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Claude Rains
in the Mr. Skeffington trailer (1944)
Birth name	William Claude Rains
Born	November 10, 1889 London, England, UK
Died	May 30, 1967, age 77 Laconia, New Hampshire, USA

Claude Rains (November 10, 1889 – May 30, 1967) was a British, and later American, theatre and film actor, best known for his many roles in Hollywood films.

Contents 1 Biography 2 Academy Award nominations 3 Filmography 4 Notes 5 References 6 External links

Rains was born William Claude Rains (known as 'Willie') in Camberwell, London on November 10, 1889. He grew up with, according to his daughter, "a very serious cockney accent and a speech impediment".^[1] His acting talents were recognized by Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree, founder of The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and Tree paid for the elocution lessons that he needed to succeed as an actor. Later, Rains taught at the institution, working with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, among others.

Rains served in the First World War; he was involved in a gas attack that left him almost blind in one eye for the rest of his life. However, the war did aid his social advancement, and by its end he had risen from the rank of private to that of captain.

Having made his name in the theatre, Rains came late to film acting. His first screen test was a failure, but his voice won him the title role in James Whale's The Invisible Man (1933) when someone accidentally overheard his screen test being played in the next room.^[2] Rains later credited the director Michael Curtiz with teaching him the more understated requirements of film acting, or, "what not to do in front of a camera".^[3]

In 1939, Rains became a naturalized citizen of the United States. He married six times, the first five of which marriages ended in divorce: Isabel Jeans (1913 - 1915); Marie Hemingway (1920 - 1920); Beatriz Thomas (1924 - 8 April 1935); Frances Propper (9 April 1935 - 1956); Agi Jambor (4 November 1959 - 1960); and to Rosemary Clark Schrode (1960 - 31 December 1964) (her death). He acquired a 380-acre farm in Pennsylvania, and spent much of his time between takes reading up on agricultural techniques. He eventually sold the farm when his marriage to Frances Propper ended in 1956.

Following The Invisible Man, Universal Studios tried to typecast him in horror films, but he broke free with his Academy Award-nominated role as the conflicted corrupt senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), and followed that with probably his most famous role, the French policeman Captain Renault in Casablanca (1942).

In 1945, Rains became the first actor to receive a million dollar salary for his role as Julius Caesar in Caesar and Cleopatra.

In 1951, Rains won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play for Darkness at Noon.

On screen, Rains remained a popular character actor in the '50s and '60s, continuing to appear in many films. Two of his more well-known later screen roles were in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), where he played Dryden, a cynical British diplomat, and The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), where he was King Herod. The latter was his final film role.

Rains died from an internal haemorrhage, in Laconia, New Hampshire. He was 77 and is interred in the Red Hill Cemetery, Moultonborough, New Hampshire.

He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 6400 Hollywood Boulevard. In 1975, both Rains, and his memorable role as the Invisible Man was referenced in the opening song to the cult film The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

He was also mentioned in the television show Heroes, where the character Claude, who can make himself invisible, refers to himself as "Claude Rains, the Invisible Man."

• 1939 Nominated Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
• 1944 Nominated Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Casablanca
• 1945 Nominated Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Mr. Skeffington
• 1947 Nominated Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Notorious

He and Arthur Kennedy share the record of four losing nominations for Best Supporting Actor Oscar.

Build Thy House (1920) as Clarkis The Invisible Man (1933) as Jack Griffin/The Invisible Man The Clairvoyant (1934) as Maximus Crime Without Passion (1934) as Lee Gentry The Man Who Reclaimed His Head (1934) as Paul Verin The Last Outpost (1935) as John Stevenson Mystery of Edwin Drood (1935) as John Jasper Hearts Divided (1936) as Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte Anthony Adverse (1936) as Marquis Don Luis Stolen Holiday (1937) as Stefan Orloff The Prince and the Pauper (1937) as Earl of Hertford They Won't Forget (1937) as Dist. Atty. Andrew J. 'Andy' Griffin White Banners (1938) as Paul Ward Gold Is Where You Find It (1938) as Colonel Christopher 'Chris' Ferris The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) as Prince John Four Daughters (1938) as Adam Lemp They Made Me a Criminal (1939) as Det. Monty Phelan Juarez (1939) as Emperor Louis Napoleon III Sons of Liberty (1939) as Haym Salomon Daughters Courageous (1939) as Jim Masters Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) as Sen. Joseph Harrison Paine Four Wives (1939) as Adam Lemp Saturday's Children (1940) as Mr. Henry Halevy The Sea Hawk (1940) as Don José Alvarez de Cordoba Lady with Red Hair (1940) as David Belasco Four Mothers (1941) as Adam Lemp Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) as Mr. Jordan The Wolf Man (1941) as Sir John Talbot Kings Row (1942) as Dr. Alexander Q. Tower Moontide (1942) as Nutsy Now, Voyager (1942) as Dr. Jaquith Casablanca (1942) as Capt. Louis Renault Forever and a Day (1943) as Ambrose Pomfret Phantom of the Opera (1943) as Erique Claudin/The Phantom of the Opera Passage to Marseille (1944) as Captain Freycinet

Mr. Skeffington (1944) as Job Skeffington Strange Holiday (1945) as John Stevenson This Love of Ours (1945) as Joseph Targel Caesar and Cleopatra (1945) as Julius Caesar Notorious (1946) as Alexander 'Alex' Sebastian Angel on My Shoulder (1946) as Nick Deception (1946) as Alexander Hollenius The Unsuspected (1947) as Victor Grandison The Passionate Friends (1949) as Howard Justin Rope of Sand (1949) as Arthur 'Fred' Martingale Song of Surrender (1949) as Elisha Hunt The White Tower (1950) as Paul DeLambre Where Danger Lives (1950) as Frederick Lannington Sealed Cargo (1951) as Captain Skalder The Man Who Watched the Trains Go By (1953) as Kees Popinga Lisbon (1956) as Aristides Mavros The Pied Piper of Hamelin (1957) (TV) as Mayor of Hamelin This Earth Is Mine (1959) as Philippe Rambeau Shangri-La (1960) (TV) as High Lama The Lost World (1960) as Professor George Edward Challenger Il Pianeta degli uomini spenti (1961) as Professor Benson Lawrence of Arabia (1962) as Mr. Dryden Twilight of Honor (1963) as Art Harper The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) as King Herod

1. ^ Harmetz p. 147.
2. ^ Harmetz p. 147.
3. ^ Harmetz p. 190.

• Harmetz, Aljean. Round Up the Usual Suspects: The Making of "Casablanca". Orion Publishing Co, 1993.

• Claude Rains at the Internet Movie Database
• Claude Rains at the TCM Movie Database
• Claude Rains at the Internet Broadway Database
• Find A Grave profile for Claude Rains

Persondata
NAME	Rains, Claude
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Rains, William Claude
SHORT DESCRIPTION	actor
DATE OF BIRTH	November 10, 1889
PLACE OF BIRTH	London, England, UK
DATE OF DEATH	May 30, 1967
PLACE OF DEATH	Laconia, New Hampshire, USA