{{short description|American actor (1925–2001)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| name =
| image = Jack Lemmon 2002.jpg
| caption = Lemmon in 1968
| birth_name = John Uhler Lemmon III
| birth_date = {{birth date|1925|02|08}}
| birth_place = [[Newton, Massachusetts]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2001|06|27|1925|01|08}}
| death_place = [[Los Angeles, California]], U.S.
| resting_place = [[Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery]]
| years_active = 1949–2001
| notable_works = [[Jack Lemmon on screen and stage|Performances]]
| alma_mater = [[Harvard University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|AB]])
| occupation = Actor
| spouse = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|[[Cynthia Stone]]|1950|1956|end=divorced}}
* {{marriage|[[Felicia Farr]]|1962}}
}}
| children = 2, including [[Chris Lemmon]]
| awards = [[List of awards and nominations received by Jack Lemmon|Full list]]
}}
'''John Uhler Lemmon III''' (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001) was an American actor. Considered proficient in both [[Drama (film and television)|dramatic]] and [[Comedy film|comic]] roles, Lemmon was known for his anxious, middle-class [[everyman]] screen persona in [[dramedy]] pictures,<ref name="Krikorian" /> leading ''[[The Guardian]]'' to label him as "the most successful tragi-comedian of his age."<ref>{{Cite web|date=2001-06-29|title=Obituary: Jack Lemmon|url=http://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/jun/29/guardianobituaries.filmnews2|access-date=2021-09-08|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref>

He starred in over sixty films and was nominated for an [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] eight times, winning twice, and received other accolades, including six [[Golden Globe Awards]] (counting the honorary [[Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award|Cecil B. DeMille Award]]), two [[Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor|Cannes Film Festival Awards]], two [[Volpi Cup for Best Actor|Volpi Cups]], one [[Silver Bear for Best Actor|Silver Bear]], three [[BAFTA Awards]], and two [[Primetime Emmy Awards|Emmy Awards]]. In 1988, he was awarded the [[American Film Institute]]'s [[AFI Life Achievement Award|Lifetime Achievement Award]] for his contributions to the American cinema.

His best known films include ''[[Mister Roberts (1955 film)|Mister Roberts]]'' (1955, [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|for which he won the year's Oscar for Best Supporting Actor]]), ''[[Some Like It Hot]]'' (1959), ''[[The Apartment]]'' (1960), ''[[Days of Wine and Roses (film)|Days of Wine and Roses]]'' (1962), ''[[Irma la Douce]]'' (1963), ''[[The Great Race]]'' (1965), ''[[Save the Tiger]]'' (1973, winning the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]]), ''[[The China Syndrome]]'' (1979), ''[[Missing (1982 film)|Missing]]'' (1982), and ''[[Glengarry Glen Ross (film)|Glengarry Glen Ross]]'' (1992). He acted in [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] plays, earning [[Tony Awards|Tony Award]] nominations for [[Tribute (play)|''Tribute'']] (which earned him another Oscar nomination [[Tribute (1980 film)|for its film adaptation]]) as well as the 1986 revival of ''[[Long Day's Journey into Night]]''.

Lemmon had a long-running collaboration with actor and friend [[Walter Matthau]], which ''[[The New York Times]]'' called "one of Hollywood's most successful pairings,"<ref>{{Cite news|agency=Associated Press|date=2001-06-28|title=Lemmon and Matthau: One of Hollywood's Most Successful Pairings|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/28/obituaries/lemmon-and-matthau-one-of-hollywoods-most-successful-pairings.html|access-date=2021-12-07|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> that spanned ten films between 1966 and 1998 including ''[[The Odd Couple (film)|The Odd Couple]]'' (1968), [[The Front Page (1974 film)|''The Front Page'']] (1974) and [[Grumpy Old Men (film)|''Grumpy Old Men'']] (1993).

==Early life and education ==
Lemmon was born on February 8, 1925, in an elevator at [[Newton-Wellesley Hospital]] in [[Newton, Massachusetts]].<ref name="NYT1981">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/07/12/magazine/jack-lemmon-behind-the-smile.html|title=Jack Lemmon: Behind the Smile|work=The New York Times|date=July 12, 1981|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref> He was the only child of Mildred Burgess ([[married and maiden names|''née'']] LaRue; 1896–1967)<ref name="JUL3-obits">
*{{cite news |title=FATE GAVE US A LEMMON WHO SWEETENED OUR LIVES |url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2001/06/29/fate-gave-us-a-lemmon-who-sweetened-our-lives/ |access-date=13 June 2023 |work=Sun Sentinel |date=29 June 2001 |location=Fort Lauderdale, Florida}}
*{{cite news |last1=Krikorian |first1=Greg |title=Jack Lemmon, Everyman Star, Dies |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-jack-lemmon-20010629-story.html |access-date=13 June 2023 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=29 June 2001}}
*{{cite news |title=A CLOWN'S HEART BEHIND SAD EYES |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2001/06/29/a-clowns-heart-behind-sad-eyes-2/ |access-date=13 June 2023 |work=Orlando Sentinel |date=29 June 2001}}
*{{cite news |last1=Bernstein |first1=Adam |title=Actor Jack Lemmon Dies at 76 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2001/06/29/actor-jack-lemmon-dies-at-76/60532edb-0664-4441-8674-9cdd44d39f95/ |access-date=13 June 2023 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=29 June 2001}}
*{{cite news |title=JACK LEMMON 1925–2001 // Farewell to America's Everyman |url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2001/06/29/jack-lemmon-1925-2001-farewell-to-america-s-everyman/ |access-date=13 June 2023 |work=Tampa Bay Times |date=June 29, 2001 |language=en}}
*{{cite news |last1=Natale |first1=Richard |title=Oscar winner Jack Lemmon dead at 76 |url=https://variety.com/2001/scene/people-news/oscar-winner-jack-lemmon-dead-at-76-1117802077/ |access-date=13 June 2023 |work=Variety |date=28 June 2001}}
*{{cite web |title=Lemmon III, John Uhler "Jack" |url=https://ww2gravestone.com/people/lemmon-iii-john-uhler-jack/ |website=WW2 Gravestone |access-date=13 June 2023}}
*
</ref> and John Uhler Lemmon II (1893–1962),<ref>

{{cite web |title=John Uhler Lemmon Jr. |url=https://www.ancientfaces.com/person/john-uhler-lemmon-jr-birth-1893-death-1962-united-/192776262 |website=AncientFaces |access-date=13 June 2023 |language=en}}</ref> who rose to Vice-President of Sales<ref name="NYT1981"/><ref name="encyclopedia/lemmon-john-uhler-iii">{{cite web |title=Lemmon, John Uhler, III ("Jack") |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/lemmon-john-uhler-iii-jack |website=Encyclopedia.com |access-date=13 June 2023}}</ref> of the [[Doughnut Corporation of America]].<ref name="Harmetz">{{cite news|last=Harmetz|first=Aljean|author-link=Aljean Harmetz|title=Jack Lemmon, Dark and Comic Actor, Dies at 76|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/29/movies/jack-lemmon-dark-and-comic-actor-dies-at-76.html|quote=Jack Lemmon, the brash young American Everyman who evolved into the screen's grumpiest old Everyman during a movie career that lasted a half century, died on Wednesday at a hospital in Los Angeles. He was 76 years of age and was resident in [[Beverly Hills]]. The cause was complications from cancer, said a spokesman, Warren Cowan|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=June 29, 2001|access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref> John Uhler Lemmon II was of Irish heritage, and Jack Lemmon was raised Catholic.<ref name=tca>Stated on ''[[Inside the Actors Studio]]'', 1998</ref> His parents had a difficult marriage, and separated permanently when Lemmon was 18, but never divorced.<ref name="NYT1981"/><ref name="Bernstein"/> Often unwell as a child, Lemmon had three significant operations on his ears before he turned 10.<ref name="Krikorian"/> He had spent two years in hospital by the time he turned 12.<ref name="Baxter">{{cite news|last=Baxter|first=Brian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/jun/29/guardianobituaries.filmnews2|title=Jack Lemmon|work=The Guardian|location=London|date=June 29, 2001|access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref>

During his acceptance of his lifetime achievement award, he stated that he knew he wanted to be an actor from the age of eight. He began to act in school productions.<ref>{{cite web|title=Jack Lemmon Interview|url=http://www.abilitymagazine.com/lemmon_interview.html|work=Ability Magazine|date=May 2006|access-date=August 3, 2012}}</ref> Lemmon attended [[Rivers School|Rivers Country Day School]] (Class of 1939) and [[Phillips Academy|Phillips Andover Academy]] (Class of 1943), where he pursued track sports with success, and [[Harvard College]] (Class of 1947), where he lived in [[Eliot House (Harvard College)|Eliot House]].<ref name="Harmetz" /><ref>{{Cite news| last = Pepp| first = Jessica A. | title = Jack Lemmon to Receive Arts Medal | work = [[The Harvard Crimson]]| publisher=[[Harvard University]]|date = February 24, 1995 | url = http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1995/2/24/jack-lemmon-to-receive-arts-medal/ | access-date = January 23, 2010}}</ref> At Harvard, he was president of the [[Hasty Pudding Club]] and vice president of Dramatic and [[Delphic Club]]s. Except for drama and music, however, he was an unexceptional student.<ref name="NYT1981"/>

Forbidden to act onstage due to academic probation, Lemmon broke Harvard rules to appear in roles using pseudonyms such as Timothy Orange.<ref name="DTelobit"/>

A member of the [[V-12 Navy College Training Program]], Lemmon was commissioned by the [[United States Navy]],<ref name=tca/> serving briefly as an [[Ensign (rank)|ensign]] on the aircraft carrier {{USS|Lake Champlain|CV-39|6}} during [[World War II]] before returning to Harvard after completing his military service.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jack Lemmon Biography Film Actor (1925–2001) |url=http://www.biography.com/people/jack-lemmon-9378762 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208233600/http://www.biography.com/people/jack-lemmon-9378762 |archive-date=February 8, 2015 |website=Biography |access-date=February 8, 2015}}</ref> After graduation with a degree in War Service Sciences<ref>{{cite web|title=Jack Lemmon Obituary|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/Movies/06/28/lemmon.obit/|work=CNN|date=June 28, 2001|access-date=August 3, 2017}}</ref> in 1947,<ref>{{cite web|title=Actor Jack Lemmon Honored by Glee Club, Hasty Pudding|url=http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/1996/12.12/ActorJackLemmon.html|work=Harvard University Gazette|publisher=Harvard University|access-date=February 8, 2015}}</ref> he studied acting under coach [[Uta Hagen]] at [[HB Studio]]<ref>{{cite web| url = https://hbstudio.org/about-hb-studio/alumni/| title = HB Studio Alumni}}</ref> in New York City.<ref name=tca/> He was also a pianist, who became devoted to the instrument at age 14 and learned to play by ear.<ref name="Harmetz"/><ref name="Baxter"/> For about a year in New York City, he worked unpaid as a waiter and master of ceremonies at the Old Knick bar on [[Second Avenue (Manhattan)|Second Avenue]].<ref name="NYT1981"/> He also played the piano at the venue.<ref>{{cite news|last=Wasser|first=Fred|url=https://www.npr.org/2011/06/11/137086345/the-secret-musical-life-of-jack-lemmon?t=1554235303935|title=The Secret Musical Life Of Jack Lemmon|work=NPR|date=June 10, 2011|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref>

==Career==

===1949–1965: early years===
Lemmon became a professional actor, working on radio and Broadway.<ref name=tca /> His film debut was a [[bit part]] as a plasterer in the film ''[[The Lady Takes a Sailor]]'' (1949),<ref>{{cite book|last=Tucker|first=David C.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R1ONAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA110|title=Eve Arden: A Chronicle of All Film, Television, Radio and Stage Performances|location=Jefferson, NC|publisher=McFarland|year=2012|page=110|isbn=9780786488100}}</ref> but he had already appeared in television shows, which numbered about 400 from 1948 to 1953.<ref name="Krikorian" />

Lemmon believed his stage career was about to take off when he was appearing on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] for the first time in a 1953 revival of the comedy ''[[Room Service (play)|Room Service]]'', but the production closed after two weeks.<ref name="NYTAP2001">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/28/obituaries/jack-lemmon-academy-award-winning-actor-dies-at-76-2001062892218652797.html|title=Jack Lemmon, Academy Award Winning Actor, Dies at 76|work=-The New York Times|agency=Associated Press|date=June 28, 2001|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref> Despite this setback, he was spotted by talent scout [[Maxwell Arnow|Max Arnow]], who was then working for [[Columbia Pictures|Columbia]], and Lemmon's focus shifted to films and Hollywood.<ref name="Harmetz" /> Columbia's head, [[Harry Cohn]], wanted to change Lemmon's name, in case it was used to describe the quality of the actor's films, but he successfully resisted.<ref name="LdnTimes2001">{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/jack-lemmon-06pcsf2qzxj|title=Jack Lemmon|work=The Times|location=London|date=June 29, 2001|access-date=April 1, 2019}} {{subscription required}}</ref>

His first role as a leading man was in the comedy ''[[It Should Happen to You]]'' (1954), which also featured the established [[Judy Holliday]] in the female lead. [[Bosley Crowther]] in his review for ''[[The New York Times]]'' described Lemmon as possessing "a warm and appealing personality. The screen should see more of him."<ref>{{cite news|last=Crowther|first=Bosley|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1954/01/16/archives/the-screen-in-review-it-should-happen-to-you-starring-judy-holliday.html?auth=login-smartlock|title=' It Should Happen to You,' Starring Judy Holliday, Is New Comedy at State|work=The New York Times|date=January 16, 1954|access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref> The two leads soon reunited in ''[[Phffft]]'' (also 1954).<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Brody|first=Richard|url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/happen-stance|title=Happen-Stance|magazine=The New Yorker|date=May 14, 2010|access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref> [[Kim Novak]] had a secondary role as a brief love interest for Lemmon's character.<ref name="Lim">{{cite news|last=Lim|first=Dennis|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-jun-07-ca-secondlook7-story.html|title=Jack Lemmon's earlier, lighter side|work=Los Angeles Times|date=June 7, 2009|access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref> "If it wasn't for Judy, I'm not sure I would have concentrated on films", he told ''[[The Washington Post]]'' in 1986 saying early in his career he had a snobbish attitude towards films over the stage.<ref name="Richards">{{cite news|last=Richards|first=David|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/03/24/lemmon-with-a-new-twist/4fa2d199-d118-4457-b084-5a675cf1ba38/|title=Lemmon, With a New Twist|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=March 24, 1986|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref> He managed to negotiate a contract with Columbia allowing him leeway to pursue other projects, some of the terms of which he said "nobody had gotten before".<ref name="Shipman320">{{cite book|last=Shipman|first=David|title=The Great Movie Stars: The International Years|location=London|publisher=Macdonald|year=1989|page=320}}</ref> He signed a seven-year contract, but ended up staying with Columbia for 10 years.<ref name="DTelobit" /> Lemmon's appearance as Ensign Pulver in ''[[Mister Roberts (1955 film)|Mister Roberts]]'' (1955), with [[James Cagney]], [[Henry Fonda]], and [[William Powell]] for [[Warner Bros.]], gained Lemmon the [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor Oscar]]. Director [[John Ford]] decided to cast Lemmon after seeing his Columbia screen test, which had been directed by [[Richard Quine]]. At an impromptu meeting on the studio lot, Ford persuaded the actor to appear in the film, although Lemmon did not realize he was in conversation with Ford at the time.<ref name="Krikorian" />

[[File:Some Like It Hot (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon).jpg|thumb|[[Tony Curtis]] and Lemmon in ''[[Some Like It Hot]]'' (1959)]]
In the military farce ''[[Operation Mad Ball]]'' (1957) set in a U.S. Army base in France after [[World War II]], Lemmon played a calculating private.<ref name="Lim" /> He met comedian [[Ernie Kovacs]], who co-starred, and they became close friends, appearing together in two subsequent films, as a warlock in ''[[Bell, Book and Candle]]'' (1958, a film he apparently disliked)<ref name="Shipman320" /> and ''[[It Happened to Jane]]'' (1959), all three under the direction of Richard Quine. Lemmon starred in six films directed by Quine.<ref name="DTelobit">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1312729/Jack-Lemmon.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1312729/Jack-Lemmon.html |archive-date=January 11, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Jack Lemmon|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|date=June 29, 2001|access-date=April 5, 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The others were ''[[My Sister Eileen (1955 film)|My Sister Eileen]]'' (1955), ''[[The Notorious Landlady]]'' (1962) and ''[[How to Murder Your Wife]]'' (1965).

[[File:The apartment trailer 1.JPG|thumb|Lemmon and MacLaine in ''[[The Apartment]]'' (1960)]]
Lemmon worked with director [[Billy Wilder]] on seven films. Their association began with the gender-bending comedy ''Some Like It Hot'' (1959), with [[Tony Curtis]] and [[Marilyn Monroe]].<ref name="Bernstein">{{cite news|last=Bernstein|first=Adam|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2001/06/29/actor-jack-lemmon-dies-at-76/60532edb-0664-4441-8674-9cdd44d39f95/|title=Actor Jack Lemmon Dies at 76|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=June 29, 2001|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref> His role required him to perform 80% of the role in drag. People who knew his mother, Millie Lemmon, said he had mimicked her personality and even her hairstyle.<ref name="NYT1981" /> Critic [[Pauline Kael]] said he was "demoniacally funny" in the part.<ref name="Harmetz" /> The sequence of films with Wilder continued with ''[[The Apartment]]'' (1960) alongside [[Shirley MacLaine]]. The film received mixed reviews from critics at the time, although it has been re-evaluated as a classic today. It received 11 nominations, winning five [[Academy Award]]s for [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]] and [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]]. Lemmon received [[Academy Award|Oscar]] nominations for his performances in ''Some Like it Hot'' and ''The Apartment''. He reunited with MacLaine in ''[[Irma la Douce]]'' (1963). MacLaine, observing the director's relationship with his male lead, believed it amounted to "professional infatuation".<ref name="Harmetz" />

Lemmon's first role in a film directed by [[Blake Edwards]] was in ''[[Days of Wine and Roses (film)|Days of Wine and Roses]]'' (1962) portraying Joe Clay, a young alcoholic businessman. The role, for which he was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor Oscar]], was one of Lemmon's favorites. By this time, he had appeared in 15 comedies, a Western and an adventure film. "The movie people put a label attached to your big toe — 'light comedy' — and that's the only way they think of you", he commented in an interview during 1984. "I knew damn well I could play drama. Things changed following ''Days of Wine and Roses''. That was as important a film as I've ever done."<ref name="Harmetz" /> ''Days of Wine and Roses'' was the first film where Lemmon was involved with production of the film via his Jalem production company.<ref>{{Cite web | last = Stang|first = Joanne| url = https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/packages/html/movies/bestpictures/apartment-ar3.html |title = Jack Lemmon: They Loved Him in Moscow |work = The New York Times | date = August 29, 1965 | access-date = April 6, 2019}}</ref> Lemmon's association with Edwards continued with ''[[The Great Race]]'' (1965), which reunited him with Tony Curtis. His salary this time was $1 million, but the film did not return its large budget at the box office.<ref>Shipman, p. 320-21</ref> ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'', in its December 31, 1964, review, commented: "never has there been a villain so dastardly as Jack Lemmon".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://variety.com/1964/film/reviews/the-great-race-1200420760/|title=The Great Race|work=Variety|date=December 31, 1964|access-date=December 31, 2020}}</ref>

===1966–1978: mid-career===
In 1966, Lemmon began the first of his many collaborations with actor [[Walter Matthau]] in ''[[The Fortune Cookie]]''. The film has been described by the British film critic [[Philip French]] as their "one truly great film".<ref name="French">{{cite news|last=French|first=Philip|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/jul/01/features.philipfrench|title=The nicest actor on the lot|work=The Observer|date=July 1, 2001|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref> Matthau went on to win an Academy Award for his performance in the film. Another nine films with them co-starring eventually followed, including ''[[The Odd Couple (film)|The Odd Couple]]'' (1968), ''[[The Front Page (1974 film)|The Front Page]]'' (1974), and ''[[Buddy Buddy]]'' (1981).<ref name="Krikorian">{{cite news|last=Krikorian|first=Greg|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-jack-lemmon-20010629-story.html|title=Jack Lemmon, Everyman Star, Dies|work=Los Angeles Times|date=June 29, 2001|access-date=April 1, 2019}}</ref>

In 1967, Lemmon's production company Jalem produced the film ''[[Cool Hand Luke]]'', which starred [[Paul Newman]] in the lead role.<ref name="Baxter" /> The film was a box-office and critical success. Newman, in gratitude, offered him the role of the Sundance Kid in ''[[Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid]]'', but Lemmon turned it down.<ref>''A slice of Lemmon for extra character'', Bob Flynn, Panorama, p. 7, Canberra Times, August 15, 1998</ref>

The best-known Lemmon-Matthau film is ''The Odd Couple'' (1968), based on the [[Neil Simon]] play, with the lead characters being the mismatched Felix Unger (Lemmon) and Oscar Madison (Matthau), respectively neurotical and cynical.<ref name="Gatward">{{cite web|last=Gatward|first=Hannah|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/lists/jack-lemmon-10-essential-films|title=Jack Lemmon: 10 essential films|work=BFI Film Forever|date=February 8, 2018|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref> The much-admired comedy ''[[Kotch]]'' (1971), the only film Lemmon directed,<ref name="Baxter" /> starred Matthau, who was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar. ''[[The Out-of-Towners (1970 film)|The Out-of-Towners]]'' (1970) was another Neil Simon-scripted film in which Lemmon appeared.

[[File:Chaplin oscar.JPG|thumb|right|[[Charlie Chaplin]] (right) receiving an [[Honorary Academy Award]] from Lemmon at the [[44th Academy Awards]] in 1972]]
In 1972, at the [[44th Academy Awards]], Jack Lemmon presented the Honorary Academy Award to silent screen legend [[Charlie Chaplin]].

Lemmon starred with [[Juliet Mills]] in ''[[Avanti!]]'' (1972) and appeared with Matthau in ''The Front Page'' (1974). Both films were directed by Wilder. He felt Lemmon had a natural tendency toward overacting that had to be tempered; Wilder's biography ''Nobody's Perfect'' quotes the director as saying, "Lemmon, I would describe him as a ham, a fine ham, and with ham you have to trim a little fat." Wilder, though, also once said: "Happiness is working with Jack Lemmon".<ref name="LdnTimes2001" />

Lemmon in ''[[Save the Tiger]]'' (1973) plays Harry Stoner, a businessman in the garment trade who finds someone to commit arson by burning down his warehouse to avoid bankruptcy.<ref name="Harmetz" /><ref name="Baxter" /> The project was rejected by multiple studios, but [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]] was prepared to make the film if it were budgeted for only $1 million. Lemmon was so keen to play the part that he worked for union scale, then $165 a week.<ref name="NYTAP2001" /> The role was demanding; like the character, Lemmon came close to breaking point: "I started to crack as the character did," he recalled. "I just kept getting deeper and deeper into the character's despair."<ref name="Krikorian" /> For this film, Lemmon won the Best Actor Oscar. Having won the Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for ''Mister Roberts'', he became the first actor to achieve that particular double, although [[Helen Hayes]] had achieved this feat three years earlier in the equivalent female categories.<ref name="Harmetz" />

===1979–2001: final roles===
Lemmon was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his role in ''[[The China Syndrome]]'' (1979), for which he was also awarded [[Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] at the [[Cannes Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Howard|first=Annie|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/cannes-winners-who-went-oscars-887120/item/conversation-cannes-winners-who-went-887522|title=Cannes Winners Who Went on to the Oscars|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=May 9, 2016|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref> In ''[[Tribute (play)|Tribute]]'', a stage drama first performed in 1979, he played a press agent who has cancer while trying to mend his relationship with his son. The Broadway production ran for 212 performances, but it gained mixed reviews. Nevertheless, Lemmon was nominated for the [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play]].<ref name="Bernstein" /> For his role in the [[Tribute (1980 film)|1980 film version]], Lemmon gained another Oscar nomination.<ref>{{cite news|last=Ebert|first=Roger|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/interviews/interview-with-jack-lemmon|title=Interview with Jack Lemmon|website=Roger Ebert|date=March 8, 1981|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref>

His final Oscar nomination was for ''[[Missing (1982 film)|Missing]]'' (1982), as a conservative father whose son has vanished in Chile during the period the country was under the rule of [[Augusto Pinochet]]; he won another Cannes award for his performance.<ref name="Bernstein" /> A contemporary failure was his last film with Billy Wilder, ''[[Buddy Buddy]]'' (1981). Lemmon's character attempts suicide in a hotel while a hitman (Matthau) is in the next suite.<ref>{{cite web|last=Axmaker|first=Sean|url=http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/489518%257C0/Buddy-Buddy.html|title=''Buddy, Buddy''|work=TCM|access-date=April 5, 2019}}</ref> Another flop at the box office was his final film with Blake Edwards, another of his friends; in ''[[That's Life! (film)|That's Life!]]'' (1986), he appeared in the director's self-autobiographical part with Edwards' wife, [[Julie Andrews]]. A seductress role was played by Lemmon's wife, [[Felicia Farr]].<ref name="Baxter" /> His later career is said to have been affected by other bad choices, such as ''[[Mass Appeal (film)|Mass Appeal]]'' (1984), about a conservative Catholic priest, ''[[Macaroni (film)|Macaroni]]'' (1985), a tale about old Army friends with [[Marcello Mastroianni]], and ''That's Life''.<ref name="DTelobit" /> Lemmon received the [[AFI Life Achievement Award]] in 1988.

Lemmon was nominated for a Tony Award the second and last time for a revival of [[Eugene O'Neill]]'s [[Long Day's Journey into Night#1986 Broadway revival|''Long Day's Journey into Night'']] in 1986;<ref>{{cite web |title=Jack Lemmon Tony Awards Info |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/tonyawardspersoninfo.php?nomname=Jack%20Lemmon |website=www.broadwayworld.com |access-date=February 18, 2019}}</ref> Lemmon had taken the lead role of James Tyrone in a production directed by [[Jonathan Miller]].<ref name="Richards" /> It had a London run in 1987, Lemmon's first theatre work in the city, and a television version followed. A return to London in 1989 for the antiwar play ''Veterans' Day'', with [[Michael Gambon]], was poorly received by critics, and following modest audiences, soon closed.<ref name="Baxter" /><ref name="LdnTimes2001" /> Lemmon also worked with [[Kevin Spacey]] in the films ''[[The Murder of Mary Phagan]]'' (1987), ''[[Dad (1989 film)|Dad]]'' (1989), and ''[[Glengarry Glen Ross (film)|Glengarry Glen Ross]]'' (1992), as well as the production of ''Long Day's Journey into Night''.

Lemmon and Matthau had small parts in [[Oliver Stone]]'s film ''[[JFK (film)|JFK]]'' (1991), in which both men appeared without sharing screen time.<ref>{{cite news|last=Natale|first=Richard|url=https://variety.com/2001/scene/people-news/oscar-winner-jack-lemmon-dead-at-76-1117802077/|title=Oscar winner Jack Lemmon dead at 76|work=Variety|date=June 28, 2019|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref> The duo reunited in ''[[Grumpy Old Men (film)|Grumpy Old Men]]'' (1993). The film was a surprise hit. Later in the decade, they starred together in ''[[The Grass Harp (film)|The Grass Harp]]'' (1995), ''[[Grumpier Old Men]]'' (1995), ''[[Out to Sea]]'' (1997), and ''[[The Odd Couple II]]'' (1998). While ''Grumpier Old Men'' grossed slightly more than its predecessor, ''The Odd Couple II'' was a box-office disappointment.<ref name="DTelobit" />

In 1996, Lemmon was nominated for a [[Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album|Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Or Nonmusical Album]] for his narration on "Harry S Truman: A Journey To Independence".<ref>{{cite web |title=Jack Lemmon |url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/jack-lemmon |website=GRAMMY.com |access-date=February 18, 2019 |language=en |date=February 15, 2019}}</ref> Around the same time, Lemmon starred along with [[James Garner]] in the comedy ''[[My Fellow Americans]]'' (1996) as two feuding ex-presidents. The supporting cast included [[Dan Aykroyd]] and [[Lauren Bacall]].

For his role in the [[William Friedkin]]-directed<ref name="Krikorian" /> version of ''[[12 Angry Men (1997 film)|12 Angry Men]]'' (1997), Lemmon was nominated for Best Actor in a Made-for-TV Movie in the [[55th Golden Globe Awards|1998 Golden Globe Awards]].
The award ceremony was memorable because [[Ving Rhames]], who won the Golden Globe for his portrayal of ''[[Don King (boxing promoter)|Don King: Only in America]]'', stunned the A-list crowd and television audience by calling Lemmon up to the stage and handing him the award. Lemmon tried not to accept but Rhames insisted. The emotional crowd gave Lemmon a standing ovation to which he replied that, "This is one of the nicest, sweetest moments I have ever known in my life."<ref>{{cite web|title=5 Memorable Golden Globe Moments
|publisher=News24 |date=February 27, 2021 |url=https://www.news24.com/channel/movies/news/5-memorable-golden-globe-moments-20210227-2}}</ref>
The role was as the contentious juror, played in the original [[12 Angry Men (1957 film)|1957 film version]] by [[Henry Fonda]]. Lemmon appeared in the remake with [[George C. Scott]] and reunited with him in another television film, this time ''[[Inherit the Wind (1999 film)|Inherit the Wind]]'' (1999).<ref name="Bernstein" />

Lemmon was a guest voice on ''[[The Simpsons]]'' episode "[[The Twisted World of Marge Simpson]]" (1997), as the owner of the pretzel business. For his role as Morrie Schwartz in his final television role, ''[[Tuesdays with Morrie (film)|Tuesdays with Morrie]]'' (1999), Lemmon won the [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie]]. His final film role was uncredited: the narrator in [[Robert Redford]]'s film ''[[The Legend of Bagger Vance]]''.

==Personal life==
[[File:Cynthia Lemmon, Jack Lemmon and Kim Novak, 1955.jpg|thumb|right|Lemmon with his first wife [[Cynthia Stone|Cynthia]] (left) and [[Kim Novak]] in 1955]]
Lemmon was married twice. He and first wife actress [[Cynthia Stone]], with whom he had a son, [[Chris Lemmon]] (born 1954), divorced. Lemmon married actress [[Felicia Farr]] on August 17, 1962, while shooting ''Irma La Douce'' in Paris. The couple's daughter, Courtney, was born in 1966.<ref name="NYT1981" /> Lemmon was the stepfather to Denise, from Farr's previous marriage to [[Lee Farr]].<ref>Don Widener ''Lemmon: A Biography'' (1975), page 7</ref> He was close friends with actors [[Tony Curtis]] and [[Kevin Spacey]], among others.

His publicist [[Geraldine McInerney]] said, "I remember Jack once telling me he lived in terror his whole life that he'd never get another job. Here was one of America's most established actors and yet he was without any confidence. It was like every job was going to be his last".<ref name="rte">{{Cite interview |last=McInerney |first=Geraldine |interviewer=Jan Battles |title=Always a woman ahead of her time |url=https://www.rte.ie/tv50/essays/geraldinemcinerney.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120917131241/https://www.rte.ie/tv50/essays/geraldinemcinerney.html |archive-date=September 17, 2012 |publisher=RTÉ}}</ref> As the 1970s progressed, Lemmon increased his drinking to cope with stress. He was fined for [[driving under the influence]] in 1976, finally quitting alcohol in the early 1980s.<ref name="Baxter" /> On a 1998 episode of the television program ''[[Inside the Actors Studio]]'', he stated that he was a recovering alcoholic.<ref name=tca/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://articles.latimes.com/2013/may/29/entertainment/la-et-st-james-lipton-20130529|title=James Lipton's 'Inside the Actors Studio' hits 250 on changing Bravo|author=Meredith Blake|work=Los Angeles Times|date=May 29, 2013|access-date=July 30, 2013}}</ref>

Lemmon was known as the "star" of the celebrity-packed, third-round telecast of the annual [[AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am]], held at [[Pebble Beach Golf Links]] each February. Lemmon's packed gallery was there not only for his humor, but also to root him on in his lifelong quest to "make the cut" to round four, something he was never able to achieve. The amateur who helps his team most in the Pro-Am portion is annually awarded the Jack Lemmon Award. During the 1980s and 1990s, Lemmon served on the advisory board of the [[National Student Film Institute]].<ref>{{cite book|title=National Student Film Institute/L.A: The Sixteenth Annual Los Angeles Student Film Festival|date=June 10, 1994|location=The Directors Guild Theatre|pages=10–11|ref=Program}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Los Angeles Student Film Institute: 13th Annual Student Film Festival|date=June 7, 1991|location=The Directors Guild Theatre|page=3|ref=Program}}</ref> Lemmon was a registered [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]].<ref name="Baxter" />

==Death==
[[File:Jack Lemmon headstone.jpg|thumb|right|Lemmon's headstone (inscription reads "JACK LEMMON in")]]
Lemmon died of [[bladder cancer]] on June 27, 2001.<ref name="Harmetz" /> He had suffered from the disease privately for two years before his death. His body was interred at [[Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park and Mortuary|Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery]] in [[Westwood, Los Angeles|Westwood]], California. Lemmon's gravestone reads like a title screen from a film: "JACK LEMMON in".<ref>[http://www.seeing-stars.com/imagepages/jacklemmongravephoto.shtml "THE GRAVE OF JACK LEMMON"]. Seeing Stars in Hollywood. Retrieved September 21, 2015.</ref> Guests who attended the private ceremony included [[Billy Wilder]], [[Shirley MacLaine]], [[Kevin Spacey]], [[Gregory Peck]], [[Sidney Poitier]], [[Kirk Douglas]], [[Michael Douglas]], [[Catherine Zeta-Jones]], [[Frank Sinatra]]'s widow Barbara and [[Walter Matthau]]'s son Charlie.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1417891.stm|title= Jack Lemmon laid to rest|website= [[BBC]]|date= July 2, 2001|access-date= May 18, 2020}}</ref>

==Acting credits and accolades==
{{main|Jack Lemmon on screen and stage|List of awards and nominations received by Jack Lemmon}}
[[File:Los Angeles (California, USA), Hollywood Boulevard, Jack Lemmon -- 2012 -- 4999.jpg|thumb|upright|Lemmon's star at the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]], Los Angeles, California July 19, 2012]]
Lemmon received eight [[Academy Award]] nominations and won for ''[[Mister Roberts (1955 film)|Mister Roberts]]'' (1955) and ''[[Save the Tiger]]'' (1973). He was nominated for ''[[Some Like It Hot]]'' (1959), ''[[The Apartment]]'' (1960), ''[[Days of Wine and Roses (film)|Days of Wine and Roses]]'' (1962), ''[[The China Syndrome]]'' (1979), ''[[Tribute (1980 film)|Tribute]]'' (1981), and ''[[Missing (1982 film)|Missing]]'' (1982). He received two [[Tony Award]] nominations for his performances in ''[[Tribute (play)|Tribute]]'' (1979), and ''[[Long Day's Journey into Night]]'' (1986). He received four [[Golden Globe Awards]] from 21 nominations, and received the [[Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award]] for his lifetime achievement in 1991. The year before he won the [[Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award]]. He was given tribute at the [[Kennedy Center Honors]] in 1996. He received a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] in 1960.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chad |date=2019-10-25 |title=Jack Lemmon |url=https://walkoffame.com/jack-lemmon/ |access-date=2024-01-22 |website=Hollywood Walk of Fame |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 1986, the U.S. [[National Board of Review of Motion Pictures]] gave Lemmon a "Career Achievement" Award;<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1986/ |title=1986 Award Winners |date=2016 |work=[[National Board of Review of Motion Pictures]] |access-date=October 31, 2016 }}</ref> two years later, the [[American Film Institute]] gave him its [[AFI Life Achievement Award|Lifetime Achievement Award]] in March 1988.<ref>{{cite news|last=Turan|first=Kenneth|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1988/03/12/savoring-the-sweetness-of-lemmon/ec64a531-27a1-4b97-81e4-e35c82ee3303/?noredirect=on|title=Savouring the Sweetness of Lemmon|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=March 12, 1988|access-date=April 2, 2019}}</ref> In 1995, Lemmon was awarded the inaugural [[Harvard Arts Medal]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Harvard Arts Medal |url=https://ofa.fas.harvard.edu/harvard-arts-medal |website=ofa.fas.harvard.edu |publisher=Harvard University Office for The Arts |access-date=February 18, 2019}}</ref> In 1996, Lemmon was awarded the [[Honorary Golden Bear]] award at the [[46th Berlin International Film Festival]].<ref name="Berlinale1996">{{cite web|url=https://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1996/03_preistr_ger_1996/03_Preistraeger_1996.html|title=Berlinale: 1996 Prize Winners|work=berlinale.de|access-date=June 17, 2019|archive-date=August 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804060642/https://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1996/03_preistr_ger_1996/03_Preistraeger_1996.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Jack Lemmon on screen and stage]]
*[[List of actors with Academy Award nominations]]
*[[List of actors with two or more Academy Award nominations in acting categories]]
*[[List of actors with two or more Academy Awards in acting categories]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
*{{cite book|last=Lemmon|first=Chris|title=A Twist of Lemmon: A Tribute to My Father|location=Chapel Hill, N.C.|publisher=Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill|year=2006|isbn=978-1-56512-480-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/twistoflemmontri00lemm}}
*{{cite book | last=Baltake | first=Joe | title=The Films of Jack Lemmon | publisher=Citadel Press | year=1977 | isbn=0-8065-0560-5}}
*{{cite book | last=Freedland | first=Michael | title=Some Like It Cool: The Charmed Life of Jack Lemmon | publisher=Robson Books | year=2003 | isbn=978-1-86105-510-1}}
*{{cite book | last=Widener | first=Don | title=Lemmon | publisher=Macmillan Books | year=1975}}
*Wise, James. ''Stars in Blue: Movie Actors in America's Sea Services''. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1997. {{ISBN|1557509379}} {{OCLC|36824724}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
*[https://texasarchive.org/2013_01952 Jack Lemmon interview with Carolyn Jackson in 1979 about The China Syndrome] from [[Texas Archive of the Moving Image]]
*{{IMDb name|0000493}}
*{{IBDB name}}
*{{Tcmdb name}}
*{{YouTube|huJr-LujrgM|THE FILMS OF JACK LEMMON}}
*[http://archives.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/Movies/06/28/lemmon.obit/ Actor Jack Lemmon dead at 76] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071228091434/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/Movies/06/28/lemmon.obit/ |date=December 28, 2007 }}
*[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2237227378514775727&q=%22archive+of+american+television+interview+with+Jack+Lemmon%22&total=4&start=0&num=10&so=2&type=search&plindex=1 Jack Lemmon at the Archive of American Television]
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/features/desert-island-discs/castaway/88b94ebf#p009mdht Appearance on Desert Island Discs (8 October 1989)]

{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for Jack Lemmon
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{{Academy Award Best Actor}}
{{Academy Award Best Supporting Actor}}
{{AFI Life Achievement Award}}
{{BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role}}
{{Prix d'interprétation masculine 1960–1979}}
{{Cecil B. DeMille Award}}
{{David di Donatello for Best Foreign Actor}}
{{EmmyAward MiniseriesLeadActor}}
{{Lincoln Center Gala Tribute}}
{{Golden Globe Award Best Actor Motion Picture Musical or Comedy}}
{{GoldenGlobeBestActorTVMiniseriesFilm}}
{{Hasty Pudding Man of the Year}}
{{Honorary Golden Bear}}
{{Kennedy Center Honorees 1990s}}
{{National Board of Review Award for Best Actor}}
{{ScreenActorsGuildAward LifeAchievement 1980–1999}}
{{ScreenActorsGuildAward MaleTVMiniseriesMovie 1994-2009}}
{{Silver Bear for Best Actor}}
{{Silver Shell for Best Actor}}
{{Volpi Cup for Best Actor}}
}}

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