Personal Info
Known For:
Acting
Birthday:
October 1, 1921
Place of Birth:
White Plains, New York, USA
Social Media
James Whitmore
Biography
James Allen Whitmore Jr. was an American film, theatre, and television actor. During his career, Whitmore won three of the four EGOT honors; - a Tony, a Grammy, and an Emmy. Whitmore also won a Golden Globe and was nominated for two Academy Awards. Following World War II, Whitmore appeared on Broadway in the role of the sergeant in Command Decision. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer gave Whitmore a contract, but his role in the film adaptation was played by Van Johnson. His first major picture for MGM was Battleground, in a role that was turned down by Spencer Tracy, to whom Whitmore bore a noted physical resemblance. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role, and won the Golden Globe Award as Best Performance by an Actor In A Supporting Role. Other major films included Angels in the Outfield, The Asphalt Jungle, The Next Voice You Hear, Above and Beyond, Kiss Me, Kate, Them!, Oklahoma!, Black Like Me, Guns of the Magnificent Seven, Tora! Tora! Tora!, and Give 'em Hell, Harry!, a one-man show for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of former U.S. President Harry S Truman. In the film Tora! Tora! Tora!, he played Admiral William F. "Bull" Halsey.
Whitmore appeared during the 1950s on many television anthology series. He was cast as Father Emil Kapaun in the 1955 episode "The Good Thief" in the ABC religion anthology series Crossroads. Other roles followed on Jane Wyman Presents the Fireside Theater, Lux Video Theatre, Kraft Theatre, Studio One in Hollywood, Schlitz Playhouse, Matinee Theatre, and the Ford Television Theatre. In 1958, he carried the lead in "The Gabe Carswell Story" of NBC's Wagon Train, with Ward Bond. Whitmore has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6611 Hollywood Boulevard. The ceremony was held on February 8, 1960.
Known For
Filmography
| Year | Movie | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Arthur Miller: Writer | Self (archive footage) |
| 2005 | Meet Mr. Miracle-Gro: The Horace Hagedorn Story | |
| 2004 | Los Angeles Plays Itself | Lou Hopke in Shadow in The Sky (archive footage) |
| 2003 | Cole Porter in Hollywood: Too Darn Hot | Self |
| 2002 | A Ring of Endless Light | Grandfather |
| 2001 | The Majestic | Stan Keller |
| 2000 | Here's to Life! | Gus Corley |
| 1999 | Swing Vote | Daniel Morissey |
| 1997 | The Relic | Dr. Albert Frock |
| 1995 | Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick | Self |
| 1994 | The Shawshank Redemption | Brooks Hatlen |
| 1990 | Old Explorers | Leinen Roth |
| 1990 | Sky High | Gus Johnson |
| 1989 | Glory! Glory! | Lester Babbitt |
| 1987 | Nuts | Judge Stanley Murdoch |
| 1987 | All My Sons | Joe Keller |
| 1985 | The Adventures of Mark Twain | Mark Twain (voice) |
| 1984 | Love Those Trains | Narrator |
| 1982 | Hail Columbia! | Narrator |
| 1982 | The Klan: A Legacy of Hate in America | Narrator |
| 1980 | Mark, I Love You | Dwight Hamilton |
| 1980 | The First Deadly Sin | Dr. Sanford Ferguson |
| 1980 | Rage! | Borski |
| 1980 | The Golden Honeymoon | Charley Tate |
| 1979 | The Horror Show | (archive footage) |
| 1978 | Bully: An Adventure with Teddy Roosevelt | Teddy Roosevelt |
| 1977 | The Serpent's Egg | Priester |
| 1976 | The Flying Misfits | Capt. James 'Jim' Gutterman |
| 1975 | I Will Fight No More Forever | General Oliver O. Howard |
| 1975 | Give 'em Hell, Harry! | Harry S. Truman |
| 1974 | Where the Red Fern Grows | Grandpa |
| 1974 | The Balloon Vendor | Antonio |
| 1974 | Man Belongs to the Earth | Narrator |
| 1974 | The Canterville Ghost | Hyram B. Otis |
| 1973 | The Harrad Experiment | Philip Tenhausen |
| 1973 | High Crime | Commissioner Aldo Scavino |
| 1972 | Chato's Land | Joshua Everette |
| 1971 | If Tomorrow Comes | Frank Phillips |
| 1970 | Tora! Tora! Tora! | Admiral William F. Halsey |
| 1970 | The Challenge | Overman |
| 1969 | Guns of the Magnificent Seven | Levi |
| 1968 | Madigan | Chief Inspector Charles Kane |
| 1968 | The Split | Herb Sutro |
| 1968 | Nobody's Perfect | Capt. Mike Riley |
| 1968 | Planet of the Apes | President of the Assembly |
| 1967 | Chuka | Lou Trent |
| 1967 | Waterhole #3 | Capt. Shipley |
| 1964 | The Tenderfoot | Captain Ewell |
| 1964 | Black Like Me | John Finley Horton |
| 1962 | Icarus Montgolfier Wright | |
| 1960 | Who Was That Lady? | Harry Powell |
| 1959 | Face of Fire | Monk Johnson |
| 1958 | The Deep Six | Cmdr. Warren Meredith |
| 1958 | The Restless Years | Ed Henderson |
| 1957 | The Young Don't Cry | Rudy Krist |
| 1956 | Crime in the Streets | Ben Wagner |
| 1956 | The Eddy Duchin Story | Lou Sherwood |
| 1955 | The Last Frontier | Gus |
| 1955 | Oklahoma! | Mr. Carnes |
| 1955 | Battle Cry | MSgt. Mac |
| 1955 | The McConnell Story | SSgt. / Maj . / Col. Ty 'Dad' Whitman |
| 1954 | Them! | Sgt. Ben Peterson |
| 1954 | The Command | Sgt. Elliott |
| 1954 | The Great Diamond Robbery | Mr. Remlick, Lawyer |
| 1953 | Kiss Me Kate | Slug |
| 1953 | Above and Beyond | Maj. William M. Uanna |
| 1953 | The Girl Who Had Everything | Charles "Chico" Menlow |
| 1953 | All the Brothers Were Valiant | Fetcher |
| 1952 | The Hoaxters | Narrator (voice) |
| 1952 | Shadow in the Sky | Lou Hopke |
| 1952 | Because You're Mine | Sergeant 'Bat' Batterson |
| 1951 | It's a Big Country | Mr. Stacey |
| 1951 | Across the Wide Missouri | Old Bill (uncredited) |
| 1951 | The Red Badge of Courage | Narrator (voice) (uncredited) |
| 1951 | Angels in the Outfield | Angel (voice) (uncredited) |
| 1950 | The Next Voice You Hear... | Joe Smith |
| 1950 | The Asphalt Jungle | Gus Minissi |
| 1950 | Please Believe Me | Vincent Maran |
| 1950 | Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone | John Malone |
| 1950 | The Outriders | Clint Priest |
| 1949 | The Undercover Man | George Pappas |
| 1949 | Battleground | Kinnie |