935); Frances Propper (April 9, 1935 –1956); and Agi Jambor (November 4, 1959 –1960). Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the termination of a Marriage. Isabel Jeans ( September 16, 1891 &ndash September 4, 1985) was an English stage and Film actress. Events 217 - Roman Emperor Caracalla is Assassinated (and succeeded by his Praetorian Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1333 - Flood of the Arno River, causing massive damage in Florence as recorded by the Florentine chronicler Giovanni Villani The year 1959 ( MCMLIX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He married Rosemary Clark Schrode in 1960, and stayed with her until her death on December 31, 1964. Events 406 – Vandals, Alans and Suebians cross the Rhine, beginning an invasion of Gallia. Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar.
He acquired the 380-acre Stock Grange Farm in West Bradford Township, Pennsylvania just outside West Chester in 1941, and spent much of his time between takes reading up on agricultural techniques. West Bradford Township is a township in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern The Borough of West Chester is the County seat of Chester County Pennsylvania, United States. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture He eventually sold the farm when his marriage to Propper ended in 1956.
Rains died from an internal haemorrhage, in Laconia, New Hampshire at the age of 77. Bleeding, technically known as hemorrhaging / haemorrhaging (see American and British spelling differences) is the loss of Blood from Laconia is a city in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. He is interred in the Red Hill Cemetery, Moultonborough, New Hampshire. Moultonborough is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States.
Awards and nominations
In 1951, Rains won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play for Darkness at Noon. The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play presented since 1947 is awarded to actors in productions of new or revival plays Darkness at Noon is the most famous novel by Hungarian -born British novelist Arthur Koestler. He was also nominated four times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for Mr. Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Casablanca (1942), Mr. Skeffington (1944), and Notorious (1946). Mr Skeffington is a 1944 Drama film which portrays a woman whose many love affairs cost her the love of her husband and her daughter Notorious ( 1946) is a thriller directed and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, and starring Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman as He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 6400 Hollywood Boulevard. The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a Sidewalk along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood Los Angeles California, USA, that Hollywood Boulevard is a boulevard in Hollywood Los Angeles California, United States, beginning at Sunset Boulevard in the east and running northwest
Popular references
In 1975, Rains and his memorable role as the Invisible Man was referenced in the opening song to the cult film The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a 1975 musical Comedy film that parodies Science fiction and Horror films.
In episode 14 of the first series of Heroes, a character with the ability to become invisible is named Claude Rains - an apparent tribute to Rains' Invisible Man character. Heroes is an American Science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring, which premiered on NBC on September This is an alphabetical list of characters with special abilities appearing in the television series Heroes as well as the ''Heroes'' graphic novels.
Filmography
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Notes
- ^ Harmetz p. Lawrence of Arabia is a 1962 Epic film based on the life of T Twilight of Honor is a 1963 film starring Richard Chamberlain, Nick Adams, Claude Rains, and featuring Joey Heatherton The Greatest Story Ever Told is a United Artists 1965 film about the life of Jesus, directed by George Stevens (with some scenes 147.
- ^ londonscottishregt.org
- ^ Harmetz p. 147.
- ^ Harmetz p. 190.
References
- Harmetz, Aljean. Round Up the Usual Suspects: The Making of "Casablanca". Orion Publishing Co, 1993.
External links
- Claude Rains at Find A Grave
- Claude Rains at the Internet Broadway Database
- Claude Rains at the Internet Movie Database
- Claude Rains at the TCM Movie Database
- Stock Grange Farm
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Rains, Claude |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Rains, William Claude |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | English actor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 10, 1889 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | London, England |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 30, 1967 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Laconia, New Hampshire |
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