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Claude Gillingwater

Actor | * 08/02/1870 († 69, 11/02/1939) | Louisiana, Missouri (United States of America (USA))
Claude Benton Gillingwater (August 2, 1870 – November 1, 1939) was an American stage and screen actor. He first appeared on the stage then in more than 90 films between 1918 and 1939, including the Academy Award-nominated A Tale of Two Cities (1935) and Conquest (1937). He appeared in several films starring Shirley Temple, beginning with Poor Little Rich Girl (1936). ()
Photo of Claude Gillingwater

Tall, balding character actor in US films from 1921 until the year he died, usually portraying obstinate or irascible types.A man so disagreeable on celluloid, Claude Gillingwater's characters seemed to subsist on a steady diet of persimmons. Fondly recalled as the cranky old skinflint whose seemingly cold heart could only be warmed by the actions of a cute little tyke, the tall and rangy Gillingwater invariably played much older than he was. He, with the omnipresent bushy brows, crop of silver hair and perpetually sour puss, had a much more versatile career than perhaps realized -- on both stage and in film. Most assuredly, this caustic screen image he perfected belied a softer, gentler off-screen demeanor for he was a kind and sympathetic gent and devoted husband to wife Carlyn Stiletz (or Stellith). Their only child, Claude Gillingwater Jr., briefly became an actor himself. Sadly, Gillingwater Sr.'s thriving character career ended on a grim and tragic note in 1939. A serious accident on the movie set of the picture Florida Special (1936) (he fell from a platform and injured his back) damaged his health and threatened his career, and the death of his long-time wife Carlyn left him irrevocably depressed. Fearing the possibility of becoming an invalid and wishing not to become a serious burden to anyone, the 69-year-old actor committed suicide at his Beverly Hills home with a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. Gillingwater left a fine Hollywood legacy and the fun of some of his old films is watching his vinegar turn to sugar.Date of Birth 2August 1870,Louisiana, MissouriDate of Death 2November 1939,Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California (suicide)

Most frequent genres for this person: Comedies | Drama | Romance / Love

Known for these Movies & Shows

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Movies with Claude Gillingwater as Actor(76)

as Old Christopher West1939 Cafe Society
as Ben Dalton1938 A Yank at Oxford
as Samuel G. Henshaw1938 Just Around the Corner
as Cyrus W. Butterfield1938 There Goes My Heart
as Stephan1937 Conquest
as William Borden1937 Top of the Town
as Col. Robert Peachtree1936 Can This Be Dixie?
as Simeon Stafford1936 Florida Special
as Tom Perkins1936 Counterfeit
as Simon Peck1936 Poor Little Rich Girl
as Robert Forbes1936 Ticket to Paradise
as Mr. Gossamer1936 Wives Never Know
as Colonel Dyer1936 The Prisoner of Shark Island
as Colton1935 Baby Face Harrington
as Dick1935 Together We Live
as Grandpa Wyatt1935 The Woman in Red
as Gen. Rumford1935 Mississippi
as Jarvis Lorry1935 A Tale of Two Cities
as Col. Allenby1935 Calm Yourself
as Judge Griswold1934 The Captain Hates the Sea
as Sam Webster1934 Back Page
as Tom Oliver1934 City Limits
as Morley1934 In Love with Life
as Asa Cabot - Banker1934 You Can't Buy Everything
as Steven Kester1934 Green Eyes
as Papa Van Brunt, Sr.1934 Unknown Blonde
as J.B. Preston1934 The Show-Off
as John Fry1933 Before Midnight
as Witt1933 The Avenger
as John Beaumont1933 Skyway
as Banker (uncredited)1933 I Loved a Woman
as Judge Bingham1933 Ann Carver's Profession
as Frederick Garfield Sr1932 Tess of the Storm Country
as Count de St. Cyr1931 Kiss Me Again
as Jim Nabours1931 The Conquering Horde
as Riggs1931 Daddy Long Legs
as John Aberdeen Arnold1931 Gold Dust Gertie
as Richard Ives Sr.1931 Illicit
as Faraday1930 The Flirting Widow
as Uncle Roger1930 Dumb-bells in Ermine
as (uncredited)1929 Mexicali Rose
as Winthrop Amesbury1929 The Great Divide
as James Rutherford - Expedition Leader1929 Stark Mad
as H.A. Lambert Sr.1929 Stolen Kisses
as Sam Underlane1929 Glad Rag Doll
as Uncle Claude Davis1929 So Long Letty
as Grandfather Mervin1928 Women They Talk About
as Judge Appleton1928 Oh Kay!
as Jean Moreau1927 Barbed Wire
as Judge J. R. Altewood1927 Naughty But Nice
as Cyrus Townsend1927 The Gorilla
as Smithfield1927 Fast and Furious
as John Raynor1926 That's My Baby
as Old Man in Hotel Bed (uncredited)1926 45 Minutes from Hollywood
as Riddle1925 Cheaper to Marry
as Noel Jardine1925 A Thief in Paradise
as Sir Robert Sundale1925 We Moderns
as Tom Linton1925 Winds of Chance
as Pious Joe McDowell1925 Seven Sinners
as Lord Patrington1924 Madonna of the Streets
as Henry Bancks1924 How to Educate a Wife
as Col. Charles E. Cavanaugh1923 Crinoline and Romance
as Theodore Findley1923 Three Wise Fools
as Himself - Celebrity Actor (uncredited)1923 Souls for Sale
as Mr. Everingham1923 A Chapter in Her Life
as Hector McCollins1923 Tiger Rose
as Lord Storm1923 The Christian
as Mr. Forbes1923 Dulcy
as Denton Drew1922 Fools First
as John P. Grout1922 Remembrance
as Uncle Sam1922 The Strangers' Banquet
as Earl of Dorincourt1921 Little Lord Fauntleroy
as Captain Bill1921 My Boy

Full Name: Claude Gillingwater
Born: Tuesday, 08/02 1870 (August) in Louisiana, Missouri (United States of America (USA))
Died: Thursday, 11/02 1939 (November) in Beverly Hills (aged: 69)
Zodiac sign: Leo (Chinese zodiac sign: Horse)
Languages: English (EN, native language)
Other names for Claude Gillingwater (nicknames, foreign languages etc.):
"Claude Benton Gillingwater"
"Claude Gillingwater Sr."
Claude Gillingwater frequently works together with these people:
Cedric Gibbons (7x, Crew)
Arthur Hoyt (7x, Actor)
Rupert Hughes (7x, Crew)
Darryl F. Zanuck (6x, Crew)
Douglas Shearer (5x, Crew)
Marshall Neilan (5x, Crew)
Alfred Santell (5x, Crew)
Fred Kelsey (4x, Actor)
Thomas Little (4x, Crew)
Aileen Pringle (4x, Actress)
Willard Mack (4x, Crew)
WatchPlayStream ID: PEOPLE:435363, Added: 09/23/2018, Last updated: 03/27/2024