People: Famous People born in 1903

People in chronological context: 1903 (MCMIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar and a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar, the 1903rd year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 903rd year of the 2nd millennium, the 3rd year of the 20th century, and the 4th year of the 1900s decade. As of the start of 1903, the Gregorian calendar was 13 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which remained in localized use until 1923. ()

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1,206 people found (page 1/41):

Claudette Colbert(† 92)

Actress | Saint-Mandé, Val-de-Marne (FR)

Claudette Colbert was born in Saint-Mandé, Val-de-Marne, France on September 13, 1903 and was brought to the United States as a child three years later. Born Emilie 'Lily' Claudette Chauchoin, she went to high school in New York. She was studying at the Art Students League when, in 1923, she took the name Claudette Colbert for her first Broadway role in "The Wild Westcotts". Her most noteworthy stage vehicle was the "The Barker" in 1927. Her first film was a silent For the Love of Mike (1927), directed by Frank Capra. Made on a shoestring, the movie was a flop, and she vowed that it would be her last film role: "I only left Broadway when the crash came. The Depression killed the theater, and the pictures were manna from heaven". She had her first film success the next year, however, in The Lady Lies (1929).Her early notable films were all box-office hits and included Cleopatra (1934), in which she played the title role enticingly. She had her greatest triumph playing a runaway heiress, with enormous charm, opposite Clark Gable in Capra's comedy It Happened One Night (1934), for which she won the Academy Award as Best Actress. By 1938 her keen ability in business made her the highest paid star in Hollywood. By 1950, though, her star had begun to wane. She returned to the stage in 1956 when she replaced Margaret Sullavan during the spring and summer in the comedy "Janus". Appearances in other Broadway productions followed, including "The Marriage-Go-Round". Besides the stage, she did TV specials and had a supporting role in a notable TV movie, The Two Mrs. Grenvilles (1987), for which she received a Golden Globe award. In 1989 she was presented with a Life Achievement award from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.She married actor Norman Foster in 1928, although they never lived together and were divorced after seven years. She married surgeon Dr. Joel Pressman soon after and remained married until his death in 1968. In latter years she divided her time between an apartment in New York and a 200-year-old plantation house in Speightstown, Barbados, where she entertained such guests as Frank Sinatra and Ronald Reagan. She remained on Barbados Island after her stroke. On July 30, 1996, Claudette died in Speightstown, Barbados. She was 92.

Known for: It Happened One Night, So Proudly We Hail, Bluebeard's Eighth Wife, Since You Went Away

* 09/13/1903

Bob Hope(† 100)

Actor | Eltham, London, England (GB)

Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-born American comedian, centenarian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, starring in 54. These included a series of seven Road to ... musical comedy films with long-time friend Bing Crosby as his partner. Hope hosted the Academy Awards show 19 times, more than any other host. He also appeared in many stage productions and television roles and wrote 14 books. The song "Thanks for the Memory" was his signature tune. He was praised for his comedic timing, specializing in one-liners and rapid-fire delivery of jokes that were often self-deprecating. Between 1941 and 1991, he made 57 tours for the United Service Organizations (USO), entertaining military personnel around the world. In 1997, Congress passed a bill that made him an honorary veteran of the Armed Forces. Hope was born in the Eltham district of southeast London. He arrived in the United States with his family at the age of four, and grew up near Cleveland, Ohio. He became a boxer in the 1910s but moved into show business in the early 1920s, initially as a comedian and dancer on the vaudeville circuit before acting on Broadway. He began appearing on radio and in films starting in 1934. Hope retired from public life in 1998 and died in 2003, at 100.

Known for: The Ghost Breakers, The Cat and the Canary, My Favorite Brunette, Road to Bali

* 05/29/1903

Dean Jagger(† 87)

Actor | Columbus Grove, Ohio (US)

Dean Jagger was an Academy Award-winning American screen, stage, and television actor.

Known for: White Christmas, Vanishing Point, Twelve O'Clock High, Game of Death

* 11/07/1903

Alan Napier(† 85)

Actor | Birmingham, England (GB)

Alan Napier (born Alan William Napier-Clavering) was anEnglishactor. After a decade inLondon West End theatres, he had a long film career first in Britain and then in Hollywood. He eventually became widely known for portrayingAlfredthe butler in the 1960s live-actionBatman televisionseries.

Known for: Marnie, Batman, The Sword in the Stone, The Mole People, Batman

* 01/07/1903

Ward Bond(† 57)

Actor | Benkelman, Nebraska (US)

Wardell Edwin Bond (April 9, 1903 – November 5, 1960) was an American film character actor who appeared in more than 200 films and starred in the NBC television series Wagon Train from 1957 to 1960. Among his best-remembered roles are Bert the cop in Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and Captain Clayton in John Ford's The Searchers (1956). As a character actor, Bond frequently played cowboys, cops and soldiers.

Known for: The Quiet Man, The Maltese Falcon, The Searchers, It's a Wonderful Life

* 04/09/1903

Wilfrid Hyde-White(† 87)

Actor | Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, England (GB)

Wilfrid Hyde-White (née Hyde White; 12 May 1903 – 6 May 1991) was an English actor. Described by Philip French as a "classic British film archetype," Hyde-White often portraying droll and urbane upper-class characters. He had an extensive stage and screen career in both the United Kingdom and the United States, and portrayed over 160 film and television roles between 1935 and 1987. He was twice nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play, in 1957 for The Reluctant Debutante and in 1973 for The Jockey Club Stakes.

Known for: My Fair Lady, The Third Man, Let's Make Love, Ten Little Indians

* 05/12/1903

Reginald Gardiner(† 77)

Actor | Londra (GB)

Reginald Gardiner (27 February 1903 - 7 July 1980) was an English-born actor in film and television and a graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in Britain. He made his film debut in 1926 in the silent film The Lodger, by Alfred Hitchcock. Moving to Hollywood, he was cast in numerous roles, often as a British butler. One of his most famous roles was that of Schultz in Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator. Toward the end of his career, Gardiner made increasing guest appearances on the leading television sitcoms of the 1960s, including Fess Parker's ABC series, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington as the lead guest in the episode "Citizen Bellows". His last major role was alongside Phyllis Diller in her short-lived ABC sitcom The Pruitts of Southampton (1966-67).

Known for: The Great Dictator, Christmas in Connecticut, The Man Who Came to Dinner, A Damsel in Distress

* 02/27/1903

Edgar Buchanan(† 76)

Actor | Humansville, Missouri (US)

William Edgar Buchanan II (March 20, 1903 – April 4, 1979) was an American actor with a long career in both film and television. He is most familiar today as Uncle Joe Carson from the Petticoat Junction, Green Acres, and The Beverly Hillbillies television sitcoms of the 1960s.

Known for: Shane, The Black Arrow, Ride the High Country, Human Desire

* 03/20/1903

Peter Brocco(† 89)

Actor | Reading, Pennsylvania (US)

Carl Peter Brocco (January 16, 1903 – December 20, 1992) was an American screen and stage actor. He appeared in over 300 credits, notably Spartacus (1960) and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), during his career spanning over 60 years.

Known for: Spartacus, Throw Momma from the Train, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Our Man Flint

* 01/16/1903

Josephine Hutchinson(† 94)

Actress | Seattle, Washington (US)

Josephine Hutchinson (October 12, 1903 – June 4, 1998) was an American actress. She acted in dozens of theater plays and dozens of films, including Son of Frankenstein and North by Northwest, as well as numerous television appearances as guest star in various series including The Twilight Zone.

Known for: North by Northwest, Son of Frankenstein, Happiness Ahead, The Right to Live, The Twilight Zone

* 10/12/1903

Edgar Bergen(† 75)

Actor | Chicago, Illinois (US)

Edgar John Bergen (born Edgar John Berggren; February 16, 1903 – September 30, 1978) was an American ventriloquist, comedian, actor, vaudevillian and radio performer. He was best known for his characters Charlie McCarthy and Mortimer Snerd. Bergen pioneered modern-day ventriloquism and has been described by puppetry organization UNIMA as the "quintessential ventriloquist of the 20th century”. He was the father of actress Candice Bergen.

Known for: Fun and Fancy Free, The Muppet Movie, Letter of Introduction, Song of the Open Road

* 02/16/1903

Fernandel(† 67)

Actor | Marseille (FR)

Fernand Joseph Désiré Contandin (8 May 1903 – 26 February 1971), better known as Fernandel, was a French actor and singer. Born in Marseille, France, to Désirée Bedouin and Denis Contandin, originating in Perosa Argentina, an Occitan town located in the province of Turin. He was a comedy star who first gained popularity in French vaudeville, operettas, and music-hall revues. His stage name originated from his marriage to Henriette Manse, the sister of his best friend and frequent cinematic collaborator Jean Manse. So attentive was he to his wife that his mother-in-law amusingly referred to him as Fernand d'elle ("Fernand of her").(Wikipedia)

Known for: Don Camillo, Heartbeat, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, Adhémar or the Toy of Destiny

* 05/08/1903

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Bing Crosby(† 74)

Actor | Tacoma, Washington (US)

Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, actor, television producer, television and radio personality and businessman. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. Crosby was a leader in record sales, network radio ratings, and motion picture grosses from 1926 to 1977. He was one of the first global cultural icons. Crosby made over 70 feature films and recorded more than 1,600 songs. Crosby’s early career coincided with recording innovations that allowed him to develop an intimate singing style that influenced many male singers who followed, such as Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Dean Martin, Dick Haymes, Elvis Presley, and John Lennon. Yank magazine said that Crosby was "the person who had done the most for the morale of overseas servicemen" during World War II. In 1948, American polls declared him the "most admired man alive", ahead of Jackie Robinson and Pope Pius XII.: 6 In 1948, Music Digest estimated that Crosby’s recordings filled more than half of the 80,000 weekly hours allocated to recorded radio music in America. Crosby won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in Going My Way (1944) and was nominated for its sequel, The Bells of St. Mary's (1945), opposite Ingrid Bergman, becoming the first of six actors to be nominated twice for playing the same character. Crosby was the number one box office attraction for five consecutive years from 1944 to 1948. At his screen apex in 1946, Crosby starred in three of the year's five highest-grossing films: The Bells of St. Mary's, Blue Skies and Road to Utopia. In 1963, he received the first Grammy Global Achievement Award. Crosby is one of 33 people to have three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, in the categories of motion pictures, radio, and audio recording. He was also known for his collaborations with his friend Bob Hope, starring in the Road to ... films from 1940 to 1962. Crosby influenced the development of the post–World War II recording industry. After seeing a demonstration of a German broadcast quality reel-to-reel tape recorder brought to the United States by John T. Mullin, Crosby invested $50,000 in the California electronics company Ampex to build copies. He then persuaded ABC to allow him to tape his shows and became the first performer to prerecord his radio shows and master his commercial recordings onto magnetic tape. Crosby has been associated with the Christmas season since he starred in Irving Berlin's musical film Holiday Inn and also famously sang "White Christmas" in the movie. Through audio recordings, Crosby produced his radio programs with the same directorial tools and craftsmanship (editing, retaking, rehearsal, time shifting) used in motion picture production, a practice that became the industry standard. In addition to his work with early audio tape recording, Crosby helped finance the development of videotape, bought television stations, bred racehorses, and co-owned the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team, during which time the team won two World Series (1960 and 1971).

Known for: White Christmas, High Society, Going My Way, The Country Girl

* 05/02/1903

George Coulouris(† 85)

Actor | Manchester, England (GB)

George Coulouris was a British stage, film and television actor.

Known for: Citizen Kane, Murder on the Orient Express, Between Two Worlds, Sleep, My Love

* 10/01/1903

John Williams(† 80)

Actor | Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, England (GB)

John Williams (15 April 1903 – 5 May 1983) was a British stage, film, and television actor. He is remembered for his role as Chief Inspector Hubbard in Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M for Murder, as the chauffeur in Billy Wilder's Sabrina (both 1954), as Mr. Brogan-Moore in Witness for the Prosecution (1957), and as the second "Mr. French" on TV's Family Affair in its first season (1967).

Known for: Dial M for Murder, Sabrina, To Catch a Thief, Witness for the Prosecution

* 04/15/1903

Elisha Cook Jr.(† 91)

Actor | San Francisco, California (US)

Elisha Vanslyck Cook Jr. (December 26, 1903 – May 18, 1995) was an American character actor famed for his work in films noir. According to Bill Georgaris of They Shoot Pictures, Don't They, Cook appeared in a total of 21 films noir, more than any other actor or actress. He played cheerful, brainy collegiates until he was cast against type as the bug-eyed baby-faced psychopathic killer Wilmer Cook in the 1941 version of The Maltese Falcon. He went on to play deceptively mild-mannered villains. Cook's acting career spanned more than 60 years, with roles in productions including The Big Sleep, Shane, The Killing, House on Haunted Hill, and Rosemary's Baby.

Known for: House on Haunted Hill, Rosemary's Baby, The Killing, The Maltese Falcon

* 12/26/1903

Leonid Kinskey(† 95)

Actor | St. Petersburg (RU)

Leonid Kinskey (18 April 1903 – September 8, 1998) was a Russian-born American film and television actor, best known for his role as Sascha in the film Casablanca (1942). His last name was sometimes spelled Kinsky.

Known for: Casablanca, Duck Soup, Ball of Fire, Presenting Lily Mars

* 04/18/1903

William Haade(† 63)

Actor | New York, City, New York (US)

Muscular American character actor of Dutch extraction. Tended to play bullies and assorted western heavies. Best remembered as the alcoholic prizefighter (managed by Humphrey Bogart) who is punched out by Wayne Morris in the finale to 'Kid Galahad' (1937).

Known for: Key Largo, Kid Galahad, Phantom of the Plains, My Pal Trigger

* 03/02/1903

Paul Newlan(† 70)

Actor | Plattsburgh (US)

Paul Emory "Tiny" Newlan (June 29, 1903 – November 23, 1973) was an American film and TV character actor from Plattsmouth, Nebraska. He was best known for his role as Captain Grey on the NBC police series M Squad and for his roles in films including The Americanization of Emily and The Slender Thread.

Known for: Down Rio Grande Way, Dragnet, M Squad, The Twilight Zone

* 06/29/1903

Jeanette MacDonald(† 61)

Actress | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (US)

Jeanette Anna MacDonald (June 18, 1903 – January 14, 1965) was an American singer and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier (The Love Parade, Love Me Tonight, The Merry Widow and One Hour With You) and Nelson Eddy (Naughty Marietta, Rose-Marie, and Maytime). During the 1930s and 1940s she starred in 29 feature films, four nominated for Best Picture Oscars (The Love Parade, One Hour with You, Naughty Marietta and San Francisco), and recorded extensively, earning three gold records. She later appeared in opera, concerts, radio, and television. MacDonald was one of the most influential sopranos of the 20th century, introducing opera to film-going audiences and inspiring a generation of singers.

Known for: Cairo, Broadway Serenade, San Francisco, The Merry Widow

* 06/18/1903

Hugh Sinclair(† 59)

Actor | St George Hanover Square, London, England (GB)

Hugh Sinclair (19 May 1903 – 29 December 1962) was a British actor born in London, the son of a clergyman. He was educated at Charterhouse School and was a graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. His first marriage was to the actress Valerie Taylor. In his book The Stage Struck Me! fellow actor Neville Phillips felt Sinclair always played variations of himself, handsome, debonair, suave and witty and excelled in light comedy. By contrast Phillips felt his wife, who Sinclair often appeared opposite, was a dramatic actress of tremendous power with a magnificent voice.

Known for: The Saint's Vacation, The Saint Meets the Tiger, The Four Just Men, No Trace

* 05/19/1903

Ken Murray(† 85)

Actor | New York, New York

Ken Murray (born Kenneth Abner Doncourt, July 14, 1903 – October 12, 1988) was an American comedian, actor, radio and television personality and author.After finding success on the vaudeville stage, Murray moved to Hollywood and made his film debut in the 1929 romantic drama Half Marriage, followed by a role in Leathernecking in 1930. Murray was the host of a weekly radio variety show (The Ken Murray Show) on NBC 1932-33 and on CBS 1936–37. He later was the original host (1945-57) of Queen for a Day, on the Mutual Broadcasting System radio show, which was simulcast on KTSL (now KCBS-TV), Channel 2 in Los Angeles.During World War II, Murray was one of the many celebrities to volunteer at the Hollywood Canteen. In 1947, he produced Bill and Coo, a feature film using trained birds and other animals as actors. Bill and Coo won a special Academy Award for "novel and entertaining use of the medium of motion picture" and "artistry and patience" .He was also the host of The Ken Murray Show, a weekly music and comedy show on CBS Television that ran from 1950 to 1953. The show was the first to win a Freedom Foundation Award. Murray also guest starred on several television series, including The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford and The Bing Crosby Show.Murray produced and co-starred as "Smiling Billy Murray" in a 1953 film, The Marshal's Daughter, a western that featured his protege Laurie Anders in the title role, her sole film performance. In 1962, Murray portrayed the top hat wearing, cigar chewing, drunken Doc Willoughby in John Ford's The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance starring John Wayne and James Stewart, arguably his most memorable screen role. Paired off for most of the picture with Edmond O'Brien as an alcoholic newspaper editor, he drunkenly rolls over the gunshot corpse of villain Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin) with his boot, looks around off-handedly, and says "Dead" to the surrounding crowd of euphoric Mexicans.In 1964, Murray played Whipsaw, the operator of a stagecoach depot in the episode "Little Cayuse" of the television series Death Valley Days, hosted by Stanley Andrews. He and his partner take in a Cayuse orphan (Larry Domasin), who demonstrates his loyalty to the men during an Indian attack. In 1965, Murray played a THRUSH financier and owner of a caribbean casino in The Man from U.N.C.L.E.. In 1966, Murray was cast as Melody Murphy in the Walt Disney film Follow Me, Boys! starring Fred MacMurray, Vera Miles and Kurt Russell.

Known for: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, A Night at Earl Carroll's, Follow Me, Boys!, Bill and Coo

* 07/14/1903

George J. Lewis(† 91)

Actor | Guadalajara, Jalisco (MX)

George J. Lewis was born on December 10, 1903 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. He was an actor, known for "Radar Patrol vs. Spy King (1949)", "Malice in the Palace (1949)" and "Zorro's Black Whip (1944)". He was married to Mary Louise Lohman. He died on December 8, 1995 in Rancho Santa Fe, California, USA.

Known for: Zorro's Black Whip, Radar Patrol vs. Spy King, Malice in the Palace

* 12/10/1903

Robert Dalban(† 83)

Actor | Celles-sur-Belle, Deux-Sèvres (FR)

Robert Dalban (born Gaston Barré; 19 July 1903, in Celles-sur-Belle, Deux-Sèvres – 3 April 1987, in Paris) was a French actor. His work included stage acting, roles in TV shows and dubbing American stars. Moreover, he was a fixture in French cinema for many decades.

Known for: Diabolique, Fantomas, Crooks in Clover, Signed, Arsène Lupin

* 07/19/1903

Wilton Graff(† 65)

Actor | St. Louis, Missouri (US)

Wilton Graff(13 August 1903 – 13 January 1969) was an American actor. He was born asWilton Calvert Ratcliffeon 13 August 1903 inSt. Louis, Missouri, US. He died inPacific Palisades, California on 13 January 1969.

Known for: Bloodlust!, Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back, Lili, The Sea Chase

* 08/13/1903

Carl Anderson(† 86)

Actor | Lynchburg, Virginia (US)

Carlton Earl "Carl" Anderson (February 27, 1945 – February 23, 2004) was an American singer, film and theater actor best known for his portrayal of Judas Iscariot in the Broadway and film versions of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Anderson and singer-actress Gloria Loring performed the duet "Friends and Lovers", which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1986.

Known for: Jesus Christ Superstar, The Color Purple, Infinity, Family

* 06/13/1903

Mona Washbourne(† 84)

Actress | Solihull, Warwickshire, England (GB)

Mona Lee Washbourne (27 November 1903 – 15 November 1988) was an English actress of stage, film, and television. Her most critically acclaimed role was in the film Stevie (1978), late in her career, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a BAFTA Award.

Known for: My Fair Lady, Stevie, The Bed Sitting Room, Billy Liar

* 11/27/1903