Melvyn Douglas

Melvyn Douglas

Highest Rated: 100% I Never Sang for My Father (1970)

Lowest Rated: 17% The Sea of Grass (1947)

Birthday: Apr 5, 1901

Birthplace: Macon, Georgia, USA

American actor Melvyn Douglas began his stage career shortly after being mustered out of World War I Army service. Douglas secured a position with the Owens Repertory Company, making his debut in a production of Merchant of Venice. He spent the first part of the 1920s touring with Owens Repertory and with the Jessie Bonstelle Company, reaching Broadway in the 1928 drama A Free Soul. Brought to Hollywood in the early talkie "gold rush" for stage-trained actors, Douglas made his film bow in 1931's Tonight or Never. With The Old Dark House (1932), the actor established his standard screen character: a charming, blase young socialite who could exhibit great courage and loyalty when those attributes were called upon. After a brief return to Broadway in 1933, Douglas returned to films in 1935, signing a joint contract with Columbia and MGM. Most often appearing in sophisticated comedies, Douglas was one of the busiest stars in Hollywood, playing in as many as eight films per year. One of the actor's better roles was a supporting one: as Cary Grant's beleaguered lawyer and business adviser in Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1947), who spends most of the film trying to keep Grant from spending himself into bankruptcy. Douglas found movie roles scarce in the early 1950s thanks to the "Red Scare." The actor was married to Congresswoman Helen Gahagan, the woman labeled by Richard Nixon as the "pink lady" friendly to communism. The more rabid anti-communists in Washington went after Douglas himself, suggesting that because he was Jewish and had changed his name for professional reasons, he was automatically politically suspect. Douglas began recovering his career with a 1950s detective program, Hollywood Off-Beat - ironically playing a disbarred lawyer trying to regain his reputation. He headed back to Broadway, gaining high critical praise for his "emergence" as a topnotch character actor (his prior stage and film credits were virtually ignored). Some of Douglas' stage triumphs included Inherit the Wind (replacing Paul Muni in the Clarence Darrow part) and The Best Man (which had a character based on Richard Nixon) Douglas' long-overdue Academy Award was bestowed upon the actor for his role as Paul Newman's dying father in Hud (1963); other highlights of Douglas' final Hollywood days included I Never Sang for My Father (1971) and Being There (1979), the latter film winning the actor his second Oscar. Melvyn Douglas died at age 80, just before the release of his final film, Ghost Story (1981).

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Highest Rated Movies

Filmography

Movies

Credit
No Score Yet The Journey of Lyndon Johnson Actor — 2014
35% Ghost Story Dr. John Jaffrey — 1981
No Score Yet Hot Touch Max Reich — 1981
No Score Yet Tell Me a Riddle David — 1980
83% The Changeling Sen. Joe Carmichael — 1980
95% Being There Benjamin Rand — 1979
86% The Seduction of Joe Tynan Sen. Birney — 1979
No Score Yet Intimate Strangers Donald's — 1977
80% Twilight's Last Gleaming Guthrie — 1977
88% The Tenant Monsieur Zy — 1976
No Score Yet Murder or Mercy? Actor — 1974
No Score Yet The Going Up of David Lev Actor — 1973
No Score Yet Death Squad Actor — 1973
87% The Candidate John J. McKay — 1972
No Score Yet One Is a Lonely Number Provo — 1972
No Score Yet Death Takes a Holiday Judge Earl Chapman — 1971
100% I Never Sang for My Father Tom Garrison — 1970
No Score Yet Hunters Are for Killing Actor — 1970
100% Hotel Warren Trent — 1967
No Score Yet Rapture Frederick Larbaud — 1965
92% The Americanization of Emily Adm. William Jessup — 1964
No Score Yet Advance to the Rear Col. Claude Brackenbury — 1964
82% Hud Homer Bannon — 1963
90% Billy Budd The Dansker — 1962
38% The Amazing Colossal Man Col. Claude Brackenby — 1957
No Score Yet On the Loose Frank Bradley — 1951
No Score Yet My Forbidden Past Paul Beaurevel — 1951
No Score Yet Johnny Legend Presents TV Noir Actor — 1950
No Score Yet The Great Sinner Armand de Glasse — 1949
43% A Woman's Secret Luke Jordan — 1949
82% Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House Bill Cole — 1948
17% The Sea of Grass Brice Chamberlain — 1947
No Score Yet Gentle Annie Actor — 1945
No Score Yet They All Kissed the Bride Michael 'Mike' Holmes — 1942
No Score Yet We Were Dancing Nicki Prax — 1942
100% A Woman's Face Dr. Gustaf Segert — 1941
67% That Uncertain Feeling Larry Baker — 1941
33% The Two-Faced Woman Lawrence 'Larry' Blake — 1941
No Score Yet Third Finger, Left Hand Jeff Thompson — 1940
No Score Yet He Stayed for Breakfast Paul Boliet — 1940
No Score Yet Too Many Husbands Henry Lowndes — 1940
No Score Yet This Thing Called Love Tice Collins — 1940
97% Ninotchka Leon — 1939
No Score Yet There's That Woman Again William 'Bill' Reardon — 1939
No Score Yet The Shining Hour Henry Linden — 1938
No Score Yet That Certain Age Vincent Bullitt — 1938
No Score Yet Fast Company Joel Sloane — 1938
No Score Yet There's Always a Woman William Reardon — 1938
No Score Yet Arsene Lupin Returns Rene Farrand aka Arsene Lupin — 1938
No Score Yet I'll Take Romance James Guthrie — 1937
80% Angel Anthony Halton — 1937
94% Captains Courageous Cheyne — 1937
No Score Yet I Met Him in Paris George Potter — 1937
No Score Yet Theodora Goes Wild Michael Grant — 1936
No Score Yet The Gorgeous Hussy John Randolph — 1936
No Score Yet And So They Were Married Stephen Blake — 1936
No Score Yet Annie Oakley Jeff Hogarth — 1935
No Score Yet She Married Her Boss Richard Barclay — 1935
No Score Yet Mary Burns, Fugitive Barton Powell — 1935
No Score Yet Woman in the Dark Tony Robson — 1934
100% Counsellor at Law Roy Darwin — 1933
60% The Vampire Bat (Blood Sucker) (Forced to Sin) Karl Brettschneider — 1933
No Score Yet Nagana Dr. Walter Tradnor — 1933
96% The Old Dark House Roger Penderell — 1932
86% As You Desire Me Count Bruno Varelli — 1932
No Score Yet Tonight or Never Jim Fletcher — 1931

TV

Credit
No Score Yet The Fugitive
1963-1967 		1966

QUOTES FROM Melvyn Douglas CHARACTERS

Margaret Waverton says: For now heaven's sake stop, let's look at a map or something.

Roger Penderell says: My own view is we're not on a map.

Count Leon Dalga says: Ninotchka, you like me just a little bit?

Ninotchka says: Your general appearance is not distasteful.

Count Leon Dalga says: Thank you.

Ninotchka says: The whites of your eyes are clear. Your cornea is excellent.

Count Leon Dalga says: - your cornea's terrific! Ninotchka tell me, you're so expert on things: can it be that I'm falling in love with you?

Ninotchka says: Why must you bring in wrong values? Love is a romantic designation for a most ordinary biological, or shall we say chemical, process. A lot of nonsense is taught and written about it.

Count Leon Dalga says: Oh I see. What do you use instead?

Ninotchka says: I acknowledge the existence of a natural impulse, common to all.

Count Leon Dalga says: What can I possibly do to encourage such an impulse in you?

Count Leon Dalga says: You don't have to do a thing. Chemically we're already quite sympathetic.

Ninotchka says: I must go.

Count Leon Dalga says: But Ninotchka - I held you in my arms, you kissed me.

Ninotchka says: I kissed a polish lancer too - before he died.

Count Leon Dalga says: Pardon me, are you an explorer?

Ninotchka says: No. I'm looking for the Eiffel Tower.

Count Leon Dalga says: Good Heavens, is that thing lost again? Oh, are you interested in the view?

Ninotchka says: I'm interested in the Eiffel Tower from a technical standpoint.

Count Leon Dalga says: Technical? No, no; I'm afraid I couldn't be of much help from that angle. You see a Parisian only goes to the tower in moments of despair - to jump off.

Count Leon Dalga says: Technical? No, no, I'm afraid I couldn't be of much help from that angle. You see a Parisian only goes to the tower in moments of despair - to jump off.

Ninotchka says: How long does it take a man to land?

Count Leon Dalga says: Now isn't that too bad; the last time I jumped I forgot to time it.

Count Leon Dalga says: Now isn't that too bad, the last time I jumped I forgot to time it.

Bill Cole says: You've been taken to the cleaners, and you don't even know your pants are off.

Muriel Blandings says: I refuse to endanger the lives of my children in a house with less than four bathrooms.

Jim Blandings says: replies: For 1,300 dollars they can live in a house with three bathrooms and ROUGH IT.

Joan Blandings says: Oh look. Mother's diary. It's slightly torrid.

Jim Blandings says: What's with this kissing all of a sudden? I don't like it. Every time he goes out of this house, he shakes my hand and kisses you.

Muriel Blandings says: replies to Jim: Would you prefer it the other way around?

Bill Cole says: The next time you're going to do anything or say anything or buy anything, think it over very carefully. When you're sure you're right, forget the whole thing.

Homer Bannon says: You're an unprincipled man, Hud.

Homer Bannon says: You're an unprincipled young man Hud.

Hud Bannon says: Don't let that worry you none. You got enough for both of us.

Homer Bannon says: You're an unprincipled man, Hud.

Homer Bannon says: You're an unprincipled young man Hud.

Ninotchka says: Must you flirt?

Count Leon Dalga says: Well, I don't have to, but I find it natural.

Ninotchka says: Suppress it.

Count Leon Dalga says: Ninotchka, it's midnight. One half of Paris is making love to the other half.