1877-06-18 Macon, Georgia, USA
Charles Douville Coburn 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.
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Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line | Self (archive footage) | 1997-05-12 |
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Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend | Self (from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes [1953]) (archive footage) | 1986-04-19 |
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It's Showtime | Self (archive footage) | 1976-03-31 |
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Marilyn | Sir Francis 'Piggy' Beekman (archive footage) (uncredited) | 1963-04-18 |
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Pepe | Charles Coburn | 1960-12-21 |
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The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker | Grampa Pennypacker | 1959-02-20 |
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John Paul Jones | Benjamin Franklin | 1959-06-16 |
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A Stranger in My Arms | Vance Beasley | 1959-03-03 |
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The Story of Mankind | Hippocrates | 1957-11-08 |
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Town on Trial | Dr. John Fenner | 1957-01-24 |
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How to Murder a Rich Uncle | Uncle George Clitterbern | 1957-06-01 |
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Around the World in Eighty Days | Steamship Company Clerk | 1956-10-17 |
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The Power and the Prize | Guy Eliot | 1956-09-26 |
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How To Be Very, Very Popular | Dr. Tweed | 1955-07-22 |
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The Long Wait | Gardiner | 1954-05-26 |
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The Rocket Man | Mayor Ed Johnson | 1954-04-01 |
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Gentlemen Prefer Blondes | Sir Francis Beekman | 1953-07-14 |
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Trouble Along the Way | le Père Matthew William Burke | 1953-04-04 |
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Has Anybody Seen My Gal? | Samuel Fulton / John Smith | 1952-06-25 |
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Monkey Business | Oliver Oxley | 1952-09-03 |
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The Highwayman | Lord Walters | 1951-08-11 |
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Mr. Music | Alex Conway | 1950-12-08 |
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Peggy | Professor Brookfield | 1950-07-01 |
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Louisa | Mr. Burnside | 1950-05-31 |
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Everybody Does It | Major Blair | 1949-10-24 |
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The Doctor and the Girl | Dr. John Corday | 1949-09-29 |
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Impact | Lieutenant Quincy | 1949-03-20 |
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The Gal Who Took the West | General Michael O'Hara | 1949-09-01 |
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Yes Sir, That's My Baby | Professor Jason Hartley | 1949-09-14 |
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B.F.'s Daughter | Burton F. 'B.F.' Fulton | 1948-03-24 |
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Green Grass of Wyoming | Beaver Greenway | 1948-06-03 |
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The Paradine Case | Sir Simon Flaquer | 1947-12-31 |
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Lured | Harley Temple | 1947-08-28 |
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The Green Years | Alexander Gow | 1946-07-04 |
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Colonel Effingham's Raid | Colonel Will Seaborn Effingham | 1946-01-24 |
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Over 21 | Robert Drexel Gow | 1945-08-08 |
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Shady Lady | Col. John Appleby | 1945-09-07 |
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A Royal Scandal | Nicolai Iiyitch | 1945-03-26 |
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Rhapsody in Blue | Max Dreyfus | 1945-06-27 |
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Together Again | Jonathan Crandall Sr | 1944-12-23 |
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The Impatient Years | William Smith | 1944-09-10 |
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Knickerbocker Holiday | Peter Stuyvesant | 1944-03-17 |
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Wilson | Professor Henry Holmes | 1944-08-01 |
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The More the Merrier | Benjamin Dingle | 1943-05-13 |
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The Constant Nymph | Charles Creighton | 1943-06-23 |
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My Kingdom for a Cook | Rudyard Morley | 1943-10-27 |
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Heaven Can Wait | Hugo Van Cleve | 1943-08-05 |
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Princess O'Rourke | Uncle Holman | 1943-10-23 |
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Breakdowns of 1942 | Self | 1942-12-31 |
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In This Our Life | William Fitzroy | 1942-05-08 |
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Kings Row | Henry Gordon | 1942-02-02 |
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George Washington Slept Here | Stanley Menninger | 1942-10-30 |
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Unexpected Uncle | Seton Mansley | 1941-11-07 |
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Our Wife | Professor Drake | 1941-08-20 |
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H.M. Pulham, Esq. | John Pulham | 1941-12-04 |
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The Devil and Miss Jones | John P. Merrick/Thomas Higgins | 1941-04-11 |
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The Lady Eve | 'Colonel' Harrington | 1941-02-25 |
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Road to Singapore | Joshua Mallon IV | 1940-03-22 |
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The Captain Is a Lady | Captain Abe Peabody | 1940-06-21 |
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Three Faces West | Dr. Karl Braun | 1940-07-03 |
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Edison, the Man | General Powell | 1940-05-10 |
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Florian | Dr. Johannes Hofer | 1940-06-05 |
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In Name Only | Richard Walker | 1939-08-18 |
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Bachelor Mother | J. B. Merlin | 1939-06-30 |
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Made for Each Other | Judge Joseph M. Doolittle | 1939-02-10 |
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Stanley and Livingstone | Lord Tyce | 1939-08-18 |
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The Story of Alexander Graham Bell | Gardner Hubbard | 1939-04-04 |
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Idiot's Delight | Dr. Hugo Waldersee | 1939-01-27 |
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Lord Jeff | Captain Briggs | 1938-06-17 |
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Vivacious Lady | Mr. Morgan | 1938-05-13 |
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Yellow Jack | Dr. Finlay | 1938-05-19 |
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Of Human Hearts | Dr. Charles Shingle | 1938-02-11 |
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The People's Enemy | Judge | 1935-04-29 |
