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James Whitmore

James WhitmoreAKA James Allen Whitmore, Jr.

Born: 1-Oct-1921
Birthplace: White Plains, NY
Died: 6-Feb-2009
Location of death: Malibu, CA
Cause of death: Cancer - Lung

Gender: Male
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Actor
Party Affiliation: Democratic

Nationality: United States
Executive summary: Give 'em Hell, Harry!

Military service: USMC (WWII)

A graduate from Yale in 1944 and a member of the elite secret society Skull and Bones, James Whitmore served in the US Marines at the tail end of World War II. The G.I. Bill gave him an opportunity to study acting at the American Theatre Wing, and he appeared in the 1948 Broadway play, Command Decision. His role as Sgt. Harold Evans won him a Tony Award for best performance by a newcomer. In 1949, he landed his first movie role in the mob drama The Undercover Man, and later that year a much more prominent part in Battleground, for which he won a Golden Globe and received an Academy Award nomination, both for Best Supporting Actor. From that point, Whitmore was never short of film work. As a sampling, he played getaway driver Gus Minissi in The Asphalt Jungle (1950), the lead in the 1954 cult classic Them!, Admiral Bull Halsey in Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970), and received another Academy Award nomination for playing President Truman in Give 'em Hell, Harry! (1975). A 1999 appearance on The Practice brought him an Emmy for outstanding guest actor. Still maintaining a presence on the stage, Whitmore notably appeared in three one-man shows: as Harry S. Truman in Give 'em Hell, Harry!, as Theodore Roosevelt in Bully, and as Will Rogers in Will Rogers' USA. In late 2008 he was diagnosed with lung cancer, and he died in Malibu in early 2009.

Father: James Allen Whitmore, Sr.
Mother: Florence Belle Crane
Wife: Nancy Mygatt (m. 1947, div. 1971, three sons)
Son: Daniel Whitmore
Son: James Whitmore, Jr. (TV director, b. 24-Oct-1948)
Son: Steve Whitmore
Wife: Audra Lindley (actress, m. 1972, div. 1979)
Wife: Nancy Mygatt (remarried m. 24-Mar-1979, div.)
Wife: Noreen Nash (actress, m. 7-Aug-2001, until his death)

    High School: Amherst Central High School, Amherst, NY (transferred)
    High School: Choate School
    University: BA, Yale University (1944)

    Endorsement of Scotts Miracle-Gro
    Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
    EMILY's List
    Gore 2000
    John Kerry for President
    Obama for America
    Skull and Bones Society
    Golden Globe 1950 for Battleground (supporting actor)
    Emmy 2000 for The Practice (guest appearance)
    Tony 1948 for Command Decision (newcomer)
    Hollywood Walk of Fame 6611 Hollywood Blvd.

    TELEVISION
    Mister Sterling Bill Sterling, Sr. (2003)
    The Practice Raymond Oz (1997-99)
    Temperatures Rising Dr. Vincent Campanelli (1972-73)
    My Friend Tony Prof. John Woodruff (1969)
    The Law and Mr. Jones Abraham Lincoln Jones (1960-62)

    FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
    A Ring of Endless Light (23-Aug-2002)
    The Majestic (11-Dec-2001) · Stan Keller
    Swing Vote (19-Apr-1999)
    The Relic (10-Jan-1997) · Dr. Albert Frock
    The Shawshank Redemption (10-Sep-1994) · Brooks Hatlen
    Old Explorers (28-Sep-1990)
    Glory! Glory! (19-Feb-1989)
    Nuts (20-Nov-1987) · Judge Stanley Murdoch
    All My Sons (19-Jan-1987)
    The Adventures of Mark Twain (17-Jan-1986) [VOICE]
    Celebrity (12-Feb-1984)
    The First Deadly Sin (3-Oct-1980)
    The Word (12-Nov-1978)
    The Serpent's Egg (28-Oct-1977)
    Give 'em Hell, Harry! (18-Sep-1975)
    I Will Fight No More Forever (14-Apr-1975)
    Where the Red Fern Grows (27-Jun-1974)
    The Harrad Experiment (6-Sep-1973)
    High Crime (1973)
    Chato's Land (7-Jun-1972)
    Tora! Tora! Tora! (23-Sep-1970) · Adm. Halsey
    Guns of the Magnificent Seven (30-Jul-1969) · Levi
    The Split (4-Nov-1968) · Herb Sutro
    Madigan (13-Mar-1968) · Chief Insp. Charles Kane
    Planet of the Apes (8-Feb-1968) · President of the Assembly
    Nobody's Perfect (12-Jan-1968)
    Waterhole #3 (10-Oct-1967)
    Chuka (11-Jun-1967)
    Black Like Me (20-May-1964)
    Who Was That Lady? (8-Apr-1960)
    Face of Fire (9-Aug-1959)
    The Restless Years (31-Oct-1958)
    The Deep Six (15-Jan-1958) · Cmdr. Warren Meredith
    The Young Don't Cry (26-Jul-1957) · Rudy Krist
    The Eddy Duchin Story (13-Jun-1956) · Lou Sherwood
    Crime in the Streets (10-Jun-1956) · Ben Wagner
    The Last Frontier (7-Dec-1955) · Gus Rideout
    Oklahoma! (11-Oct-1955) · Mr. Carnes
    The McConnell Story (29-Sep-1955)
    Battle Cry (2-Feb-1955) · Master Sgt. Mac
    Them! (16-Jun-1954) · Sgt. Ben Peterson
    The Command (15-Jan-1954)
    The Great Diamond Robbery (8-Jan-1954) · Remlick
    Kiss Me Kate (26-Nov-1953) · Slug
    All the Brothers Were Valiant (13-Nov-1953) · Fetcher
    The Girl Who Had Everything (27-Mar-1953) · Chico Menlow
    Above and Beyond (21-Nov-1952) · Maj. Uanna
    Because You're Mine (25-Sep-1952) · Sgt. Batterson
    Shadow in the Sky (18-Jul-1952) · Lou
    It's a Big Country (20-Nov-1951) · Traveler
    Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone (8-Dec-1950)
    The Next Voice You Hear... (29-Jun-1950) · Joe Smith, American
    The Asphalt Jungle (23-May-1950) · Gus Minissi
    Please Believe Me (12-May-1950) · Vincent Maran
    The Outriders (1-Mar-1950) · Clint Priest
    Battleground (9-Nov-1949) · Kinnie
    The Undercover Man (21-Mar-1949) · George Pappas


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