George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a Russian-born British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous characters. He is remembered for his roles as the wicked Jack Favell in Rebecca (1940), Scott Ffolliott in Foreign Correspondent (1940, a rare heroic part), The Saran of Gaza in Samson and Delilah (1949, the most popular film of the year), theatre critic Addison DeWitt in All About Eve (1950, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor), Sir Brian De Bois-Guilbert in Ivanhoe (1952), King Richard the Lionheart in King Richard and the Crusaders (1954), Mr. Freeze in a two-part episode of Batman (1966), and the voice of Shere Khan in Disney's The Jungle Book (1967). He also starred as Simon Templar, in five of the eight films in The Saint series (1939–1941),The Guardian (London), 26 April 1972, p. 5. and as a suave Saint-like crimefighter in the first four of the sixteen The Falcon films (1941–1942).
Early life Sanders was born on 3 July 1906 in Saint Petersburg, at number 6 Petrovski Ostrov, to rope manufacturer Henry Sanders and horticulturist Margaret (née Kolbe), who was also born in Saint Petersburg, of mostly German, but also Estonian and Scottish ancestry. (Sanders wrote of his mother's descent from "the Thomas Clayhills of Dundee, who went to Estonia in 1626 to establish a business there".) Sanders referred to his parents as "well-off" and noted his mother's "forebears of solid social position and impeccable respectability", stating that "to the best of (his) knowledge, (his) father came in the mail".
A biography published in 1990 alleged that family members' "recent disclosures... indicate" that Sanders' father was the out-of-wedlock son of a Russian noblewoman of the Tsar's court, and a prince of the House of Oldenburg who was married to a sister of the Tsar.Although Nicholas II's sister Olga Alexandrovna married Duke Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg, he was born in 1868, and therefore could not have been the father of Henry Sanders, born circa 1870- https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-47189?rskey=kfCHPc&result=4 At the time of Henry Sanders' birth, the Anglo-Russian Sanders family were living at Saint Petersburg; the mother, Dagmar, was a lady-in-waiting to the Dowager Empress, and it was said to be through this connection Henry came to be adopted by the Sanders family.
In 1917, at the outbreak of the Russian Revolution, Sanders and his family moved to Great Britain.Sanders 1960, pp. 9–10, 13. Like his brother, he attended Bedales School and Brighton College, then went on to Manchester Technical College, after which he worked in textile research.Sanders 1960, p. 17.
Sanders travelled to South America, where he managed a tobacco plantation. The Depression sent him back to Britain. He worked at an advertising agency, where the company secretary, aspiring actress Greer Garson, suggested that he take up a career in acting.Sanders 1960, p. 54.
Career
Early British work Sanders learned how to sing and got a role on stage in Ballyhoo, which had only a short run, but helped establish him as an actor.
He began to work regularly on the British stage, appearing several times with Edna Best. He co-starred with Dennis King in The Command Performance.
Sanders travelled to New York to appear on Broadway in a production of Noël Coward's Conversation Piece (1934), directed by Coward, which ran for only 55 performances.
Hollywood and 20th Century-Fox 20th Century-Fox was looking for an actor to play a villain in its Hollywood-made film Lloyd's of London (1936). Sanders was duly cast as Lord Everett Stacy, opposite Tyrone Power, in one of his first leads, as the hero; Sanders' smooth, upper-class English accent, his sleek manner, and his suave, superior, and somewhat threatening air made him in demand for American films for years to come.Sanders 1960, p.117 Lloyd's of London was a big hit, and in November 1936, Fox placed Sanders under a seven-year contract.MISSES LOMBARD AND RUSSELL DEBATED FOR "IDIOT'S DELIGHT" Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 2 December 1936: 8.
Character roles Sanders returned to Hollywood, where RKO wanted him to play the hero in a series of B-movies, The Saint. The Saint in New York (1938) had already been made starring Louis Hayward in the title role, but when he decided not to return to the role, Sanders took over for The Saint Strikes Back (1939)."George Sanders to Play 'Saint' Role", by Edwin Schallert, Los Angeles Times 15 November 1938, p.A15. In 1940, Sanders played Jack Favell in Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca, opposite Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. He worked again with Hitchcock that same year on Foreign Correspondent.
A-picture leading man
Sanders was borrowed by United Artists to play the lead in The Moon and Sixpence (1942), based on the novel by W. Somerset Maugham."George Sanders to Be Seen in Strickland Role in Maugham's 'Moon and Sixpence, The New York Times, 21 February 1942, p.15.
RKO had cancelled its Saint series and replaced it with The Falcon in 1941. George Sanders was assigned the leading role of Gay Laurence, debonair man about town always involved in murder cases. Saint author Leslie Charteris thought the resemblance between the Falcon and the Saint was obvious, and sued the studio for unfair competition. Sanders himself was also unhappy about playing still another screen sleuth in still more "B" pictures, and bowed out of the series in 1942 after only four films. (He was replaced by his elder brother, Tom Conway.)
In July 1942, Fox suspended Sanders for refusing the lead in The Undying Monster. "I like to be seen in pictures that at least seem to be slightly worthwhile."George Sanders, or From Singer to Saint", by Theodore Strauss", The New York Times, 27 September 1942, p. X3. In September, he was again suspended for refusing an "unsympathetic role" in The Immortal Sergeant (he was replaced by Morton Lowry)."George Sanders Suspended by Fox for Withdrawing From 'The Immortal Sargeant'", The New York Times, 11 September 1942, p. 24. In November 1942, Fox and Sanders came to terms, with the studio offering him a raise in pay and the lead in a film, School for Saboteurs, which became They Came to Blow Up America."Fox Ends Differences With Sanders, Giving Him a Leading Part in 'School for Saboteurs, The New York Times, 18 November 1942, p.31.
RKO called him back for This Land Is Mine (1943). They bought an original story for him, Nine Lives, but the film was never made."RKO Will Star George Sanders in 'Nine Lives'", The New York Times, 15 July 1943, p. 25 He was lent to Columbia Pictures for Appointment in Berlin (1943)."George Sanders Gets Lead Role in 'Appointment in Berlin'", The New York Times, 6 February 1943, p. 8.
In February 1943, Fox announced it was developing three film projects for Sanders – The Porcelain Lady, a murder mystery, plus biopics of Charles Howard, 20th Earl of Suffolk, and a hero of World War II, and Canadian physician Norman Bethune. Fox originally announced that he would play the detective in Laura (1944) alongside Laird Cregar, but neither ended up being in the final film."Screen News Here and in Hollywood", The New York Times, 11 June 1943, p. 23. In 1947, Sanders portrayed King Charles II in Fox's lavish production of the scandalous historical bodice-ripper, Forever Amber.
Sanders signed a new three-film contract with RKO, starting with Action in Arabia (1944)."Star Profit by His Reputation for 'Cussedness, by Louella Parsons, The Washington Post, 25 August 1943, p. 16 Superficially, the film looked expensive but it was actually a low-budget feature, embellished by spectacular location footage filmed in 1933 for an unfinished production about Lawrence of Arabia.
All About Eve and beyond
For his role as the acerbic, cold-blooded theatre critic Addison DeWitt in All About Eve (1950), Sanders won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.McNally 2008, p. 33.
Sanders was leading man in Black Jack (1950), but was back to supporting-villain roles in I Can Get It for You Wholesale (1951). He signed a three-picture deal with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer where he appeared in The Light Touch (1951) and Ivanhoe (1952), playing Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert, dying in a duel with Robert Taylor after professing his love for Jewish maiden Rebecca, played by Elizabeth Taylor. It was a huge success."George Sanders Slated in Trio of MGM Films", Los Angeles Times, 27 May 1951, p.IV-9
Sanders went to Italy to appear opposite Ingrid Bergman in Journey to Italy (1954). Back in Hollywood, he made several films for MGM: Jupiter's Darling (1955), Moonfleet (1955), The Scarlet Coat (1955), and The King's Thief (1955) (again as Charles II).MGM Reports Schedule of 27 Feature Movies Los Angeles Times 4 August 1954: 18.
In 1955, Sanders was announced as hosting and occasionally appearing in The Ringmaster, a TV series about the circus.GEORGE SANDERS TO BE VIDEO HOST: Cast as Narrator of Filmed Series, 'The Ringmaster.' Built on Circus Stories New York Times 1 September 1955: 46.
Sanders played the lead in Death of a Scoundrel (1956) and the TV series The George Sanders Mystery Theater (1957).Drama: MGM and Japan Daiei in Deal for Star, Studio: Zsa Zsa May Face 'Ex' Scheuer, Philip K. Los Angeles Times 25 November 1955: B7.
He worked one last time with Power on Solomon and Sheba (1959); Power died suddenly during filming and was replaced by Yul Brynner.RKO Has New Lease on Life: Teleradio Financing Indies; Newsiest Newsmen Recalled Scheuer, Philip K. Los Angeles Times 11 April 1958: 21.
In 1960, Sanders ventured into the realm of science fiction/horror, starring in Village of the Damned as a professor who is determined to teach an unusual group of white-haired, glowing-eyed children how to be human.
In 1961, he appeared in The Rebel with Tony Hancock before being top-billed in Cairo (1963), then appeared in The Cracksman (1963), Dark Purpose (1964), and The Golden Head (1964). Peter Sellers and Sanders appeared together in The Pink Panther sequel A Shot in the Dark (1964). Sanders had earlier inspired Sellers's character Hercules Grytpype-Thynne in the BBC radio comedy series The Goon Show (1951–60).
In 1966, Sanders declared bankruptcy due to some poor investments.George Sanders The Guardian 26 April 1972: 5
Sanders was cast in the musical comedy Sherry! but withdrew from the show while it was out-of-town. He was replaced by Clive Revill for Broadway.Stubblebine, Donald J., Broadway Sheet Music, McFarland & Company, 1996, p. 252 (#2065)
Final films Sanders appeared briefly in the espionage thriller The Quiller Memorandum (1966), and in the crime-thriller Warning Shot (1967). He followed those up by voicing Shere Khan in Disney's animated film The Jungle Book (1967). He was featured in a quadruple role in the Sonny & Cher vehicle Good Times (1967), William Friedkin's debut film; followed by an eclectic variety of low-budget films, such as The Candy Man (1969) and the campy The Girl from Rio (1969).
In 1969, Sanders announced his retirement from acting.George Sanders's Sneer Mellows Flynn, Betty. Los Angeles Times 6 September 1969: a6 He had a major supporting role in John Huston's The Kremlin Letter (1970), in which his first scene showed him dressed in drag and playing the piano in a gay bar in San Francisco. He also obtained supporting roles in Doomwatch (1972) and Endless Night (1972), the latter being an adaptation of Agatha Christie's novel of the same name. He received top billing for his final film, Psychomania (1973), released posthumously.
Novels Two ghostwritten crime novels were published under his name to cash in on his fame at the height of his wartime film series. The first was Crime on My Hands (1944), written in the first person, and mentioning his Saint and Falcon films.