Claude Rains
Claude Rains (born November 10, 1889 in London, England, died May 30, 1967, in Laconia, New Hampshire) was an English actor. Gassed during World War I, he was almost blind in one eye for the rest of his life.Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree, founder of The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, recognized Rains' acting talent and paid for the elocution lessons he needed to succeed as an actor. It was ironic that Rains' first Hollywood role was as the star of a movie in which he did not appear until the very end. That was the title character in James Whale's The Invisible Man. It was his distinctive voice which had won him the role.
Following The Invisible Man, Universal Studios tried to turn him into another horror film actor, but he broke free with his Academy Award nominated role in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and followed that up in probably his most famous role, that of French police Captain Louis Renault in Casablanca.
He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 6400 Hollywood Blvd.
Claude Rains is interred in the Red Hill Cemetery, Moultonborough, New Hampshire.
Academy Award nominations
Filmography
