Colman Biography Facts:
- Born: Richmond, Surrey, England on February 9, 1891
- Died: Santa Barbara, California, USA on May 19, 1958
- Height: 5 feet 11 inches
- Hair and eyes : dark brown
- Weight: 158 pounds
- Father: Charles Colman, not in the business.
- Educated at Littlehampton, Sussex, England, attended Cambridge.
- Hobbies: Tennis, motoring, reading and swimming.
- Military: the British Army during World War I.
- Two years on stage in England, UK before coming to NYC.
Spouse
- Benita
Hume (1938 - his death)
- Thelma Raye (1920 - 1933) (divorced)
 See new page on the homes of Ronald Colman
Mini biography (from IMDB)
Colman made his film debut in an unreleased two-reel short made
in 1919. Its title is unknown, and references to it as 'Live
Wire, The (1917)' apparently erroneously connect it to a play
of that title in which Colman appeared around the same time.
 British
leading man of primarily American films, one of the great stars
of the Golden Age. Raised in Ealing, the son of a successful silk
merchant, he attended boarding school in Sussex, where he first
discovered amateur theatre. He intended to attend Cambridge
University and become an engineer, but his father's death cost
him the financial support necessary to continue in this profession.
He joined the London Scottish Regionals and at the outbreak
of World War I was sent to France. Seriously wounded at
the Battle
of Messines, he was invalided out of service scarcely two
months after shipping out for France. Upon his recovery, he
attempted to enter the consular service, but a chance encounter
got him a small role in a London play.
  He
dropped other plans and concentrated on the theatre and was
rewarded with a succession of increasingly prominent parts.
He made extra money appearing in a few minor films, and in
1920 set out for New York in hopes of finding greater fortune
there than in war- depressed England.
 After
two years of impoverishment, he was cast in a Broadway hit,
La Tendresse. Director 'Henry King' spotted him in the show
and cast him as Lillian Gish's leading man in his film The
White Sister (1923). His success in the film led to a contract
with Samuel
Goldwyn, and career as a Hollywood leading man was underway.
He became a vastly popular star of silent films, in romances
as well as adventure films.
  With
the coming of sound, his extraordinarily beautiful speaking
voice made him even more important to the film industry. He
played sophisticated thoughtful characters of integrity with
enormous aplomb, and swashbuckled expertly when called to do
so in films like The Prisoner
of Zenda. A decade later he received an Academy Award for
his splendid portrayal of a tormented actor in A
Double Life (1947).
Much of his later career was devoted to 'The
Halls of Ivy', a radio show that later was transferred
to television. He continued to work until nearly the end
of his life, which came in 1958 after a brief lung illness.
He was survived by his second wife, actress Benita
Hume, and their daughter Juliet.
Trivia (from IMDB)
- Daughter Juliet Benita Colman (b. 1944)
- He made his film debut in an unreleased two-reel short made
in 1919. Its title is unknown, and references to it as 'Live
Wire, The (1917)' apparently erroneously connect it to a play
of that title in which Colman appeared around the same time.
- His recording of "A Christmas Carol", originally released in
a Decca 78-RPM set in 1941, was the first recorded version to
win wide acclaim. It appeared several times on LP, and has recently
(October 2005) been released on CD by Deutsche Grammophon, along
with its frequent companion piece on LP, "Mr. Pickwick's Christmas".
- Portrayed Dr. William Hall on NBC Radio's "The Halls of Ivy" (1950-1952)
with his wife Benita Hume.
- Fought with the British Army in World War I, and was wounded
during the Battle of Ypres.
- In his early film career he was panned by many critics for
his overtheatrics (used in the stage work he was doing at the
time) and his pronounced limp (from a bad war injury). He credited
working with greats such as George Arliss for overcoming those obstacles.
- When he made his mark in Hollywood as a handsome young silent
actor, there were some who doubted he would translate well to "talkies." His
subsequent success in radio (he made a multi-volume recording
of the Shakespeare sonnets, as well) proves them wrong with a
vengeance.
Personal Quotes (from IMDB)
- "Fame has robbed me of my freedom and shut me up in prison, and because the prison walls are gilded, and the key that locks
me in is gold, does not make it any more tolerable."
- [To his agent] "Before God I'm worth 35 dollars a week. Before
the motion picture industry I'm worth anything you can get."
- "They talk of the artist finding liberation in work, it is
true. One can be someone else in another, more dramatic, more
beautiful world."
- "Whenever I hear of young actors down and out and broke in
New York, (and what a cliche of show business it is supposed
to be!) I remember my own experiences in 1921 - and find it no
laughing matter by any criterion."
- "I persevered in those English films, and persevered is the
word, though I am the first to admit that I was a very bad actor
in them."
- "I loathe war. I'm inclined to be bitter about the politics
of munitions and real estate which are the reasons of war. It
certainly taught me to value the quiet life and strenghtened
my conviction that to keep as far out of range of vision as possible
is to to be as safe as possible." "I visited agents,
knocked at producers' doors; no one was interested. I was just
another stage actor on tour, on the outside of Hollywood looking
in. I returned to New York depressed and disappointed."
- "Why should I go to dull parties and say dull things just because
I wear greasepaint and make love to beautiful women on the screen?"
- (asked if "The Story of Mankind" was based on a book): "Yes.
But they are using only the notes on the dust jacket."
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Links to featured
Colman Films:
