The Cinema Archive: Cary Grant

Cary Grant - 52 Highest Rated Movies

Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach 1904 – 1986) was an English-born American actor, known as one of classic Hollywood's definitive leading men. He began a career in Hollywood in the early 1930s and became known for his transatlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He became an American citizen in 1942.

Grant was born in Bristol, England. He initially appeared in crime films or dramas such as Blonde Venus (1932) and She Done Him Wrong (1933), but later gained renown for his appearances in romantic comedy and screwball comedy films such as The Awful Truth (1937), Bringing Up Baby (1938), His Girl Friday (1940), and The Philadelphia Story (1940). These films are frequently cited among the greatest comedy films. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for Penny Serenade (1941) and None but the Lonely Heart (1944).

In the 1940s and 1950s, Grant forged a working relationship with director Alfred Hitchcock, appearing in films such as Suspicion (1941), Notorious (1946), To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959). Hitchcock admired Grant and considered him the only actor that he had ever loved working with. Towards the end of his film career, Grant was praised by critics as a romantic leading man, and he received five nominations for Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, including Indiscreet (1958) with Ingrid Bergman, That Touch of Mink (1962) with Doris Day, and Charade (1963) with Audrey Hepburn. He is remembered by critics for his unusually broad appeal as a handsome, suave actor who did not take himself too seriously.

Grant was married five times, three of them elopements with actresses Virginia Cherrill (1934–1935), Betsy Drake (1949–1962), and Dyan Cannon (1965–1968). He retired from film acting in 1966 and pursued numerous business interests, representing cosmetics firm Fabergé and sitting on the board of MGM. He was presented with an Honorary Oscar by his friend Frank Sinatra at the 42nd Academy Awards in 1970, and he was accorded the Kennedy Center Honors in 1981. In 1999, the American Film Institute named him the second greatest male star of Golden Age Hollywood cinema. (Wikipedia)

Gallery