Acting
Claude Rains
Claude Rains (November 10, 1889 – May 30, 1967) was an English stage and film actor whose career spanned 47 years; he later held American citizenship. He was known for many roles in Hollywood films, among them the title role in The Invisible Man (1933), a corrupt senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), and Captain Renault in Casablanca (1942). Rains was born William Claude Rains in Camberwell, London on November 10, 1889. He grew up, according to his daughter, with "a very serious cockney accent and a speech impediment". His father was British stage actor Frederick Rains, and the young Rains made his stage debut at 11 in Nell of Old Drury. His acting talents were recognised by Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree, founder of The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Tree paid for the elocution lessons Rains needed in order to succeed as an actor. Later, Rains taught at the institution, teaching John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, among others. Rains served in the First World War in the London Scottish Regiment, with fellow actors Basil Rathbone, Ronald Colman and Herbert Marshall. Rains was involved in a gas attack that left him nearly blind in one eye for the rest of his life. However, the war did aid his social advancement and, by its end, he had risen from the rank of Private to Captain. Rains began his career in the London theatre, having a success in the title role of John Drinkwater's play Ulysses S. Grant, the follow-up to the playwright's major hit Abraham Lincoln, and traveled to Broadway in the late 1920s to act in leading roles in such plays as Shaw's The Apple Cart and in the dramatizations of The Constant Nymph, and Pearl S. Buck's novel The Good Earth, as a Chinese farmer. Rains came relatively late to film acting and his first screen test was a failure, but his distinctive voice won him the title role in James Whale's The Invisible Man (1933) when someone accidentally overheard his screen test being played in the next room. Rains later credited director Michael Curtiz with teaching him the more understated requirements of film acting, or "what not to do in front of a camera".
Filmography
Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
Film · 2013
Famous Monster: Forrest J Ackerman
Film · 2007
The Opera Ghost: A Phantom Unmasked
Film · 2000
Monster by Moonlight! The Immortal Saga of 'The Wolf Man'
Film · 1999
Ingrid Bergman Remembered
Film · 1996
Halloween Monster Bash
Film · 1991
James Stewart: A Wonderful Life
Film · 1987
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
Film · 1983
The Horror Show
Film · 1979
The Greatest Story Ever Told
Film · 1965
Twilight of Honor
Film · 1963
Lawrence of Arabia
Film · 1962
Sam Benedict
Series · 1962
Battle of the Worlds
Film · 1961
Dr. Kildare
Series · 1961
The Lost World
Film · 1960
This Earth Is Mine
Film · 1959
Judgment at Nuremberg
Film · 1959
Rawhide
Series · 1959
Naked City
Series · 1958
The Pied Piper of Hamelin
Film · 1957
On Borrowed Time
Film · 1957
Lisbon
Film · 1956
Playhouse 90
Series · 1956
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Series · 1955
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Series · 1955
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Series · 1955
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Series · 1955
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Series · 1955
The Man Who Watched Trains Go By
Film · 1952
Sealed Cargo
Film · 1951
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Series · 1951
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Series · 1951
Where Danger Lives
Film · 1950
The White Tower
Film · 1950
Rope of Sand
Film · 1949
The Passionate Friends
Film · 1949
Song of Surrender
Film · 1949
The Ed Sullivan Show
Series · 1948
The Unsuspected
Film · 1947
Notorious
Film · 1946
Angel on My Shoulder
Film · 1946
Deception
Film · 1946
Blow-Ups of 1946
Film · 1946
Caesar and Cleopatra
Film · 1945
Strange Holiday
Film · 1945
This Love of Ours
Film · 1945
Mr. Skeffington
Film · 1944
Passage to Marseille
Film · 1944
Casablanca
Film · 1943
Forever and a Day
Film · 1943
Phantom of the Opera
Film · 1943
Now, Voyager
Film · 1942
Moontide
Film · 1942
Kings Row
Film · 1942
Breakdowns of 1942
Film · 1942
The Wolf Man
Film · 1941
Here Comes Mr. Jordan
Film · 1941
Breakdowns of 1941
Film · 1941
Four Mothers
Film · 1941
The Sea Hawk
Film · 1940
Lady with Red Hair
Film · 1940
Saturday's Children
Film · 1940
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Film · 1939
They Made Me a Criminal
Film · 1939
Juarez
Film · 1939
Four Wives
Film · 1939
Daughters Courageous
Film · 1939
Sons of Liberty
Film · 1939
The Adventures of Robin Hood
Film · 1938
Four Daughters
Film · 1938
White Banners
Film · 1938
Gold Is Where You Find It
Film · 1938
Breakdowns of 1938
Film · 1938
The Prince and the Pauper
Film · 1937
They Won't Forget
Film · 1937
Stolen Holiday
Film · 1937
Breakdowns of 1937
Film · 1937
The Making of a Great Motion Picture
Film · 1936
Anthony Adverse
Film · 1936
Hearts Divided
Film · 1936
Breakdowns of 1936
Film · 1936
The Clairvoyant
Film · 1935
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Film · 1935
The Last Outpost
Film · 1935
Scrooge
Film · 1935
Crime Without Passion
Film · 1934
The Man Who Reclaimed His Head
Film · 1934
The Invisible Man
Film · 1933
Build Thy House
Film · 1920