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Ray Milland
| Biography |
Ray Milland was born Reginald Alfred John Truscott-Jones on January 3, 1907 on a mountain called Cymla, above the town of Neath in Wales. He took his stage name from the flat area of land called the mill lands in Neath, which he remembered fondly in his youth. After three years of service as a guardsman with the Royal Household Cavalry in London, he entered British films in 1929.
After several roles, both big and small, he set out for Hollywood in 1930. For several years he played mostly second leads, usually as the hero's friend or rival, but graduated to leads in the mid-30s. Charming and debonair, he played suave, self-assured romantic leading men in many drawing-room comedies and an occasional mystery or adventure.
Veteran of 57 years in the movies, Ray Milland is remembered as a suave unflappable British gentleman. In 1945 Milland won the Oscar for his gut-wrenching portrayal of an alcoholic writer trying to stay dry in The Lost Weekend. Then in 1954 Milland portrayed the suave and mannerly accomplice in Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M for Murder.
Most of his subsequent roles were less rewarding, but he often proved capable of overcoming minor vehicles with interesting characterizations. After an absence of several years, he returned to the screen in 1970, playing a character part in Love Story, then resumed playing leads in low-budget horror films. He also starred in the TV comedy series The Ray Milland Show'' (1953---55) and in the drama series `Markham' (1959---60). A book-loving homebody, Milland kept away from the Hollywood glitter and was rarely mentioned in the gossip columns. He was married to Mal, the same woman for 54 years. Ray Milland died March 10, 1986 in Torrance California of lung cancer. |
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