Acting
Claude Gillingwater
Tall, balding character actor in US films from 1921 until the year he died, usually portraying obstinate or irascible types. A man so disagreeable on celluloid, Claude Gillingwater's characters seemed to subsist on a steady diet of persimmons. Fondly recalled as the cranky old skinflint whose seemingly cold heart could only be warmed by the actions of a cute little tyke, the tall and rangy Gillingwater invariably played much older than he was. He, with the omnipresent bushy brows, crop of silver hair and perpetually sour puss, had a much more versatile career than perhaps realized -- on both stage and in film. Most assuredly, this caustic screen image he perfected belied a softer, gentler off-screen demeanor for he was a kind and sympathetic gent and devoted husband to wife Carlyn Stiletz (or Stellith). Their only child, Claude Gillingwater Jr., briefly became an actor himself. Sadly, Gillingwater Sr.'s thriving character career ended on a grim and tragic note in 1939. A serious accident on the movie set of the picture Florida Special (1936) (he fell from a platform and injured his back) damaged his health and threatened his career, and the death of his long-time wife Carlyn left him irrevocably depressed. Fearing the possibility of becoming an invalid and wishing not to become a serious burden to anyone, the 69-year-old actor committed suicide at his Beverly Hills home with a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. Gillingwater left a fine Hollywood legacy and the fun of some of his old films is watching his vinegar turn to sugar. Date of Birth 2 August 1870, Louisiana, Missouri Date of Death 2 November 1939, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California (suicide)
Filmography
Cafe Society
Film · 1939
Just Around the Corner
Film · 1938
There Goes My Heart
Film · 1938
Little Miss Broadway
Film · 1938
A Yank at Oxford
Film · 1938
Conquest
Film · 1937
Top of the Town
Film · 1937
The Prisoner of Shark Island
Film · 1936
Ticket to Paradise
Film · 1936
Poor Little Rich Girl
Film · 1936
Florida Special
Film · 1936
Counterfeit
Film · 1936
Wives Never Know
Film · 1936
Can This Be Dixie?
Film · 1936
Together We Live
Film · 1935
Mississippi
Film · 1935
Calm Yourself
Film · 1935
Baby Face Harrington
Film · 1935
The Woman in Red
Film · 1935
A Tale of Two Cities
Film · 1935
Green Eyes
Film · 1934
In Love with Life
Film · 1934
The Captain Hates the Sea
Film · 1934
Strange Wives
Film · 1934
The Show-Off
Film · 1934
City Limits
Film · 1934
Unknown Blonde
Film · 1934
You Can't Buy Everything
Film · 1934
I Loved a Woman
Film · 1933
Before Midnight
Film · 1933
Back Page
Film · 1933
Ann Carver's Profession
Film · 1933
Skyway
Film · 1933
The Avenger
Film · 1933
Running Hollywood
Film · 1932
Tess of the Storm Country
Film · 1932
Illicit
Film · 1931
Gold Dust Gertie
Film · 1931
Daddy Long Legs
Film · 1931
Kiss Me Again
Film · 1931
The Wide Open Spaces
Film · 1931
Compromised
Film · 1931
How I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 8: 'The Brassie'
Film · 1931
The Conquering Horde
Film · 1931
Dumb-bells in Ermine
Film · 1930
The Flirting Widow
Film · 1930
Stark Mad
Film · 1929
The Great Divide
Film · 1929
So Long Letty
Film · 1929
Mexicali Rose
Film · 1929
Stolen Kisses
Film · 1929
Glad Rag Doll
Film · 1929
Smiling Irish Eyes
Film · 1929
Women They Talk About
Film · 1928
Oh Kay!
Film · 1928
Husbands for Rent
Film · 1927
Barbed Wire
Film · 1927
Naughty But Nice
Film · 1927
The Gorilla
Film · 1927
Fast and Furious
Film · 1927
That's My Baby
Film · 1926
45 Minutes from Hollywood
Film · 1926
Into Her Kingdom
Film · 1926
For Wives Only
Film · 1926
Winds of Chance
Film · 1925
A Thief in Paradise
Film · 1925
Seven Sinners
Film · 1925
We Moderns
Film · 1925
Cheaper to Marry
Film · 1925
Wages for Wives
Film · 1925
Daddies
Film · 1924
How to Educate a Wife
Film · 1924
Madonna of the Streets
Film · 1924
Idle Tongues
Film · 1924
The Christian
Film · 1923
Three Wise Fools
Film · 1923
Souls for Sale
Film · 1923
Tiger Rose
Film · 1923
Crinoline and Romance
Film · 1923
A Chapter in Her Life
Film · 1923
Dulcy
Film · 1923
Alice Adams
Film · 1923
Fools First
Film · 1922
Remembrance
Film · 1922
The Strangers' Banquet
Film · 1922
The Dust Flower
Film · 1922
My Boy
Film · 1921
Little Lord Fauntleroy
Film · 1921
Wild Primrose
Film · 1918