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Roddy McDowall

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Roddy McDowall
Roddy McDowall at the 1988 Academy Awards
Born
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall
Years active1938-1998

Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 3 October 1998) was an English-born actor.

Biography

Early life

McDowall was born in Herne Hill, London, the son of Winsfriede L. (nee Corcoran), an Irish-born aspiring actress, and Thomas Andrew McDowall, a Merchant Mariner. Both of his parents were enthusiastic about the theatre. He had a sister, Virginia (1927–2006).

After he had appeared in several British films, McDowall's family came to America because of the Blitz. He then made his first well-known film appearance, at age twelve, playing Huw in How Green Was My Valley (1941). This role made him a household name. He co-starred in Lassie Come Home (1943), on the first of many occasions opposite lifelong friend Elizabeth Taylor. He then went on to appear in other films, including The Keys of the Kingdom (1944) and The White Cliffs of Dover (1944).

Adult career

Roddy McDowall in Lassie Come Home (1943)

McDowall was one of the few child actors to continue his career successfully into adulthood, but it was usually in character roles, notably in heavy makeup as various "chimpanzee" characters in four of the Planet of the Apes movies (1968 – 1973) and in the 1974 TV series that followed. Other film appearances included Cleopatra (1963), in which he played Octavian (the later Emperor Augustus); It! (1966), in which he played a Norman Bates character reminiscent of Psycho; The Poseidon Adventure (1972), in which he played Acres, a dining room attendant; Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry (1974); Class of 1984 (1982); Fright Night (1985), in which he played Peter Vincent, a television host and moderator of telecast horror films; and Overboard (1987) in which he played a kind-hearted butler. He also appeared on stage and was frequently a guest star on television shows, appearing in such series as the original The Twilight Zone, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Night Gallery, The Invaders, The Carol Burnett Show, Fantasy Island, Columbo and Quantum Leap.

He appeared frequently on Hollywood Squares, and occasionally came up with funny quips himself. For example:

Q. In Shakespeare's Hamlet, what does Queen Gertrude get that was meant for her famous son? McDOWALL: A dozen roses and a box of candy.

He played a character villain, "The Bookworm" in the camp 1960s TV series Batman and had an acclaimed recurring role as The Mad Hatter in Batman: The Animated Series as well as providing his adroit dramatic tones to the audio adaptation of the 1989 Batman film. He also played the rebel scientist Dr. Jonathan Willoway in the 1970s Bermuda Triangle-based sci-fi series, The Fantastic Journey. His final acting role in animation (at least), was for an episode of Godzilla: The Series in the episode "Dreadloch". In A Bug's Life (1998), one of his final contributions to motion pictures, he provides the voice of the ant "Mr. Soil".

During the 1990s, McDowall became active in film preservation and participated in the restoration of Cleopatra (1963), which had been severely cut by 20th Century Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck after skyrocketing production costs. McDowall served for several years in various capacities on the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the organization that presents the Oscar Awards. He was Chairman of the Actor's Branch for five terms. He was elected President of the Academy Foundation the year that he died.

McDowall received recognition as a photographer and published five books of photographs, one being of his celebrity friends such as Elizabeth Taylor, Judy Garland, Judy Holliday and Maureen O'Hara.

Personal life

In 1974, the FBI raided the home of McDowall and seized the actor's collection of films and television series in the course of an investigation of movie piracy and copyright infringement. His collection consisted of 160 16 mm prints and over 1,000 videocassettes, at a time before the era of videotapes when there was no legal aftermarket for films (copying or selling prints obtained from studios without owning the copyright was illegal). McDowall had purchased Errol Flynn's home movies and the prints of his own directorial debut Tam Lin (1970) starring Ava Gardner, and transferred them all to tape for longer-lasting archival storage. McDowall was quite forthcoming about those who dealt with him: Rock Hudson, Dick Martin and Mel Tormé were just a few of the celebrities interested in his film reproductions. No charges were brought against McDowall.

Death

On 3 October 1998, McDowall died at his home in the Studio City neighborhood of Los Angeles of lung cancer. ``It was very peaceful,`` said Dennis Osborne, a screenwriter friend who had cared for the actor in his final months. ``It was just as he wanted it. It was exactly the way he planned.`` Though he was cremated through The Neptune Society, his ashes were not distributed in the Pacific Ocean as had been widely reported at the time.

The day after his death, his close friend Angela Lansbury, who'd worked with him over the years, paid tribute to him on BBC Radio 5 Live, saying that he was 'one of the most wonderful friends anybody could possibly have' and that she had 'lost a beloved friend'. [1]

One of his last public appearances occurred when he accompanied the actress Luise Rainer to the 70th Oscar ceremony.

Work

Filmography

Television

Stage

References

  1. ^ Roddy McDowall - Biography

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