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'''Spencer Tracy''' (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was a two-time [[Academy Award]] winning [[actor]] of [[theatre|stage]] and [[film|screen]], who appeared in 74 films from [[1930 in film|1930]] to [[1967 in film|1967]]. He is generally regarded as one of the finest and most versatile actors in motion picture history. In 1999, the [[American Film Institute]] named Tracy among the [[AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars|Greatest Male Stars of All Time]], ranking 9th on the list. He was nominated for nine [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Academy Awards for Best Actor]] in all. |
'''Spencer Bonaventure Tracy''' (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was a two-time [[Academy Award]] winning [[actor]] of [[theatre|stage]] and [[film|screen]], who appeared in 74 films from [[1930 in film|1930]] to [[1967 in film|1967]]. He is generally regarded as one of the finest and most versatile actors in motion picture history. In 1999, the [[American Film Institute]] named Tracy among the [[AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars|Greatest Male Stars of All Time]], ranking 9th on the list. He was nominated for nine [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Academy Awards for Best Actor]] in all. |
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==Early life== |
==Early life== |
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Tracy was born in [[Milwaukee, Wisconsin]], the second son of John Edward Tracy, an [[Irish American]] [[Catholic]] truck salesman, and Caroline Brown, a [[Protestant]] turned [[Christian Scientist]] |
Tracy was born in [[Milwaukee, Wisconsin]], the second son of John Edward Tracy, an [[Irish American]] [[Catholic]] truck salesman, and Caroline Brown, a [[Protestant]] turned [[Christian Scientist]]. Tracy's paternal grandparents, John Tracy and Mary Guhin, were born in [[Ireland]]. His mother's ancestry dates back to Thomas Stebbins, who immigrated from [[England]] in the late 1630s. Tracy attended six high schools, starting with [[Wauwatosa East High School|Wauwatosa High School]] in 1915 and [[Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist|St. John's Cathedral School]] for boys in Milwaukee the following year. The Tracy family then moved to [[Kansas City Metropolitan Area|Kansas City]], where Spencer was enrolled at [[St. Mary's College, Kansas]], a boarding school in St. Marys, Kansas 30 miles west of [[Topeka, Kansas]], then transferred to [[Rockhurst High School|Rockhurst]], a [[Jesuit]] academy in [[Kansas City, Missouri]]. John Tracy's job in Kansas City did not work out, and the family returned to Milwaukee six months after their departure. Spencer was enrolled at [[Marquette University High School|Marquette Academy]], another Jesuit school, where he met fellow actor [[Pat O'Brien (actor)|Pat O'Brien]]. The two left school in spring 1917 to enlist in the [[Navy]] with the American entry into [[World War I]], but Tracy remained in [[Norfolk Navy Yard]], [[Virginia]] throughout the war. Afterwards, Tracy continued his high school education at [[St. John's Northwestern Military Academy|St. Johns Northwestern Military Academy]] in [[Delafield, Wisconsin]] 30 miles west of Milwaukee, but finished his studies at Milwaukee's West Division High School (now [[Milwaukee High School of the Arts]]) in February 1921.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Chang | first=David A.Y.O. | year=2000 |title=Spencer Tracy's Boyhood: Truth, Fiction, and Hollywood Dreams |journal=Wisconsin Magazine of History |volume= vol. 81|issue=no. 1 | month=Autumn | pages=30–35 | format=.PDF |url=http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wmh/issues/autumn00.asp |accessdate=2007-05-29}}</ref> |
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[[Image:Spencer Tracy katy jurado broken lance3.jpg|left|thumb|280px|Spencer Tracy with [[Katy Jurado]] in the trailer for the film ''[[Broken Lance]]'' ([[1954 in film|1954]])]] |
[[Image:Spencer Tracy katy jurado broken lance3.jpg|left|thumb|280px|Spencer Tracy with [[Katy Jurado]] in the trailer for the film ''[[Broken Lance]]'' ([[1954 in film|1954]])]] |
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Afterward he attended [[Ripon College (Wisconsin)|Ripon College]] where he appeared in a leading role in a play entitled ''The Truth'', and decided on acting as a career. Tracy received an honorary degree from Ripon College in 1940.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ripon.edu/library/archives/reference/spencertracy.html |title=Spencer Tracy |accessdate=2007-05-30}}</ref> While touring the Northeast with the Ripon debate team, he auditioned for and was accepted to the [[American Academy of Dramatic Arts]] in [[New York]]. His first [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] role was as a robot in [[Karel Čapek]]'s ''[[R.U.R.]]'' (1922), followed by five other Broadway plays in the 1920s. In 1923 he married actress [[Louise Treadwell]]. They had two children, John and Louise (Susie). |
Afterward he attended [[Ripon College (Wisconsin)|Ripon College]] where he appeared in a leading role in a play entitled ''The Truth'', and decided on acting as a career. Tracy received an honorary degree from Ripon College in 1940.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ripon.edu/library/archives/reference/spencertracy.html |title=Spencer Tracy |accessdate=2007-05-30}}</ref> While touring the Northeast with the Ripon debate team, he auditioned for and was accepted to the [[American Academy of Dramatic Arts]] in [[New York]]. His first [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] role was as a robot in [[Karel Čapek]]'s ''[[R.U.R.]]'' (1922), followed by five other Broadway plays in the 1920s. In 1923 he married actress [[Louise Treadwell]]. They had two children, John and Louise (Susie). |
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Revision as of 14:06, 2 June 2009
Spencer Tracy | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Spencer Tracy in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | |
| Born | Spencer Bonaventure Tracy |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1922 – 1967 |
| Spouse | Louise Treadwell (1923-1967) |
| Partner(s) | Katharine Hepburn (1941-1967) |
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was a two-time Academy Award winning actor of stage and screen, who appeared in 74 films from 1930 to 1967. He is generally regarded as one of the finest and most versatile actors in motion picture history. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Tracy among the Greatest Male Stars of All Time, ranking 9th on the list. He was nominated for nine Academy Awards for Best Actor in all.
Early life
Tracy was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the second son of John Edward Tracy, an Irish American Catholic truck salesman, and Caroline Brown, a Protestant turned Christian Scientist. Tracy's paternal grandparents, John Tracy and Mary Guhin, were born in Ireland. His mother's ancestry dates back to Thomas Stebbins, who immigrated from England in the late 1630s. Tracy attended six high schools, starting with Wauwatosa High School in 1915 and St. John's Cathedral School for boys in Milwaukee the following year. The Tracy family then moved to Kansas City, where Spencer was enrolled at St. Mary's College, Kansas, a boarding school in St. Marys, Kansas 30 miles west of Topeka, Kansas, then transferred to Rockhurst, a Jesuit academy in Kansas City, Missouri. John Tracy's job in Kansas City did not work out, and the family returned to Milwaukee six months after their departure. Spencer was enrolled at Marquette Academy, another Jesuit school, where he met fellow actor Pat O'Brien. The two left school in spring 1917 to enlist in the Navy with the American entry into World War I, but Tracy remained in Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia throughout the war. Afterwards, Tracy continued his high school education at St. Johns Northwestern Military Academy in Delafield, Wisconsin 30 miles west of Milwaukee, but finished his studies at Milwaukee's West Division High School (now Milwaukee High School of the Arts) in February 1921.[1]
Afterward he attended Ripon College where he appeared in a leading role in a play entitled The Truth, and decided on acting as a career. Tracy received an honorary degree from Ripon College in 1940.[2] While touring the Northeast with the Ripon debate team, he auditioned for and was accepted to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. His first Broadway role was as a robot in Karel Čapek's R.U.R. (1922), followed by five other Broadway plays in the 1920s. In 1923 he married actress Louise Treadwell. They had two children, John and Louise (Susie).
Career
For several years he performed in stock in Michigan, Canada, and Ohio. Finally in 1930 he appeared in a hit play on Broadway, The Last Mile. Director John Ford saw Tracy in The Last Mile and signed him to do Up the River (1930) with Humphrey Bogart for Fox Film Corporation. Shortly after that he and his family moved to Hollywood, where he made over 25 films in five years.
_Spencer_Tracy_Fredric_March.jpg)
In 1935 Tracy signed with Metro Goldwyn Mayer. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor two years in a row, for Captains Courageous (1937) and Boys Town (1938).
He was also nominated for San Francisco (1936), Father of the Bride (1950), Bad Day at Black Rock (1955), The Old Man and the Sea (1958), Inherit the Wind (1960), Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), and posthumously for Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967). Tracy and Laurence Olivier share the record for the most nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actor.
Over eighty films in thirty-seven years, but the first five years if his career, Tracy's years under contract to the Fox Studio, are almost unknown even to the most educated film fan. His reputation for versatility and naturalness are based on the twenty years (1935-1967) he acted at Metro Goldwyn Mayer and for the subsequent dozen years when he was an independent actor. Yet the twenty-five films he made prior to his move to MGM are noteable in that they demonstrate the range and diversity of characters he would continue to deliver thourhg his post-Fox career (and which would earn him two Academy Awards and nine nominations).[3]
Tracy and Hepburn
In 1941, during the filming of Woman of the Year, Tracy began a relationship with Katharine Hepburn. Their relationship, which neither would discuss publicly, lasted until Tracy's death in 1967. Their relationship was complex and there were periods during which they were estranged. During one estrangement, Tracy had a brief romance with actress Gene Tierney while filming the Plymouth Adventure.[4]
Death and legacy
During his later years, Tracy's health worsened after he was diagnosed with diabetes, exacerbated by his alcoholism. In 1963, he suffered a heart attack, forcing him to pull out of Cheyenne Autumn and The Cincinnati Kid. Edward G. Robinson replaced him for both films. Seventeen days after filming had completed on his last film, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, with Hepburn, he died of a heart attack after suffering from lung congestion. The film was released in December, six months after his death.[5]
To this day, Tracy remains widely regarded as one of the most skillful actors in motion picture history. He was one of Hollywood's earliest "realistic" actors. Other actors and movie critics have long noted that Tracy's work in films from the 1930s and 1940's frequently look like that of a modern actor interacting with the more stylized and dated performances of everyone around him.
In 1988, the University of California, Los Angeles' Campus Events Commission and Susie Tracy created the UCLA Spencer Tracy Award. The award has been given to actors in recognition for their achievement in film acting. Past recipients include William Hurt, James Stewart, Michael Douglas, Denzel Washington, Tom Hanks, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster, Harrison Ford, Anjelica Huston, Nicolas Cage, Kirk Douglas, Jack Lemmon and Morgan Freeman.
The main character Carl from Pixar's film Up was primarily based on a combination of Spencer Tracy and Walter Matthau, because, according to director Pete Docter, there was "something sweet about these grumpy old guys".[6]
Filmography and awards
Tracy appeared in 75 feature films, and several short films. With Katharine Hepburn he starred in nine feature films, one of the most successful screen pairings in film history.
He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor on nine occasions, and won the award in 1937, for Captains Courageous, and in 1938, for Boys Town. He won a Golden Globe Award for The Actress (1953) from a total of four nominations. He was awarded a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his posthumously released performance opposite Hepburn in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967).
One of his Oscars was mistakenly inscribed to Dick Tracy before being corrected.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 | The Strong Arm | short subject | |
| Taxi Talks | Taxi Driver | short subject | |
| The Hard Guy | Guy | short subject | |
| Up the River | Saint Louis | ||
| 1931 | Quick Millions | Daniel J. 'Bugs' Raymond | |
| Six Cylinder Love | William Donroy | ||
| Goldie | Bill | ||
| 1932 | She Wanted a Millionaire | William Kelley | |
| Sky Devils | Wilkie | ||
| Disorderly Conduct | Dick Fay | ||
| Young America | Jack Doray | ||
| Society Girl | Briscoe | ||
| The Painted Woman | Tom Brian | ||
| Me and My Gal | Danny Dolan | ||
| 20,000 Years in Sing Sing | Tommy Connors | ||
| 1933 | Face in the Sky | Joe Buck | |
| Shanghai Madness | Pat Jackson | ||
| The Power and the Glory | Tom Garner | ||
| Man's Castle | Bill | ||
| The Mad Game | Edward Carson | ||
| 1934 | The Show-Off | J. Aubrey Piper | |
| Looking for Trouble | Joe Graham | ||
| Bottoms Up | 'Smoothie' King | ||
| Now I'll Tell | Murray Golden | ||
| Marie Galante | Dr. Crawbett | ||
| 1935 | It's a Small World | Bill Shevlin | |
| The Murder Man | Steven 'Steve' Grey | first credited screen role of James Stewart | |
| Dante's Inferno | Jim Carter | ||
| Whipsaw | Ross 'Mac' McBride | ||
| 1936 | Riffraff | Dutch | |
| Fury | Joe Wilson | ||
| San Francisco | Father Mullin | Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor | |
| Libelled Lady | Haggerty | ||
| 1937 | They Gave Him a Gun | Fred P. Willis | |
| Captains Courageous | Manuel Fidello | Academy Award for Best Actor | |
| Big City | Joe Benton | ||
| Mannequin | John L. Hennessey | ||
| 1938 | Test Pilot | Gunner Morris | |
| Boys Town | Father Flanagan | Academy Award for Best Actor | |
| Another Romance of Celluloid | himself | behind-the-scenes short film, includes filming of Test Pilot, and shows Tracy accepting his Academy Award for Boys Town | |
| Screen Snapshots Series 17, No. 9 | himself | short subject showing Tracy accepting his Academy Award for Boys Town | |
| Hollywood Goes to Town | himself | short subject, showing notable Hollywood performers preparing for the world premiere of Marie Antoinette | |
| 1939 | Stanley and Livingstone | Henry M. Stanley | |
| For Auld Lang Syne | himself | fundraising short film in which several actors, including Tracy, appeal for funds for the Will Rogers Memorial Hospital | |
| Hollywood Hobbies | himself | behind-the-scenes short film | |
| 1940 | I Take This Woman | Dr. Karl Decker | |
| Young Tom Edison | uncredited role | Tracy appears as a man admiring a portrait of Edison; he plays the older Edison in Edison, the Man in the same year | |
| Northwest Passage | Major Rogers | ||
| Edison, the Man | Thomas Edison | ||
| Boom Town | Jonathan Sand | ||
| Northward, Ho! | himself | behind-the-scenes short film about the filming of Northwest Passage | |
| 1941 | Men of Boys Town | Father Flanagan | |
| Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | Dr. Henry Jekyll/Mr. Hyde | ||
| 1942 | Woman of the Year | Sam Craig | first film with Katharine Hepburn |
| Tortilla Flat | Pilon | ||
| Keeper of the Flame | Steven 'Stevie' O'Malley | with Katharine Hepburn | |
| Ring of Steel | Narrator | Military documentary | |
| 1943 | His New World | narrator | documentary |
| A Guy Named Joe | Pete Sandidge | ||
| His New World | Narrator | War documentary | |
| 1944 | The Seventh Cross | George Heisler | |
| Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo | Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle | ||
| 1945 | Without Love | Pat Jamieson | with Katharine Hepburn |
| 1947 | The Sea of Grass | Col. James B. 'Jim' Brewton | with Katharine Hepburn |
| Cass Timberlane | Cass Timberlane | ||
| 1948 | State of the Union | Grant Matthews | with Katharine Hepburn |
| 1949 | Edward, My Son | Arnold Boult | |
| Adam's Rib | Adam Bonner | with Katharine Hepburn | |
| Malaya | Canaghan | ||
| Some of the Best | himself | retrospective of MGM's history | |
| 1950 | Father of the Bride | Stanley Banks | Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor |
| 1951 | Father's Little Dividend | Stanley Banks | |
| The People Against O'Hara | James P. Curtayne | ||
| For Defense for Freedom for Humanity | himself | short film in which Tracy urges support for Red Cross fundraising | |
| 1952 | Pat and Mike | Mike Conovan | with Katharine Hepburn |
| Plymouth Adventure | Captain Christopher Jones | with Gene Tierney | |
| 1953 | The Actress | Clinton Jones | Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actor |
| 1954 | Broken Lance | Matt Devereaux | |
| 1955 | Bad Day at Black Rock | John J, Macreedy | Best Actor Award (Cannes Film Festival) Prix d'interprétation masculine Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor |
| 1956 | The Mountain | Zachary Teller | Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actor |
| 1957 | Desk Set | Richard Sumner | with Katharine Hepburn |
| 1958 | The Old Man and the Sea | The Old Man/Narrator | National Board of Review Award for Best Actor (award was also for The Last Hurrah) Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama |
| The Last Hurrah | Mayor Frank Skeffington | National Board of Review Award for Best Actor (award was also for The Old Man and the Sea) Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actor | |
| 1960 | Inherit the Wind | Henry Drummond | Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actor Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama |
| 1961 | The Devil at 4 O'Clock | Father Matthew Doonan | |
| Judgment at Nuremberg | Chief Judge Dan Haywood | Fotogramas de Plata Award for Best Foreign Performer Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor | |
| 1962 | How the West Was Won | Narrator | |
| 1963 | It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World | Captain C. G. Culpepper | |
| 1967 | Guess Who's Coming to Dinner | Matt Drayton | with Katharine Hepburn BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (posthumous) Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor (posthumous) Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama (posthumous) |
References
- ^ Chang, David A.Y.O. (2000). "Spencer Tracy's Boyhood: Truth, Fiction, and Hollywood Dreams" (.PDF). Wisconsin Magazine of History. vol. 81 (no. 1): 30–35. Retrieved 2007-05-29.
{{cite journal}}:|issue=has extra text (help);|volume=has extra text (help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ "Spencer Tracy". Retrieved 2007-05-30.
- ^ New England Vintage Film Society, Inc. (2008). Spencer Tracy: The Pre-Code Legacy of a Hollywood Legend. Newton, MA: New England Vintage Film Society. ISBN 978-1-4363-4138-71.
- ^ Osborne (2006) Chronicle Books, Leading Ladies p.197
- ^ imdb.com
- ^ James Keast (2009-02-06). "Pixar Reveals Early Look At Up". Exclaim!. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
Bibliography
- Dandola, John (2001). Dead at the Box Office. Glen Ridge, NJ: Quincannon. ISBN 1878452258. Tracy is a character in this murder-mystery set against the 1940 World Premiere of Edison, the Man.
- Kanin, Garson (1971). Tracy and Hepburn; an intimate memoir. New York: Viking. ISBN 0670722936.
- Fisher, James (1994). Spencer Tracy: a Bio-bibliography. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313287279.
- New England Vintage Film Society, Inc. (2008). Spencer Tracy: The Pre-Code Legacy of a Hollywood Legend. Newton, MA: New England Vintage Film Society. ISBN 978-1-4363-4138-7.
{{cite book}}:|first=has generic name (help) - Swindell, Larry (1969). Spencer Tracy; a Biography. New York: World Pub. Co. OCLC 6078.
External links
- 1900 births
- 1967 deaths
- American Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni
- American film actors
- American Roman Catholics
- Democrats (United States)
- BAFTA winners (people)
- BAFTA Award for Best Actor
- Best Actor Academy Award winners
- Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)
- Deaths from myocardial infarction
- Irish-Americans
- English Americans
- People from Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- United States Navy sailors