George Brent 695875 225772656 2008-07-15T09:44:23Z Cst17 6898026 {{Infobox actor | bgcolour = silver | name = George Brent | image = George_Brent_in_Jezebel_trailer.jpg | imagesize = 250px | caption = from the trailer for ''[[Jezebel (1938 film)|Jezebel]]'' (1938) | birthdate = {{birth date|1899|3|15|mf=y}} | location = [[Raharabeg]], [[County Roscommon]], [[Ireland]] | deathdate = {{death date and age|1979|5|26|1899|3|15|mf=y}} | deathplace = [[Solana Beach, California]] | birthname = George Brendan Nolan }} '''George Brent''' ([[March 15]] [[1899]] - [[May 26]] [[1979]]) was an [[Ireland|Irish]] film and television [[actor]] in [[Cinema of the United States|American cinema]]. ==Early life== He was born '''George Brendan Nolan''' in [[Raharabeg]], [[County_Roscommon|County Roscommon]] on the opposite bank of the [[River_Shannon|River Shannon]] from the town of [[Shannonbridge]], [[County Offaly]], [[Ireland]], to a family with a history of British Army service. However, during the [[Irish War of Independence]] (1919-1921), Brent was part of an [[Irish Republican Army|IRA]] Active Service Unit as early as 1920, carrying out IRA directives. He fled with a bounty set on his head by the [[United Kingdom|British]], although he claimed only to have been a courier for guerrilla leader and tactician [[Michael Collins (Irish leader)|Michael Collins]].{{Fact|date=February 2007}} ==Career== He eventually moved to [[Hollywood]] where he made his first film in 1930. Signed to a contract with [[Warner Brothers]], Brent carved out a successful career as a top-flight leading man of the late 1930s and 40s. Highly regarded by [[Bette Davis]], he became her most frequent male co-star, appearing with her in thirteen films, including ''[[Front Page Woman]]'' (1935), ''[[Special Agent (film)|Special Agent]]'' (1935), ''[[The Golden Arrow]]'' (1936), ''[[Jezebel (1938 film)|Jezebel]]'' (1938), ''[[The Old Maid]]'' (1939), ''[[Dark Victory]]'' (1939) and ''[[The Great Lie]]'' (1941). Brent also played opposite [[Greta Garbo]] in ''[[The Painted Veil (1934 film)|The Painted Veil]]'' (1934), [[Madeleine Carroll]] in ''[[The Case Against Mrs. Ames]]'' (1936), [[Jean Arthur]] in ''[[More Than a Secretary]]'' (1936), [[Myrna Loy]] in ''[[The Rains Came]]'' (1939), [[Merle Oberon]] in ''[['Til We Meet Again]]'' (1940), [[Ann Sheridan]] in ''[[Honeymoon For Three]]'' (1941), [[Joan Fontaine]] in ''[[The Affairs of Susan]]'' (1945), [[Barbara Stanwyck]] in ''[[The Purchase Price]]'' (1932), ''[[The Gay Sisters]]'' (1942) and ''[[My Reputation]]'' (1946), [[Claudette Colbert]] in ''[[Tomorrow Is Forever]]'' (1946), [[Dorothy McGuire]] in ''[[The Spiral Staircase]]'' (1946), [[Lucille Ball]] in ''[[Lover Come Back]]'' (1946) and [[Yvonne De Carlo]] in ''[[Slave Girl]]'' (1947). Brent drifted into "B" pictures from the late 1940s and retired from film in 1953. He continued to appear on television until 1960, starring in the series ''[[Wire Service]]'' in 1956. In 1978, he made one last film, the made-for-television production ''[[Born Again (film)|Born Again]]''. George Brent earned two stars on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]], the first, at 1709 Vine St., for his film contributions, the second star, at 1614 Vine St., for his work in television. ==Personal life== Brent, known as a womanizer in Hollywood, reputedly carried on a lengthy relationship with his co-star [[Bette Davis]]. He was married four times, three times to actresses: [[Ruth Chatterton]] (1932-1934), [[Constance Worth]] (1937) and [[Ann Sheridan]] (1942-1943). Chatterton and Sheridan were both fellow Warner Brothers players. His final marriage to Janet Michaels, a former model and dress designer, lasted twenty-seven years until her death in 1974. They had two children together, a son and a daughter. [[Bette Davis]] described in her final years her last meeting with Brent after many years of estrangement. Brent was suffering from [[emphysema]] and Davis later expressed great remorse at his ill health and sadness that such a virile and attractive man could have deteriorated so dramatically. Brent died shortly afterward in 1979 in [[Solana Beach, California]] at the age of 80 from emphysema. She also described that Brent was totally gray by the time he started working for Warner Brothers, and he had to dye his hair black. ==Filmography== Features: {{div col|cols=2}} *''[[The Sacred Flame (play)|The Sacred Flame]]'' ([[1929 in film|1929]]) *''Under Suspicion'' ([[1930 in film|1930]]) *''Once a Sinner'' ([[1931 in film|1931]]) *''Fair Warning'' (1931) *''[[Charlie Chan Carries On]]'' (1931) *''Ex-Bad Boy'' (1931) *''Homicide Squad'' (1931) *''[[The Lightning Warrior]]'' (1931) *''[[So Big!]]'' ([[1932 in film|1932]]) *''[[The Rich Are Always with Us]]'' (1932) *''Week-end Marriage'' (1932) *''[[The Purchase Price]]'' (1932) *''Miss Pinkerton'' (1932) *''The Crash'' (1932) *''They Call It Sin'' (1932) *''[[42nd Street (film)|42nd Street]]'' ([[1933 in film|1933]]) *''Luxury Liner'' (1933) *''The Keyhole'' (1933) *''Lilly Turner'' (1933) *''Private Detective 62'' (1933) *''[[Baby Face (film)|Baby Face]]'' (1933) *''[[Female (film)|Female]]'' (1933) *''From Headquarters'' (1933) *''Stamboul Quest'' ([[1934 in film|1934]]) *''Housewife'' (1934) *''Desirable'' (1934) *''[[The Painted Veil (1934 film)|The Painted Veil]]'' (1934) *''The Right to Live'' ([[1935 in film|1935]]) *''Living on Velvet'' (1935) *''Stranded'' (1935) *''[[Front Page Woman]]'' (1935) *''[[Special Agent (film)|Special Agent]]'' (1935) *''The Goose and the Gander'' (1935) *''In Person'' (1935) *''Snowed Under'' ([[1936 in film|1936]]) *''The Case Against Mrs. Ames'' (1936) *''[[The Golden Arrow]]'' (1936) *''Give Me Your Heart'' (1936) *''More Than a Secretary'' (1936) *''God's Country and the Woman'' ([[1937 in film|1937]]) *''Mountain Justice'' (1937) *''The Go Getter'' (1937) *''Submarine D-1'' (1937) *''Gold Is Where You Find It'' ([[1938 in film|1938]]) *''[[Jezebel (film)|Jezebel]]'' (1938) *''Racket Busters'' (1938) *''Secrets of an Actress'' (1938) *''Wings of the Navy'' ([[1939 in film|1939]]) *''[[Dark Victory]]'' (1939) *''[[The Old Maid]]'' (1939) *''[[The Rains Came]]'' (1939) *''[[The Fighting 69th]]'' ([[1940 in film|1940]]) *''Adventure in Diamonds'' (1940) *''[['Til We Meet Again]]'' (1940) *''The Man Who Talked Too Much'' (1940) *''South of Suez'' (1940) *''Honeymoon for Three'' ([[1941 in film|1941]]) *''[[The Great Lie]]'' (1941) *''They Dare Not Love'' (1941) *''International Lady'' (1941) *''Twin Beds'' ([[1942 in film|1942]]) *''[[In This Our Life]]'' (1942) *''[[The Gay Sisters]]'' (1942) *''You Can't Escape Forever'' (1942) *''Silver Queen'' (1942) *''[[Experiment Perilous]]'' ([[1944 in film|1944]]) *''The Affairs of Susan'' ([[1945 in film|1945]]) *''[[The Spiral Staircase]]'' ([[1946 in film|1946]]) *''[[Tomorrow Is Forever]]'' (1946) *''[[My Reputation]]'' (1946) *''Lover Come Back'' (1946) *''Temptation'' (1946) *''Out of the Blue'' ([[1947 in film|1947]]) *''The Corpse Came C.O.D.'' (1947) *''Slave Girl'' (1947) *''[[Christmas Eve (film)|Christmas Eve]]'' (1947) *''Luxury Liner'' ([[1948 in film|1948]]) *''Angel on the Amazon'' (1948) *''Red Canyon'' ([[1949 in film|1949]]) *''Illegal Entry'' (1949) *''[[The Kid from Cleveland]]'' (1949) *''[[Bride for Sale]]'' (1949) *''[[FBI Girl]]'' ([[1951 in film|1951]]) *''[[The Last Page]]'' ([[1952 in film|1952]]) *''Montana Belle'' (1952) *''Tangier Incident'' ([[1953 in film|1953]]) *''Mexican Manhunt'' (1953) *''[[Death of a Scoundrel]]'' ([[1956 in film|1956]]) *''[[Born Again (film)|Born Again]]'' ([[1978 in film|1978]]) {{div col end}} Short subjects: *''A Dream Comes True'' ([[1935 in film|1935]]) *''Swingtime in the Movies'' ([[1938 in film|1938]]) ==External links== * {{imdb name|id=0107575|name=George Brent}} * {{tcmdb name|id=21881|name=George Brent}} * {{ibdb name|id=66951|name=George Brent}} * [http://film.virtual-history.com/person.php?personid=967 Photographs and literature] {{DEFAULTSORT:Brent, George}} [[Category:Irish film actors]] [[Category:Irish television actors]] [[Category:Hollywood Walk of Fame]] [[Category:People from County Roscommon]] [[Category:Deaths from emphysema]] [[Category:1899 births]] [[Category:1979 deaths]] [[Category:Irish Republican Army members 1917-1922]] [[de:George Brent]] [[fr:George Brent]] [[it:George Brent]]