George Brent

Actor

About

Also Known As

George Brendan Nolan

Birth Place

Ireland

Born

March 15, 1904

Died

May 26, 1979

Biography

Filmography

Born Again (1978)

Mexican Manhunt (1953)

David L. Brady

Tangier Incident (1953)

Photos & Videos

View All

Jezebel - (Re-issue Trailer)

Special Agent (1935) -- (Movie Clip) Ink On My Nose Again?

Family & Companions

Ruth Chatterton

Wife

Actor. Married on August 13, 1932; divorced on October 4, 1934.

Constance Worth

Wife

Actor. Briefly married and divorced in 1937.

Ann Sheridan

Wife

Actor. Married in 1942; divorced in 1943.

Biography

Gentlemanly Broadway lead who made his screen debut in "Under Suspicion" (1930). Initially a slightly tough talking New York type, Brent proved an effective romantic foil to a wide variety of dominant female stars of the 1930s and 40s, most notably at Warner Brothers, where he was tenured from 1932 to 1942. Capable of playing the strong but silent type, or the urbane and cynical, Brent often spent his screen time desiring his leading lady or being pursued by her. His playing was invariably professional and amiable if not dynamic or idiosyncratic, and so he proved a natural in "women's films" in which the focus was securely on a more galvanizing female actor who was a bigger star. Among his female paramours over the years were Bebe Daniels ("42nd Street," 1933), Greta Garbo ("The Painted Veil," 1934), Ginger Rogers ("In Person," 1935), Myrna Loy ("The Rains Came," 1939), Barbara Stanwyck ("My Reputation," 1946), and Claudette Colbert ("Bride for Sale," 1949).

Brent most often appeared as romantic lead in deferential support to three of Warners' classiest star actresses: Kay Francis ("Living on Velvet," 1935, "Give Me Your Heart," 1936, "Secrets of an Actress," 1938), Ruth Chatterton ("The Crash," 1932, "Female," 1933), to whom he was married from 1932 to 1934; and, particularly, Bette Davis ("Front Page Woman," 1935, "Jezebel," 1938, "Dark Victory," 1939, "The Great Lie," 1941). He also occasionally enjoyed a role off the beaten path, as in Robert Siodmak's memorable Gothic melodrama, "The Spiral Staircase" (1946). Brent sustained his prolific output after he and Warners parted company, but his films gradually diminished in importance in the later 40s. Very much a leading man type, he never made the transition to character roles, and so left the cinema in 1953 after appearing in a series of minor efforts. Two of his other four wives were actresses Constance Worth and Ann Sheridan (opposite whom he made "Honeymoon for Three," 1941). Brent came out of retirement for 1978's "Born Again."

Filmography

Cast (Feature Film)

Born Again (1978)

Mexican Manhunt (1953)

David L. Brady

Tangier Incident (1953)

The Kid from Cleveland (1949)

Bride for Sale (1949)

Paul Martin

Angel on the Amazon (1948)

Jim Warburton

Luxury Liner (1948)

Captain Jeremy Bradford

Slave Girl (1947)

Matt Claibourne, also known as Pierre

Christmas Eve (1947)

Michael Brooks

Out of the Blue (1947)

Arthur Earthleigh

The Corpse Came C.O.D. (1947)

Joe Medford

My Reputation (1946)

Major Scott Landis

The Spiral Staircase (1946)

Professor [Albert] Warren

Temptation (1946)

Nigel Armine

Lover Come Back (1946)

Bill Williams

Tomorrow Is Forever (1946)

Larry Hamilton

The Affairs of Susan (1945)

Roger Berton

Experiment Perilous (1944)

Dr. Huntington Bailey

The Gay Sisters (1942)

You Can't Escape Forever (1942)

Steve Mitchell

In This Our Life (1942)

Craig Fleming

Honeymoon for Three (1941)

Kenneth Bixby

The Great Lie (1941)

Pete [Van Allen]

They Dare Not Love (1941)

Prince Kurt von Rotenburg

International Lady (1941)

[Tom] Hanley

'Til We Meet Again (1940)

Dan Hardesty

South of Suez (1940)

John Gamble [later known as John Bradley]

Adventure in Diamonds (1940)

Capt. Stephen Dennett

The Man Who Talked Too Much (1940)

Stephen Forbes

The Fighting 69th (1940)

"Wild Bill" Donovan

Dark Victory (1939)

Dr. Frederick Steele

Wings of the Navy (1939)

Cass Harrington

The Old Maid (1939)

Clem Spender

The Rains Came (1939)

Tom Ransome

Secrets of an Actress (1938)

Dick Orr

Racket Busters (1938)

Denny Jordan

Gold Is Where You Find It (1938)

Jared Whitney

Jezebel (1938)

Buck Cantrell

Mountain Justice (1937)

Paul Cameron

Submarine D-1 (1937)

Lt. Commander [Dan] Matthews

God's Country and the Woman (1937)

Steve Russett

The Go Getter (1937)

Bill Austin

The Case Against Mrs. Ames (1936)

Matt Logan

Give Me Your Heart (1936)

Jim Baker

More Than a Secretary (1936)

Fred Gilbert

The Golden Arrow (1936)

Johnny Jones

The Golden Arrow (1936)

Johnny Jones

Snowed Under (1936)

Alan Tanner

The Goose and the Gander (1935)

Bob McNear

In Person (1935)

Emory Parks

The Right to Live (1935)

Colin Trent

Front Page Woman (1935)

Living on Velvet (1935)

Terry Parker

Desirable (1934)

[Stuart] McAllister

Stamboul Quest (1934)

[Douglas] Beall

Housewife (1934)

William Reynolds

The Painted Veil (1934)

From Headquarters (1933)

Lieut. J. [Jim] Stevens

42nd Street (1933)

Pat Denning

The Rich Are Always with Us (1932)

Julian Tierney

The Purchase Price (1932)

Jim Gilson

The Crash (1932)

Geoffrey Gault

They Call It Sin (1932)

Dr. [Tony] Travers

Miss Pinkerton (1932)

Patten

So Big (1932)

Roelf Pool

Week-end Marriage (1932)

Peter Acton

Once a Sinner (1931)

James Brett

Charlie Chan Carries On (1931)

Capt. Ronald Keane

Ex-Bad Boy (1931)

Donald Swift

Under Suspicion (1931)

Inspector Turner

The Homicide Squad (1931)

Jimmy Buckley

Fair Warning (1931)

Lee Haines

The Lightning Warrior (1931)

Cast (Short)

Swingtime in the Movies (1938)

Himself

A Dream Comes True The Making of an Unusual Motion Picture (1935)

Himself

Things You Never See on the Screen (1935)

Himself

Life Events

1931

Film debut in "Under Suspicion"

1932

Joined Warner Brothers

1942

Left Warner Brothers

1953

Left filmmaking

1978

One-shot return to film acting, "Born Again"

Photo Collections

The Spiral Staircase - Movie Poster

Here is the American One-Sheet Movie Poster for The Spiral Staircase (1945), starring Dorothy McGuire. One-sheets measured 27x41 inches, and were the poster style most commonly used in theaters.

Baby Face - Scene Stills

Here are a few scene stills from the pre-code Warner Bros. film Baby Face (1933), starring Barbara Stanwyck.

Jezebel - Scene Stills

Here are several scene stills from Warner Bros' Jezebel (1938), starring Bette Davis and Henry Fonda.

The Purchase Price - Movie Poster