Person Details

Birthday: 1870-08-02 22:11:47

Death: 1939-11-02 22:11:47

Aliases: Claude Benton Gillingwater , Claude Gillingwater Sr.

Gender: Male

Place of birth: Louisiana, Missouri, USA

Homepage:

Movie Involvements: 40

TV Involvements: 0


Most Famous Work

Biography

Tall, balding character actor in US films from 1921 until the year he died, usually portraying obstinate or irascible types. A man so disagreeable on celluloid, Claude Gillingwater's characters seemed to subsist on a steady diet of persimmons. Fondly recalled as the cranky old skinflint whose seemingly cold heart could only be warmed by the actions of a cute little tyke, the tall and rangy Gillingwater invariably played much older than he was. He, with the omnipresent bushy brows, crop of silver hair and perpetually sour puss, had a much more versatile career than perhaps realized -- on both stage and in film. Most assuredly, this caustic screen image he perfected belied a softer, gentler off-screen demeanor for he was a kind and sympathetic gent and devoted husband to wife Carlyn Stiletz (or Stellith). Their only child, Claude Gillingwater Jr., briefly became an actor himself. Sadly, Gillingwater Sr.'s thriving character career ended on a grim and tragic note in 1939. A serious accident on the movie set of the picture Florida Special (1936) (he fell from a platform and injured his back) damaged his health and threatened his career, and the death of his long-time wife Carlyn left him irrevocably depressed. Fearing the possibility of becoming an invalid and wishing not to become a serious burden to anyone, the 69-year-old actor committed suicide at his Beverly Hills home with a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. Gillingwater left a fine Hollywood legacy and the fun of some of his old films is watching his vinegar turn to sugar. Date of Birth 2 August 1870, Louisiana, Missouri Date of Death 2 November 1939, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California  (suicide)

Most Famous Work

A Tale of Two Cities
Average
7

A Tale of Two Cities

(1935) Jarvis Lorry
The Prisoner of Shark Island
Average
7

The Prisoner of Shark Island

(1936) Colonel Dyer
Conquest
Average
7

Conquest

(1937) Stephan
Illicit
Average
6

Illicit

(1931) Richard Ives Sr.
Little Miss Broadway
Average
7

Little Miss Broadway

(1938) Judge
Little Lord Fauntleroy
Average
7

Little Lord Fauntleroy

(1921) Earl of Dorincourt
Back Page
Average
6

Back Page

(1934) Sam Webster
Poor Little Rich Girl
Average
7

Poor Little Rich Girl

(1936) Simon Peck

Acting

Year Character Movie/Tv
1939 Old Christopher West
1938 Samuel G. Henshaw
Cyrus W. Butterfield
Judge
Ben Dalton
1937 Stephan
William Borden
1936 Col. Robert Peachtree
Mr. Gossamer
Simon Peck
Robert Forbes
Tom Perkins
Simeon Stafford
Colonel Dyer
1935 Jarvis Lorry
Dick
Col. Allenby
Colton
Gen. Rumford
Grandpa Wyatt
1934 Judge Griswold
Steven Kester
Sam Webster
Morley
Papa Van Brunt, Sr.
Tom Oliver
J.B. Preston
Asa Cabot - Banker
1933 John Fry
Banker (uncredited)
John Beaumont
Witt
Judge Bingham
1932 Frederick Garfield Sr
Claude Gillingwater
1931 Judge
N/A
John Aberdeen Arnold
Riggs
Jim Nabours
Richard Ives Sr.
Count de St. Cyr
1930 Faraday
Uncle Roger
1929 (uncredited)
Uncle Claude Davis
Winthrop Amesbury
Sam Underlane
H.A. Lambert Sr.
James Rutherford - Expedition Leader
1928 Judge Appleton
Grandfather Mervin
1927 Cyrus Townsend
Jean Moreau
Judge J. R. Altewood
Smithfield
1926 Old Man in Hotel Bed (uncredited)
Ivan
John Raynor
1925 Sir Robert Sundale
Pious Joe McDowell
Tom Linton
Noel Jardine
Riddle
1924 Lord Patrington
Henry Bancks
James Crockett
1923 Hector McCollins
Mr. Everingham
Mr. Forbes
Theodore Findley
Himself - Celebrity Actor (uncredited)
Col. Charles E. Cavanaugh
Lord Storm
1922 Uncle Sam
John P. Grout
Denton Drew
1921 Captain Bill
Earl of Dorincourt
Year Character Movie/Tv

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