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