Michael Brooke

Michael Brooke was the professional name used by Charles Greville, 7th Earl of Warwick, a British peer who turned to acting. He was born in London in 1911. In 1936 MGM handed him a Hollywood contract, making him the first British aristocrat to receive one. To separate himself from his noble background, he adopted the name Michael Brooke. MGM let him go after six months. Paramount gave him a second opportunity in 1938, and he won a leading part in The Dawn Patrol (1938), playing opposite David Niven and Errol Flynn. That remained his only mainstream film, and he was dropped after that. Because of his prominent position among English actors in Hollywood, newspapers gave him nicknames including the Duke of Hollywood. Before his film work he had served in the Grenadier Guards. He died in 1984.