Biography for
William Powell (I) More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

29 July 1892, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Date of Death

5 March 1984, Palm Springs, California, USA (cardiac arrest)

Birth Name

William Horatio Powell

Height

6' (1.83 m)

Mini Biography

William Powell was on the New York stage in 1912 and it would be ten years before his film career would begin. In 1924 he would go to Paramount Pictures, where he would be employed for the next seven years. During these years he played in a number of interesting films, but stardom was elusive. He did attract attention with The Last Command (1928) as Leo, the arrogant film director. Stardom would come with his role as Philo Vance in The Canary Murder Case (1929), where he investigates the death of Louise Brooks, "the Canary". Unlike many silent actors, sound boosted Powell's career. He had a fine, urbane voice and his stage training and comic timing greatly aided his introduction to sound pictures. However, he was not happy with the type of roles he was playing at Paramount, so in 1931 he switched to Warner Bros. He would again be disappointed with his roles and would make his last appearance as Philo Vance in The Kennel Murder Case (1933). In 1934 Powell went to MGM, where he would be teamed with Myrna Loy in Manhattan Melodrama (1934). While Philo made Powell a star, another detective, Nick Charles, made him famous. He would receive an Academy Award nomination for The Thin Man (1934) and star in the Best Picture winner for 1936, The Great Ziegfeld (1936). Powell could play any role with authority, whether in a comedy, thriller or drama. He would receive his second Academy Award Nomination for My Man Godfrey (1936). He was on top of the world until 1937. His first picture with Jean Harlow was Reckless (1935) and they clicked offscreen as well as onscreen, and shortly became engaged. While he was filming Double Wedding (1937) on one MGM sound stage, Harlow became ill on another and finally went to the hospital, where she died. Her death greatly upset both Powell and Myrna Loy and he would be off the movie for six weeks to deal with his sorrow. After that he would travel and did not make another MGM film for a year. He would do four sequels to "The Thin Man", with the last one being made in 1947. He would also receive his third Academy Award nomination for his work in Life with Father (1947). After that, his screen appearances became fewer and his last role was in 1955. He had come a long way from playing the villain in 1922.

IMDb Mini Biography By: Tony Fontana

Spouse

Diana Lewis	(6 January 1940 - 5 March 1984) (his death)
Carole Lombard	(26 June 1931 - 16 August 1933) (divorced)
Eileen Wilson	(1915 - 1930) (divorced) 1 son William David Powell

Trivia

He had known Diana Lewis only three weeks when they married January 6, 1940.

Brother-in-law of Maxine Lewis and J.C. Lewis.

Cousin-in-law of Howard Hawks and Kenneth Hawks.

Dated Jean Harlow for two years before her death. Her mother forced him to pay for her funeral, costing $30,000. He had initially refused but did so to avoid negative publicity. For many years Powell made sure fresh flowers were always present at her grave.

Cousin-in-law of William B. Hawks.

Father of William Powell.

His son stabbed himself to death while taking a shower. He left a 4-page good-bye letter to his father, with whom he was very close.

He and Casey Stengel were in the same class in Central High School in Kansas City, Missouri.

Leo Kottke composed an instrumental song entitled 'William Powell'; the studio version appears on Kottke's 1989 album "My Father's Face", and a live version on 1995's "Leo Kottke Live".

Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume One, 1981-1985, pages 652-654. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998.

Produced a Broadway play, "Revolt" in 1928, written by Harry Wagstaff Gribble. It flopped.

Although he and Carole Lombard divorced in 1933, they remained close friends until her death in 1942.

Purchased for Jean Harlow a 150-carat sapphire engagement ring for $20,000, and presented it to her for Christmas of 1936.

In 1938, Powell was diagnosed with cancer of the rectum. Rather than undergo a colostomy, he agreed to an experimental treatment where platinum needles containing radium pellets were inserted into Powell's body, where they remained for six months, by which time his cancer had gone into remission. It was many years before he publicly revealed he had had cancer. At the time of his illness and recovery, his agent explained his absence to the press first by saying he was recuperating from an eye injury, and later that he had undergone a routine abdominal operation.

He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Pictures at 1636 Vine Street in Hollywood, California.

Personal Quotes

[when asked how he kept so slim] "I highly recommend worrying. It's much more effective than dieting."

[speaking in 1929] "Unfortunately, or perhaps it is fortunate that I have always been forced to stand on my acting ability. I haven't a personality such as Jack Gilbert's, for instance, that attracts women and makes them like me for myself. When I am on the screen I must make them forget me entirely and think only of my acting."

"My friends have stood by me marvelously in the ups and downs of my career. I don't believe there is anything more worthwhile in life than friendship. Friendship is a far better thing than love, as it is commonly accepted."

"I do not hold that because the author did a bad job of writing the player need trump it with the same kind of acting. When I go into a picture I have only one character to look after. If the author didn't do him justice, I try to add whatever the creator of the part overlooked."

"I have never gone into a picture without first studying my characterization from all angles. I make a study of the fellow's life and try to learn everything about him, including the conditions under which he came into this world, his parentage, his environment, his social status, and the things in which he is interested. Then I attempt to get his mental attitude as much as possible."

"There is more money in being liked by an audience than in being disliked by it. The biggest thing about movie audiences is the sympathy they give characters on the screen. But the art of acting and the talent of selecting what one will act are divorced qualities."

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