Edmund Gwenn
From Alfred Hitchcock Wiki
- born: 26/Sep/1875 (Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, UK)
- died: 06/Sep/1959 (Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA)
Biography
Edmund Gwenn was a theatre and film actor, and brother of actor Arthur Chesney.
Born Edmund Kellaway in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, Gwenn started his acting career in theatre in 1895. Playwright George Bernard Shaw was impressed with his acting, and cast him in six of his plays. Gwenn's career was interrupted by his military service during World War I, however after the war ended he started appearing in films in London.
Gwenn appeared in more than eighty films during his career, including the 1940 version of "Pride and Prejudice". He is perhaps best remembered for his role as Kris Kringle in "Miracle on 34th Street", for which he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He received a second nomination for his role in "Mister 880" (1950). Near the end of his career he played one of the main roles in Alfred Hitchcock's The Trouble with Harry (1955).
Edmund Gwenn died from pneumonia after suffering a stroke, in Woodland Hills, California. He was cremated and his ashes are stored in the vault at the Chapel of the Pines Crematory in Los Angeles, California.
Edmund Gwenn has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1751 Vine Street for his contribution to motion pictures.
Filmography
With Hitchcock...
- The Skin Game (1931) - cast: Mr. Hornblower
- Waltzes from Vienna (1934) - cast: Johann Strauss, the Elder
- Foreign Correspondent (1940) - cast: Rowley
- Forever and a Day (1943) - cast: Stubbs
- The Trouble with Harry (1955) - cast: Capt. Albert Wiles
- Alfred Hitchcock Presents - Father and Son (02/Jun/1957) - cast: Joe Saunders
Other works of note...
- Pride and Prejudice (1940)
- The Devil and Miss Jones (1941)
- Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
- Them! (1954)