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===American Stage Career===
===American Stage Career===
Brent returned to the United States in August 1921.<ref>''George Brent - Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and its Leading Ladies (2014) by Scott O'Brien</ref> Some time later, he toured with a production of ''[[Abie's Irish Rose]]''. During the next five years, he acted in stock companies in [[Colorado]], [[Rhode Island]], [[Florida]], and [[Massachusetts]]. In 1930, he appeared on [[Broadway (theatre)|Broadway]] in ''Love, Honor, and Betray'', alongside [[Clark Gable]].<ref name=b119/>
Brent returned to the United States in August 1921.<ref>''George Brent - Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and its Leading Ladies (2014) by Scott O'Brien</ref> Some time later, he toured with a production of ''[[Abie's Irish Rose]]''. During the next five years, he acted in stock companies in [[Colorado]], [[Rhode Island]], [[Florida]], and [[Massachusetts]]. In 1930, he appeared on [[Broadway (theatre)|Broadway]] in ''Love, Honor, and Betray'', alongside [[Clark Gable]].<ref name=b119/>
===Early Films===
===Early Films: Fox and Universal===
He eventually moved to [[Hollywood]], and made his first film, ''[[Under Suspicion (1930 film)|Under Suspicion]]'', in 1930.<ref name=b119/><ref name=c160>Cozad, W. Lee. (2002). ''Those magnificent mountain movies: (The Golden Years) 1911-1939'', p. 160. Lake Arrowhead, CA: Rim of the World Historic Society.<!-- ISSN/ISBN needed --></ref>
He eventually moved to [[Hollywood]], and made his first film, ''[[Under Suspicion (1930 film)|Under Suspicion]]'' (1930).<ref name=b119/><ref name=c160>Cozad, W. Lee. (2002). ''Those magnificent mountain movies: (The Golden Years) 1911-1939'', p. 160. Lake Arrowhead, CA: Rim of the World Historic Society.<!-- ISSN/ISBN needed --></ref> It was made by Fox, who used Brent in support roles in ''[[Once a Sinner (1931 film)|Once a Sinner]]'' (1931), ''[[Fair Warning (film)|Fair Warning]]'' (1931), and ''[[Charlie Chan Carries On (film)|Charlie Chan Carries On]]'' (1931).


Brent signed a contract at Fox, where he had support roles in ''[[Once a Sinner]]'' (1931), ''[[Fair Warning]]'' (1931), and ''[[Charlie Chan Carries On]]'' (1931). He went to Universal for ''[[Ex-Bad Boy]]'' (1931) and ''[[Homicide Squad (film)|Homicide Squad]]'' (1931), then was in the [[Rin Tin Tin]] serial ''[[The Lightning Warrior]]'' (1931).
Brent went to Universal for ''[[Ex-Bad Boy]]'' (1931) and ''[[Homicide Squad (film)|Homicide Squad]]'' (1931), then was in the [[Rin Tin Tin]] serial ''[[The Lightning Warrior]]'' (1931) at [[Mascot Pictures]].
===Warner Bros===
===Warner Bros===
Brent went to Warner Bros where he played [[Barbara Stanwyck]]'s leading man in ''[[So Big! (1932 film)|So Big!]]'' (1932). This established him as a leading man for female stars.<ref name=b119/><ref name=c160/>
Brent went to Warner Bros where he played [[Barbara Stanwyck]]'s leading man in ''[[So Big! (1932 film)|So Big!]]'' (1932). This established him as a leading man for female stars.<ref name=b119/><ref name=c160/> [[Bette Davis]] had a small role.


Brent did ''[[The Rich Are Always with Us]]'' (1932) with [[Ruth Chatterton]]; [[Bette Davis]] had a support role. This was followed by ''[[Week-End Marriage]]'' (1932) with [[Loretta Young]], ''[[The Purchase Price]]'' (1932) with Stanwyck, ''[[Miss Pinkerton]]'' (1932) with [[Joan Blondell]], ''[[The Crash (film)|The Crash]]'' (1932) with Chatterton, and ''[[They Call It Sin]]'' (1932) with Young.
Brent did ''[[The Rich Are Always with Us]]'' (1932) with [[Ruth Chatterton]]; again, Davis had a support role.


This was followed by ''[[Week-End Marriage]]'' (1932) with [[Loretta Young]], ''[[The Purchase Price]]'' (1932) with Stanwyck, ''[[Miss Pinkerton]]'' (1932) with [[Joan Blondell]], ''[[The Crash (1932 film)|The Crash]]'' (1932) with Chatterton, and ''[[They Call It Sin]]'' (1932) with Young.
Highly regarded by [[Bette Davis]], he became her most frequent male co-star, appearing with her in 13 films, including ''[[Front Page Woman]]'' (1935), ''[[Special Agent (1935 film)|Special Agent]]'' (1935), ''[[The Golden Arrow (1936 film)|The Golden Arrow]]'' (1936), ''[[Jezebel (film)|Jezebel]]'' (1938), ''[[The Old Maid (1939 film)|The Old Maid]]'' (1939), ''[[Dark Victory]]'' (1939), ''[[The Great Lie]]'' (1941), and ''[[In This Our Life]]'' (1942). Brent also played opposite [[Ruby Keeler]] in ''[[42nd Street (film)|42nd Street]]'' (1933), [[Greta Garbo]] in ''[[The Painted Veil (1934 film)|The Painted Veil]]'' (1934), [[Ginger Rogers]] in ''[[In Person (film)|In Person]]'' (1935), [[Madeleine Carroll]] in ''[[The Case Against Mrs. Ames]]'' (1936), [[Jean Arthur]] in ''[[More Than a Secretary]]'' (1936), [[Myrna Loy]] in ''[[Stamboul Quest]]'' (1934) and ''[[The Rains Came]]'' (1939), [[Merle Oberon]] in ''[['Til We Meet Again]]'' (1940) and [[Ann Sheridan]] in ''[[Honeymoon for Three (1941 film)|Honeymoon for Three]]'' (1941).


Paramount borrowed Brent for the leading man role in ''[[Luxury Liner (1933 film)|Luxury Liner]]'' (1933). Back at Warners Brent was one of several studios names in ''[[42nd Street (film)|42nd Street]]'' (1933), playing the lover of [[Bebe Daniels]].
⚫
In 1942, Brent, an accomplished pilot who had tried and, because of age, failed to enlist in the armed services, temporarily retired from films to teach flying as a civilian flight instructor with the [[Civilian Pilot Training Program]] and later became a pilot in the US Coast Guard<ref> O’Brien, Scott ''George Brent: Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and Its Leading Ladies'' BearManor Media</ref> for the duration of the war. His final film for Warner Bros was ''[[My Reputation]]'' with [[Barbara Stanwyck]] as a widow that was filmed from November 1943 to January 1944, and with the exception of military audiences, was not released until 1946<ref> O’Brien, Scott ''George Brent: Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and Its Leading Ladies'' BearManor Media</ref>. Brent acted on radio during this period.


He returned to supporting female stars: ''[[The Keyhole]]'' (1933) with [[Kay Francis]], ''[[Lilly Turner]]'' (1933) with Chatterton, ''[[Baby Face (1933 film)|Baby Face]]'' (1933) with Stanwyck, and ''[[Female (1933 film)|Female]]'' (1933) with Chatterton.
He returned his career after the conflict; but never recaptured his former popularity starring in films with [[Joan Fontaine]] in ''[[The Affairs of Susan]]'' (1945), [[Barbara Stanwyck]] in ''[[So Big! (1932 film)|So Big!]]'' (1932), ''[[The Purchase Price]]'' (1932), ''[[Baby Face (film)|Baby Face]]'' (1933),''[[The Gay Sisters]]'' (1942), and ''[[My Reputation]]'' (1946), [[Claudette Colbert]] in ''[[Tomorrow Is Forever]]'' (1946), [[Dorothy McGuire]] in ''[[The Spiral Staircase (1946 film)|The Spiral Staircase]]'' (1946), [[Lucille Ball]] in ''[[Lover Come Back (1946 film)|Lover Come Back]]'' (1946), and [[Yvonne De Carlo]] in ''[[Slave Girl (film)|Slave Girl]]'' (1947).<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0107575 George Brent profile], imdb.com; accessed</ref>


Brent was top billed in ''[[From Headquarters]]'' (1933) with [[Margaret Lindsay]] then MGM borrowed him to play [[Myrna Loy]]'s leading man in ''[[Stamboul Quest]]'' (1934).
Brent drifted into "B" pictures from the late 1940s and retired from film in 1953.<ref name=b119/> He continued to appear on television until 1960, having appeared on the religion [[anthology series]], ''[[Crossroads (1955 TV series)|Crossroads]]''. He was cast in the lead in the 1956 television series, ''[[Wire Service]]''. In 1978, he made one last film, the made-for-television production ''[[Born Again (film)|Born Again]]''.<ref name=b119/><ref name=c160/>
===Bette Davis===
Brent was top billed in ''[[Housewife (film)|Housewife]]'' (1934) with Bette Davis, who was his co star. He was leading man to [[Jean Muir (actress)|Jean Muir]] in ''[[Desirable (film)|Desirable]]'' (1935) then MGM used him for ''[[The Painted Veil (1934 film)|The Painted Veil]]'' (1934) with [[Greta Garbo]].

Brent supported [[Josephine Hutchinson]] in ''[[The Right to Live (1935 film)|The Right to Live]]'' (1935), Francis in ''[[Living on Velvet]]'' (1935) and ''[[Stranded (1935 film)|Stranded]]'' (1935). He then made two films with Davis, where she was top billed: ''[[Front Page Woman]]'' (1935) and''[[Special Agent (1935 film)|Special Agent]]'' (1935).

Brent did ''[[The Goose and the Gander]]'' (1935) with Francis, then was borrowed by RKO to make ''[[In Person (film)|In Person]]'' (1935) with [[Ginger Rogers]]. At Warners he was top billed in a comedy ''[[Snowed Under]]'' (1936), then [[Walter Wanger]] borrowed him to play [[Madeleine Carroll]]'s leading man in ''[[The Case Against Mrs. Ames]]'' (1936).<ref name="wagner">Matthew Bernstein, ''Walter Wagner: Hollywood Independent'', Minnesota Press, 2000 p436</ref>

At Warners he was reunited with Davis in ''[[The Golden Arrow (1936 film)|The Golden Arrow]]'' (1936) and Francis in ''[[Give Me Your Heart (film)|Give Me Your Heart]]'' (1936). Columbia borrowed him to support [[Jean Arthur]] in ''[[More Than a Secretary]]'' (1936) then Warners gave him top billing in ''[[God's Country and the Woman]]'' (1936) with [[Margaret Lindsay]].

Brent made ''[[Mountain Justice (1937 film)|Mountain Justice]]'' (1937) with Hutchinson and ''[[The Go Getter (1937 film)|The Go Getter]]'' (1937) with [[Anita Louise]]. Warners then put Brent in his first male-orientated movie: ''[[Submarine D-1]]'' (1937) with Pat O'Brien and Wayne Morris.

Brent did ''[[Gold Is Where You Find It]]'' (1938) with [[Olivia de Havilland]], then made ''[[Jezebel (film)|Jezebel]]'' (1938) with Davis - only he was the second male lead, with [[Henry Fonda]] playing Davis' main love interest.

Warners put him in an action "B" with [[Humphrey Bogart]], ''[[Racket Busters]]'' (1938) then he was reunited with Francis in ''[[Secrets of an Actress]]'' (1938). He did a military drama ''[[Wings of the Navy]]'' (1939) with de Havilland and John Payne.

He did ''[[Dark Victory (film)|Dark Victory]]'' (1939) with Davis, a huge success. So too was ''[[The Old Maid (1939 film)|The Old Maid]]'' (1939) where Davis and [[Miriam Hopkins]] fought over Brent. Both films were directed by [[Edmund Goulding]].

20th Century Fox borrowed Brent for a key support role in ''[[The Rains Came]]'' (1939). At Warners he supported [[James Cagney]] and O'Brien in ''[[The Fighting 69th]]'' (1940).

Paramount borrowed him for ''[[Adventure in Diamonds]]'' (1940), where he had top billing over [[Isa Miranda]]. He was [[Merle Oberon]]'s leading man in ''[['Til We Meet Again]]'' (1940) and starred in ''[[The Man Who Talked Too Much]]'' (1940) and ''[[South of Suez]]'' (1940). He supported [[Ann Sheridan]] ''[[Honeymoon for Three (1941 film)|Honeymoon for Three]]'' (1941) and Davis in ''[[The Great Lie]]'' (1941).

Columbia borrowed him for the lead role in ''[[They Dare Not Love]]'' (1941) with [[Martha Scott]] and [[Edward Small]] used him in two films, ''[[International Lady]]'' (1941) with [[Ilona Massey]] and ''[[Twin Beds (1942 film)|Twin Beds]]'' (1942) with [[Joan Bennett]].<ref>Earle Brings New Idea; Ford to Do Big-Seller: 'Twin Beds' Plans Made Society Name Wins Lead Marie Wilson Role Set Paramount Casts Denning Bates Replaces Bainter
Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times Feb 1941: 7.</ref>

Brent made one final film with Davis, ''[[In This Our Life]]'' (1942), alongside de Havilland. He supported Stanwyck in ''[[The Gay Sisters]]'' (1942) and was top billed in ''[[You Can't Escape Forever]]'' (1942) with [[Brenda Marshall]] and ''[[Silver Queen]]'' (1942) with [[Priscilla Lane]].
===Military Service===
⚫
In 1942, Brent, an accomplished pilot who had tried and, because of age, failed to enlist in the armed services, temporarily retired from films to teach flying as a civilian flight instructor with the [[Civilian Pilot Training Program]] and later became a pilot in the US Coast Guard<ref> O’Brien, Scott ''George Brent: Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and Its Leading Ladies'' BearManor Media</ref> for the duration of the war.

His final film for Warner Bros was ''[[My Reputation]]'' with [[Barbara Stanwyck]] as a widow that was filmed from November 1943 to January 1944, and with the exception of military audiences, was not released until 1946<ref> O’Brien, Scott ''George Brent: Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and Its Leading Ladies'' BearManor Media</ref>. Brent acted on radio during this period.<ref name="warners">Warner Bros financial information in The William Shaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 26 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551</ref>
===Freelance Actor===
He returned his career after the conflict; he never recaptured his former popularity but during the immediate post war period he remained a star of big budget films. RKO used him as [[Hedy Lamarr]]' leading man in ''[[Experiment Perilous]]'' (1944). For [[Hal Wallis]] he did ''[[The Affairs of Susan]]'' (1945) with [[Joan Fontaine]] then ''[[Tomorrow Is Forever]]'' (1946) at International with [[Claudette Colbert]] and [[Orson Welles]].

He returned to RKO for ''[[The Spiral Staircase (1946 film)|The Spiral Staircase]]'' (1946), a huge success. At Universal he was teamed with [[Lucille Ball]] in ''[[Lover Come Back (1946 film)|Lover Come Back]]'' (1946), then he made ''[[Temptation (1946 film)|Temptation]]'' (1946) with Oberon and Edward Small at International.

Brent went to [[Eagle Lion]] to make a comedy ''[[Out of the Blue (1947 film)|Out of the Blue]]'' (1947) and Columbia for ''[[The Corpse Came C.O.D.]]'' (1947) with Blondell. Universal teamed him with [[Yvonne De Carlo]] in ''[[Slave Girl (film)|Slave Girl]]'' (1947).

Brent was one of several names in ''[[Christmas Eve (1947 film)|Christmas Eve]]'' (1947) for [[Benedict Bogeaus]] and ''[[Luxury Liner (1948 film)|Luxury Liner]]'' (1948) at MGM, a remake of the 1933 film in which Brent had appeared.

He went to Republic to star in ''[[Angel on the Amazon]]'' (1948) and in Universal's ''[[Red Canyon (1949 film)|Red Canyon]]'' (1949) played the father of the star, [[Ann Blyth]]. At the same studio he was third lead in ''[[Illegal Entry]]'' (1949) then had the lead in a "B" ''[[The Kid from Cleveland]]'' (1949). He supported Colbert in ''[[Bride for Sale]]'' (1950) at RKO.

The budgets of Brent's films continued to shrink. He did two for [[Lippert Pictures]]: ''[[F.B.I. Girl]]'' (1951) and ''[[The Last Page]]'' (1952), the latter shot in England with [[Diana Dors]]. There was ''[[Montana Belle]]'' (1952) with [[Jane Russell]] then two for Monogram: ''[[Tangier Incident (film)|Tangier Incident]]'' (1953) and ''[[Mexican Manhunt]]'' (1953).
===Television===
Brent moved into television in the early 1950s<ref name=b119/> guest starring in ''[[The Revlon Mirror Theater]]'', ''[[Crown Theatre with Gloria Swanson]]'', ''[[The Ford Television Theatre]]'', ''[[Climax!]]'', ''[[Fireside Theatre]]'', ''[[Stage 7]]'', ''[[Studio 57]]'', ''[[Science Fiction Theatre]]'', ''[[Celebrity Playhouse]]'', ''[[Schlitz Playhouse]]'' and the religion [[anthology series]], ''[[Crossroads (1955 TV series)|Crossroads]]''.

He was cast in the lead in the 1956 television series, ''[[Wire Service]]'' which ran for 39 performances.

After appearing on ''[[Rawhide (TV series)|Rawhide]]'' and ''[[The Chevy Mystery Show]]'', Brent retired.

In 1978, he made one last film, the made-for-television production ''[[Born Again (film)|Born Again]]''.<ref name=b119/><ref name=c160/>


In 1960, Brent was inducted into the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] with two stars. He received a [[List of actors with Hollywood Walk of Fame motion picture stars|motion-pictures star]] located at 1709 [[Vine Street]], and a second star located at 1612 Vine Street for his work in television.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walkoffame.com/george-brent |title=Hollywood Walk of Fame - George Brent |website=walkoffame.com/ |publisher=Hollywood Chamber of Commerce |accessdate=November 30, 2017}}</ref>
In 1960, Brent was inducted into the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] with two stars. He received a [[List of actors with Hollywood Walk of Fame motion picture stars|motion-pictures star]] located at 1709 [[Vine Street]], and a second star located at 1612 Vine Street for his work in television.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.walkoffame.com/george-brent |title=Hollywood Walk of Fame - George Brent |website=walkoffame.com/ |publisher=Hollywood Chamber of Commerce |accessdate=November 30, 2017}}</ref>

Revision as of 09:15, 17 April 2019

For the colonial Virginia planter, lawyer, and politician, see George Brent (Captain). For the Virginia lawyer and politician, see George William Brent. For the baseball player, see George Brett.
George Brent
Born
George Brendan Nolan

(1904-03-15)15 March 1904
Ballinasloe, County Galway, Ireland
DiedMay 26, 1979(1979-05-26) (aged 75)
Solana Beach, California, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1924–1960, 1978
Spouse(s)
Helen Louise Campbell
​
​
(m. 1925; div. 1927)​

​
​
(m. 1932; div. 1934)​

​
​
(m. 1937; div. 1937)​

​
​
(m. 1942; div. 1943)​

Janet Michaels
​
​
(m. 1947; died 1974)​
Children2

George Brent (born George Patrick Nolan, 15 March 1904 – 26 May 1979) was an Irish-American stage, film, and television actor.

Early life

Brent was born in Ballinasloe, County Galway, on March 15, 1904[1][2] to John J. and Mary (née McGuinness) Nolan. His mother was a native of Clonfad, Moore, County Roscommon.[3] In September 1915,[3] he moved with his younger sister Kathleen to New York City. There, they joined their mother, who was living in the USA after her separation from her husband. Brent returned to Ireland in February 1921,[3] during the Irish War of Independence (1919–1922), and was involved in the Irish Republican Army.[4][5] He fled Ireland with a bounty set on his head by the British government, although he later claimed only to have been a courier for guerrilla leader and tactician Michael Collins. According to Ballinasloe Life (volume 2, issue 4, Oct/Nov 2012),[1] the Irish War of Independence careers of three different men named George Nolan (Brent and two others; one from County Dublin and the other from County Offaly) were apparently conflated, which may explain some of the discrepancies regarding Brent's year of birth, life, and activities during the 1919 to 1922 period.[4][6]

Career

American Stage Career

Brent returned to the United States in August 1921.[7] Some time later, he toured with a production of Abie's Irish Rose. During the next five years, he acted in stock companies in Colorado, Rhode Island, Florida, and Massachusetts. In 1930, he appeared on Broadway in Love, Honor, and Betray, alongside Clark Gable.[4]

Early Films: Fox and Universal

He eventually moved to Hollywood, and made his first film, Under Suspicion (1930).[4][5] It was made by Fox, who used Brent in support roles in Once a Sinner (1931), Fair Warning (1931), and Charlie Chan Carries On (1931).

Brent went to Universal for Ex-Bad Boy (1931) and Homicide Squad (1931), then was in the Rin Tin Tin serial The Lightning Warrior (1931) at Mascot Pictures.

Warner Bros

Brent went to Warner Bros where he played Barbara Stanwyck's leading man in So Big! (1932). This established him as a leading man for female stars.[4][5] Bette Davis had a small role.

Brent did The Rich Are Always with Us (1932) with Ruth Chatterton; again, Davis had a support role.

This was followed by Week-End Marriage (1932) with Loretta Young, The Purchase Price (1932) with Stanwyck, Miss Pinkerton (1932) with Joan Blondell, The Crash (1932) with Chatterton, and They Call It Sin (1932) with Young.

Paramount borrowed Brent for the leading man role in Luxury Liner (1933). Back at Warners Brent was one of several studios names in 42nd Street (1933), playing the lover of Bebe Daniels.

He returned to supporting female stars: The Keyhole (1933) with Kay Francis, Lilly Turner (1933) with Chatterton, Baby Face (1933) with Stanwyck, and Female (1933) with Chatterton.

Brent was top billed in From Headquarters (1933) with Margaret Lindsay then MGM borrowed him to play Myrna Loy's leading man in Stamboul Quest (1934).

Bette Davis

Brent was top billed in Housewife (1934) with Bette Davis, who was his co star. He was leading man to Jean Muir in Desirable (1935) then MGM used him for The Painted Veil (1934) with Greta Garbo.

Brent supported Josephine Hutchinson in The Right to Live (1935), Francis in Living on Velvet (1935) and Stranded (1935). He then made two films with Davis, where she was top billed: Front Page Woman (1935) andSpecial Agent (1935).

Brent did The Goose and the Gander (1935) with Francis, then was borrowed by RKO to make In Person (1935) with Ginger Rogers. At Warners he was top billed in a comedy Snowed Under (1936), then Walter Wanger borrowed him to play Madeleine Carroll's leading man in The Case Against Mrs. Ames (1936).[8]

At Warners he was reunited with Davis in The Golden Arrow (1936) and Francis in Give Me Your Heart (1936). Columbia borrowed him to support Jean Arthur in More Than a Secretary (1936) then Warners gave him top billing in God's Country and the Woman (1936) with Margaret Lindsay.

Brent made Mountain Justice (1937) with Hutchinson and The Go Getter (1937) with Anita Louise. Warners then put Brent in his first male-orientated movie: Submarine D-1 (1937) with Pat O'Brien and Wayne Morris.

Brent did Gold Is Where You Find It (1938) with Olivia de Havilland, then made Jezebel (1938) with Davis - only he was the second male lead, with Henry Fonda playing Davis' main love interest.

Warners put him in an action "B" with Humphrey Bogart, Racket Busters (1938) then he was reunited with Francis in Secrets of an Actress (1938). He did a military drama Wings of the Navy (1939) with de Havilland and John Payne.

He did Dark Victory (1939) with Davis, a huge success. So too was The Old Maid (1939) where Davis and Miriam Hopkins fought over Brent. Both films were directed by Edmund Goulding.

20th Century Fox borrowed Brent for a key support role in The Rains Came (1939). At Warners he supported James Cagney and O'Brien in The Fighting 69th (1940).

Paramount borrowed him for Adventure in Diamonds (1940), where he had top billing over Isa Miranda. He was Merle Oberon's leading man in 'Til We Meet Again (1940) and starred in The Man Who Talked Too Much (1940) and South of Suez (1940). He supported Ann Sheridan Honeymoon for Three (1941) and Davis in The Great Lie (1941).

Columbia borrowed him for the lead role in They Dare Not Love (1941) with Martha Scott and Edward Small used him in two films, International Lady (1941) with Ilona Massey and Twin Beds (1942) with Joan Bennett.[9]

Brent made one final film with Davis, In This Our Life (1942), alongside de Havilland. He supported Stanwyck in The Gay Sisters (1942) and was top billed in You Can't Escape Forever (1942) with Brenda Marshall and Silver Queen (1942) with Priscilla Lane.

Military Service

In 1942, Brent, an accomplished pilot who had tried and, because of age, failed to enlist in the armed services, temporarily retired from films to teach flying as a civilian flight instructor with the Civilian Pilot Training Program and later became a pilot in the US Coast Guard[10] for the duration of the war.

His final film for Warner Bros was My Reputation with Barbara Stanwyck as a widow that was filmed from November 1943 to January 1944, and with the exception of military audiences, was not released until 1946[11]. Brent acted on radio during this period.[12]

Freelance Actor

He returned his career after the conflict; he never recaptured his former popularity but during the immediate post war period he remained a star of big budget films. RKO used him as Hedy Lamarr' leading man in Experiment Perilous (1944). For Hal Wallis he did The Affairs of Susan (1945) with Joan Fontaine then Tomorrow Is Forever (1946) at International with Claudette Colbert and Orson Welles.

He returned to RKO for The Spiral Staircase (1946), a huge success. At Universal he was teamed with Lucille Ball in Lover Come Back (1946), then he made Temptation (1946) with Oberon and Edward Small at International.

Brent went to Eagle Lion to make a comedy Out of the Blue (1947) and Columbia for The Corpse Came C.O.D. (1947) with Blondell. Universal teamed him with Yvonne De Carlo in Slave Girl (1947).

Brent was one of several names in Christmas Eve (1947) for Benedict Bogeaus and Luxury Liner (1948) at MGM, a remake of the 1933 film in which Brent had appeared.

He went to Republic to star in Angel on the Amazon (1948) and in Universal's Red Canyon (1949) played the father of the star, Ann Blyth. At the same studio he was third lead in Illegal Entry (1949) then had the lead in a "B" The Kid from Cleveland (1949). He supported Colbert in Bride for Sale (1950) at RKO.

The budgets of Brent's films continued to shrink. He did two for Lippert Pictures: F.B.I. Girl (1951) and The Last Page (1952), the latter shot in England with Diana Dors. There was Montana Belle (1952) with Jane Russell then two for Monogram: Tangier Incident (1953) and Mexican Manhunt (1953).

Television

Brent moved into television in the early 1950s[4] guest starring in The Revlon Mirror Theater, Crown Theatre with Gloria Swanson, The Ford Television Theatre, Climax!, Fireside Theatre, Stage 7, Studio 57, Science Fiction Theatre, Celebrity Playhouse, Schlitz Playhouse and the religion anthology series, Crossroads.

He was cast in the lead in the 1956 television series, Wire Service which ran for 39 performances.

After appearing on Rawhide and The Chevy Mystery Show, Brent retired.

In 1978, he made one last film, the made-for-television production Born Again.[4][5]

In 1960, Brent was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame with two stars. He received a motion-pictures star located at 1709 Vine Street, and a second star located at 1612 Vine Street for his work in television.[13]

Personal life

Brent was married five times: to Helen Louise Campbell (1925–1927), Ruth Chatterton (1932–1934), Constance Worth (1937), Ann Sheridan (1942–1943), and Janet Michaels (1947–1974). Chatterton, Worth, and Sheridan were also actresses.[4][5] Chatterton and Sheridan were both Warner Bros. players.[4] His final marriage to Janet Michaels, a former model and dress designer, lasted 27 years until her death in 1974. They had a son and a daughter.

Brent also carried on a lengthy relationship with actress Bette Davis, his frequent Warner Bros. co-star, who described her last meeting with Brent after many years of estrangement. He was suffering from advanced emphysema, and she expressed great sadness at his ill health and deterioration. George Brent died in 1979 in Solana Beach, California.[14][15]

Filmography

Feature films

Short subjects

  • A Dream Comes True (1935, Documentary) as Himself (uncredited)
  • Swingtime in the Movies (1938) as George Brent (uncredited)

Radio appearances

Year Program Episode/source
1940 Lux Radio Theatre Wings of the Navy[16]
1946 Screen Guild Players Experiment Perilous[17]
1953 Stars over Hollywood Meet the Hero[18]

References

  1. ^ a b Ballinasloe Life (Volume 2, Issue 4, Oct/Nov 2012 cache) Archived March 26, 2016, at the Wayback Machine; accessed 22 September 2015.
  2. ^ Some sources have cited 1899, but most cite 1904.
  3. ^ a b c Scott O'Brien, George Brent - Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and its Leading Ladies (2014) BearManor; ISBN 978-1-59393-599-3 (paper back)/978-1-59393-764-5 (hard copy).
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Byrne, James Patrick; Coleman, Philip and King, Jason Francis. (2008). Ireland and the Americas, Vol 2., New York: ABC-CLIO. pp. 119-120.
  5. ^ a b c d e Cozad, W. Lee. (2002). Those magnificent mountain movies: (The Golden Years) 1911-1939, p. 160. Lake Arrowhead, CA: Rim of the World Historic Society.
  6. ^ Karney, Robyn. (1986). The Movie Stars Story, p. 48. New York: Crescent Books.
  7. ^ George Brent - Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and its Leading Ladies (2014) by Scott O'Brien
  8. ^ Matthew Bernstein, Walter Wagner: Hollywood Independent, Minnesota Press, 2000 p436
  9. ^ Earle Brings New Idea; Ford to Do Big-Seller: 'Twin Beds' Plans Made Society Name Wins Lead Marie Wilson Role Set Paramount Casts Denning Bates Replaces Bainter Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times Feb 1941: 7.
  10. ^ O’Brien, Scott George Brent: Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and Its Leading Ladies BearManor Media
  11. ^ O’Brien, Scott George Brent: Ireland's Gift to Hollywood and Its Leading Ladies BearManor Media
  12. ^ Warner Bros financial information in The William Shaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 26 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
  13. ^ "Hollywood Walk of Fame - George Brent". walkoffame.com/. Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  14. ^ Obituary, nytimes.com; accessed 22 September 2015.
  15. ^ George Brent dies in Hollywood, news.google.com; accessed 22 September 2015.
  16. ^ "Those Were the Days". Nostalgia Digest. 42 (2): 38. Spring 2016.
  17. ^ "Bennett, Brent, Menjou Star on "Screen Guild"". Harrisburg Telegraph. October 12, 1946. p. 17. Retrieved October 1, 2015 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  18. ^ Kirby, Walter (February 22, 1953). "Better Radio Programs for the Week". The Decatur Daily Review. p. 40. Retrieved June 23, 2015 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon

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