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Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

Birthday: 1909-12-09 | Place of Birth: New York City, New York, USA

Although he appeared in approximately 100 movies or television shows, Douglas Fairbanks Jr. never really intended to take up acting as a career. However, the environment he was born into and the circumstances naturally led him to be a thespian. The son of future silent era swashbuckling idol Douglas Fairbanks (born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman) and Beth Sully - the daughter of a very wealthy cotton mogul - was born in 1909 and soon proved a gifted boy. To the end of his life he remained a multi-talented, hyperactive man, not content to appear in the 100 films mentioned above. Handsome, distinguished and extremely bright, he excelled at sports (much like his father), notably during his stay at the Military Academy in 1919 (his role in Claude Autant-Lara's "L'athlète incomplete" illustrated these abilities). He also excelled academically, and attended the Lycéee Janson de Sailly in Paris, where he had followed his divorced mother. Very early in his life he developed a taste for the arts as well and became a painter and sculptor. Not content to limiting himself to just one field, he became involved in business, in fields as varied as mining, hotel management, owning a chain of bowling alleys and a firm that manufactured popcorn. During World War II he headed London's Douglas Voluntary Hospital (an establishment taking care of war refugees), was President Franklin D. Roosevelt's special envoy for the Special Mission to South America in 1940 before becoming a lieutenant in the Navy (he was promoted to the rank of captain in 1954) and taking part in the Allies' landing in Sicily and Elba in 1943. A fervent Anglophile, Fairbanks was knighted in 1949 and often entertained Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in his London mansion, "The Boltons". His film career began at the age of 13 when he was signed by Paramount Pictures. He debuted in Stephen Steps Out (1923), but the film flopped and his career stagnated despite a critically acclaimed role in Stella Dallas (1925). Things really picked up when he married Lucille Le Sueur, a young starlet who was soon to become better known as Joan Crawford. The young couple became the toast of the town and good parts and success followed, such as Fairbanks' role as the hapless partner of Edward G. Robinson in Little Caesar (1931), a favorably reviewed turn as the villain in The Prisoner of Zenda (1937), or more debonair characters in slapstick comedies or adventure yarns. The 1930s were a fruitful period for Fairbanks, his most memorable role probably being that of the British soldier in Gunga Din (1939); although it was somewhat of a "swasbuckling" role, Fairbanks made a point of never imitating his father. After World War II, his star waned and, despite a moving part in Ghost Story (1981), he did not appear in a major movie. Now a legend himself, Douglas Fairbanks Jr. left this world with the satisfaction of having lived up to the Fairbanks name at the end of a life nobody could call "wasted". He died on 7 May 2000 in New York City, New York, the result of a heart attack.

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Known For

Acting

Year
Title

Role

2002
Joan Crawford: The Ultimate Movie Star

as    Self (archive footage)

1996
1987
Hollywood Uncensored

as    Self - Host

1982
The Pirates Of Penzance

as    Self - Host

1981
Ghost Story

as    Edward Charles Wanderley

1980
The Hostage Tower

as    Malcolm Philpott

1980
Hollywood

as    Self

1967
The Funniest Man in the World

as    Narrator

1951
Mr. Drake's Duck

as    Donald 'Don' Drake

1950
State Secret

as    Dr. John Marlowe

1949
The Fighting O'Flynn

as    The O'Flynn

1948
That Lady in Ermine

as    Colonel Ladislas Karolyi Teglas / The Duke

1947
The Exile

as    Charles II

1947
Sinbad the Sailor

as    Sinbad

1941
The Corsican Brothers

as    Lucien Franchi / Mario Franchi

1940
Safari

as    Jim Logan

1940
Green Hell

as    Keith Brandon

1939
Gunga Din

as    Thomas Anthony Ballantine

1938
Having Wonderful Time

as    Chick Kirkland

1937
The Prisoner of Zenda

as    Rupert of Hentzau

1934
The Rise of Catherine the Great

as    Grand Duke Peter

1933
Morning Glory

as    Joseph Sheridan

1932
Union Depot

as    Charles 'Chick' Miller

1931
Chances

as    Jack Ingleside

1931
Little Caesar

as    Joe Massara

1931
I Like Your Nerve

as    Larry O'Brien

1930
The Dawn Patrol

as    Douglas 'Doug' Scott

1930
Loose Ankles

as    Gil

1928
A Woman of Affairs

as    Jeffry Merrick

1926
The American Venus

as    Triton