Walter Matthau

American actor (1920–2000)

Walter Matthau

Matthau in 1952

Born|

Walter John Matthow

(1920-10-01)October 1, 1920

New York City, U.S.

Died| July 1, 2000(2000-07-01) (aged 79)

Santa Monica, California, U.S.

Resting place| Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
Other names| Walter Matuschanskayasky
Education| Seward Park High School
Occupations|

* Actor
* comedian
* director

Years active| 1948–2000
Notable work| Full list
Spouses|

Grace Geraldine Johnson

(m. 1948; div. 1959)​

Carol Marcus

(m. 1959)​

Children| 3, including Charles Matthau
Relatives| Aram Saroyan (step-son)
Lucy Saroyan (step-daughter)
Awards| (see § Awards and nominations)
Military career
Service / branch| United States Army Air Forces
Years of service| 1942-1945
Rank| Staff sergeant
Unit|

* Eighth Air Force
* 453rd Bombardment Group

Battles / wars|

* World War II
* Battle of the Bulge

Awards|

* Air Medal
* Army Good Conduct Medal
* American Campaign Medal
* European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal
* World War II Victory Medal

Walter John Matthau (né Matthow; /ˈmæθaʊ/ MATH-ow;[1] October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor. He was known for his "hangdog face" and for playing world-weary characters.[2] He starred in 10 films alongside his real-life friend Jack Lemmon, including The Odd Couple (1968) and Grumpy Old Men (1993). The New York Times called this "one of Hollywood's most successful pairings".[3] Among other accolades, he was an Academy Award, a two-time BAFTA Award, and two-time Tony Award winner.

On Broadway, Matthau originated the role of Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple by playwright Neil Simon, for which he received a Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play in 1965, his second after A Shot in the Dark in 1962. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the Billy Wilder film The Fortune Cookie (1966), with further Best Actor nominations for Kotch (1971) and The Sunshine Boys (1975). He gained further recognition for his portrayal of the coach of a hapless little league team in the baseball comedy The Bad News Bears (1976).

Matthau is also known for his performances in Elia Kazan's A Face in the Crowd (1957), the Elvis Presley vehicle King Creole (1958), Stanley Donen's romance Charade (1963), Fail Safe (1964), Gene Kelly's musical Hello, Dolly! (1969), Elaine May's screwball comedy A New Leaf (1971) and Herbert Ross's ensemble comedy California Suite (1978). He also starred in Plaza Suite (1971), Charley Varrick (1973), The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974), The Sunshine Boys (1975), House Calls (1978), Hopscotch (1980) and Dennis the Menace (1993).

In 1982, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

## Early life

[edit]

Staff Sergeant Walter John Matthau

Matthau was born Walter John Matthow[4][5] on October 1, 1920, in New York City's Lower East Side. He had two brothers, one older and one younger.[citation needed]

His parents were Jewish; his mother, Rose (née Berolsky or Beransky), was a Lithuanian immigrant who worked in a garment sweatshop, and his father, Milton Matuschansky, was a Ukrainian peddler and electrician from Kyiv. They married in New York in 1917.[6][7]

A New York Times interview described his early years: "When Matthau was 3 years old, and his older brother, Henry, was 5, his father…lit out for parts unknown, leaving him and his brother to be raised by their mother….In 1935…Matthau learned of his father’s death in Bellvue Hospital….During his childhood, Matthau…lived in a succession of cold-water tenement apartments in the Ukrainian area of the Lower East Side…being forced to vacate each apartment after only a few months because they’d got so hopelessly far behind in the rent that their landlord would have them evicted….Matthau…hasn’t the slightest nostalgia these days for his poverty-ridden childhood, ‘It was a nightmare—a dreadful, horrible, stinking nightmare,’ he grimly remembers.”[8]

As part of a lifelong love of practical jokes, Matthau created the rumors that his middle name was Foghorn and his last name was originally Matuschanskayasky (under which he is credited for a cameo role in the film Earthquake).[9]

As a young boy, Matthau attended a Jewish non-profit sleepaway camp, Tranquillity Camp, where he began acting in the shows that the camp staged on Saturday nights. He also attended Surprise Lake Camp. His high school was Seward Park High School.[10] He worked for a short time as a concession stand cashier in the Yiddish Theatre District.[11]

## World War II

[edit]

During World War II, Matthau saw active service as a radioman-gunner on a Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber in the U.S. Army Air Forces with the Eighth Air Force in England. He was with the same 453rd Bombardment Group as James Stewart. While based in England at RAF Old Buckenham, Norfolk, he flew missions to continental Europe during the Battle of the Bulge. He ended the war with the rank of Staff Sergeant and returned home to America for demobilization at the war's end, intent on pursuing a career as an actor.[12]

## Acting career

[edit]

### Early work

[edit]

Matthau was trained in acting at the Dramatic Workshop of The New School with German director Erwin Piscator. He often joked that his best early review came in a play where he posed as a derelict. One reviewer said, "The others just looked like actors in make-up, Walter Matthau really looks like a skid row bum!" Matthau was a respected stage actor for years in such fare as Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? and A Shot in the Dark, for his performance in the latter winning the 1962 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play.[13]

Matthau in Charade, 1963

Matthau appeared in the pilot of Mister Peepers (1952) with Wally Cox. For reasons unknown, he used the name Leonard Elliot. His role was of the gym teacher Mr. Wall. He made his motion picture debut as a whip-wielding bad guy in The Kentuckian (1955) opposite Burt Lancaster. He played a villain in King Creole (1958), in which he gets beaten up by Elvis Presley. Around the same time, he made Ride a Crooked Trail with Audie Murphy, and Onionhead (both 1958) starring Andy Griffith; the latter a box-office flop. Matthau and Griffith appeared previously the critical and box-office hit A Face in the Crowd (1957), directed by Elia Kazan. Matthau appeared with James Mason in Bigger Than Life (1956), directed by Nicholas Ray. Matthau directed a low-budget movie called The Gangster Story (1960) and played a sympathetic sheriff in Lonely Are the Brave (1962), which starred Kirk Douglas. He appeared in the Cary Grant-Audrey Hepburn crime thriller Charade (1963).

On television, he appeared twice on Naked City, as well as in four installments of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. He appeared eight times between 1962 and 1964 on The DuPont Show of the Week and as Franklin Gaer in an episode of Dr. Kildare ("Man Is a Rock", 1964).

### 1960s

[edit]

Matthau and Art Carney in The Odd Couple, 1965

Comedies were rare in Matthau's work at that time. He was cast in a number of stark dramas, such as Fail Safe (1964), in which he portrayed Pentagon adviser Dr. Groeteschele, who urges an all-out nuclear attack on the Soviet Union in response to an accidental transmission of an attack signal to U.S. Air Force bombers. Neil Simon cast him in the play The Odd Couple in 1965, with Matthau playing slovenly sportswriter Oscar Madison, opposite Art Carney as Felix Ungar.[13] Matthau reprised the role in the film version, with Jack Lemmon as Felix Unger. He played detective Ted Casselle in the Hitchcockian thriller Mirage (1965), directed by Edward Dmytryk.

He achieved great success in the comedy film The Fortune Cookie (1966) as shyster lawyer William H. "Whiplash Willie" Gingrich, starring yet again opposite Lemmon; the first of many collaborations with Billy Wilder, and a role that would earn him an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Filming had to be placed on a five-month hiatus after Matthau had a serious heart attack. He gave up his three-pack-a-day smoking habit as a result.[14] Matthau appeared during the Oscar telecast shortly after having been injured in a bicycle accident; nonetheless, he scolded actors who had not attended the ceremony, especially the other major award winners that night: Paul Scofield, Elizabeth Taylor and Sandy Dennis.[15] Broadway-hits-cum-films continued to cast Matthau in lead roles such as Hello, Dolly! and Cactus Flower (both 1969); for the latter, Goldie Hawn received an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.

Matthau in Hello, Dolly!, 1969

### 1970s

[edit]

It was during this time that Matthau began to appear in more comedy films, including the black comedy A New Leaf (1971) and the comedy-drama Pete 'n' Tillie (1972). Oscar nominations would come his way again for Kotch (1971), directed by Lemmon, and The Sunshine Boys (1975). The latter was another adaptation of a Neil Simon stage play—this time about a pair of former vaudeville stars. For the latter, he won a Golden Globe award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy, tying with his co-star George Burns. Meanwhile, their other co-star, Richard Benjamin, won a supporting award.[16]

Matthau played three roles in the film version of Simon's Plaza Suite (1971), and was in the cast of its followup California Suite (1978). He starred in House Calls (1978), sharing the screen with Glenda Jackson and his Odd Couple stage partner, Carney.

Matthau starred in three crime dramas in the mid-1970s: as a detective investigating a mass murder on a bus in The Laughing Policeman (1973), as a bank robber on the run from the Mafia and the law in Charley Varrick (also 1973) and as a New York transit official in the action-thriller The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974). He also reunited with Lemmon in the black comedy-drama The Front Page (1974). A change of pace about misfits and delinquents on a Little League baseball team turned out to be a solid hit when Matthau starred as coach Morris Buttermaker in the comedy The Bad News Bears (1976).

### 1980s

[edit]

Matthau produced some films with Universal Pictures, with his son Charlie also becoming involved in his production company, Walcar Productions, but the only film that he produced was the third remake of Little Miss Marker (1980).[17]

He was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for his portrayal of former CIA field operative Miles Kendig in the elaborate spy comedy Hopscotch (1980), reuniting with Jackson. The original script, a dark work based on the novel of the same name, was rewritten and transformed into a comedy in order to play to Matthau's specific talents. The rewrite was a condition of his participation.[18] Matthau participated in the script revisions, and the film's director Ronald Neame observed that Matthau's contributions entitled him to screen credit, but that was never pursued.[19] Matthau wrote the scene in which Kendig and Isobel—apparently strangers—meet in a Salzburg restaurant and strike up a conversation about wine that ends in a passionate kiss. He also wrote the last scene of the film, where Kendig, presumed to be dead, disguises himself as a Sikh to enter a bookshop. He also helped to choose appropriate compositions by Mozart that made up much of the score.[20][19] TCM's Susan Doll observes that "Hopscotch could be considered the end of a long career peak or the beginning of (Matthau's) slide downhill, depending on the viewpoint", as character parts and supporting parts became the only thing available to an actor his age.[18]

The next year, he was nominated again for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for his portrayal of the fictional Associate Justice Daniel Snow in First Monday in October (1981). The film was about the (then-fictional) first appointment of a woman (played by Jill Clayburgh) to the Supreme Court of the United States. It was scheduled for release in 1982, but when President Ronald Reagan named Sandra Day O'Connor in July 1981, the release date was moved up to August 1981.[citation needed] The New York Times critic Janet Maslin disliked the film but praised Matthau's performance.[21]

Matthau reunited with Lemmon in the comedy Buddy Buddy (1981). He also portrayed Herbert Tucker in I Ought to Be in Pictures (1982) with Ann-Margret and Dinah Manoff. He co-starred with Robin Williams in the 1983 dark comedy film The Survivors. Although a box-office dud that barely grossed its budget, the film found a new audience via repeated broadcasts on cable TV in the following years.[citation needed] He took the leading role of Captain Thomas Bartholomew Red in Roman Polanski's swashbuckler Pirates (1986).

During the 1980s and 1990s, Matthau served on the advisory board of the National Student Film Institute.[22][23]

### 1990s

[edit]

Matthau narrated the Doctor Seuss Video Classics: How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1992), and played the role of George Wilson in the film Dennis the Menace (1993). In a change of pace, Matthau played Albert Einstein in the film I.Q. (1994) starring Tim Robbins and Meg Ryan.

His partnership with Jack Lemmon became one of the most enduring collaborations in Hollywood. They became lifelong friends after making The Fortune Cookie and would make a total of 10 movies together—11 counting Kotch, in which Lemmon has a cameo as a sleeping bus passenger. Apart from their many comedies, the two appeared (although they did not share any scenes) in the Oliver Stone drama JFK (1991). Matthau and Lemmon reunited for the comedy Grumpy Old Men (1993), co-starring Ann-Margret, and its sequel Grumpier Old Men (1995), co-starring Sophia Loren. This led to further pairings late in their careers, including appearances in The Grass Harp (1995), Out to Sea (1997) and a Simon-scripted sequel to their much earlier success, The Odd Couple II (1998).

Hanging Up (2000), directed by Diane Keaton, was Matthau's final appearance onscreen.

## Personal life

[edit]

### Marriage and children

[edit]

In 1948, Matthau married Geraldine "Geri" Grace Johnson. Their son David was born in 1953 and their daughter Jenny was born in 1956. The couple divorced in 1959.[24]

Matthau married Carol Marcus in 1959. She died in 2003. Their son Charles (Charlie) Matthau was born in 1962. Charlie is a director and directed his father in several movies.

### Gambling

[edit]

In 1971 Matthau discussed his longtime compulsive gambling with a New York Times writer. In the late 1960s, while doing a two-week television shoot in Florida for "Tallahassee 7000," he had lost $183,000, mostly betting on spring-training baseball games. It took Matthau six years to pay off his "Mafia-connected bookmaker," and he curtailed his betting somewhat in the 1970s, though daily racetrack losses of $400-500 were common.[25]

### Health problems

[edit]

A heavy smoker, Matthau had a heart attack in 1966 while filming The Fortune Cookie, the first of at least three in his lifetime.[26]

In 1976, ten years after his first heart attack, he underwent heart-bypass surgery. After working in Minnesota for Grumpy Old Men (1993), he was hospitalized for double pneumonia. In December 1995, he had a colon tumor removed, apparently successfully, as there was no mention of cancer in his death certificate. He was hospitalized in May 1999 for more than two months, again owing to pneumonia.[14]

Matthau's gravesite

His death certificate lists the causes of death as "cardiac arrest" and "atherosclerotic heart disease", with "end stage renal disease" and "atrial fibrillation" as significant contributing factors. There is no mention of cancer.[27]

### Death

[edit]

On the late evening of June 30, 2000, Matthau had a heart attack at his home and was taken by ambulance to the St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, where he died a few hours later at 1:42 a.m. on July 1, 2000, at age 79.[28] He is buried at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Matthau's wife Carol Marcus died in 2003, and her body is interred in the same plot as her husband.[citation needed]

## Filmography

[edit]

Main article: List of Walter Matthau performances

## Awards and nominations

[edit]

Year  | Award  | Category  | Nominated work  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|

1966 | Academy Awards | Best Supporting Actor | The Fortune Cookie | Won  | [29]
1971 | Best Actor | Kotch | Nominated  | [30]
1975 | The Sunshine Boys | Nominated  | [31]
1969 | British Academy Film Awards | Best Actor in a Leading Role | Hello, Dolly! and The Secret Life of an American Wife | Nominated  | [32]
1973 | Charley Varrick and Pete 'n' Tillie | Won
1976 | The Bad News Bears and The Sunshine Boys | Nominated
1975  | David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Actor | The Front Page[a] | Won[b] | [33]
1966 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | The Fortune Cookie | Nominated  | [34]
1968 | The Odd Couple | Nominated
1971 | Kotch | Nominated
1972 | Pete 'n' Tillie | Nominated
1974 | The Front Page | Nominated
1975 | The Sunshine Boys | Won
1980 | Hopscotch | Nominated
1981 | First Monday in October | Nominated
1966  | Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Supporting Actor  | The Fortune Cookie | Won  | [35]
1971  | Best Actor  | Kotch | Won  | [36]
1966  | Laurel Awards | Top Male Supporting Performance  | The Fortune Cookie | Won  |
1968  | Top Male Comedy Performance  | The Odd Couple | Won
Top Male Star  | —  | 9th Place
1970  | —  | 8th Place
2016  | Online Film & Television Association Awards  | Film Hall of Fame: Actors  | —  | Inducted  | [37]
1976  | Photoplay Awards | Favorite Movie  | The Bad News Bears | Nominated  |
1963 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role | The DuPont Show of the Week (Episode: "Big Deal in Laredo") | Nominated  | [38]
1993  | ShoWest Convention | Lifetime Achievement Award  | —  | Won[a] |
1981 | Stinkers Bad Movie Awards | Most Annoying Fake Accent – Male  | Buddy Buddy | Nominated  | [39]
1959 | Tony Awards | Best Supporting or Featured Actor in a Play | Once More, with Feeling! | Nominated  | [40]
1962 | A Shot in the Dark | Won  | [41]
1965 | Best Leading Actor in a Play | The Odd Couple | Won  | [42]

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ a b Shared with Jack Lemmon.
2. ^ Tied with Burt Lancaster for Conversation Piece.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Matthau, Walter - Oxford Dictionaries
2. ^ "Walter Matthau: 10 essential films". BFI. October 1, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
3. ^ "Lemmon and Matthau: One of Hollywood's Most Successful Pairings". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 28, 2001. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
4. ^ Edelman, Rob; Audrey E. Kupferberg (2002). Matthau: a life. Lanham, Maryland: Taylor Trade Publishing. p. 4\. ISBN 0-87833-274-X.
5. ^ Wright, Stuart J. (2004). An emotional gauntlet: from life in peacetime America to the war in European skies. Terrace Books. p. 179\. ISBN 0-299-20520-7.
6. ^ Stone, Judy (September 8, 1968). "Matthau – A Sex Symbol Or a Jewish Mother?". The New York Times. Retrieved February 3, 2014.subscription required
7. ^ Gussow, Mel (July 2, 2000). "Walter Matthau, 79, Rumpled Star and Comic Icon, Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
8. ^ Meehan, Thomas. “What the OTB Bettor Can Learn from Walter Matthau.” New York Times, 4 July 1971, SM4.
9. ^ "Walter Matthau". Snopes.com. October 19, 2005. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
10. ^ "Famous Alumni". Seward Park High School Alumni Association. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
11. ^ Cofone, Annie (June 8, 2012). "Strolling Back Into the Golden Age of Yiddish Theater". The Local – East Village. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
12. ^ "Walter Matthau". The Telegraph. July 3, 2000. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
13. ^ a b Walter Matthau at the Internet Broadway Database
14. ^ a b Obituary, guardian.com; accessed August 20, 2015.
15. ^ The Fortune Cookie Lemmon & Matthau Behind-the-Scenes Archived November 21, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, Hollywood Legacy. Accessed November 3, 2022.
16. ^ "Walter Matthau". www.goldenglobes.com. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
17. ^ "Matthau & Son Tied To Universal". Variety. April 12, 1978. p. 4.
18. ^ a b "Hopscotch (1980) - Articles - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
19. ^ a b "Hopscotch". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
20. ^ "Hopscotch (1980) - Articles - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
21. ^ Maslin, Janet (August 21, 1981). "First Monday in October". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
22. ^ National Student Film Institute/L.A: The Sixteenth Annual Los Angeles Student Film Festival. The Directors Guild Theatre. June 10, 1994. pp. 10–11.10-11&rft.date=1994-06-10&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Walter+Matthau" class="Z3988">`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
23. ^ Los Angeles Student Film Institute: 13th Annual Student Film Festival. The Directors Guild Theatre. June 7, 1991. p. 3.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
24. ^ Edelman, R.; Kupferberg, A. (2002). Matthau: A Life. Taylor Trade Publishing. pp. 57–58, 92. ISBN 978-1-4616-2519-3.57-58,+92&rft.pub=Taylor+Trade+Publishing&rft.date=2002&rft.isbn=978-1-4616-2519-3&rft.aulast=Edelman&rft.aufirst=R.&rft.au=Kupferberg,+A.&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Walter+Matthau" class="Z3988">
25. ^ Meehan, Thomas. “What the OTB Bettor Can Learn from Walter Matthau.” New York Times, 4 July 1971, SM4.
26. ^ "Walter Matthau". biography.yourdictionary.com. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
27. ^ "Walter Matthau Death Certificate". YouTube. July 28, 2015. Archived from the original on October 30, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
28. ^ "Actor Walter Matthau dies". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
29. ^ "The 39th Academy Awards (1967) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on November 10, 2014. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
30. ^ "The 44th Academy Awards (1972) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on November 11, 2014. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
31. ^ "The 48th Academy Awards (1976) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on November 9, 2014. Retrieved October 2, 2011.
32. ^ "Walter Matthau". British Academy Film Awards. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
33. ^ "Walter Matthau". David di Donatello. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
34. ^ "Walter Matthau". Golden Globe Awards. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
35. ^ "KCFCC Award Winners – 1966-69". Kansas City Film Critics Circle. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
36. ^ "KCFCC Award Winners – 1970-79". Kansas City Film Critics Circle. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
37. ^ "Film Hall of Fame Inductees: Actors". Online Film & Television Association. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
38. ^ "Walter Matthau". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
39. ^ "STINKERS BALLOT EXPANSION PROJECT: 1981". Stinkers Bad Movie Awards. Archived from the original on May 4, 2007. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
40. ^ "1959 Tony Awards". Tony Awards. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
41. ^ "1962 Tony Awards". Tony Awards. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
42. ^ "1965 Tony Awards". Tony Awards. Retrieved December 31, 2024.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Profile at Hollywood Memoir, accessed April 8, 2015.
* Mel Gussow (July 2, 2000). "Walter Matthau, 79, Rumpled Star and Comic Icon, Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved February 4, 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Walter Matthau at IMDb
* Walter Matthau at the Internet Broadway Database
* Walter Matthau at the TCM Movie Database

Awards for Walter Matthau

* v
* t
* e

Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor

1936–1950|

* Walter Brennan (1936)
* Joseph Schildkraut (1937)
* Walter Brennan (1938)
* Thomas Mitchell (1939)
* Walter Brennan (1940)
* Donald Crisp (1941)
* Van Heflin (1942)
* Charles Coburn (1943)
* Barry Fitzgerald (1944)
* James Dunn (1945)
* Harold Russell (1946)
* Edmund Gwenn (1947)
* Walter Huston (1948)
* Dean Jagger (1949)
* George Sanders (1950)

1951–1975|

* Karl Malden (1951)
* Anthony Quinn (1952)
* Frank Sinatra (1953)
* Edmond O'Brien (1954)
* Jack Lemmon (1955)
* Anthony Quinn (1956)
* Red Buttons (1957)
* Burl Ives (1958)
* Hugh Griffith (1959)
* Peter Ustinov (1960)
* George Chakiris (1961)
* Ed Begley (1962)
* Melvyn Douglas (1963)
* Peter Ustinov (1964)
* Martin Balsam (1965)
* Walter Matthau (1966)
* George Kennedy (1967)
* Jack Albertson (1968)
* Gig Young (1969)
* John Mills (1970)
* Ben Johnson (1971)
* Joel Grey (1972)
* John Houseman (1973)
* Robert De Niro (1974)
* George Burns (1975)

1976–2000|

* Jason Robards (1976)
* Jason Robards (1977)
* Christopher Walken (1978)
* Melvyn Douglas (1979)
* Timothy Hutton (1980)
* John Gielgud (1981)
* Louis Gossett Jr. (1982)
* Jack Nicholson (1983)
* Haing S. Ngor (1984)
* Don Ameche (1985)
* Michael Caine (1986)
* Sean Connery (1987)
* Kevin Kline (1988)
* Denzel Washington (1989)
* Joe Pesci (1990)
* Jack Palance (1991)
* Gene Hackman (1992)
* Tommy Lee Jones (1993)
* Martin Landau (1994)
* Kevin Spacey (1995)
* Cuba Gooding Jr. (1996)
* Robin Williams (1997)
* James Coburn (1998)
* Michael Caine (1999)
* Benicio del Toro (2000)

2001–present|

* Jim Broadbent (2001)
* Chris Cooper (2002)
* Tim Robbins (2003)
* Morgan Freeman (2004)
* George Clooney (2005)
* Alan Arkin (2006)
* Javier Bardem (2007)
* Heath Ledger (2008)
* Christoph Waltz (2009)
* Christian Bale (2010)
* Christopher Plummer (2011)
* Christoph Waltz (2012)
* Jared Leto (2013)
* J. K. Simmons (2014)
* Mark Rylance (2015)
* Mahershala Ali (2016)
* Sam Rockwell (2017)
* Mahershala Ali (2018)
* Brad Pitt (2019)
* Daniel Kaluuya (2020)
* Troy Kotsur (2021)
* Ke Huy Quan (2022)
* Robert Downey Jr. (2023)

* v
* t
* e

BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role

1952–1967|

| British|

* Ralph Richardson (1952)
* John Gielgud (1953)
* Kenneth More (1954)
* Laurence Olivier (1955)
* Peter Finch (1956)
* Alec Guinness (1957)
* Trevor Howard (1958)
* Peter Sellers (1959)
* Peter Finch (1960)
* Peter Finch (1961)
* Peter O'Toole (1962)
* Dirk Bogarde (1963)
* Richard Attenborough (1964)
* Dirk Bogarde (1965)
* Richard Burton (1966)
* Paul Scofield (1967)

|

Foreign|

* Marlon Brando (1952)
* Marlon Brando (1953)
* Marlon Brando (1954)
* Ernest Borgnine (1955)
* François Périer (1956)
* Henry Fonda (1957)
* Sidney Poitier (1958)
* Jack Lemmon (1959)
* Jack Lemmon (1960)
* Paul Newman (1961)
* Burt Lancaster (1962)
* Marcello Mastroianni (1963)
* Marcello Mastroianni (1964)
* Lee Marvin (1965)
* Rod Steiger (1966)
* Rod Steiger (1967)

1968–present|

* Spencer Tracy (1968)
* Dustin Hoffman (1969)
* Robert Redford (1970)
* Peter Finch (1971)
* Gene Hackman (1972)
* Walter Matthau (1973)
* Jack Nicholson (1974)
* Al Pacino (1975)
* Jack Nicholson (1976)
* Peter Finch (1977)
* Richard Dreyfuss (1978)
* Jack Lemmon (1979)
* John Hurt (1980)
* Burt Lancaster (1981)
* Ben Kingsley (1982)
* Michael Caine / Dustin Hoffman (1983)
* Haing S. Ngor (1984)
* William Hurt (1985)
* Bob Hoskins (1986)
* Sean Connery (1987)
* John Cleese (1988)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (1989)
* Philippe Noiret (1990)
* Anthony Hopkins (1991)
* Robert Downey Jr. (1992)
* Anthony Hopkins (1993)
* Hugh Grant (1994)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1995)
* Geoffrey Rush (1996)
* Robert Carlyle (1997)
* Roberto Benigni (1998)
* Kevin Spacey (1999)
* Jamie Bell (2000)
* Russell Crowe (2001)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (2002)
* Bill Murray (2003)
* Jamie Foxx (2004)
* Philip Seymour Hoffman (2005)
* Forest Whitaker (2006)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (2007)
* Mickey Rourke (2008)
* Colin Firth (2009)
* Colin Firth (2010)
* Jean Dujardin (2011)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (2012)
* Chiwetel Ejiofor (2013)
* Eddie Redmayne (2014)
* Leonardo DiCaprio (2015)
* Casey Affleck (2016)
* Gary Oldman (2017)
* Rami Malek (2018)
* Joaquin Phoenix (2019)
* Anthony Hopkins (2020)
* Will Smith (2021)
* Austin Butler (2022)
* Cillian Murphy (2023)
* Adrien Brody (2024)

* v
* t
* e

David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actor

1957–1975|

* Laurence Olivier (1957)
* Marlon Brando / Charles Laughton (1958)
* Jean Gabin (1959)
* Cary Grant (1960)
* Charlton Heston (1961)
* Anthony Perkins / Spencer Tracy (1962)
* Gregory Peck (1963)
* Fredric March / Peter O'Toole (1964)
* Rex Harrison (1965)
* Richard Burton (1966)
* Richard Burton / Peter O'Toole (1967)
* Warren Beatty / Spencer Tracy (1968)
* Rod Steiger (1969)
* Dustin Hoffman / Peter O'Toole (1970)
* Ryan O'Neal (1971)
* Chaim Topol (1972)
* Yves Montand / Laurence Olivier (1973)
* Al Pacino / Robert Redford (1974)
* Burt Lancaster / Jack Lemmon / Walter Matthau (1975)

1976–1996|

* Jack Nicholson / Philippe Noiret (1976)
* Dustin Hoffman / Sylvester Stallone (1977)
* Richard Dreyfuss (1978)
* Richard Gere / Michel Serrault (1979)
* Dustin Hoffman / Jack Lemmon (1980)
* Burt Lancaster (1981)
* Klaus Maria Brandauer (1982)
* Paul Newman (1983)
* Woody Allen (1984)
* Tom Hulce (1985)
* William Hurt (1986)
* Dexter Gordon (1987)
* Michael Douglas (1988)
* Dustin Hoffman (1989)
* Philippe Noiret (1990)
* Jeremy Irons (1991)
* John Turturro (1992)
* Daniel Auteuil (1993)
* Anthony Hopkins (1994)
* John Travolta (1995)
* Harvey Keitel (1996)

* v
* t
* e

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

1950–1976|

* Fred Astaire (1949)
* Danny Kaye (1951)
* Donald O'Connor (1952)
* David Niven (1953)
* James Mason (1954)
* Tom Ewell (1955)
* Mario Moreno (1956)
* Frank Sinatra (1957)
* Danny Kaye (1958)
* Jack Lemmon (1959)
* Jack Lemmon (1960)
* Glenn Ford (1961)
* Marcello Mastroianni (1962)
* Alberto Sordi (1963)
* Rex Harrison (1964)
* Lee Marvin (1965)
* Alan Arkin (1966)
* Richard Harris (1967)
* Ron Moody (1968)
* Peter O'Toole (1969)
* Albert Finney (1970)
* Chaim Topol (1971)
* Jack Lemmon (1972)
* George Segal (1973)
* Art Carney (1974)
* George Burns / Walter Matthau (1975)

1976–2000|

* Kris Kristofferson (1976)
* Richard Dreyfuss (1977)
* Warren Beatty (1978)
* Peter Sellers (1979)
* Ray Sharkey (1980)
* Dudley Moore (1981)
* Dustin Hoffman (1982)
* Michael Caine (1983)
* Dudley Moore (1984)
* Jack Nicholson (1985)
* Paul Hogan (1986)
* Robin Williams (1987)
* Tom Hanks (1988)
* Morgan Freeman (1989)
* Gérard Depardieu (1990)
* Robin Williams (1991)
* Tim Robbins (1992)
* Robin Williams (1993)
* Hugh Grant (1994)
* John Travolta (1995)
* Tom Cruise (1996)
* Jack Nicholson (1997)
* Michael Caine (1998)
* Jim Carrey (1999)
* George Clooney (2000)

2001–present|

* Gene Hackman (2001)
* Richard Gere (2002)
* Bill Murray (2003)
* Jamie Foxx (2004)
* Joaquin Phoenix (2005)
* Sacha Baron Cohen (2006)
* Johnny Depp (2007)
* Colin Farrell (2008)
* Robert Downey Jr. (2009)
* Paul Giamatti (2010)
* Jean Dujardin (2011)
* Hugh Jackman (2012)
* Leonardo DiCaprio (2013)
* Michael Keaton (2014)
* Matt Damon (2015)
* Ryan Gosling (2016)
* James Franco (2017)
* Christian Bale (2018)
* Taron Egerton (2019)
* Sacha Baron Cohen (2020)
* Andrew Garfield (2021)
* Colin Farrell (2022)
* Paul Giamatti (2023)
* Sebastian Stan (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play

1947–1975|

* José Ferrer / Fredric March (1947)
* Henry Fonda / Paul Kelly / Basil Rathbone (1948)
* Rex Harrison (1949)
* Sidney Blackmer (1950)
* Claude Rains (1951)
* José Ferrer (1952)
* Tom Ewell (1953)
* David Wayne (1954)
* Alfred Lunt (1955)
* Paul Muni (1956)
* Fredric March (1957)
* Ralph Bellamy (1958)
* Jason Robards Jr. (1959)
* Melvyn Douglas (1960)
* Zero Mostel (1961)
* Paul Scofield (1962)
* Arthur Hill (1963)
* Alec Guinness (1964)
* Walter Matthau (1965)
* Hal Holbrook (1966)
* Paul Rogers (1967)
* Martin Balsam (1968)
* James Earl Jones (1969)
* Fritz Weaver (1970)
* Brian Bedford (1971)
* Cliff Gorman (1972)
* Alan Bates (1973)
* Michael Moriarty (1974)
* John Kani and Winston Ntshona (1975)

1976–2000|

* John Wood (1976)
* Al Pacino (1977)
* Barnard Hughes (1978)
* Tom Conti (1979)
* John Rubinstein (1980)
* Ian McKellen (1981)
* Roger Rees (1982)
* Harvey Fierstein (1983)
* Jeremy Irons (1984)
* Derek Jacobi (1985)
* Judd Hirsch (1986)
* James Earl Jones (1987)
* Ron Silver (1988)
* Philip Bosco (1989)
* Robert Morse (1990)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1991)
* Judd Hirsch (1992)
* Ron Leibman (1993)
* Stephen Spinella (1994)
* Ralph Fiennes (1995)
* George Grizzard (1996)
* Christopher Plummer (1997)
* Anthony LaPaglia (1998)
* Brian Dennehy (1999)
* Stephen Dillane (2000)

2001–present|

* Richard Easton (2001)
* Alan Bates (2002)
* Brian Dennehy (2003)
* Jefferson Mays (2004)
* Bill Irwin (2005)
* Richard Griffiths (2006)
* Frank Langella (2007)
* Mark Rylance (2008)
* Geoffrey Rush (2009)
* Denzel Washington (2010)
* Mark Rylance (2011)
* James Corden (2012)
* Tracy Letts (2013)
* Bryan Cranston (2014)
* Alex Sharp (2015)
* Frank Langella (2016)
* Kevin Kline (2017)
* Andrew Garfield (2018)
* Bryan Cranston (2019)
* Andrew Burnap (2020/21)
* Simon Russell Beale (2022)
* Sean Hayes (2023)
* Jeremy Strong (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play

1949–1975|

* Arthur Kennedy (1949)
* Eli Wallach (1951)
* John Cromwell (1952)
* John Williams (1953)
* John Kerr (1954)
* Francis L. Sullivan (1955)
* Ed Begley (1956)
* Frank Conroy (1957)
* Henry Jones (1958)
* Charlie Ruggles (1959)
* Roddy McDowall (1960)
* Martin Gabel (1961)
* Walter Matthau (1962)
* Alan Arkin (1963)
* Hume Cronyn (1964)
* Jack Albertson (1965)
* Patrick Magee (1966)
* Ian Holm (1967)
* James Patterson (1968)
* Al Pacino (1969)
* Ken Howard (1970)
* Paul Sand (1971)
* Vincent Gardenia (1972)
* John Lithgow (1973)
* Ed Flanders (1974)
* Frank Langella (1975)

1976–2000|

* Edward Herrmann (1976)
* Jonathan Pryce (1977)
* Lester Rawlins (1978)
* Michael Gough (1979)
* David Rounds (1980)
* Brian Backer (1981)
* Zakes Mokae (1982)
* Matthew Broderick (1983)
* Joe Mantegna (1984)
* Barry Miller (1985)
* John Mahoney (1986)
* John Randolph (1987)
* BD Wong (1988)
* Boyd Gaines (1989)
* Charles Durning (1990)
* Kevin Spacey (1991)
* Laurence Fishburne (1992)
* Stephen Spinella (1993)
* Jeffrey Wright (1994)
* John Glover (1995)
* Ruben Santiago-Hudson (1996)
* Owen Teale (1997)
* Tom Murphy (1998)
* Frank Wood (1999)
* Roy Dotrice (2000)

2001–present|

* Robert Sean Leonard (2001)
* Frank Langella (2002)
* Denis O'Hare (2003)
* Brían F. O'Byrne (2004)
* Liev Schreiber (2005)
* Ian McDiarmid (2006)
* Billy Crudup (2007)
* Jim Norton (2008)
* Roger Robinson (2009)
* Eddie Redmayne (2010)
* John Benjamin Hickey (2011)
* Christian Borle (2012)
* Courtney B. Vance (2013)
* Mark Rylance (2014)
* Richard McCabe (2015)
* Reed Birney (2016)
* Michael Aronov (2017)
* Nathan Lane (2018)
* Bertie Carvel (2019)
* David Alan Grier (2020/21)
* Jesse Tyler Ferguson (2022)
* Brandon Uranowitz (2023)
* Will Brill (2024)

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* FAST
* 2
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany
* United States
* France
* BnF data
* Australia
* Czech Republic
* Spain
* Netherlands
* Norway
* Korea
* Poland
* Israel

Artists|

* MusicBrainz
* Discography of American Historical Recordings
* FID

People|

* Trove
* Deutsche Biographie
* DDB

Other|

* IdRef
* SNAC

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*[div.]: divorced
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