All ACtors Exposed |
<< Go Back
Naked Photos
of
James Mason
are available at
Related Links:
Malestars.com
They currently feature
over 165,000 Nude Pics,
Biographies, Video Clips,
Articles, and Movie Reviews
of famous stars.
Actresses who appeared
with James Mason on screen:
|
|
|
|
| James Mason Biography and Filmography |
.jpg) James Mason
Birthday: May 15, 1909
Birth Place: Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England, UK
Height: 5' 1"
|
Below
is a complete filmography (list of movies he's appeared in)
for James Mason.
If you have any corrections or additions, please email
us.
We'd also be interested in any trivia or other information you have. |
|
| Biography |
Lending his mellifluous voice and regal mien to more than 100 films, British actor James Mason built a long career playing assorted villains, military men, and rather dubious romantic leads. Though the quality of his films ranged from the superb A Star Is Born (1954) and The Reckless Moment (1949) to the ultra-trashy Bloodline (1979), Mason always left an indelible impression, whether he was finding the pathos in Lolita's tragically loathsome Humbert Humbert or playing the debonair criminal in North by Northwest (1959). His talent undimmed by age, Mason earned his third Oscar nomination for The Verdict (1982) less than two years before he died in 1984.Born the son of a wool merchant in the British mill town of Huddersfield, Mason excelled in school and earned a degree in architecture from Cambridge in 1931. Having acted in several school plays, however, he thought he had a better shot at earning a living as an actor rather than an architect during the Great Depression. Mason won his first professional role in The Rascal and made his debut in London's West End theater world in 1933 with Gallows Glorious. A year after he joined London's Old Vic theater, he made his screen debut in Late Extra in 1935. Mason became a regular British screen presence in late '30s "quota quickies," including The High Command (1937). The actor made a career and personal breakthrough, however, with I Met a Murderer (1939). Along with co-writing, co-producing, and starring in the film, he also wound up marrying his leading lady, Pamela Kellino, in 1940. Mason became Britain's biggest screen star a few years later with his performance as the sadistic title character in the Gainsborough Studios melodrama The Man in Grey (1943). He cemented his fame as the cruel romantic leads women loved in the critically weak, but highly popular, Gainsborough costume dramas Fanny by Gaslight (1944) and The Wicked Lady (1945), finally achieving international stardom for his charismatic performance as Ann Todd's cane-wielding mentor in the well-received The Seventh Veil (1946). Rather than immediately going to Hollywood, however, Mason remained in England. Revealing that he could be more than just brutal leading men in weepy potboilers, he added an artistic as well as popular triumph to his credits with Carol Reed's Odd Man Out (1947). Starring Mason as a doomed IRA leader hunted by the police, Odd Man Out garnered international raves, and he often cited it as his favorite among his many films.After co-starring in the British drama The Upturned Glass (1947), the Masons and their 12 cats finally headed to Hollywood (via a stint on Broadway in Bathsheba) in 1947. Spurning a long-term studio contract, Mason became one of Hollywood's busiest free agents. Anxious not to be typecast, he bucked his image as the irresistible sadist by playing trapped wife Barbara Bel Geddes' kind boss in Max Oph |
|
|
| Filmography |
|
| Trivia |
- He should not be confused with the American actor, Jim Mason, aka James Mason, who appeared in silent films, particularly Westerns in the Twenties and Thirties.
- He had been considered for the part of Harry Lime in "The Third Man" TV series (1959-60) but 'Michael Rennie (I)' ended up in the role.
- An avowed pacifist, he refused to perform military service during the Second World War, a stance that caused his family to break with him for many years.
- Father of Morgan Mason and actress/scriptwriter 'Portland Mason'.
- Was responsible for getting an unknown actor from New Zealand his first major film role. That actor was Sam Neill.
- Was scheduled to play James Bond 007 in a 1958 TV adaptation of From Russia with Love, which was ultimately never produced. Later, despite being in his 50s, Mason was a contender to play Bond in Dr. No (1962) before Sean Connery was cast.
- Turned down the role of Hugo Drax in the 1979 Bond film Moonraker.
- In 1952 while remodeling his home, he discovered several reels of Buster Keaton's "lost" films (Mason had purchased Keaton's Hollywood mansion) and immediately recognized their historical significance and was responsible for their preservation.
- Starred with his wife Clarissa Kaye in the original 1979 version of Salem's Lot, although they never appeared together on screen.
- He was offered the role of Lawyer Crosby (Wendy Hiller) in the 1978 Cat And The Canary
- Told "Playboy Magazine" in the late 1970s that he hated rock n' roll but loved country music.
- Can be seen visiting the set of Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining" (1980) in Vivian Kubrick's TV documentary "Making 'The Shining'" (1980). Stanley Kubrick didn't usually allow visitors to his set, but made an exception for Mason, who had memorably played Humbert Humbert for him in "Lolita" (1962).
- Was the original choice to play Professor Kingsfield in "The Paper Chase" (1973), but had to turn down the role due to poor health. John Houseman, who had acted in only one other movie in a bit part, was cast and won an Oscar.
- Was rejected by fellow student Alistair Cooke for an acting role whilst at Cambridge. Cooke asked Mason what course he was studying. "Architecture", replied Mason. "Then I think you should finish your degree and forget about acting." advised Cooke, in one of his rare lapses of judgement.
- Often used by Eddie Izzard in his stand-up comedy routines as the voice of God.
- Was offered the part of Viktor Komarovsky in Doctor Zhivago (1965) by double-Oscar winning director David Lean after Marlon Brando failed to respond to director Lean's written inquiry into whether he wanted to play the role. Mason initially accepted the part. Lean decided on Mason, who was a generation older than Brando, as he did not want an actor who would overpower the character of Yuri Zhivago (specifically, to show Zhivago up as a lover of Lara, who would be played by the young Julie Christie, which the charismatic Brando might have done, shifting the sympathy of the audience). Mason eventually dropped out and Steiger, who had just won the Silver Bear as Best Actor for his role as the eponymous The Pawnbroker (1964), accepted the role.
|
|
bottomright.html |
|
Click here to see him nude