Personal Info
Known For:
Acting
Birthday:
June 18, 1877
Place of Birth:
Macon, Georgia, USA
Social Media
Charles Coburn
Biography
Charles Douville Coburn (June 19, 1877 – August 30, 1961) was an American film and theatre actor. Best known for his work in comedies, Coburn received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for 1943's The More the Merrier.
Coburn was born in Macon, Georgia, the son of Scotch-Irish Americans Emma Louise Sprigman (May 11, 1838 Springfield, Ohio – November 12, 1896 Savannah, Georgia) and Moses Douville Coburn (April 27, 1834 Savannah, Georgia – December 27, 1902 Savannah, Georgia). Growing up in Savannah, he started out at age 14 doing odd jobs at the local Savannah Theater, handing out programs, ushering, or being the doorman. By age 17 or 18, he was the theater manager. He later became an actor, making his debut on Broadway in 1901. Coburn formed an acting company with actress Ivah Wills in 1905. They married in 1906. In addition to managing the company, the couple performed frequently on Broadway.
After his wife's death in 1937, Coburn relocated to Los Angeles, California and began film work. He won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a retired millionaire playing Cupid in The More the Merrier in 1943. He was also nominated for The Devil and Miss Jones in 1941 and The Green Years in 1946. Other notable film credits include Of Human Hearts (1938), The Lady Eve (1941), Kings Row (1942), The Constant Nymph (1943), Heaven Can Wait (1943), Wilson (1944), Impact (1949), The Paradine Case (1947), Everybody Does It (1950), Has Anybody Seen My Gal? (1952), Monkey Business (1952), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), and John Paul Jones (1959). He usually played comedic parts, but Kings Row and Wilson were dramatic parts, showing his versatility.
For his contributions to motion pictures, in 1960, Coburn was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6268 Hollywood Boulevard.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Charles Coburn, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Filmography
| Year | Movie | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line | Self (archive footage) |
| 1986 | Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend | Self (from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes [1953]) (archive footage) |
| 1985 | George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey | Self (archive footage) (uncredited) |
| 1976 | It's Showtime | Self (archive footage) |
| 1963 | Marilyn | Sir Francis 'Piggy' Beekman (archive footage) (uncredited) |
| 1960 | Pepe | Charles Coburn |
| 1959 | John Paul Jones | Benjamin Franklin |
| 1959 | A Stranger in My Arms | Vance Beasley |
| 1959 | The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker | Grampa Pennypacker |
| 1957 | The Story of Mankind | Hippocrates |
| 1957 | Town on Trial | Dr. John Fenner |
| 1957 | How to Murder a Rich Uncle | Uncle George Clitterbern |
| 1956 | The Power and the Prize | Guy Eliot |
| 1956 | Around the World in Eighty Days | Steamship Company Clerk |
| 1955 | How To Be Very, Very Popular | Dr. Tweed |
| 1954 | The Long Wait | Gardiner |
| 1954 | The Rocket Man | Mayor Ed Johnson |
| 1953 | Gentlemen Prefer Blondes | Sir Francis Beekman |
| 1953 | Trouble Along the Way | le Père Matthew William Burke |
| 1952 | Monkey Business | Oliver Oxley |
| 1952 | Has Anybody Seen My Gal? | Samuel Fulton / John Smith |
| 1951 | The Highwayman | Lord Walters |
| 1950 | Mr. Music | Alex Conway |
| 1950 | Peggy | Professor Brookfield |
| 1950 | Louisa | Mr. Burnside |
| 1949 | Impact | Lieutenant Quincy |
| 1949 | The Gal Who Took the West | General Michael O'Hara |
| 1949 | The Doctor and the Girl | Dr. John Corday |
| 1949 | Everybody Does It | Major Blair |
| 1949 | Yes Sir, That's My Baby | Professor Jason Hartley |
| 1948 | Green Grass of Wyoming | Beaver Greenway |
| 1948 | B.F.'s Daughter | Burton F. 'B.F.' Fulton |
| 1947 | Lured | Harley Temple |
| 1947 | The Paradine Case | Sir Simon Flaquer |
| 1946 | The Green Years | Alexander Gow |
| 1946 | Colonel Effingham's Raid | Colonel Will Seaborn Effingham |
| 1945 | Rhapsody in Blue | Max Dreyfus |
| 1945 | A Royal Scandal | Nicolai Iiyitch |
| 1945 | Over 21 | Robert Drexel Gow |
| 1945 | Shady Lady | Col. John Appleby |
| 1944 | Together Again | Jonathan Crandall Sr |
| 1944 | Wilson | Professor Henry Holmes |
| 1944 | The Impatient Years | William Smith |
| 1944 | Knickerbocker Holiday | Peter Stuyvesant |
| 1943 | Princess O'Rourke | Uncle Holman |
| 1943 | Heaven Can Wait | Hugo Van Cleve |
| 1943 | The More the Merrier | Benjamin Dingle |
| 1943 | The Constant Nymph | Charles Creighton |
| 1943 | My Kingdom for a Cook | Rudyard Morley |
| 1942 | George Washington Slept Here | Stanley Menninger |
| 1942 | In This Our Life | William Fitzroy |
| 1942 | Kings Row | Henry Gordon |
| 1942 | Breakdowns of 1942 | Self |
| 1941 | The Lady Eve | 'Colonel' Harrington |
| 1941 | The Devil and Miss Jones | John P. Merrick/Thomas Higgins |
| 1941 | Our Wife | Professor Drake |
| 1941 | H.M. Pulham, Esq. | John Pulham |
| 1941 | Unexpected Uncle | Seton Mansley |
| 1940 | Three Faces West | Dr. Karl Braun |
| 1940 | Edison, the Man | General Powell |
| 1940 | Florian | Dr. Johannes Hofer |
| 1940 | Road to Singapore | Joshua Mallon IV |
| 1940 | The Captain Is a Lady | Captain Abe Peabody |
| 1939 | In Name Only | Richard Walker |
| 1939 | Bachelor Mother | J. B. Merlin |
| 1939 | Idiot's Delight | Dr. Hugo Waldersee |
| 1939 | Made for Each Other | Judge Joseph M. Doolittle |
| 1939 | The Story of Alexander Graham Bell | Gardner Hubbard |
| 1939 | Stanley and Livingstone | Lord Tyce |
| 1938 | Vivacious Lady | Mr. Morgan |
| 1938 | Lord Jeff | Captain Briggs |
| 1938 | Of Human Hearts | Dr. Charles Shingle |
| 1938 | Yellow Jack | Dr. Finlay |
| 1935 | The People's Enemy | Judge |
| Year | TV Show | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1956 | The Rosemary Clooney Show | Self |
| 1954 | December Bride | |
| 1954 | Studio 57 | |
| 1954 | The George Gobel Show | Self |
| 1952 | This Is Your Life | Self |
| 1950 | The Colgate Comedy Hour | Self |
| 1950 | Lux Video Theatre | Pa Harrington |
| 1950 | What's My Line? | Self |
| 1948 | Studio One | Louis Hurst |
| 1948 | The Ed Sullivan Show | Self |