Lew Ayres

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Lew Ayres (* 28 December 1908 as Lewis Frederick Ayres III. In Minneapolis , Minnesota ; † the thirtieth December 1996 in Los Angeles , California ) was an American actor and director. He became famous for his leading role as Paul Bäumer in the classic film In the West Nothing New (1930). This was followed by a distinguished film and television career of around 65 years, during which Ayres was nominated for an Oscar and was awarded the Golden Globe and two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame .

Life

Early life

Lew Ayres was born in Minneapolis to Irma and Louis Ayres. His parents were musicians and they divorced when he was four years old. He was therefore brought up for a few years by his grandmother Anna, a piano teacher. His grandmother discovered his musical talent. In addition to guitar, he also played the banjo and saxophone . In 1923 he moved to San Diego with his mother, stepfather, and half-brother , where he also attended high school. He dropped out of high school for a short time to work as a musician. However, he later graduated and studied medicine at the University of Arizona from 1926 . He also played banjo and guitar in the jazz band at the university. He broke off his medical studies and from then on played in jazz bands in California nightclubs. Ayres was discovered by a Hollywood agent dancing with actress Lili Damita in a Los Angeles nightclub .

Career

After two small roles, he first attracted attention with his third film: he played a naive youth in The Kiss (1929), who kisses the heroine Greta Garbo and thus causes complications. His fourth film was to make him world famous, namely the leading role of the German soldier Paul Bäumer in the anti-war film In the West Nothing New from 1930. The film adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque 's novel of the same name won the Oscar for best film of the year , but made a move mainly because of his pacifist attitude in the German Reich to bitter protests from right-wing associations and National Socialists , who were called by Joseph Goebbels to boycott the film and other films of those involved. Ayres received a lot of praise from the US press for his performance.

In the following years, however, the boyish-looking actor did not make the leap to become a top star in Hollywood. In the 1930s, Ayres was limited to naive, somewhat spoiled young men from a good family in the vast majority of his roles. His more significant roles included an aspiring gangster in the crime film The Doorway to Hell (1930) alongside James Cagney and a prize boxer in Iron Man (1931), who is abandoned by his lover, played by Jean Harlow . In 1938 he drew attention again when he played the brother of Katharine Hepburn in a tragicomic role in The Bride's Sister , who suffers from his dominant father and drowns it in alcohol. That same year, Lew Ayres was at MGM , the role of Dr. Kildare in B-movie Dr. Kildare: His first case . The film became such a great success that Ayres played the good-natured and helpful doctor in eight sequels until 1942. He spoke to Dr. Kildare also appeared on a popular radio series in the 1940s.

During World War II , Ayres refused to go to war in the United States because his work on In the West , in particular, had made him nothing new to be a pacifist . There was public criticism of the "most famous conscientious objector in the country" and MGM even released him from their contract. His reputation was not restored until the public learned that he had worked as a medic for the U.S. Army Medical Corps in New Guinea and the Philippines . Among other things, he was present during the evacuation in the Battle of Leyte . After the war, Ayres resumed his film career and played a leading role alongside Olivia de Havilland in Robert Siodmak's thriller The Black Mirror (1946).

In 1948 he achieved personal success on the side of Jane Wyman in the drama Silent Lips . This role as a caring doctor caring for a deaf person earned him his only Oscar nomination for Best Actor . In the 1950s, Ayres mainly took on guest roles on television, but the offers for him decreased overall. His career took off again in the 1970s and 1980s. He took on supporting roles in films such as Terence Hill's Don Camillo remake Nobody Skin Like Don Camillo , the horror film Damien - Omen II with William Holden or the science fiction film The Battle for the Planet of the Apes . The meanwhile graying Ayres played mostly understanding and friendly authority figures like presidents, doctors and professors. He was also on television in series such as Our Little Farm , An Angel on Earth and Das A-Team . In the Columbo episode Devilish Intelligence (1976) he played a scientist of integrity who is murdered while trying to uncover a scandal. In 1994, Ayres finally withdrew from the screen after more than 150 film and television appearances with his appearance in the television film Hart but cordially: On the trail of the perpetrator .

The grave of Lew Ayres in Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Brentwood

Ayres first directed the historical drama Hearts in Bondage, starring Mae Clarke and David Manners in 1936. It was his only directorial work with the feature film, later he made two documentaries: Altars of the East (1955) and Altars of the World (1976), both of which were dedicated to the topic of religion. Altars of the World , his 150-minute documentary about the different regions of the world, was awarded the Golden Globe in 1977 in the category Best Documentary .

Private life

Lew Ayres was married three times: first between 1931 and 1933 to actress Lola Lane and from 1934 to 1940 with Ginger Rogers . In the late 1940s, he began a relationship with actress Jane Wyman , who left her then husband Ronald Reagan for him . Wyman and Ayres separated again after a short time. His last marriage to Diana Hall, which lasted from 1964 until his death, had a son. The actor was very interested in philosophy and religion, gave lectures on these topics and wrote numerous essays. For his philosophical activities he received an honorary doctorate from Oakland University in 1979 .

Lew Ayres died in Los Angeles on December 30, 1996, two days after his 88th birthday. He was buried next to Frank Zappa in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Brentwood .

Filmography (selection)

As an actor

As a director

  • 1936: Hearts in Bondage
  • 1955: Altars of the East
  • 1976: Altars of the World

Awards

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Lew Ayres at the New York Times
  2. ^ Obituary in the Independent dated January 1, 1997
  3. ^ Obituary at the Independent
  4. ↑ Biography: "Lew Ayres: Hollywood's Conscientious Objector"
  5. ^ Lesley L. Coffin: Lew Ayres: Hollywood's Conscientious Objector . Univ. Press of Mississippi, 2012, ISBN 978-1-61703-637-8 ( google.de [accessed August 15, 2019]).
  6. ^ Lew Ayres at Find A Grave
  7. ↑ Biography: "Lew Ayres: Hollywood's Conscientious Objector"

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Ayres, Lew
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ayre, Lewis Frederick III .; Ayres, Lewis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH December 28, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Minneapolis , Minnesota , USA
DATE OF DEATH December 30, 1996
Place of death Los Angeles , California