1904-05-21 Fishkill Landing [now Beacon], New York, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Robert Montgomery (born Henry Montgomery Jr.; May 21, 1904 – September 27, 1981) was an American film and television actor, director, and producer. He was also the father of actress Elizabeth Montgomery. Montgomery settled in New York City to try his hand at writing and acting. He established a stage career, and became popular enough to turn down an offer to appear opposite Vilma Bánky in the film This Is Heaven (1929). Sharing a stage with George Cukor gave him an entry to Hollywood and a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he debuted in So This Is College (also 1929). Montgomery initially played exclusively in comedy roles, but portrayed a character in his first drama film in The Big House (1930). MGM was initially reluctant to assign him in such a role, until "his earnestness, and his convincing arguments, with demonstrations of how he would play the character" won him the assignment. From The Big House on, he was in constant demand. Appearing as Greta Garbo's romantic interest in Inspiration (1930) started him toward stardom with a rush. Norma Shearer chose him to star opposite her in The Divorcee (1930), Strangers May Kiss (1931), and Private Lives (1931), which led him to stardom. In another challenging role, Montgomery played a psychopath in the chiller Night Must Fall (1937), for which he received an Academy Award for Best Actor nomination. After World War II broke out in Europe in September, 1939, and while the United States was still officially neutral, Montgomery enlisted in London for American field service and drove ambulances in France until the Dunkirk evacuation. He then returned to Hollywood and addressed a massive rally on the MGM lot for the American Red Cross in July 1940. Montgomery returned to playing light comedy roles, such as Alfred Hitchcock's Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941) with Carole Lombard. He continued his search for dramatic roles. For his role as Joe Pendleton, a boxer and pilot in Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), Montgomery was nominated for an Oscar a second time. After the U.S. entered World War II in December 1941, he joined the United States Navy, rising to the rank of lieutenant commander, and served on the USS Barton (DD-722) which was part of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944. In 1945, Montgomery returned to Hollywood, making his uncredited directing debut with They Were Expendable, where he directed some of the PT boat scenes when director John Ford was unable to work for health reasons. Montgomery's first credited film as director and his final film for MGM was the film noir Lady in the Lake (1947), in which he also starred, which received mixed reviews. Adapted from Raymond Chandler's detective novel and sanitized for the censorship of the day, the film is unusual because it was filmed entirely from Marlowe's vantage point. Montgomery only appeared on camera a few times, three times in a mirror reflection. Active in Republican politics and concerned about communist influence in the entertainment industry, Montgomery was a friendly witness before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947. Montgomery has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for movies at 6440 Hollywood Boulevard, and another for television at 1631 Vine Street.
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Fantasia Lusitana | Self (archive footage) | 2010-04-22 |
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42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage | Self (archive footage) | 2006-03-21 |
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Jornal Português (1938-1951) | Self (archive footage) | 2005-12-12 |
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Checking Out: Grand Hotel | Self (archive footage) | 2004-02-03 |
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Complicated Women | Self (archive footage) | 2003-05-06 |
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Ingrid Bergman Remembered | Self (archive footage) | 1996-04-06 |
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That's Entertainment, Part II | (archive footage) | 1976-05-16 |
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That's Entertainment! | (archive footage) | 1974-06-21 |
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Hollywood: The Dream Factory | Self (archive footage) | 1972-01-10 |
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The Gallant Hours | Narration (American scenes) | 1960-06-13 |
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Your Witness | Adam Heyward | 1950-03-06 |
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Once More, My Darling | Collier Laing | 1949-09-10 |
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Breakdowns of 1949 | Self | 1949-12-31 |
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June Bride | Carey Jackson | 1948-10-29 |
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The Secret Land | Narrator | 1948-10-22 |
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The Saxon Charm | Matt Saxon | 1948-09-28 |
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Ride the Pink Horse | Lucky Gagin | 1947-10-08 |
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Lady in the Lake | Phillip Marlowe | 1946-12-19 |
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They Were Expendable | Lt. John Brickley | 1945-12-07 |
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Mr. & Mrs. Smith | David | 1941-01-31 |
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Unfinished Business | Tommy Duncan | 1941-08-27 |
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Rage in Heaven | Philip Monrell | 1941-03-07 |
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Here Comes Mr. Jordan | Joe Pendleton | 1941-08-07 |
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The Earl of Chicago | Robert Kilmount | 1940-01-05 |
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A New Romance of Celluloid: The Miracle of Sound | Self | 1940-10-24 |
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Busman's Honeymoon | Lord Peter Wimsey | 1940-07-22 |
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From the Ends of the Earth | Self | 1939-05-28 |
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Fast and Loose | Joel Sloane | 1939-02-17 |
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Hollywood Handicap | Himself | 1938-05-28 |
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Three Loves Has Nancy | Malcolm 'Mal' Niles | 1938-09-02 |
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Yellow Jack | John O'Hara | 1938-05-19 |
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Hollywood Goes to Town | Self | 1938-07-07 |
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The First Hundred Years | David Conway | 1938-03-12 |
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Ever Since Eve | Freddy Matthews | 1937-07-15 |
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Night Must Fall | Danny | 1937-04-30 |
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The Last of Mrs. Cheyney | Lord Arthur Dilling | 1937-02-19 |
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Live, Love and Learn | Bob Graham | 1937-10-29 |
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The Romance of Celluloid | Self | 1937-08-27 |
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Trouble for Two | Prince Florizel | 1936-05-29 |
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Piccadilly Jim | James Crocker, Jr. | 1936-08-14 |
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Petticoat Fever | Dascom Dinsmore | 1936-03-20 |
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No More Ladies | Sheridan 'Sherry' Warren | 1935-06-14 |
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Biography of a Bachelor Girl | Richard 'Dickie' Kurt | 1935-01-04 |
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Vanessa: Her Love Story | Benjamin Herries | 1935-03-01 |
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Starlit Days at the Lido | Self | 1935-09-28 |
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The Mystery of Mr. X | Revel | 1934-02-23 |
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Forsaking All Others | Dillon 'Dill" Todd | 1934-12-23 |
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Riptide | Tommie L. Trent | 1934-03-29 |
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Fugitive Lovers | Paul Porter, aka Stephen Blaine | 1934-01-05 |
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Hide-Out | Jonathan 'Lucky' Wilson | 1934-08-24 |
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Going Hollywood | Himself - Premiere Clip (archive footage) | 1933-12-22 |
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Another Language | Victor Hallam | 1933-07-28 |
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Night Flight | Auguste Pellerin | 1933-10-06 |
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When Ladies Meet | Jimmie | 1933-06-23 |
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Hell Below | Lieut. Thomas Knowlton USN | 1933-06-08 |
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Made on Broadway | Jeff | 1933-05-19 |
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Letty Lynton | Hale Darrow | 1932-04-30 |
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Lovers Courageous | Willie Smith | 1932-01-23 |
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Faithless | William 'Bill' Wade | 1932-10-15 |
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But the Flesh Is Weak | Max Clement | 1932-04-09 |
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Blondie of the Follies | Larry Belmont | 1932-09-01 |
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The Man in Possession | Raymond Dabney | 1931-07-04 |
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Strangers May Kiss | Steve | 1931-04-04 |
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Inspiration | André Montell | 1931-01-31 |
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Private Lives | Elyot Chase | 1931-12-12 |
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The Easiest Way | Jack Madison | 1931-02-07 |
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Shipmates | John Paul Jones | 1931-04-25 |
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The Big House | Kent Marlowe | 1930-06-14 |
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The Divorcee | Don | 1930-04-19 |
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War Nurse | Wally O'Brien | 1930-11-22 |
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Love in the Rough | Kelly | 1930-09-05 |
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The Voice of Hollywood | 1930-08-30 | |
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Our Blushing Brides | Tony Jardine | 1930-07-19 |
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Estrellados | Self (Guest Appearance at Premiere) | 1930-07-07 |
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Free and Easy | Larry | 1930-03-22 |
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The Sins of the Children | Nick Higginson | 1930-06-27 |
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Untamed | Andy McAllister | 1929-11-23 |
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So This Is College | Biff | 1929-11-08 |
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Three Live Ghosts | William Foster | 1929-09-15 |
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Their Own Desire | John 'Jack' Douglas Cheever | 1929-12-27 |
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The Single Standard | Party Boy (uncredited) | 1929-07-27 |
