Melvyn Douglas
Biography
Melvyn Douglas was an American actor born on April 5, 1901, in Macon, Georgia. He began his acting career in the late 1920s and continued until the early 1980s. Douglas is known for his performances in various films, including Ninotchka, Hud, Being There, and I Never Sang for My Father. He also appeared in films with supernatural stories involving ghosts, such as The Changeling and Ghost Story, in the last few years of his life. Douglas won Academy Awards for his performances in Hud and Being There, and was nominated for his performance in I Never Sang for My Father. He died on August 4, 1981, at the age of 80.
Career overview
Melvyn Douglas was an American actor who began his stage and screen careers in the late 1920s. He gained prominence in the 1930s as a suave leading man, with one notable performance in a romantic comedy film released in 1939. Douglas continued to work in the film industry, taking on mature and fatherly roles in his later years. He appeared in several notable films, including a romantic comedy with Greta Garbo and a drama that earned him an Academy Award.
Douglas's career spanned several decades, during which he appeared in numerous films and television shows. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in a 1970 drama and won the award for his performances in two other films, released in 1963 and 1979. In the last few years of his life, Douglas appeared in films with supernatural themes, including a 1980 drama and a 1981 horror film.
Douglas's acting credits include a wide range of film and television roles, with a total of 122 known credits. He was known by several names, including Melvyn Edouard Hesselberg and Melvyn Edouard Hessel. Douglas was born on April 5, 1901, in Macon, Georgia, and died on August 4, 1981, at the age of 80.
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Frequent co-stars
Career timeline
Full Filmography
126 titles- Stars of the Silver Screen - Greta Garbo (2014) as Self (archive footage)
- Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To (1990) as (archive footage)
- The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind (1988) as Self (archive footage)
- American Playhouse (1982) as David
- The Hot Touch (1982) as Max Reich
- Ghost Story (1981) as Dr. John Jaffrey
- The Changeling (1980) as Senator Carmichael
- Tell Me a Riddle (1980) as David
- Being There (1979) as Benjamin Rand
- The Seduction of Joe Tynan (1979) as Senator Birney
- The Making of a President (1978)
- Weekend Special (1977) as Grandpa Doc
- Twilight's Last Gleaming (1977) as Zachariah Guthrie
- Intimate Strangers (1977) as Donald's Father
- Portrait of Grandpa Doc (1977) as Grandpa Doc
- The Tenant (1976) as Monsieur Zy
- That's Entertainment, Part II (1976) as (archive footage)
- A Gift To Last (1976) as Old Clement Sturgess
- The Lives of Benjamin Franklin (1974) as Stateman Benjamin Franklin
- The Death Squad (1974) as Police Captain Earl Kreski
- Murder or Mercy (1974) as Dr. Paul Harelson
- The Going Up of David Lev (1973) as Grandfather
- Ghost Story (1972) as Grandpa
- The Candidate (1972) as John J. McKay
- One Is a Lonely Number (1972) as Joseph Provo
- Hollywood: The Dream Factory (1972) as Self (archive footage)
- Death Takes a Holiday (1971) as Judge Earl Chapman
- I Never Sang for My Father (1970) as Tom Garrison
- Hunters Are for Killing (1970) as Keller Floran
- Garbo, by Joan Crawford (1969) as Self (archive footage)
- The Dick Cavett Show (1968) as Self - Guest
- Companions in Nightmare (1968) as Dr. Lawrence Strelson
- Hotel (1967) as Warren Trent
- The Crucible (1967) as Deputy Governor Danforth
- Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night (1967) as Peter Schermann
- CBS Playhouse (1966) as Peter Schermann
- Rapture (1965) as Frederick Larbaud
- Once Upon a Tractor (1965) as Martin
- Inherit the Wind (1965) as Henry Drummond
- The Americanization of Emily (1964) as Admiral William Jessup
- Advance to the Rear (1964) as Col. Claude Brackenbury
- The Big Parade of Comedy (1964) as Leon (archive footage)
- The Fugitive (1963) as Dr. Mark Ryder
- Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1963) as Pat Konke
- Hud (1963) as Homer Bannon
- Billy Budd (1962) as The Dansker, Sailmaker
- Ben Casey (1961) as Burton Strang
- Kraft Mystery Theatre (1961)
- Judgment at Nuremberg (1959) as Gen. Parker
- The Plot to Kill Stalin (1958) as Stalin
- Old Man (1958) as Self - Host
- The Greer Case (1957) as Howard Hoagland
- Playhouse 90 (1956) as Gen. Parker
- MGM Parade (1955) as Self
- MGM Parade (1955) as self
- General Electric Theater (1953) as Professor Arthur Barris
- Hollywood Off Beat (1952) as Steve Randall
- Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Henry Drummond
- Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Galileo Galilei
- My Forbidden Past (1951) as Paul Beaurevel
- On the Loose (1951) as Frank Bradley
- What's My Line? (1950) as Self
- Your Show of Shows (1950) as Self - Guest Host
- Your Show of Shows (1950) as Self - Guest Performer
- Lux Video Theatre (1950) as James Strickland
- Lights Out (1949)
- The Great Sinner (1949) as Armand De Glasse
- A Woman's Secret (1949) as Luke Jordan
- Studio One (1948) as Cyril Ritchard
- The Philco Television Playhouse (1948) as Richard Gordon
- The Philco Television Playhouse (1948) as The Stranger
- The Ed Sullivan Show (1948) as Self
- Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948) as Bill Cole
- My Own True Love (1948) as Clive Heath
- The Sea of Grass (1947) as Brice Chamberlain
- The Guilt of Janet Ames (1947) as Smithfield 'Smitty' Cobb
- Three Hearts for Julia (1943) as Jeff Seabrook
- They All Kissed the Bride (1942) as Michael 'Mike' Holmes
- We Were Dancing (1942) as Nicholas Prax
- A Woman's Face (1941) as Dr. Gustaf Segert
- Our Wife (1941) as Jerome 'Jerry' Marvin
- That Uncertain Feeling (1941) as Larry Baker
- Two-Faced Woman (1941) as Lawrence 'Larry' Blake
- This Thing Called Love (1940) as Tice Collins
- Too Many Husbands (1940) as Henry Lowndes
- He Stayed for Breakfast (1940) as Paul Boliet
- Third Finger, Left Hand (1940) as Jeff Thompson
- Cavalcade of the Academy Awards (1940) as Self
- Ninotchka (1939) as Count Leon d'Algout
- The Amazing Mr. Williams (1939) as Kenny Williams
- Tell No Tales (1939) as Michael Cassidy
- Good Girls Go to Paris (1939) as Ronald Brooke
- From the Ends of the Earth (1939) as Self
- Screen Snapshots Series 19, No. 1 (1939) as Self
- Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 8 (1939) as Melvyn Douglas
- The Toy Wife (1938) as George Sartoris
- That Certain Age (1938) as Vincent Bullitt
- The Shining Hour (1938) as Henry Linden
- Arsène Lupin Returns (1938) as Rene Farrand aka Arsene Lupin
- Fast Company (1938) as Joel Sloane
- There's Always a Woman (1938) as William H. Reardon
- There's That Woman Again (1938) as William 'Bill' Reardon
- Captains Courageous (1937) as Frank Burton Cheyne
- Angel (1937) as Anthony 'Tony' Halton
- I'll Take Romance (1937) as James Guthrie
- I Met Him in Paris (1937) as George Potter
- Women of Glamour (1937) as Richard Stark
- The Gorgeous Hussy (1936) as John Randolph
- Theodora Goes Wild (1936) as Michael Grant
- And So They Were Married (1936) as Stephen Blake
- Annie Oakley (1935) as Jeff Hogarth
- She Married Her Boss (1935) as Richard Barclay
- The Lone Wolf Returns (1935) as Michael Lanyard
- Mary Burns, Fugitive (1935) as Barton Powell
- The People's Enemy (1935) as George R. 'Traps' Stuart
- Woman in the Dark (1934) as Tony Robson
- Dangerous Corner (1934) as Charles Stanton
- The Vampire Bat (1933) as Karl Brettschneider
- Counsellor at Law (1933) as Roy Darwin
- Nagana (1933) as Dr. Walter Tradnor
- Prestige (1932) as Capt. Andre Verlaine
- The Old Dark House (1932) as Penderel
- The Wiser Sex (1932) as David Rolfe
- The Broken Wing (1932) as Philip 'Phil' Marvin
- As You Desire Me (1932) as Count Bruno Varelli
- Tonight or Never (1931) as Jim Fletcher
Frequently Asked Questions
What movies or TV shows is Melvyn Douglas best known for?
Melvyn Douglas is widely recognized for notable roles and projects including The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind (1988), American Playhouse (1982), Ghost Story (1981), The Changeling (1980).
When and where was Melvyn Douglas born?
Melvyn Douglas was born on April 5, 1901 in Macon, Georgia, USA. They passed away on August 4, 1981.
How many credits does Melvyn Douglas have?
Melvyn Douglas has accumulated over 126 film and television credits across a career spanning from 1931 to 2014.
What is Melvyn Douglas's background in cinema and television?
Melvyn Douglas was an American actor born on April 5, 1901, in Macon, Georgia. He began his acting career in the late 1920s and continued until the early 1980s. Douglas is known for his performances in various films, including Ninotchka, Hud, Being There, and I Never Sang for My Father. He also appeared in films with s...
Melvyn Douglas by the numbers
Age in their best-rated roles
- Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Henry Drummond — aged about 50
- Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Galileo Galilei — aged about 50
- The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind (1988) as Self (archive footage) — aged about 87
- Being There (1979) as Benjamin Rand — aged about 78
- The Tenant (1976) as Monsieur Zy — aged about 75
- Playhouse 90 (1956) as Gen. Parker — aged about 55
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