Paul Muni
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- For the comedy writer and actor, see Paul Mooney.
| Paul Muni | ||||||||||||||
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| Image:Paulmuni.jpg photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1932 | ||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund | |||||||||||||
| Born | September 22 1895 Lviv, Ukraine | |||||||||||||
| Died | August 25 1967 (aged 71) Montecito, California, U.S. | |||||||||||||
| Spouse(s) | Bella Finkel (1921-1967) | |||||||||||||
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Paul Muni (September 22, 1895 – August 25, 1967) was an Academy Award-winning and Tony Award-winning American stage and film actor.
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[edit] Early life and career
He was born Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund to a Jewish family in Lemberg, Galicia, a province of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, now Lviv, Ukraine.
His family emigrated to the United States in 1902. Both of Muni's parents were actors with the Yiddish theatre. He made his stage debut at age 12. During his time in Yiddish theater, he was known as Moony Weisenfreund (Moonie is a common Yiddish name). He was quickly recognized by Maurice Schwartz, who signed him up with his Yiddish Art Theater. Edward G. Robinson and Paul Muni were cousins to Charles M Fritz who was a notable actor and manager of The Little Red Theater in Northport, Long Island, during the Great Depression.
A 1925 New York Times article singled out his and Sam Kasten's performances at the People's Theater as among the highlights of that year's Yiddish theater season, describing them as second only to Ludwig Satz.
[edit] Broadway and Hollywood
Muni was 29 when he began acting on Broadway in 1924. His first role, that of an elderly Jewish man in the play We Americans, was written by playwright Sam Harris; it was also the first time that he ever acted in English. He was signed by Fox three years later, in 1929, and received an Oscar nomination for his first film The Valiant. However, he was unhappy with the roles and decided to return to Broadway.
In 1932, Paul Muni returned to Hollywood to star in such harrowing pre-Code films as the original Scarface and I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang. The film was based on a book entitled 'I Am A Fugitive From A Georgia Chain Gang', but the studio dropped the word 'Georgia' from the title due to fears of a potential lawsuit from the state. The acclaim that Muni received as a result of this performance led Warner Brothers Studios to sign a long-term contract with him. He received his second Oscar nomination for Best Actor for his performance as James Allen, but lost to Charles Laughton (The Private Life of Henry VIII). Muni eventually won a long-overdue Oscar for his performance in the biographical drama The Story of Louis Pasteur.
Muni was nominated for a total of five Academy Awards, an impressive number by any standard but all the more remarkable for Muni since he only appeared in twenty-five films throughout his career. His other nominations may be seen in the table below. Some sources list Muni as a nominee for 'Best Actor' for the film Black Fury, but this is erroneous: Muni was actually a write-in candidate. (The confusion is understandable: in older records, such as the 'Official Guide to the Oscars', only the four actual acting nominees are listed; in newer books, such as Tom O'Neil's 'Movie Awards', Muni's name is listed with the notation that records disagree as to whether he was an official nominee.) The Academy was understandably embarrassed: expectation had run high that Charles Laughton would receive the Best Actor award for his performance as Captain Bligh in Mutiny on the Bounty, for which he had already won the New York Film Critic's award. Unfortunately for him, three of the four nominees were from the same film- himself, Clark Gable, and Franchot Tone- and when multiple performers are nominated for the same film, they usually split the votes up and permit another candidate to win (the most famous example being Bette Davis's loss for the Best Actress Award in 1950 for All About Eve to Judy Holliday as a result of Anne Baxter's insistance on being nominated for the leading, rather than the supporting, role). Not only did Victor McLaglen win for his role in The Informer, Laughton didn't even place second- Muni did.
In his day, Muni was considered one of the greatest living actors. David Shipman calls him "an actor of great integrity" and he prepared for his roles meticulously.
Muni was widely recognized as a talented if eccentric individual. He would go into a rage whenever anyone wore red, but at the same time he could often be found between sessions relaxing with his violin. Over the years, he also became increasingly dependent on his wife, Bella, who terrified directors by forcing them to redo scenes that did not meet her satisfaction.
A dispute with the Warner Studios led to the termination of Muni's contract, the result of which was stardom for Humphrey Bogart. Bogart had been bombarding studio head Jack Warner with telegrams, begging to be cast as Roy Earle in the film High Sierra, a part that was supposed to have been played by Muni. But after Muni's departure from the studio, Warner told Bogart that the part was his (according to rumor, he made the offer on condition that Bogart stop sending him telegrams). After reigning as one of the biggest stars in Hollywood during the 1930s, Muni only made eight films between 1941 and 1959 (including a guest appearance as himself in the 1943 film Stage Door Canteen).
After several failed projects, Muni made a triumphant return to Broadway, winning a Tony Award in 1956 for the role of Henry Drummond in the play Inherit the Wind.
He retired from filmmaking in 1959, soon after receiving his fifth Academy Award nomination for The Last Angry Man; however, he made a final television appearance in the series Saints and Sinners in 1962. Muni died in Montecito, California at the age of 71.
He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6435 Hollywood Blvd.
[edit] Cultural references
In the fourth-season M*A*S*H episode "Hawkeye", Hawkeye Pierce describes his childhood in the 1930s and Muni's ubiquitous film appearances thus: "You knew where you stood in those days. Roosevelt was always president, Joe Louis was always the champ, and Paul Muni played everybody."
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 | The Valiant | James Dyke | Academy Award for Best Actor nomination | |
| Seven Faces | Papa Chibou, Diablero, Willie Smith, Franz Schubert, Don Juan, Joe Gans, Napoleon | |||
| 1932 | Scarface | Antonio 'Tony' Camonte | ||
| I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang | James Allen | Academy Award for Best Actor nomination | ||
| 1933 | The World Changes | Orin Nordholm Jr. | ||
| 1934 | Hi, Nellie! | Brad Bradshaw | ||
| 1935 | Bordertown | Johnny Ramirez | ||
| Black Fury | Joe Radek | |||
| Dr. Socrates | Dr. Lee Cardwell, also called Dr. Socrates | |||
| 1936 | The Story of Louis Pasteur | Louis Pasteur | Academy Award for Best Actor | |
| 1937 | The Good Earth | Wang | ||
| The Woman I Love | Lt. Claude Maury | |||
| The Life of Emile Zola | Emile Zola | Academy Award for Best Actor nomination | ||
| 1939 | Juarez | Benito Juarez | ||
| We Are Not Alone | Dr. David Newcome | |||
| 1941 | Hudson's Bay | Pierre Esprit Radisson | ||
| 1942 | Commandos Strike at Dawn | Erik Toresen | ||
| 1945 | A Song to Remember | Prof. Joseph Elsner | ||
| Counter-Attack | Alexei Kulkov | |||
| 1946 | Angel on My Shoulder | Eddie Kagle/Judge Fredrick Parker | ||
| 1952 | Imbarco a mezzanotte | The Stranger With A Gun | Stranger on the Prowl in the U.S. | |
| 1959 | The Last Angry Man | Dr. Sam Abelman | Academy Award for Best Actor nomination |
[edit] Academy Awards and nominations
- 1960 Nominated The Last Angry Man
- 1938 Nominated The Life of Emile Zola
- 1937 Won The Story of Louis Pasteur
- 1936 Nominated Black Fury
- 1934 Nominated I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang
- 1930 Nominated The Valiant
[edit] References
- Melamed, S.M., "The Yiddish Stage", The New York Times, Sept. 27, 1925 (X2)
- Adler, Jacob, A Life on the Stage: A Memoir, translated and with commentary by Lulla Rosenfeld, Knopf, New York, 1999, ISBN 0-679-41351-0. In a comment on p. 377, Rosenfeld mentions "Muni Weisenfreund, now Paul Muni".
[edit] External links
- Paul Muni at the Internet Movie Database
- Paul Muni at the TCM Movie Database
- Paul Muni at the Internet Broadway Database
- Paul Muni in The Amazing Doctor Clitterhouse (1947 radio version)
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Victor McLaglen for The Informer | Academy Award for Best Actor 1936 for The Story of Louis Pasteur | Succeeded by Spencer Tracy for Captains Courageous |
| Preceded by Walter Huston for Dodsworth | NYFCC Award for Best Actor 1937 for The Life of Emile Zola | Succeeded by James Cagney for Angels with Dirty Faces |
| Preceded by Alfred Lunt for Quadrille | Best Leading Actor in a Play 1956 Inherit the Wind | Succeeded by Fredric March for Long Day's Journey Into Night |
es:Paul Muni fr:Paul Muni it:Paul Muni he:פול מוני (שחקן) nl:Paul Muni ja:ポール・ムニ no:Paul Muni ru:Пол Муни fi:Paul Muni sv:Paul Muni
Categories: American film actors | Best Actor Academy Award winners | Tony Award winners | Hollywood Walk of Fame | American Jews | Jewish actors | Jewish film and theatre | Austrian-Americans | Naturalized citizens of the United States | Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery | 1895 births | 1967 deaths
