Joseph Cheshire Cotten (May 15, 1905 – February 6, 1994) was an American actor of stage and film. Cotten achieved prominence on Broadway, starring in the original productions of The Philadelphia Story and Sabrina Fair. He is associated with Orson Welles, leading to appearances in Citizen Kane (1941), The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), Journey into Fear (1943), for which Cotten was also credited with the screenplay, and The Third Man (1949). He was a star in his own right with films such as Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Love Letters (1945), Portrait of Jennie (1948), and The Third Man (1949).
Known For
Citizen Kane
(1941)
Jedediah Leland
The Third Man
(1949)
Holly Martins
The Magnificent Ambersons
(1942)
Eugene Morgan
Touch of Evil
(1958)
Coroner (uncredited)
Soylent Green
(1973)
William R. Simonson
Tora! Tora! Tora!
(1970)
Henry L. Stimson, U.S. Secretary of War
Heaven's Gate
(1980)
The Reverend Doctor
Niagara
(1953)
George Loomis
Airport '77
(1977)
Nicholas St. Downs III
Gaslight
(1944)
Brian Cameron
Shadow of a Doubt
(1943)
Charlie Oakley
Duel in the Sun
(1946)
Jesse McCanles
Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte
(1964)
Drew Bayliss
Journey into Fear
(1943)
Howard Graham
The Last Sunset
(1961)
John Breckenridge
The Abominable Dr. Phibes
(1971)
Dr. Vesalius
Full Filmography
Acting
Seeing the World, Part One: A Visit to New York, N.Y.
(1937)
Citizen Kane
(1941)
Jedediah Leland
Lydia
(1941)
Michael Fitzpatrick
The Magnificent Ambersons
(1942)
Eugene Morgan
Journey into Fear
(1943)
Howard Graham
Shadow of a Doubt
(1943)
Charlie Oakley
Hers to Hold
(1943)
Bill Morley
I'll Be Seeing You
(1944)
Zachary Morgan
Gaslight
(1944)
Brian Cameron
Since You Went Away
(1944)
Lieutenant Tony Willett
Love Letters
(1945)
Allen Quinton
Duel in the Sun
(1946)
Jesse McCanles
The Farmer's Daughter
(1947)
Glenn Morley
Our American Heritage
(1947)
Narrator
Portrait of Jennie
(1948)
Eben Adams
The Third Man
(1949)
Holly Martins
Under Capricorn
(1949)
Sam Flusky
Beyond the Forest
(1949)
Doctor Louis Moline
September Affair
(1950)
David Lawrence
Walk Softly, Stranger
(1950)
Chris Hale aka Steve
Two Flags West
(1950)
Col. Clay Tucker
The Man with a Cloak
(1951)
Dupin
Half Angel
(1951)
John Raymond Jr.
Peking Express
(1951)
Michael Bachlin
Othello
(1951)
Senator (uncredited)
The Steel Trap
(1952)
Jim Osborne
Untamed Frontier
(1952)
Kirk Denbow
A Blueprint for Murder
(1953)
Whitney 'Cam' Cameron
Niagara
(1953)
George Loomis
Egypt by Three
(1953)
Narrator
Special Delivery
(1955)
John Adams
The Killer is Loose
(1956)
Detective Sam Wagner
The Bottom of the Bottle
(1956)
Pat 'P.M.' Martin
The Halliday Brand
(1957)
Daniel Halliday
The Edge of Innocence
(1957)
Robert Rainey
Touch of Evil
(1958)
Coroner (uncredited)
From the Earth to the Moon
(1958)
Victor Barbicane
"General Electric Theater" High Green Wall
(1959)
The Angel Wore Red
(1960)
Hawthorne
The Last Sunset
(1961)
John Breckenridge
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
(1961)
Self (uncredited)
Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte
(1964)
Drew Bayliss
Hollywood and the Stars
(1964)
Narrator
The Money Trap
(1965)
Dr. Horace Van Tilden
The Tramplers
(1965)
Temple Cordeen
The Great Sioux Massacre
(1965)
Major Marcus A. Reno
The Oscar
(1966)
Kenneth Regan
Brighty of the Grand Canyon
(1966)
Jim
The Hellbenders
(1967)
Colonel Jonas
Jack of Diamonds
(1967)
Ace
Some May Live
(1967)
Colonel Woodward
White Comanche
(1968)
Sheriff Logan
Gangsters '70
(1968)
Destil
Alexander The Great
(1968)
Antigonus
Petulia
(1968)
Mr. Danner
Split Second to an Epitaph
(1968)
Dr. Ben Stern
Latitude Zero
(1969)
Capt. Craig McKenzie / Cmdr. Glenn McKenzie
The Lonely Profession
(1969)
Martin Bannister
Tora! Tora! Tora!
(1970)
Henry L. Stimson, U.S. Secretary of War
The Grasshopper
(1970)
Richard Morgan
Cutter's Trail
(1970)
General Spalding
Lady Frankenstein
(1971)
Baron Frankenstein
The Abominable Dr. Phibes
(1971)
Dr. Vesalius
City Beneath the Sea
(1971)
Dr. Ziegler
Assault on the Wayne
(1971)
Admiral
Do You Take This Stranger?
(1971)
Dr. Robert Carson
Journey to Murder
(1971)
Jeff Wheeler
Baron Blood
(1972)
Baron Otto von Kleist / Alfred Becker
The Scopone Game
(1972)
George
The Screaming Woman
(1972)
George Tresvant
Doomsday Voyage
(1972)
Captain Jason
Soylent Green
(1973)
William R. Simonson
F for Fake
(1973)
Self
A Delicate Balance
(1973)
Harry
The Devil's Daughter
(1973)
Judge Weatherby
Syndicate Sadists
(1975)
Paternò
Timber Tramps
(1975)
Greedy sawmill mogul
A Whisper in the Dark
(1976)
The Professor
The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case
(1976)
Dr. Joseph Francis Condon
Mysteries of the Gods
(1976)
Narrator
Airport '77
(1977)
Nicholas St. Downs III
Twilight's Last Gleaming
(1977)
Arthur Renfrew - Secretary of State
Caravans
(1978)
Crandall
The Perfect Crime
(1978)
Sir Arthur Dundee
Last In, First Out
(1978)
Foster Johnson
Return to Fantasy Island
(1978)
Simon Grant
Island of the Fishmen
(1979)
Prof. Ernest Marvin
Guyana: Crime of the Century
(1979)
Richard Gable
Concorde Affair
(1979)
Milland
Churchill and the Generals
(1979)
Gen. George C. Marshall
Heaven's Gate
(1980)
The Reverend Doctor
The Hearse
(1980)
Walter Prichard
Casino
(1980)
Ed Booker
The Survivor
(1981)
Priest
The House Where Death Lives
(1981)
Ivar Langrock
Hollywood Heaven: Tragic Lives, Tragic Deaths
(1990)
(archive footage)
Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook
(1991)
Baron Frankenstein (archive footage)
Beyond Doubt: The Making of Hitchcock's Favorite Film
(2000)
Self
Too Much Johnson
(2013)
Augustus Billings
Heaven's Gate: The Butcher's Cut
(2014)
The Reverend Doctor
They'll Love Me When I'm Dead
(2018)
Self (archive footage)
AFI Life Achievement Award: 50th Anniversary Special
(2023)
Self (archive footage)
Writing