CINEFILER

Charles Coburn

Born
June 18, 1877
Died
August 30, 1961
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
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
(1953)
Sir Francis Beekman
Heaven Can Wait
(1943)
Hugo Van Cleve
Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956)
Steamship Company Clerk
Kings Row
(1942)
Henry Gordon
Impact
(1949)
Lieutenant Quincy
The Lady Eve
(1941)
'Colonel' Harrington
Made for Each Other
(1939)
Judge Joseph M. Doolittle
In Name Only
(1939)
Richard Walker
Monkey Business
(1952)
Oliver Oxley
The Paradine Case
(1947)
Sir Simon Flaquer
In This Our Life
(1942)
William Fitzroy
Lured
(1947)
Inspector Harley Temple
Vivacious Lady
(1938)
Peter Morgan Sr.
Bachelor Mother
(1939)
J. B. Merlin
The Story of Mankind
(1957)
Hippocrates
Three Faces West
(1940)
Dr. Karl Braun
Full Filmography
Acting
The People's Enemy
(1935)
Judge
Yellow Jack
(1938)
Dr. Finlay
Of Human Hearts
(1938)
Dr. Charles Shingle
Vivacious Lady
(1938)
Peter Morgan Sr.
Lord Jeff
(1938)
Captain Briggs
In Name Only
(1939)
Richard Walker
The Story of Alexander Graham Bell
(1939)
Gardner Hubbard
Stanley and Livingstone
(1939)
Lord Tyce
Idiot's Delight
(1939)
Dr. Hugo Waldersee
Made for Each Other
(1939)
Judge Joseph M. Doolittle
Bachelor Mother
(1939)
J. B. Merlin
Florian
(1940)
Dr. Johannes Hofer
Three Faces West
(1940)
Dr. Karl Braun
Edison, the Man
(1940)
General Powell
The Captain Is a Lady
(1940)
Captain Abe Peabody
Road to Singapore
(1940)
Joshua Mallon IV
H.M. Pulham, Esq.
(1941)
John Pulham
The Lady Eve
(1941)
'Colonel' Harrington
Unexpected Uncle
(1941)
Seton Mansley
The Devil and Miss Jones
(1941)
John P. Merrick/Thomas Higgins
Our Wife
(1941)
Professor Drake
George Washington Slept Here
(1942)
Stanley Menninger
Breakdowns of 1942
(1942)
Self
In This Our Life
(1942)
William Fitzroy
Kings Row
(1942)
Henry Gordon
Heaven Can Wait
(1943)
Hugo Van Cleve
Princess O'Rourke
(1943)
Uncle Holman
My Kingdom for a Cook
(1943)
Rudyard Morley
The Constant Nymph
(1943)
Charles Creighton
The More the Merrier
(1943)
Benjamin Dingle
The Impatient Years
(1944)
William Smith
Together Again
(1944)
Jonathan Crandall Sr
Knickerbocker Holiday
(1944)
Peter Stuyvesant
Wilson
(1944)
Professor Henry Holmes
Rhapsody in Blue
(1945)
Max Dreyfus
Shady Lady
(1945)
Col. John Appleby
Over 21
(1945)
Robert Drexel Gow
A Royal Scandal
(1945)
Nicolai Iiyitch
Colonel Effingham's Raid
(1946)
Colonel Will Seaborn Effingham
The Green Years
(1946)
Alexander Gow
Lured
(1947)
Inspector Harley Temple
The Paradine Case
(1947)
Sir Simon Flaquer
B.F.'s Daughter
(1948)
Burton F. 'B.F.' Fulton
Green Grass of Wyoming
(1948)
Beaver Greenway
The Doctor and the Girl
(1949)
Dr. John Corday
The Gal Who Took the West
(1949)
General Michael O'Hara
Everybody Does It
(1949)
Major Blair
Impact
(1949)
Lieutenant Quincy
Yes Sir, That's My Baby
(1949)
Professor Jason Hartley
Mr. Music
(1950)
Alex Conway
Louisa
(1950)
Mr. Burnside
Peggy
(1950)
Professor Brookfield
The Highwayman
(1951)
Lord Walters
Has Anybody Seen My Gal?
(1952)
Samuel Fulton / John Smith
Monkey Business
(1952)
Oliver Oxley
Trouble Along the Way
(1953)
le Père Matthew William Burke
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
(1953)
Sir Francis Beekman
The Long Wait
(1954)
Gardiner
The Rocket Man
(1954)
Mayor Ed Johnson
How To Be Very, Very Popular
(1955)
Dr. Tweed
The Power and the Prize
(1956)
Guy Eliot
Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956)
Steamship Company Clerk
The Story of Mankind
(1957)
Hippocrates
Town on Trial
(1957)
Dr. John Fenner
How to Murder a Rich Uncle
(1957)
Uncle George Clitterbern
The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker
(1959)
Grampa Pennypacker
A Stranger in My Arms
(1959)
Vance Beasley
John Paul Jones
(1959)
Benjamin Franklin
Pepe
(1960)
Charles Coburn
Marilyn
(1963)
Sir Francis 'Piggy' Beekman (archive footage) (uncredited)
It's Showtime
(1976)
Self (archive footage)
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
(1985)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend
(1986)
Self (from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes [1953]) (archive footage)
Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line
(1997)
Self (archive footage)
Data provided by TMDB