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IMDbPro

Glenn Ford(1916-2006)

  • Actor
  • Producer
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Glenn Ford
Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills examines the dying art of men’s custom tailoring through the eyes of one its most colorful characters on the eve of his retirement.
Play trailer3:32
Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills (2007)
39 Videos
99+ Photos
Legendary actor Glenn Ford was born Gwyllyn Samuel Newton Ford in Sainte-Christine-d'Auvergne, Quebec, Canada, to Hannah Wood (Mitchell) and Newton Ford, a railroad executive. His family moved to Santa Monica, California when he was eight years old. His acting career began with plays at high school, followed by acting in West Coast, a traveling theater company.

Ford was discovered in 1939 by Tom Moore, a talent scout for 20th Century Fox. He subsequently signed a contract with Columbia Pictures the same year. Ford's contract with Columbia marked a significant departure in that studio's successful business model. Columbia's boss, Harry Cohn, had spent decades observing other studios'-most notably Warner Brothers-troubles with their contract stars and had built his poverty-row studio around their loan-outs. Basically, major studios would use Columbia as a penalty box for unruly behavior-usually salary demands or work refusals. The cunning Cohn usually assigned these stars (his little studio could not normally afford then) into pictures, and the studio's status rose immensely as the 1930s progressed. Understandably, Cohn had long resisted developing his own stable of contract stars (he'd first hired Peter Lorre in 1934 but didn't know what to do with him) but had relented in the late 1930s, first adding Rosalind Russell, then signing Ford and fellow newcomer William Holden. Cohn reasoned that the two prospects could be used interchangeably, should one become troublesome. Although often competing for the same parts, Ford and Holden became good friends. Their careers would roughly parallel each other through the 1940s, until Holden became a superstar through his remarkable association with director Billy Wilder in the 1950s.

Ford made his official debut in Fox's Heaven with a Barbed Wire Fence (1939), and continued working in various small roles throughout the 1940s until his movie career was interrupted to join the Marines in World War II. Ford continued his military career in the Naval Reserve well into the Vietnam War, achieving the rank of captain. In 1943 Ford married legendary tap dancer Eleanor Powell, and had one son, Peter Ford. Like many actors returning to Hollywood after the war (including James Stewart and Holden (who had already acquired a serious alcohol problem), he found it initially difficult to regain his career momentum. He was able to resume his movie career with the help of Bette Davis, who gave him his first postwar break in the 1946 movie A Stolen Life (1946). However, it was not until his acclaimed performance in a 1946 classic film noir, Gilda (1946), with Rita Hayworth, that he became a major star and one of the the most popular actors of his time. He scored big with the film noir classics The Big Heat (1953) and Blackboard Jungle (1955), and was usually been cast as a calm and collected everyday-hero, showing courage under pressure. Ford continued to make many notable films during his prestigious 50-year movie career, but he is best known for his fine westerns such as 3:10 to Yuma (1957) and The Rounders (1965). Ford pulled a hugely entertaining turn in The Sheepman (1958) and many more fine films. In the 1970s, Ford made his television debut in the controversial The Brotherhood of the Bell (1970) and appeared in two fondly remembered television series: Cade's County (1971) and The Family Holvak (1975). During the 1980s and 1990s, Ford limited his appearance to documentaries and occasional films, including a nice cameo in Superman (1978).

Glenn Ford is remembered fondly by his fans for his more than 100 excellent films and his charismatic silver screen presence.
BornMay 1, 1916
DiedAugust 30, 2006(90)
BornMay 1, 1916
DiedAugust 30, 2006(90)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
    • 8 wins & 9 nominations total

Photos800

Glenn Ford and Stella Stevens in Rage (1966)
Charles Boyer, Glenn Ford, and Ulla Jacobsson in Love Is a Ball (1963)
Henry Fonda and Glenn Ford in The Rounders (1965)
Glenn Ford in The Rounders (1965)
Henry Fonda, Glenn Ford, Edgar Buchanan, Joan Freeman, Kathleen Freeman, and Denver Pyle in The Rounders (1965)
Henry Fonda and Glenn Ford in The Rounders (1965)
Henry Fonda and Glenn Ford in The Rounders (1965)
Henry Fonda, Glenn Ford, Hope Holiday, and Sue Ane Langdon in The Rounders (1965)
Henry Fonda, Glenn Ford, Hope Holiday, and Sue Ane Langdon in The Rounders (1965)
Henry Fonda and Glenn Ford in The Rounders (1965)
Glenn Ford in The Rounders (1965)
Glenn Ford in The Rounders (1965)

Known for

Rita Hayworth in Gilda (1946)
Gilda
7.6
  • Johnny Farrell
  • 1946
Gene Hackman, Terence Stamp, Ned Beatty, Christopher Reeve, Jackie Cooper, Sarah Douglas, Jeff East, Margot Kidder, Jack O'Halloran, Valerie Perrine, and Susannah York in Superman (1978)
Superman
7.4
  • Pa Kent
  • 1978
Bette Davis, Peter Falk, Glenn Ford, Hope Lange, Thomas Mitchell, and Arthur O'Connell in Pocketful of Miracles (1961)
Pocketful of Miracles
7.1
  • Dave the Dude
  • 1961
Glenn Ford and Gloria Grahame in The Big Heat (1953)
The Big Heat
7.9
  • Sgt. Dave Bannion
  • 1953

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Final Verdict (1991)
    Final Verdict
    • Rev. Rogers
    • TV Movie
    • 1991
  • Raw Nerve (1991)
    Raw Nerve
    • Captain Gavin
    • 1991
  • Border Shootout (1990)
    Border Shootout
    • Sheriff John Danaher
    • 1990
  • Casablanca Express (1989)
    Casablanca Express
    • Major Gen. Williams
    • 1989
  • The Magical World of Disney (1954)
    The Magical World of Disney
    • Lucas Wheeler
    • TV Series
    • 1986
  • Happy Birthday to Me (1981)
    Happy Birthday to Me
    • Dr. David Faraday
    • 1981
  • Virus: The End (1980)
    Virus: The End
    • President Richardson
    • 1980
  • Glenn Ford, Chuck Connors, Susana Dosamantes, and Richard Roundtree in Day of the Assassin (1979)
    Day of the Assassin
    • Christakis
    • 1979
  • Glenn Ford and Gary Frank in The Gift (1979)
    The Gift
    • Billy Devlin
    • TV Movie
    • 1979
  • Beggarman, Thief (1979)
    Beggarman, Thief
    • David Donnelly
    • TV Movie
    • 1979
  • The Sacketts (1979)
    The Sacketts
    • Tom Sunday
    • TV Mini Series
    • 1979
  • The Visitor (1979)
    The Visitor
    • Det. Jake Durham
    • 1979
  • Gene Hackman, Terence Stamp, Ned Beatty, Christopher Reeve, Jackie Cooper, Sarah Douglas, Jeff East, Margot Kidder, Jack O'Halloran, Valerie Perrine, and Susannah York in Superman (1978)
    Superman
    • Pa Kent
    • 1978
  • Evening in Byzantium (1978)
    Evening in Byzantium
    • Jesse Craig
    • TV Mini Series
    • 1978
  • Robert Forster, David Birney, and Richard E. Kalk in Police Story (1973)
    Police Story
    • Deputy Chief Walter Hayes
    • TV Series
    • 1978

Producer

  • Bette Davis, Peter Falk, Glenn Ford, Hope Lange, Thomas Mitchell, and Arthur O'Connell in Pocketful of Miracles (1961)
    Pocketful of Miracles
    • associate producer
    • 1961
  • The Faith of Our Children (1953)
    The Faith of Our Children
    • producer
    • TV Series
    • 1953

Soundtrack

  • Renee Anderson, Wanda Bailey, Patricia Mickey, Susie Ewing, Jackie Chidsey, Micki McGlone, Paula Cinko, The Golddiggers, Pauline Antony, Rosie Cox Gitlin, and Michelle DellaFave in Dean Martin Presents the Golddiggers (1968)
    Chevrolet Presents the Golddiggers
    • performer: "If I Had a Talking Picture of You"
    • performer: "Steppin' Out"
    • TV Series
    • 1972–1973
  • Bette Davis, Peter Falk, Glenn Ford, Hope Lange, Thomas Mitchell, and Arthur O'Connell in Pocketful of Miracles (1961)
    Pocketful of Miracles
    • Soundtrack ("Bridal Chorus (Here Comes the Bride)" (1850), uncredited)
    • 1961
  • Nina Foch, Glenn Ford, Denise Darcel, and Ruth Roman in Young Man with Ideas (1952)
    Young Man with Ideas
    • performer: "I've Got You Under My Skin" (uncredited)
    • 1952
  • In-development projects at IMDbPro

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Personal details

Edit
  • Official site
    • Official Site
  • Alternative names
    • Glenn & Cynthia
  • Height
    • 5′ 9″ (1.75 m)
  • Born
    • May 1, 1916
    • Sainte-Christine-d'Auvergne, Portneuf, Québec, Canada
  • Died
    • August 30, 2006
    • Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA(complications from multiple strokes)
  • Spouses
      Jeanne BausMarch 5, 1993 - 1994 (divorced)
  • Children
    • Peter Ford
  • Parents
      Newton Ford
  • Other works
    Portrayed Christopher London, private-eye in a NBC radio series, "The Adventures of Christopher London".
  • Publicity listings
    • 3 Print Biographies
    • 1 Interview
    • 8 Articles
    • 3 Pictorials
    • 4 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    On May 1, 2006, he had a gala 90th birthday celebration at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. There was a showing of a newly-restored print of Gilda (1946) and his son, Peter Ford, hosted the event. Over 700 tickets went on sale and were quickly sold out.
  • Quotes
    When I'm on camera, I have to do things pretty much the way I do things in everyday life. It gives the audience someone real to identify with.
  • Trademarks
      Western cowboy roles
  • Salaries
      Dear Heart
      (1964)
      $250,000

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