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George Sanders

Born July 3, 1906 in St. Petersburg, Russian Empire [now Russia] · Died April 25, 1972

George Sanders was born of English parents in St. Petersburg, Russia. He worked in a Birmingham textile mill, in the tobacco business and as a writer in advertising. He entered show business in London as a chorus boy, going from there to cabaret, radio and theatrical understudy. His film debut, in 1936, was as Curly Randall in Find the Lady (1936). His U.S. debut, the same year, with Twentieth Century-Fox, was as Lord Everett Stacy in Lloyd's of London (1936). During the late 1930s and early 1940s he made a number of movies as Simon Templar--the Saint--and as Gay Lawrence, the Falcon. He played Nazis (Maj. Quive-Smith in Fritz Lang's Man Hunt (1941)), royalty (Charles II in Otto Preminger's Forever Amber (1947)), and biblical roles (Saran of Gaza in Cecil B. DeMille's Samson and Delilah (1949)). He won the 1950 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor as theatre critic Addison De Witt in Joseph L. Mankiewicz's All About Eve (1950). In 1957 he hosted a TV series, The George Sanders Mystery Theater (1957). He continued to play mostly villains and charming heels until his suicide in 1972.

Aged: 65
Height: 189 cm

Biography

George Sanders was born of English parents in St. Petersburg, Russia. He worked in a Birmingham textile mill, in the tobacco business and as a writer in advertising. He entered show business in London as a chorus boy, going from there to cabaret, radio and theatrical understudy. His film debut, in 1936, was as Curly Randall in Find the Lady (1936). His U.S. debut, the same year, with Twentieth Century-Fox, was as Lord Everett Stacy in Lloyd's of London (1936). During the late 1930s and early 1940s he made a number of movies as Simon Templar--the Saint--and as Gay Lawrence, the Falcon. He played Nazis (Maj. Quive-Smith in Fritz Lang's Man Hunt (1941)), royalty (Charles II in Otto Preminger's Forever Amber (1947)), and biblical roles (Saran of Gaza in Cecil B. DeMille's Samson and Delilah (1949)). He won the 1950 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor as theatre critic Addison De Witt in Joseph L. Mankiewicz's All About Eve (1950). In 1957 he hosted a TV series, The George Sanders Mystery Theater (1957). He continued to play mostly villains and charming heels until his suicide in 1972.

Photos

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Trivia

1Brother of actor Tom Conway. The two appeared together in The Falcon's Brother (1942), in which they portrayed--appropriately enough--brothers, and which was Sanders' final appearance as "The Falcon", a role he had grown tired of. In this entry, Sanders hands off the role to Conway, who took it up for nine subsequent films through 1946.
2Sanders told David Niven in 1937 that he intended to commit suicide when he got older. In 1972 he fulfilled his promise, leaving this note: "Dear World, I am leaving because I am bored. I feel I have lived long enough. I am leaving you with your worries in this sweet cesspool. Good luck".
3After being convinced by a woman he had taken up with, Sanders sold his beloved house in Majorca, Spain. Soon afterward he checked into a hotel in Barcelona, and two days later his body was discovered next to five empty tubes of Nembutal.
4First got involved in acting when a secretary in the same advertising firm suggested it. That secretary was Greer Garson.
5Withdrew from the lead in the Broadway-bound musical version of "The Man Who Came to Dinner" called "Sherry!" (with Dolores Gray) during its Boston tryout in March 1967 when his wife Benita Hume was diagnosed with bone cancer. He was replaced by Clive Revill. The show was a quick failure on Broadway, and Hume passed away that November.

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6Featured in a crime novel, "Crime On My Hands", in which he solved a murder on a film set. The novel was ghostwritten by Falcon screenwriter Craig Rice. The Author's Dedication reads "To Craig Rice, without whom it would not have been possible.".
7Possessed of a fine baritone singing voice, often raised at parties, Sanders released an album entitled "The George Sanders Touch: Songs for the Lovely Lady" (ABC-Paramount: 1958), today a much sought-after collector's item.
8Credited as the author of the mystery novel "Stranger at Home". The novel was actually ghostwritten by Leigh Brackett. The novel's dedication reads "To Leigh Brackett, whom I have never met".
9Was one of two stars of the Pink Panther series to commit suicide. Capucine, who played Inspector Clouseau's wife in The Pink Panther (1963), killed herself in 1990.
10His mother Margaret Sanders, his third wife Benita Hume, and his brother Tom Conway all passed away in 1967.
11His ex-wives Zsa Zsa Gabor and Magda Gabor were sisters.
12He and his ex-wife Zsa Zsa Gabor both played "Special Guest Villains" in Batman (1966).

George Sanders: Biography, Movies & Photos — RecapFlicks