# Walter Pidgeon

Walter Davis Pidgeon (September 23, 1897 – September 25, 1984) was a Canadian-American actor. A major leading man during the Golden Age of Hollywood, known for his "portrayals of men who prove both sturdy and wise," Pidgeon earned two Academy Award nominations for Best Actor, for his roles in Mrs. Miniver (1942) and Madame Curie (1943).
Pidgeon also starred in many other notable films, such as How Green Was My Valley (1941), The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), Forbidden Planet (1956), Executive Suite (1954), Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961), Advise & Consent (1962), Funny Girl (1968), and Harry in Your Pocket (1973).
Aside from his acting career, Pidgeon served as the 10th President of the Screen Actors Guild, between 1952 and 1957. He received the Guild's Life Achievement Award in 1975, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960, for his contributions to the motion picture industry.

## Early life and education

Born in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, Pidgeon was the son of Hannah (née Sanborn), a housewife, and Caleb Burpee Pidgeon, a haberdasher.
Pidgeon received his formal education in local schools and the University of New Brunswick, where he studied law and drama. His university education was interrupted by World War I when he volunteered with the 65th Battery, as a lieutenant in the Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery. He never saw action, however, as he was severely injured in an accident when he was crushed between two gun carriages and spent seventeen months in a military hospital. His Officer Attestation states he was born in 1895 but further medical records state 1896.
Following the war, he moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where he worked as a bank runner, at the same time studying voice at the Boston Conservatory.

## Career

While he was performing in amateur theatricals in Boston, Pidgeon was hired by Elsie Janis, a producer, actor and singer looking for a male singer for her revue. Pidgeon moved to New York City in 1923, where he was interviewed by E.E. Clive, a British producer working on Broadway. Pidgeon made his first featured Broadway debut in Janis' 1925 revue Puzzles of 1925. Clive was producing You Never Can Tell, and he cast Pidgeon in a supporting role despite Pidgeon's lack of theatrical experience.
Pidgeon's success created a rift between Janis and him, leading to Pidgeon's dismissal and his move to Hollywood. His first role was in silent film Mannequin (1925). Discouraged with the quality of the roles he was getting, Pidgeon returned to New York in 1928 to resume his theater career. With the advent of sound films, Pidgeon starred in musicals Bride of the Regiment (1930), Sweet Kitty Bellairs (1930), Viennese Nights (1930) and Kiss Me Again (1931). In 1935, he appeared onstage on Broadway in Something Gay, Night of January 16th, and There's Wisdom in Women.
Pidgeon returned to film in 1937 as a dramatic actor in Saratoga (1937), then acted in The Girl of the Golden West (1938) and Dark Command (1940).
In 1941, Pidgeon starred in the Academy Award-winning Best Picture How Green Was My Valley (1941). He starred with Greer Garson in Blossoms in the Dust (1941), Mrs. Miniver (1942) (for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor) and its sequel, The Miniver Story (1950). He was also nominated for Madame Curie (1943), again with Garson. His partnership with her continued throughout the 1940s and into the 1950s with Mrs. Parkington (1944), Julia Misbehaves (1948), That Forsyte Woman (1949), and finally Scandal at Scourie (1953). He also starred as Chip Collyer in the comedy Week-End at the Waldorf (1945) and later as Colonel Michael S. 'Hooky' Nicobar, who was given the difficult task of repatriating Russians in post-World War II Vienna in The Red Danube (1949).
Although he continued to make films, including The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), Executive Suite (1954) and Forbidden Planet (1956), Pidgeon returned to work on Broadway in the mid-1950s after a 20-year absence. He was featured in Take Me Along with Jackie Gleason and received a Tony Award nomination for the musical play. He continued making films, playing Admiral Harriman Nelson in 1961's Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, James Haggin in Walt Disney's Big Red (1962), and the Senate Majority Leader in Otto Preminger's Advise & Consent. His role as Florenz Ziegfeld in Funny Girl (1968) was well received. Later, he played Casey, James Coburn's sidekick, in Harry in Your Pocket (1973).
Pidgeon guest-starred in the episode "King of the Valley" (November 26, 1959) on Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre. Pidgeon played Dave King, a prosperous rancher who quarrels with his banker over a $10,000 loan.
His other television credits included Rawhide ("The Reunion", 1962). Breaking Point, The F.B.I., Marcus Welby, M.D., and Gibbsville. In 1963 he guest-starred as corporate attorney Sherman Hatfield in the fourth of four special episodes of Perry Mason while Raymond Burr was recovering from surgery. In 1965, he played the king in Rodgers and Hammerstein's CBS television production of Cinderella, starring Lesley Ann Warren. Pidgeon retired from acting in 1977.

## Politics

A Republican, Pidgeon joined celebrity Republicans in 1944 at a rally in the Los Angeles Coliseum arranged by David O. Selznick to support the Dewey−Bricker ticket and Governor Earl Warren of California, who was Dewey's running mate in 1948. The gathering drew 93,000, with Cecil B. DeMille as the master of ceremonies and short speeches by Hedda Hopper and Walt Disney.

## Personal life

In 1919, Pidgeon wed Edna Muriel Pickles, who died during the birth of their daughter, Edna (1921–1978). In 1931, Pidgeon married his secretary, Ruth Walker, to whom he remained married until his death.
Pidgeon became a United States citizen on December 24, 1943.

## Death

Pidgeon died on September 25, 1984, age 87, in Santa Monica, California, following a series of strokes.
Walter Pidgeon has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6414 Hollywood Boulevard in California.

## Complete filmography

| Year | Film | Role | Director | Notes |
| 1926 | Mannequin | Martin Innesbrook | James Cruze | |
| 1926 | The Outsider | Basil Owen | Rowland V. Lee | Lost film |
| 1926 | Old Loves and New | Clyde Lord Geradine | Maurice Tourneur | Lost film |
| 1926 | Miss Nobody | Bravo | Lambert Hillyer | Lost film |
| 1926 | Marriage License? | Paul | Frank Borzage | |
| 1927 | The Heart of Salome | Monte Carroll | Victor Schertzinger | Lost film |
| 1927 | The Girl from Rio | Paul Sinclair | Tom Terriss | |
| 1927 | The Thirteenth Juror | Richard Marsden | Edward Laemmle | |
| 1927 | The Gorilla | Stevens | Alfred Santell | |
| 1928 | The Gateway of the Moon | Arthur Wyatt | John Griffith Wray | Lost film |
| 1928 | Woman Wise | United States Consul | Albert Ray | Lost film |
| 1928 | Turn Back the Hours | Philip Drake | Howard Bretherton | |
| 1928 | Clothes Make the Woman | Victor Trent | Tom Terriss | |
| 1928 | Melody of Love | Jack Clark | Arch Heath | Lost film |
| 1929 | The Voice Within | | | |
| 1929 | Her Private Life | Ned Thayer | Alexander Korda | |
| 1929 | A Most Immoral Lady | Tony Williams | John Griffith Wray | |
| 1930 | Showgirl in Hollywood | Himself – Premiere Emcee | Mervyn LeRoy | Uncredited |
| 1930 | Bride of the Regiment | Col. Vultow | John Francis Dillon | Lost film |
| 1930 | Sweet Kitty Bellairs | Lord Varney | Alfred E. Green | |
| 1930 | The Gorilla | Arthur Marsden | Bryan Foy | Lost film |
| 1930 | Viennese Nights | Franz von Renner | Alan Crosland | |
| 1930 | Going Wild | 'Ace' Benton | William A. Seiter | |
| 1931 | Kiss Me Again | Paul de St. Cyr | William A. Seiter | |
| 1931 | The Hot Heiress | Clay | Clarence G. Badger | |
| 1932 | Rockabye | Al Howard | George Cukor | |
| 1933 | The Kiss Before the Mirror | Lucy's Lover | James Whale | |
| 1934 | Journal of a Crime | Florestan | William Keighley | |
| 1934 | Good Badminton | Walter | | |
| 1936 | Big Brown Eyes | Richard Morey | Raoul Walsh | |
| 1936 | Fatal Lady | David Roberts | Edward Ludwig | |
| 1937 | She's Dangerous | Dr. Scott Logan | Lewis R. Foster | |
| 1937 | Girl Overboard | Paul Stacey | Sidney Salkow | |
| 1937 | As Good as Married | Fraser James | Edward Buzzell | |
| 1937 | Saratoga | Hartley Madison | Jack Conway | |
| 1937 | My Dear Miss Aldrich | Ken Morley | George B. Seitz | |
| 1937 | A Girl with Ideas | Mickey McGuire | S. Sylvan Simon | |
| 1938 | Man-Proof | Alan Wythe | Richard Thorpe | |
| 1938 | The Girl of the Golden West | Jack Rance | Robert Z. Leonard | |
| 1938 | The Shopworn Angel | Sam Bailey | H.C. Potter | |
| 1938 | Too Hot to Handle | William O. "Bill" Dennis | Jack Conway | |
| 1938 | Listen, Darling | Richard Thurlow | Edwin L. Marin | |
| 1939 | Society Lawyer | Christopher Durant | Edwin L. Marin | |
| 1939 | 6,000 Enemies | Steve Donegan | George B. Seitz | |
| 1939 | Stronger Than Desire | Tyler Flagg | Leslie Fenton | |
| 1939 | Nick Carter, Master Detective | Nick Carter / Robert Chalmers | Jacques Tourneur | |
| 1940 | I Take This Woman | Phil Mayberry | | Scenes deleted |
| 1940 | The House Across the Bay | Tim | Alfred Hitchcock (Uncredited) | |
| 1940 | It's a Date | John Arlen | William A. Seiter | |
| 1940 | Dark Command | William 'Will' Cantrell | Raoul Walsh | |
| 1940 | Phantom Raiders | Nick Carter | Jacques Tourneur | |
| 1940 | Sky Murder | Nick Carter | George B. Seitz | |
| 1940 | Flight Command | Squadron Cmdr. Billy Gary | Frank Borzage | |
| 1941 | Man Hunt | Captain Alan Thorndike | Fritz Lang | |
| 1941 | Blossoms in the Dust | Sam Gladney | Mervyn LeRoy | |
| 1941 | How Green Was My Valley | Mr. Gruffydd | John Ford | |
| 1941 | Design for Scandal | Jeff Sherman | Norman Taurog | |
| 1942 | Mrs. Miniver | Clem Miniver | William Wyler | |
| 1942 | White Cargo | Harry Witzel | Richard Thorpe | |
| 1943 | The Youngest Profession | Himself | Edward Buzzell | |
| 1943 | Madame Curie | Pierre Curie | Mervyn LeRoy | |
| 1944 | Mrs. Parkington | Major Augustus 'Gus' Parkington | Tay Garnett | |
| 1945 | Week-End at the Waldorf | Chip Collyer | Robert Z. Leonard | |
| 1946 | Holiday in Mexico | Jeffrey Evans | George Sidney | |
| 1946 | The Secret Heart | Chris Matthews | Robert Z. Leonard | |
| 1947 | Cass Timberlane | Himself – Party Guest | George Sidney | Uncredited |
| 1947 | If Winter Comes | Mark Sabre | Victor Saville | |
| 1948 | Julia Misbehaves | William Sylvester Packett | Jack Conway | |
| 1948 | Command Decision | Major General Roland Goodlaw Kane | Sam Wood | |
| 1949 | The Red Danube | Col. Michael S. "Hooky" Nicobar | George Sidney | |
| 1949 | That Forsyte Woman | Young Jolyon Forsyte | Compton Bennett | |
| 1950 | The Miniver Story | Clem Miniver | H.C. Potter | |
| 1951 | Soldiers Three | Col. Brunswick | Tay Garnett | |
| 1951 | Calling Bulldog Drummond | Maj. Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond | Victor Saville | |
| 1951 | Quo Vadis | Narrator | Mervyn LeRoy | Voice, uncredited |
| 1951 | The Unknown Man | Dwight Bradley Masen | Richard Thorpe | |
| 1952 | The Sellout | Haven D. Allridge | Gerald Mayer | |
| 1952 | Million Dollar Mermaid | Frederick Kellerman | Mervyn LeRoy | |
| 1952 | The Bad and the Beautiful | Harry Pebbel | Vincente Minnelli | |
| 1953 | Scandal at Scourie | Patrick J. McChesney | Jean Negulesco | |
| 1953 | Dream Wife | Walter McBride | Sidney Sheldon | |
| 1954 | Executive Suite | Frederick Y. Alderson | Robert Wise | |
| 1954 | Men of the Fighting Lady | Comdr. Kent Dowling | Andrew Marton | |
| 1954 | The Last Time I Saw Paris | James Ellswirth | Richard Brooks | |
| 1954 | Deep in My Heart | J.J. Shubert | Stanley Donen | |
| 1955 | Hit the Deck | Rear Adm. Daniel Xavier Smith | Roy Rowland | |
| 1955 | The Glass Slipper | Narrator | Charles Walters | Voice, uncredited |
| 1956 | Forbidden Planet | Dr. Morbius | Fred M. Wilcox | |
| 1956 | These Wilder Years | James Rayburn | Roy Rowland | |
| 1956 | The Rack | Col. Edward W. Hall, Sr. | Arnold Laven | |
| 1958 | Swiss Family Robinson | Father | | |
| 1959 | Meet Me in St. Louis | Mr. Alonzo Smith | | TV Movie |
| 1961 | Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea | Adm. Harriman Nelson | Irwin Allen | |
| 1962 | Advise and Consent | Senate Majority Leader | Otto Preminger | |
| 1962 | Big Red | James Haggin | Norman Tokar | |
| 1963 | The Two Colonels | Colonello Timothy Henderson | Steno | |
| 1963 | The Shortest Day | Ernest Hemingway | Sergio Corbucci | Uncredited |
| 1963 | Anniversary | Narrator | | |
| 1964 | Mr. Kingston | | | |
| 1965 | Cinderella | King | Ralph Nelson | |
| 1967 | How I Spent My Summer Vacation | Lewis Gannet | | |
| 1967 | Warning Shot | Orville Ames | Buzz Kulik | |
| 1968 | The Vatican Affair | Professor Herbert Cummings | Emilio Miraglia | |
| 1968 | Funny Girl | Florenz Ziegfeld | William Wyler | |
| 1969 | Rascal | Sterling North | Norman Tokar | Voice |
| 1970 | House on Greenapple Road | Mayor Jack Parker | Robert Day | |
| 1970 | The Mask of Sheba | Dr. Max van Condon | David Lowell Rich | |
| 1972 | The Screaming Woman | Dr. Amos Larkin | Jack Smight | |
| 1972 | Skyjacked | Sen. Arne Lindner | John Guillermin | |
| 1973 | The Neptune Factor | Dr. Samuel Andrews | Daniel Petrie | |
| 1973 | Harry in Your Pocket | Casey | Bruce Geller | |
| 1974 | Live Again, Die Again | Thomas Carmichael | Richard A. Colla | |
| 1974 | The Girl on the Late, Late Show | John Pahlman | Gary Nelson | |
| 1975 | You Lie So Deep, My Love | Uncle Joe Padway | David Lowell Rich | |
| 1975 | Murder on Flight 502 | Charlie Parkins | George McCowan | |
| 1976 | The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case | Judge Trenchard | Buzz Kulik | |
| 1976 | Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood | Grayson's Butler | Michael Winner | |
| 1976 | Two-Minute Warning | The Pickpocket | Larry Peerce | |
| 1978 | Sextette | The Chairman | Ken Hughes | |

## Radio appearances

| Year | Program | Episode/source |
| 1946 | Lux Radio Theatre | Mrs. Parkington |
| 1946 | Lux Radio Theatre | Together Again |
| 1952 | Screen Guild Theatre | "Heaven Can Wait" |
| 1953 | Lux Radio Theatre | The People Against O'Hara |