Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 3 October 1998) was a British-born American actor, whose career spanned over 270 screen and stage roles across more than 60 years.
He began his career as a child in his native England before starring in How Green Was My Valley (1941), My Friend Flicka (1943), and Lassie Come Home (1943) in America. Unlike many child stars, McDowall evolved into an adult performer on stage and screen. He played Mordred in the Broadway musical Camelot (1960–63), won a Tony Award for his performance in Jean Anouilh's The Fighting Cock, and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his performance in Cleopatra (1963).
He subsequently appeared in a variety of film and television roles, notably as Cornelius and Caesar in the Planet of the Apes films (1968–73), and in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Legend of Hell House (1973), The Fantastic Journey (1977), Fright Night (1985), A Bug's Life (1998), and as the voice of Jervis Tetch / Mad Hatter in the DC Animated Universe.
McDowall served in various positions on the board of governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the selection committee for the Kennedy Center Honors, contributing to various charities related to the film industry and film preservation. He was a founding member of the National Film Preservation Board and represented the Screen Actors Guild on that board until his death. He was also active as a photographer and journalist.
Early life
McDowall was born in Herne Hill, London, the only son of Thomas Andrew McDowall (1896–1978), a merchant seaman, and his Irish wife Winifred (née Corcoran). Both of his parents were enthusiastic about the theatre. McDowall and his elder sister, Virginia, were raised in their mother's Catholic faith. He attended St Joseph's College, Beulah Hill, Upper Norwood, a Roman Catholic secondary school in London.
Career
British films
After appearing as a child model as a baby, and winning an acting prize in a school play at age nine, McDowell started appearing in films, including I See Ice (1938) with George Formby and Hey! Hey! USA (1938) with Will Hay.
Early US films
McDowall and his sister were brought to the United States by their mother after the outbreak of World War II. He became a naturalised United States citizen on 9 December 1949 He then served in the 77th Infantry Division from 1960 to 1962. after which Fox gave McDowall another starring vehicle: Thunderhead – Son of Flicka (1945).
Theatre
McDowall turned to the theatre, taking the title role of Young Woodley in summer stock in Westport, Connecticut, in July 1946. In 1947, he played Malcolm in Orson Welles's stage production of Macbeth in Salt Lake City, and reprised the role in the actor-director's film version in 1948. He starred in seven films at Monogram, for which he also worked as associate producer, including Kidnapped (1948), an adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson story, wherein he played David Balfour.
1950s: Television and theatre
After relocating to New York City, McDowall became a frequent presence in live television drama, appearing in numerous televised plays and anthology series throughout the 1950s. He also had a significant career on Broadway, including a production of Misalliance (1953) that he said "broke the mould" in how he was judged as an actor. Ira Levin's No Time for Sergeants (1955–57) was a major hit, followed by a critical success with Compulsion (1957–58) based on the Leopold and Loeb case, after which McDowell won a Tony Award for Peter Brook's The Fighting Cock (1960).
1960: Return to Hollywood
thumb|McDowall as Mordred with [[Richard Burton in the Broadway musical Camelot (1960)]]
McDowall enjoyed another big hit on Broadway with the musical Camelot (1960–63), which starred Julie Andrews and Richard Burton. He took part in a TV production of The Tempest (1960) alongside Burton and Maurice Evans, before appearing in his first film in almost a decade, The Subterraneans (1960), followed by Midnight Lace (1960). He was also seen in The Longest Day (1962) prior to his portrayal of Octavian in Cleopatra. He worked in film throughout the decade, notably in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), Inside Daisy Clover (1965), and 5 Card Stud (1968), though his most memorable role was as Cornelius in Planet of the Apes. He went on to appear in three sequels and the TV spin-off.
McDowall continued to work regularly in television, including his Emmy-winning turn in Sunday Showcase and a production of The Power and the Glory (1961) with Laurence Olivier, George C. Scott, and Julie Harris.
thumb|McDowall in full costume, with co-stars [[Ron Harper (actor)|Ron Harper (front) and James Naughton (back), in the Planet of the Apes TV series (1974)]]
1970s-1990s
McDowall made his lone effort as a director with The Ballad of Tam Lin (1970). As an actor, he was in Pretty Maids All in a Row (1971), Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971), and Disney's Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971). In addition to his television work, most significantly in Columbo, he made his third Apes film as Caesar, son of his earlier character, Cornelius, in 1972's Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. He took supporting roles in The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972) and The Poseidon Adventure (1972) before his final Apes film, Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973). During the short-lived TV spin-off of Planet of the Apes (1974), he made a guest appearance on The Carol Burnett Show in his Planet of the Apes makeup and performed a love duet with Burnett.
Asked about his career in a 1975 interview, McDowall said, "I just hope to keep working and in interesting things." For the rest of his life, he alternated between features, TV films, and guesting on TV series, including Overboard, on which he also served as executive producer.
In 1989, he said, "I feel as Henry Fonda did that every job I get may be my last. I'm one of those creatures born to be working. I feel better when I'm working. I don't like it when I'm not working and I've never worked as much as I want to."
He was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1993, when he was surprised by Michael Aspel at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood.
In one of his final public appearances, McDowall hosted the MGM Musicals Tribute at Carnegie Hall in 1997.
Other work
thumb|McDowall in 1997
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
McDowall served for several years in various capacities on the board of governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the organisation that presents the Academy Awards (Oscars), and on the selection committee for the Kennedy Center Awards. He was chairman of the Actors' Branch for five terms. He was elected president of the Academy Foundation in 1998, the year that he died. He worked to support the Motion Pictures Retirement Home, where a rose garden named in his honour was officially dedicated on 9 October 2001. It remains part of the campus.
Photographer and author
McDowall received recognition as a photographer, working with Look, Vogue, Collier's, and Life. His work includes a cover story on Mae West for Life and the cover of the 1964 Barbra Streisand album, The Third Album. He took the photograph when Streisand performed on The Judy Garland Show in October 1963.
He published five books of photographs, each featuring photos and profile interviews of his celebrity friends interviewing each other, such as Elizabeth Taylor, Judy Garland, Judy Holliday, Maureen O'Hara, Katharine Hepburn, Lauren Bacall, and others, starting with Double Exposure in 1968.
Honours
For his contributions to television, McDowall received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960, at 6632 Hollywood Blvd.
Personal life
In 1974, the FBI raided McDowall's home and seized his collection of films and television series in the course of an investigation into film piracy and copyright infringement. His collection consisted of 160 16mm prints and more than 1000 video cassettes, at a time before the era of commercial videotapes, when no legal aftermarket existed for film. McDowall had purchased Errol Flynn's home cinema films and transferred them all to tape for longer-lasting archival storage. No charges were filed.
Death
In April 1998, McDowall was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and died at his home in Studio City, Los Angeles, California, on 3 October 1998, aged 70. His body was cremated and his ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean on 7 October 1998, off Los Angeles County. Dennis Osborne, a screenwriter, cared for McDowall in his final months, and was quoted as saying, "It was very peaceful. It was just as he wanted it. It was exactly the way he planned."
Filmography
Film
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="margin-right: 0;"
|-
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Title
! scope="col" | Role
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
| rowspan="3" |1938
| Convict 99
| Jimmy
|
|-
|Murder in the Family
|Peter Osborne
|
|-
|John Halifax
|Boy
|
|-
|1939
|Poison Pen
|Choir Boy
|Uncredited
|-
| rowspan="4" |1940
|His Brother's Keeper
|Boy
|
|-
|Dead Man's Shoes
|Boy
|
|-
|Just William
|Ginger
|
|-
|Saloon Bar
|Boy
|
|-
| rowspan="5" |1941
|You Will Remember
|Young Bob Slater
|
|-
|Man Hunt
|Vaner
|
|-
|This England
|Hugo
|
|-
|How Green Was My Valley
|Huw Morgan
|
|-
|Confirm or Deny
|Albert Perkins
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1942
|Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake
|Young Benjamin Blake
|
|-
|On the Sunnyside
|Hugh Aylesworth
|
|-
|The Pied Piper
|Ronnie Cavanaugh
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1943
|My Friend Flicka
|Ken McLaughlin
|
|-
|Lassie Come Home
|Joe Carraclough
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1944
|The White Cliffs of Dover
|Young John Ashwood
|
|-
|The Keys of the Kingdom
|Young Francis Chisholm
|
|-
|1945
|Thunderhead, Son of Flicka
|Ken McLaughlin
|
|-
|1945
|Molly and Me
|Jimmy Graham
|
|-
|1946
|Holiday in Mexico
|Stanley Owen
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1948
|Rocky
|Chris Hammond
|
|-
|Macbeth
|Malcolm
|
|-
|Kidnapped
|David Balfour
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1949
|Tuna Clipper
|Alec MacLennan
|
|-
|Black Midnight
|Scott Jordan
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1950
|Big Timber
|Jimmy
|
|-
|Killer Shark
|Ted
|
|-
|1952
|The Steel Fist
|Eric Kardin
|
|-
|1958
|The Big Country
|Hannassey Watchman
|Uncredited
|-
| rowspan="2" |1960
|The Subterraneans
|Yuri Gilgoric
|
|-
|Midnight Lace
|Malcolm Stanley
|
|-
|1962
|The Longest Day
|Pvt. Morris
|
|-
|1963
|Cleopatra
|Octavian
|
|-
|1964
|Shock Treatment
|Martin Ashley
|
|-
| rowspan="5" |1965
|The Greatest Story Ever Told
|Matthew
|
|-
|That Darn Cat!
|Gregory Benson
|
|-
|The Third Day
|Oliver Parsons
|
|-
|The Loved One
|D.J. Jr.
|
|-
|Inside Daisy Clover
|Walter Baines
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1966
|Lord Love a Duck
|Alan Musgrave
|
|-
|The Defector
|Agent Adams
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1967
|The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin
|Bullwhip Griffin
|
|-
|The Cool Ones
|Tony Krum
|
|-
|It!
|Arthur Pimm
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1968
|Planet of the Apes
|Cornelius
|
|-
|5 Card Stud
|Nick Evers
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1969
|Midas Run
|Wister
|
|-
|Hello Down There
|Nate Ashbury
|
|-
|Angel, Angel, Down We Go
|Santoro
|
|-
| rowspan="4" |1971
|Pretty Maids All in a Row
|Proffer
|
|-
|Escape from the Planet of the Apes
|Cornelius
|
|-
|Terror in the Sky
|Ralph Baird
|
|-
|Bedknobs and Broomsticks
|Rowan Jelk
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1972
|Conquest of the Planet of the Apes
|Caesar
|
|-
|The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
|Frank Gass
|
|-
|The Poseidon Adventure
|Acres
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1973
|Arnold
|Robert
|
|-
|The Legend of Hell House
|Benjamin Franklin Fischer
|
|-
|Battle for the Planet of the Apes
|Caesar
|
|-
|1974
|Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry
|Grocery Store Manager
|
|-
|1975
|Funny Lady
|Bobby
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1976
|Mean Johnny Barrows
|Tony Da Vince
|
|-
|Embryo
|Frank Riley
|
|-
|1977
|Sixth and Main
|Skateboard
|
|-
| rowspan="4" |1978
|Laserblast
|Dr. Mellon
|
|-
|The Cat from Outer Space
|Mr. Stallwood
|
|-
|Circle of Iron
|White Robe
|
|-
|The Thief of Baghdad
|Hasan
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1979
|Scavenger Hunt
|Jenkins
|
|-
|Nutcracker Fantasy
|Franz/Fritz
|
|-
|The Black Hole
|V.I.N.CENT. (voice)
|
|-
|1981
|Charlie Chan and the Curse of the Dragon Queen
|Gillespie
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1982
|Evil Under the Sun
|Rex Brewster
|
|-
|Class of 1984
|Terry Corrigan
|
|-
|1985
|Fright Night
|Peter Vincent
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1986
|GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords
|Nuggit (voice)
|
|-
|Friends Are Forever: Tales of the Little Princess
|Zak the Cat (voice)
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1987
|Dead of Winter
|Mr. Murray
|
|-
|Overboard
|Andrew
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1988
|Doin' Time on Planet Earth
|Minister
|
|-
|Fright Night Part 2
|Peter Vincent
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1989
|The Big Picture
|Judge
|
|-
|Cutting Class
|Mr. Dante
|
|-
|1990
|Shakma
|Sorenson
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1991
|Timmy's Gift: A Precious Moments Christmas
|Narrator (voice)
|
|-
|Going Under
|Secretary Neighbor
|
|-
|1992
|Double Trouble
|Philip Chamberlain
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |1993
|The Evil Inside Me
|Pauly
|
|-
|The Return of Captain Sinbad
|Narrator (voice)
|
|-
|1994
|Mirror, Mirror II: Raven Dance
|Dr. Lasky
|
|-
| rowspan="4" |1995
|The Grass Harp
|Amos Legrand
|
|-
|The Alien Within
|Dr. Henry Lazarus
|
|-
|Last Summer in the Hamptons
|Thomas
|
|-
|Star Hunter
|Riecher
|
|-
|1996
|It's My Party
|Damian Knowles
|
|-
|1997
|The Second Jungle Book: Mowgli & Baloo
|King Murphy
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |1998
|Something to Believe In
|Gambler
|
|-
|A Bug's Life
|Mr. Soil (voice)
|Posthumous release
- Good as Gold (1957)
- Compulsion (1957)
- Handful of Fire (1958)
- Look After Lulu (1959)
- The Fighting Cock (1959)
- Camelot (1960)
- The Astrakhan Coat (1967)
- Charlie's Aunt (1975)
- Dial M for Murder (1995–96)
- A Christmas Carol: The Musical (1997)
Radio appearances
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year !! Program !! Episode/source
!
|-
| 1943|| Lux Radio Theatre || My Friend Flicka
|
|-
| 1947|| Suspense || One Way Street
|
|-
| 1948|| The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen || Rocky Iii and the Dead Mans Chest
|
|-
| 1952|| Family Theater || A Lullaby for Christmas
|
|-
|}
Awards and nominations
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Award
!Year
!Category
!Work
!Result
!
|-
|Golden Globe Awards
|1964
|Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
|Cleopatra
|
|
|-
|National Board of Review Awards
|1941
|Best Acting
|How Green Was My Valley
|
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |Primetime Emmy Awards
|1961
|Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actor or Actress in a Single Program
|NBC Sunday Showcase
|
|
|-
|1964
|Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
|Arrest and Trial
|
|