| Claude Rains |
Article Index for Claude |
Website Links For Claude |
Information AboutClaude Rains |
|
Claude Rains ( November 10 , 1889 - May 30 , 1967 ) was a British , and later American , theatre and film actor, best known for his many roles in Hollywood films. LIFE Rains was born in Camberwell , London and fought in World War I ; he was involved in a gas attack that left him almost blind in one eye for the rest of his life. Rains' acting talents were recognized by Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , founder of The Royal Academy Of Dramatic Art . Tree paid for the Elocution lessons that he needed to succeed as an actor. Later, Rains taught at the institution, working with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier , among others. Rains' first Hollywood role was the title character in James Whale 's '' The Invisible Man '' ( 1933 ). His distinctive voice won him the role: his face was not seen until the very end of the film. In 1939 , Rains became a Naturalized Citizen of the United States . Following ''The Invisible Man'', Universal Studios tried to typecast him in Horror Film s, but he broke free with his Academy Award -nominated role as the conflicted corrupt senator in '' Mr. Smith Goes To Washington '' (1939), and followed that with probably his most famous role, the French policeman Captain Renault in '' Casablanca '' (1942). ''.]] In 1946, Rains became the first actor to receive a million dollar salary for his role as Julius Caesar in '' Caesar And Cleopatra ''. In 1951, Rains won a Tony Award For Best Performance By A Leading Actor In A Play for '' Darkness At Noon ''. Onscreen, Rains remained a popular Character Actor in the '50s and '60s, continuing to appear in many films. Two of his more well-known later screen roles were in '' Lawrence Of Arabia '' (1962), where he played Dryden, a cynical British diplomat, and '' The Greatest Story Ever Told '' (1965), where he was King Herod . The latter was his final film role. Rains was married six times and died from an Internal Haemorrhage , in Laconia, New Hampshire . He was 77 and is interred in the Red Hill Cemetery, Moultonborough, New Hampshire . He has a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame , at 6400 Hollywood Boulevard . ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATIONS
FILMOGRAPHY
EXTERNAL LINKS |
|
|