James Gleason
Biography
James Gleason was an American actor, playwright and screenwriter who came from theatrical stock and first appeared on stage as a schoolboy. After serving in the Army he turned to acting professionally, spending two years in London before returning home to write dialogue for film comedies. He co-wrote The Broadway Melody (1929), a Best Picture Oscar winner, and took a small uncredited part in it. On screen he specialized in tough but warm-hearted New York characters, earning a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941). He played the hardboiled editor of Meet John Doe (1941), a milk cart driver in The Clock (1945), a bartender in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945), a cab driver in The Bishop's Wife (1947) and Uncle Birdie in The Night of the Hunter (1955). He also starred in the Hildegarde Withers, Higgins Family, Falcon and Joe Palooka series, wrote Broadway plays, and worked in radio and television.
76years old at death
- Born New York City
- Died Woodland Hills
- Star sign: GeminiThe sign runs May 21 to June 20
- Also credited as James A. Gleason, James Austin Gleason and Jimmy Gleason
Movie Career
- Films
- 34
- Career span
- 29 years1929 to 1958
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Behind the camera
Gleason had a small uncredited role in The Broadway Melody, which he also co-wrote. That film became the second to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
A change of course
Gleason began his stage career after his army discharge, played in London for two years, and on returning to the United States broke into films by writing dialogue for comedies.
James Gleason movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
- The Night of the Hunter1955 Crime, Drama, Film-Noir, Thrilleras Uncle Birdie Steptoe
IMDb rating 7.9110K votes
Most often with
Frank Capra directed three of these films, Alexander Hall two and John Ford two. Paul Fix appears in four of them, more than any other actor. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Paul Fix's page
Irving Bacon's page
Ward Bond's page
George Sanders's page
Harry Morgan's page
Stanley Andrews's page
All films by Frank Capra
Alexander HallDirector, 2 films, 1941 to 1947
All films by Alexander Hall
All films by John Ford
Also three films together2 more actors
- Edward Everett HortonDown to Earth (1947), Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) and Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941)
- Peggy Ann GarnerHome, Sweet Homicide (1946), A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945) and The Keys of the Kingdom (1944)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Box office
What James Gleason's films earned in cinemas worldwide.
Combined worldwide box office
$29.3 million
7 of the 34 films have a worldwide figure.
Of the 34 films: 7 worldwide figure; 2 us gross only; 25 figure not found.
- 7Worldwide figure
- 2US gross only
- 25Figure not found
Top grosser
Highest grossing
The seven biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.
- 1$7.4M25.3% of the total
- 2$5.4M18.3% of the total
- 3$4.8M16.3% of the total
- 4$4.4M14.9% of the total
- 5$3.0M10.2% of the total
- 6$2.4M8.2% of the total
- 7$2.0M6.8% of the total
Awards
One award and honor.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other honors | |||
| Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame | Honored | ||
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.