Jeffrey Lynn
Born: 1909-02-16 in Auburn, Massachusetts, USA
Died: 1995-11-24
Known For: Acting
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jeffrey Lynn (born Ragnar Godfrey Lind; February 16, 1909 – November 24, 1995) was an American stage-screen actor and film producer who worked primarily through the Golden Age of Hollywood establishing himself as one of the premier talents of his time. Throughout his acting career, both on stage and in film, he was typecast as "the attractive, reliable love interest of the heroine," or "the tall, stalwart hero." Born and raised in Massachusetts, he attended Bates College, before working as a teacher. He was tapped to act in his first film in 1938, which convinced him to move to Hollywood, California. His second film–Four Daughters (1938)–propelled him into national fame sparking three sequels: Daughters Courageous (1939), Four Wives (1939) and Four Mothers (1941) with Lynn reprising his role in each of them. He was at the center of the Gone with the Wind (1939) screening controversy; he was noted as the top contender to play Ashley Wilkes, however, the directer eventually chose Leslie Howard instead. Lynn was asked to join James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart in The Roaring Twenties (1939), a gangster noir that garnered him critical praise. His success continued with such films as The Fighting 69th (1940) in which he portrayed poet-soldier Joyce Kilmer opposite Cagney, It All Came True (1940), All This and Heaven Too (1940) and Million Dollar Baby (1941). His movie career was put on hold for World War II draft, where he received a Bronze Star for his service as a in Italy and Austria as a combat intelligence captain. He returned to the screen in 1948 and was in the notably successful, A Letter to Three Wives (1949), which went on to be nominated of best picture in the 1950 prime time Academy Awards. A year later he joined that cast of Home Town Story (1951) billed alongside Marilyn Monroe. His later film career credits include: BUtterfield 8 (1960) along with Elizabeth Taylor and Laurence Harvey, and Tony Rome (1967) with Frank Sinatra. Lynn also began to act on Broadway and was featured in such plays as Any Wednesday (1966) and Dinner at Eight (1967). Later on in his career he found mixed critical success television starring in hit shows such as Robert Montgomery Presents, Your Show of Shows, My Son Jeep (with young Martin Huston), and Lux Video Theatre. He died in November 1995 in Burbank, California from natural causes and was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills. Actor Jeffrey Lynn "Jeff" Goldblum is named in honor of Jeffrey Lynn.
Filmography
1988
- Midnight Caller as Ambrose McGee
- The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind as Self (archive footage)
1984
- Murder, She Wrote as Sam Wilson
1981
1979
- Knots Landing as Mr. Ahern
1961
- The Spiral Staircase as Doctor Parry
1960
- BUtterfield 8 as Bingham Smith
1957
- Lost Lagoon as Charlie Walker
1955
- Star Stage as Self - Host
1954
- Doorway to Suspicion as Paul Stapleton
1953
- Main Street to Broadway as Self (uncredited)
1951
- Up Front as Capt. Ralph Johnson
- Tales of Tomorrow
- Home Town Story as Blake Washburn
- Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1950
- Robert Montgomery Presents
- What's My Line? as Self - Mystery Guest
- Your Show of Shows
- Lux Video Theatre as Seth Warner
- Captain China as Capt. George Brendensen
- Miracle in the Rain as Art Hugenon
1949
- Strange Bargain as Sam Wilson
- Lights Out
- Suspense as John Bantreagh
- A Letter to Three Wives as Bradford 'Brad' Bishop
1948
- Studio One as Art Hugenon
- The Philco Television Playhouse
- Black Bart as Lance Hardeen
- Whiplash as Dr. Arnold Vincent
- For the Love of Mary as Phillip Manning
1942
- Breakdowns of 1942 as Self
1941
- Four Mothers as Felix Deitz
- Underground as Kurt Franken
- Million Dollar Baby as James Amory
- Flight from Destiny as Michael Farroway
- Law of the Tropics as Jim Conwoy
- The Body Disappears as Peter DeHaven
1940
- It All Came True as Tommy Taylor
- Money and the Woman as Dave Bennett
- The Fighting 69th as Joyce Kilmer
- My Love Came Back as Tony Baldwin
- All This, and Heaven Too as Henry Martyn Field
1939
- Daughters Courageous as John S. 'Johnny' Heming
- Four Wives as Felix Dietz
- Espionage Agent as Lowell Warrington
- The Roaring Twenties as Lloyd Hart
- A Child Is Born as Jed Sutton
- Yes, My Darling Daughter as Douglas Hall
1938
- Four Daughters as Felix Deitz
- Out Where the Stars Begin as Makeup Artist
- When Were You Born as Davis
- Cowboy from Brooklyn as Chronicle Reporter