James Whitmore
Born: 1921-10-01 in White Plains, New York, USA
Died: 2009-02-06
Known For: Acting
Biography
James Allen Whitmore Jr. (October 1, 1921 – February 6, 2009) was an American film, theatre, and television actor. During his career, Whitmore won three of the four EGOT honors; - a Tony, a Grammy, and an Emmy. Whitmore also won a Golden Globe and was nominated for two Academy Awards. Following World War II, Whitmore appeared on Broadway in the role of the sergeant in Command Decision. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer gave Whitmore a contract, but his role in the film adaptation was played by Van Johnson. His first major picture for MGM was Battleground, in a role that was turned down by Spencer Tracy, to whom Whitmore bore a noted physical resemblance. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role, and won the Golden Globe Award as Best Performance by an Actor In A Supporting Role. Other major films included Angels in the Outfield, The Asphalt Jungle, The Next Voice You Hear, Above and Beyond, Kiss Me, Kate, Them!, Oklahoma!, Black Like Me, Guns of the Magnificent Seven, Tora! Tora! Tora!, and Give 'em Hell, Harry!, a one-man show for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of former U.S. President Harry S Truman. In the film Tora! Tora! Tora!, he played Admiral William F. "Bull" Halsey. Whitmore appeared during the 1950s on many television anthology series. He was cast as Father Emil Kapaun in the 1955 episode "The Good Thief" in the ABC religion anthology series Crossroads. Other roles followed on Jane Wyman Presents the Fireside Theater, Lux Video Theatre, Kraft Theatre, Studio One in Hollywood, Schlitz Playhouse, Matinee Theatre, and the Ford Television Theatre. In 1958, he carried the lead in "The Gabe Carswell Story" of NBC's Wagon Train, with Ward Bond. Whitmore has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6611 Hollywood Boulevard. The ceremony was held on February 8, 1960.
Filmography
2017
- Arthur Miller: Writer as Self (archive footage)
2004
- Los Angeles Plays Itself as Lou Hopke in Shadow in The Sky (archive footage)
2003
- Mister Sterling as William Sterling Sr.
- A Minute with Stan Hooper as Dr. Goldman
- Cole Porter in Hollywood: Too Darn Hot as Self
2002
- A Ring of Endless Light as Grandfather
2001
- The Majestic as Stan Keller
2000
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation as Milton
- Here's to Life! as Gus Corley
1999
- Swing Vote as Daniel Morissey
1997
- The Practice as Raymond Oz
- The Relic as Dr. Albert Frock
1995
- Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick as Self
1994
- The Shawshank Redemption as Brooks Hatlen
1990
- Sky High as Gus Johnson
- Old Explorers as Leinen Roth
1989
- Glory! Glory! as Lester Babbitt
1988
- Favorite Son as The President
1987
- Nuts as Judge Stanley Murdoch
- All My Sons as Joe Keller
1985
- The Ray Bradbury Theater as Craig Bennett Stiles
- George Burns Comedy Week as Ebenezer Scrooge
- The Adventures of Mark Twain as Mark Twain (voice)
- I Will Fight No More Forever as General Oliver O. Howard
1984
- Celebrity as Clifford Casey
- Love Those Trains as Narrator
1982
- Hail Columbia! as Narrator
- The Klan: A Legacy of Hate in America as Narrator
1981
1980
- Rage! as Borski
- The First Deadly Sin as Dr. Sanford Ferguson
- Mark, I Love You as Dwight Hamilton
- The Golden Honeymoon as Charley Tate
1979
- The Horror Show as (archive footage)
1978
- The White Shadow as Jake Reeves
- The Word as George Wheeler
- Bully: An Adventure with Teddy Roosevelt as Teddy Roosevelt
1977
- The Serpent's Egg as Priester
1976
- The Flying Misfits as Capt. James 'Jim' Gutterman
1975
- Give 'em Hell, Harry! as Harry S. Truman
1974
- Dinah! as Self
- Where the Red Fern Grows as Grandpa
- The Canterville Ghost as Hyram B. Otis
- Man Belongs to the Earth as Narrator
- The Balloon Vendor as Antonio
1973
- The Harrad Experiment as Philip Tenhausen
- High Crime as Commissioner Aldo Scavino
1972
- Temperatures Rising as Vincent Campanelli
- Chato's Land as Joshua Everette
1971
- If Tomorrow Comes as Frank Phillips
1970
- Tora! Tora! Tora! as Admiral William F. Halsey
- The Challenge as Overman
1969
- Then Came Bronson as Wilson Ford
- Guns of the Magnificent Seven as Levi
- My Friend Tony as Prof. John Woodruff
1968
- The Name of the Game as Harry Roarke
- Planet of the Apes as President of the Assembly
- Madigan as Chief Inspector Charles Kane
- The Split as Herb Sutro
- Nobody's Perfect as Capt. Mike Riley
1967
- The Invaders as Harry Swain
- Judd, for the Defense
- Custer
- The Danny Thomas Hour as Professor John Woodruff
- Cowboy in Africa
- Chuka as Lou Trent
- Waterhole #3 as Capt. Shipley
1966
- Tarzan
- The Monroes
- Shane as Harry Himber
- T.H.E. Cat
- The Tenderfoot as Captain Ewell
1965
- The Big Valley as Handy
- Run for Your Life as Chief Jim Holland
- The Loner
- For the People
- National Geographic Specials as Narrator (voice)
1964
- 12 O'Clock High
- Slattery's People
- Black Like Me as John Finley Horton
- The Tenderfoot as Captain Ewell
1963
- Burke's Law as Joe Piante
- Kraft Suspense Theatre as J. Marvin Bean
- Arrest and Trial as Martin Burnham
- The Greatest Show on Earth
- The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters as Foxy Smith
1962
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson as Self
- Combat! as Hertzbrun
- The Virginian as Capt. Piper Pritican
- Going My Way
- Icarus Montgolfier Wright
1961
- The Mike Douglas Show as Self
- Ben Casey
- Dr. Kildare as Henry Clay Kincaid
- Bus Stop
- Alcoa Premiere
- The Wonderful World of Disney
1960
- Route 66
- Checkmate as Detective Lt. Dave Harker
- The Chevy Mystery Show as Philip Selby
- The Law and Mr. Jones as Abraham Lincoln Jones
- Who Was That Lady? as Harry Powell
1959
- Bonanza as John Postley
- The Twilight Zone
- Rawhide as Sgt. Joe Duclos
- The Detectives
- Face of Fire as Monk Johnson
1958
- Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse
- The Deep Six as Cmdr. Warren Meredith
- The Restless Years as Ed Henderson
- Decision
1957
- Panic!
- The Young Don't Cry as Rudy Krist
1956
- Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre as Jeb
- Crime in the Streets as Ben Wagner
- The Eddy Duchin Story as Lou Sherwood
1955
- Gunsmoke as Amos Campbell
- The 20th Century Fox Hour
- Playwrights '56
- Crossroads
- Oklahoma! as Mr. Carnes
- Battle Cry as MSgt. Mac
- The Last Frontier as Gus
- The McConnell Story as SSgt. / Maj . / Col. Ty 'Dad' Whitman
1954
- Climax! as Stash Prohaska
- Studio 57
- Them! as Sgt. Ben Peterson
- The Command as Sgt. Elliott
- The Great Diamond Robbery as Mr. Remlick, Lawyer
1953
- The United States Steel Hour
- Kiss Me Kate as Slug
- All the Brothers Were Valiant as Fetcher
- Above and Beyond as Maj. William M. Uanna
- The Girl Who Had Everything as Charles "Chico" Menlow
1952
- Shadow in the Sky as Lou Hopke
- Because You're Mine as Sergeant 'Bat' Batterson
- The Hoaxters as Narrator (voice)
1951
- Angels in the Outfield as Angel (voice) (uncredited)
- Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
- Across the Wide Missouri as Old Bill (uncredited)
- The Red Badge of Courage as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
- It's a Big Country as Mr. Stacey
1950
- Lux Video Theatre as Tracy
- The Asphalt Jungle as Gus Minissi
- The Outriders as Clint Priest
- Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone as John Malone
- The Next Voice You Hear... as Joe Smith
- Please Believe Me as Vincent Maran
1949
- Battleground as Kinnie
- The Undercover Man as George Pappas
1948
- Studio One as Sam
1944
- Golden Globe Awards as Self - Nominated