Born on October 1, 1921, in White Plains, New York, gruff veteran
character actor James Whitmore earned early and widespread respect with
his award-winning dramatic capabilities on Broadway and in films. He
would later conquer TV with the same trophy-winning results.The son of James Allen Whitmore and Florence Crane, he was educated at
Connecticut's Choate School after receiving a football scholarship. He
later earned his BA from Yale University in 1944 before serving with
the Marines in World War II. Following his honorable discharge he
prepared for the stage under the G.I. bill at the American Theatre
Wing, where he met first wife Nancy Mygatt. They married in 1947 and
went on to have three sons together -- Steve, Dan and actor/director
James Whitmore Jr..Applause and kudos came swiftly for Whitmore while under both the
Broadway and film banners. After appearing with the Peterborough, New
Hampshire, Players in the summer of 1947 in "The Milky Way," Whitmore
made a celebrated Broadway debut as Tech Sergeant Evans in "Command
Decision" later that year. His gritty performance swept the stage
acting trifecta -- Tony, Donaldson and Theatre World awards. In later
years Whitmore would often comment that most of his satisfaction came
from performing on the live stage.Hollywood soon took notice of Whitmore.
Clark Gable happened to be starring in the
film version of
Decyzja na komendę (1948), and it
was hoped that Whitmore would get to recreate his award-winning role.
But it was not to be. Song-and-dance star
Van Johnson, who was looking for
straight, serious roles after a vastly successful musical career, was
given the coveted part. The disappointment didn't last long, however,
and Whitmore made an auspicious film bow the following year with a
prime role in the documentary-styled crime thriller
The Undercover Man (1949)
starring Glenn Ford and
Nina Foch. Whitmore scored brilliantly with
his second film as well.
Pole bitwy (1949), another war
picture, was highly praised and the actor became the talk of the town
upon its initial release,... grabbing both the Golden Globe and an Oscar
nomination for "supporting actor" for his efforts.Hardly the handsome, matinée lead type, Whitmore nevertheless primed
himself up for leading roles in a character vein and found a fine range
of material come his way. He showed off his soft inner core as a
religious, moral-minded family man opposite
Nancy Reagan [Reagan] in the
inspirational drama
The Next Voice You Hear... (1950);
featured his usual saltier side alongside
Marjorie Main in
Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone (1950);
ably portrayed a hunchbacked crook in
Asfaltowa dżungla (1950) and
displayed customary authority as a security chief in the stoic military
drama Above and Beyond (1952)
starring Robert Taylor. Elsewhere,
he played it strictly for laughs as a Runyonesque gangster partnered
with Keenan Wynn in the classic MGM musical
Pocałuj mnie, Kasiu (1953); portrayed a
valiant cop fighting off gigantic mutant ants in the intelligent sci-fi
thriller Atomowe mrówki (1954); a hard-hitting
social worker in
Crime in the Streets (1956)
and even made the most of his small role as
Tyrone Power's manager in
Ostatnie akordy (1956).By 1959, the craggy-faced actor known for his trademark caterpillar
eyebrows, turned more and more toward the small screen, with memorable
roles in
Strefa mroku (1959),
The Detectives (1959) (working
again with Robert Taylor),
Ben Casey (1961) and a host of live
theater dramas. He also starred in his own series as attorney Abraham
Lincoln Jones in
The Law and Mr. Jones (1960),
which lasted two seasons.Every so often a marvelous character would rear its pretty head and
interest him back to the big screen. Notable of these were his white
man passing for black in the controversial social drama
Czarny jak ja (1964); his weary
veteran cop in Madigan (1968); and his
brash, authoritative simian in the classic sci-fi
Planeta małp (1968).Divorced from wife Nancy after more than two decades, Whitmore married
actress Audra Lindley, best known on TV as
Mrs. Roper of
Three's Company (1976) fame,
in 1972. The couple forged a strong acting partnership as well,
particularly on stage, and maintained a professional relationship long
after their 1979 divorce. Whitmore and Lindley were lauded for their
appearances together in such plays as "The Magnificent Yankee," "On
Golden Pond," "The Visit," "Foxfire" and "Love Letters," among others.In the 1970s the actor transformed into a magnificent one-man-show
machine playing such celebrated and inspiring historical/entertainment
icons as Will Rogers,
Harry Truman and
Theodore Roosevelt. He disappeared
into these historical legends so efficiently that even the
powers-that-be had the good sense to preserve them on film and TV in
the form of
Will Rogers' USA (1972);
Give 'em Hell, Harry! (1975),
which earned him his second Oscar nomination; and
Bully: An Adventure with Teddy Roosevelt (1978).In his twilight years, Whitmore showed he still had what it took to
touch movie audiences, most notably as the fragile
prisoner-turned-parolee who cannot adapt to his late-life freedom in
the classic film
Skazani na Shawshank (1994).
On TV he continued to win awards, copping a TV Emmy for a recurring
part on Kancelaria adwokacka (1997) in
the late 1990s. A household face in commercials as well, one of his
passions was gardening and he eventually became the spokesman for
Miracle-Gro plant food.Whitmore remarried (and re-divorced, 1979-1981) his first wife Nancy
briefly before finding a lasting union with his fourth wife,
actress-turned-author Noreen Nash, whom he
married broaching age 80 in 2001. Whitmore died of lung cancer on
February 6, 2009, after having been diagnosed in mid-November 2008.show more
