1936 in film
Template:Short description Template:Year nav topic5 Template:Yearsinfilm The following is an overview of 1936 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
Top-grossing films (U.S.)
[edit]The top ten 1936 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
| Rank | Title | Distributor | Domestic rentals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Great Ziegfeld | MGM | $3,089,000<ref name="Mannix">Template:Citation.</ref> |
| 2 | San Francisco | $2,868,000<ref name=HollywoodDivaBook>Template:Cite book</ref> | |
| 3 | The Plainsman | Paramount | $2,278,533<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> |
| 4 | After the Thin Man | MGM | $1,992,000<ref name="Mannix"/> |
| 5 | Modern Times | United Artists | $1,800,000<ref name=HollywoodStoryBook>Template:Cite book</ref> |
| 6 | Anthony Adverse | Warner Bros. | $1,783,000<ref>Warner Bros financial information in The William Schaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 16 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551</ref> |
| 7 | Strike Me Pink | United Artists | $1,700,000<ref name=HollywoodStoryBook/> |
| 8 | Rose Marie | MGM | $1,695,000<ref name="Mannix"/> |
| 9 | Swing Time | RKO | $1,624,000<ref name="rko">Richard Jewel (1994) 'RKO Film Grosses: 1931–1951', Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Vol. 14 No. 1, p.55</ref> |
| 10 | Libeled Lady | MGM | $1,601,000<ref name="Mannix"/> |
Events
[edit]- January 9 – Silent screen actor John Gilbert, perhaps best known for his appearances in films such as The Merry Widow and The Big Parade, dies suddenly of a heart attack at his Bel Air home, aged 38.
- February 15 – The first Republic serial, Darkest Africa, is released.
- May 29 – Fritz Lang's first Hollywood film, Fury, starring Spencer Tracy and Bruce Cabot, is released.
- September 14 – Film producer Irving Thalberg, often referred by many as the "Boy Wonder of Hollywood", dies from pneumonia at his home in Santa Monica, aged 37.
Academy Awards
[edit]- Best Picture: The Great Ziegfeld – Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
- Best Director: Frank Capra – Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
- Best Actor: Paul Muni – The Story of Louis Pasteur
- Best Actress: Luise Rainer – The Great Ziegfeld
- Best Supporting Actor: Walter Brennan – Come and Get It
- Best Supporting Actress: Gale Sondergaard – Anthony Adverse
Top Ten Money Making Stars
[edit]Exhibitors selected the following as the Top Ten Money Making Stars of the Year in Quigley Publishing Company's annual poll.<ref name="1936Poll">Template:Cite news</ref>
| Rank | Actor/Actress |
|---|---|
| 1. | Shirley Temple |
| 2. | Clark Gable |
| 3. | Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers |
| 4. | Robert Taylor |
| 5. | Joe E. Brown |
| 6. | Dick Powell |
| 7. | Joan Crawford |
| 8. | Claudette Colbert |
| 9. | Jeanette MacDonald |
| 10. | Gary Cooper |
Top Western stars
[edit]A poll of the top Western stars was also published for the first time.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
| Rank | Actor/Actress |
|---|---|
| 1. | Buck Jones |
| 2. | George O'Brien |
| 3. | Gene Autry |
| 4. | William Boyd |
| 5. | Ken Maynard |
| 6. | Dick Foran |
| 7. | John Wayne |
| 8. | Tim McCoy |
| 9. | Hoot Gibson |
| 10. | Buster Crabbe |
1936 film releases
[edit]United States unless stated.
January–March
[edit]- January 1936
- 16 January
- 17 January
- 20 January
- 22 January
- 24 January
- 28 January
- 30 January
- February 1936
- 6 February
- 7 February
- 14 February
- 15 February
- 19 February
- 20 February
- 22 February
- 25 February
- 28 February
- 29 February
- March 1936
- 1 March
- 2 March
- 6 March
- 9 March
- 13 March
- 18 March
- 20 March
- 22 March
- 28 March
- 30 March
April–June
[edit]- April 1936
- 4 April
- 10 April
- 11 April
- 16 April
- 20 April
- 24 April
- 30 April
- May 1936
- 6 May
- 8 May
- 11 May
- 17 May
- 19 May
- Love in Exile (GB)
- 20 May
- Broken Blossoms (GB)
- 26 May
- 28 May
- 29 May
- June 1936
- 5 June
- 6 June
- 14 June
- 15 June
- 17 June
- 20 June
- 26 June
July–September
[edit]- July 1936
- 10 July
- 16 July
- 22 July
- 24 July
- 28 July
- 29 July
- August 1936
- 10 August
- Where There's a Will (GB)
- 20 August
- 26 August
- East Meets West (UK)
- 27 August
- 28 August
- 10 August
- September 1936
- 1 September
- 2 September
- 4 September
- 6 September
- 9 September
- 10 September
- Dusty Ermine (UK)
- 11 September
- 15 September
- 23 September
- 25 September
- 26 September
- 30 September
- Yiddle with his Fiddle (Poland/U.S.)
October–December
[edit]- October 1936
- 1 October
- 6 October
- 9 October
- 15 October
- 16 October
- 20 October
- 22 October
- Crime Over London (GB)
- 27 October
- 30 October
- November 1936
- 1 November
- 6 November
- 12 November
- 13 November
- 16 November
- 20 November
- 25 November
- 26 November
- 27 November
- December 1936
- 1 December
- 2 December
- 11 December
- 12 December
- 20 December
- 21 December
- Forget Me Not (UK)
- 24 December
- 25 December
- 26 December
- 31 December
Notable films released in 1936
[edit]United States unless stated.
0–9
[edit]- 13 Hours by Air, directed by Mitchell Leisen, starring Fred MacMurray, Joan Bennett and ZaSu Pitts
- 15 Maiden Lane, directed by Allan Dwan, starring Claire Trevor and Cesar Romero
A
[edit]- Accused, directed by Thornton Freeland, starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Dolores del Río – (GB)
- Achhoot Kanya (Untouchable Maiden), directed by Franz Osten, starring Ashok Kumar and Devika Rani – (India)
- After the Thin Man, directed by W. S. Van Dyke, starring William Powell, Myrna Loy and James Stewart
- Allá en el Rancho Grande (Out on the Great Ranch), directed by Fernando de Fuentes, starring Tito Guízar and Esther Fernández – (Mexico)
- The Amazing Quest of Ernest Bliss, directed by Alfred Zeisler, starring Cary Grant and Mary Brian – (GB)
- Anthony Adverse, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Fredric March and Olivia de Havilland
- Anything Goes, directed by Lewis Milestone, starring Bing Crosby, Ethel Merman and Ida Lupino
- Augustus the Strong (August der Starke), directed by Paul Wegener, starring Michael Bohnen – (Germany/Poland)
B
[edit]- Black Eyes (Cheshmhay-e Siah), directed by Abdolhossein Sepanta – (Iran)
- Blood on Wolf Mountain (Láng shān dié xuě jì), directed by Fei Mu, starring Li Lili – (China)
- The Bohemian Girl, directed by James W. Horne and Charley Rogers, starring Laurel and Hardy
- The Bold Caballero, directed by Wells Root, starring Robert Livingston
- Born to Dance, directed by Roy Del Ruth, starring Eleanor Powell, James Stewart and Una Merkel
- Broken Blossoms, directed by John Brahm, starring Dolly Haas and Emlyn Williams – (GB)
- Bullets or Ballots, directed by William Keighley, starring Edward G. Robinson, Joan Blondell and Humphrey Bogart
- By the Bluest of Seas (U samogo sinego morya), directed by Boris Barnet – (USSR)
C
[edit]- Cain and Mabel, directed by Lloyd Bacon, starring Marion Davies and Clark Gable
- Camel Through the Eye of a Needle (Velbloud uchem jehly), directed by and starring Hugo Haas – (Czechoslovakia)
- Camille, directed by George Cukor, starring Greta Garbo, Robert Taylor and Lionel Barrymore
- Captain January, directed by David Butler, starring Shirley Temple
- The Case Against Mrs. Ames, directed by William A. Seiter, starring Madeleine Carroll and George Brent
- Ceiling Zero, directed by Howard Hawks, starring James Cagney and Pat O'Brien
- César, directed by Marcel Pagnol, starring Raimu – (France)
- The Charge of the Light Brigade, directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland
- Charlie Chan at the Opera, directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, starring Warner Oland and Boris Karloff
- The Children of Captain Grant (Deti kapitana Granta), directed by Vladimir Vajnshtok – (USSR)
- Circus (Tsirk), directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, starring Lyubov Orlova – (USSR)
- Collegiate, directed by Ralph Murphy, starring Jack Oakie, Frances Langford and Betty Grable
- Come and Get It, directed by Howard Hawks and William Wyler, starring Edward Arnold, Joel McCrea and Walter Brennan
- Craig's Wife, directed by Dorothy Arzner, starring Rosalind Russell and John Boles
- The Crime of Monsieur Lange (Le Crime de Monsieur Lange), directed by Jean Renoir, starring René Lefèvre – (France)
- Crime Over London, directed by Alfred Zeisler, starring Margot Grahame and Paul Cavanagh – (GB)
D
[edit]- Daniel Boone, directed by David Howard, starring George O'Brien
- The Desert Island (Lang tao sha), directed by Wu Yonggang – (China)
- Desire, directed by Frank Borzage, starring Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper
- Devdas, directed by Pramathesh Barua, starring K. L. Saigal – (India)
- The Devil Doll, directed by Tod Browning, starring Lionel Barrymore and Maureen O'Sullivan
- Dimples, directed by William A. Seiter, starring Shirley Temple and Frank Morgan
- Dodsworth, directed by William Wyler, starring Walter Huston, Ruth Chatterton, Mary Astor and David Niven
- Dracula's Daughter, directed by Lambert Hillyer, starring Otto Kruger and Gloria Holden
- Dusty Ermine, directed by Bernard Vorhaus, directed by Bernard Vorhaus, starring Anthony Bushell and Jane Baxter – (GB)
E
[edit]- East Meets West, directed by Herbert Mason, starring George Arliss – (GB)
- Empty Saddles, directed by Lesley Selander, starring Buck Jones and Louise Brooks
- Everything Is Thunder, directed by Milton Rosmer, starring Constance Bennett – (GB)
F
[edit]- Follow the Fleet, directed by Mark Sandrich, starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers and Randolph Scott
- Forget Me Not, directed by Zoltan Korda, starring Beniamino Gigli and Joan Gardner – (GB)
- The Four Musketeers (I quattro moschettieri), directed by Carlo Campogalliani – (Italy)
- Fury, directed by Fritz Lang, starring Sylvia Sidney and Spencer Tracy
G
[edit]- The Garden of Allah, directed by Richard Boleslawski, starring Marlene Dietrich and Charles Boyer
- The General Died at Dawn, directed by Lewis Milestone, starring Gary Cooper and Madeleine Carroll
- General Spanky, directed by Fred Newmeyer and Gordon Douglas, starring Spanky McFarland
- Girl Friends (Podrugi), directed by Lev Arnshtam, starring Zoya Fyodorova – (USSR)
- Go West, Young Man, directed by Henry Hathaway, starring Mae West, Warren William and Randolph Scott
- Gold Diggers of 1937, directed by Lloyd Bacon, starring Dick Powell, Joan Blondell and Glenda Farrell
- The Gorgeous Hussy, directed by Clarence Brown, starring Joan Crawford, Robert Taylor, Lionel Barrymore, Franchot Tone, Melvyn Douglas and James Stewart
- The Great Ziegfeld, directed by Robert Z. Leonard, starring William Powell, Myrna Loy, Luise Rainer and Frank Morgan
- Green Pastures, directed by Marc Connelly and William Keighley, starring Rex Ingram and Eddie "Rochester" Anderson
H
[edit]- Hearts Divided, directed by Frank Borzage, starring Marion Davies and Dick Powell
- Hearts in Bondage, directed by Lew Ayres, starring James Dunn, David Manners and Mae Clarke
- Home Guardsman Bruggler (Standschütze Bruggler), directed by Werner Klingler – (Germany)
- Hopalong Cassidy Returns, directed by Nate Watt, starring William Boyd
I
[edit]- Intermezzo, directed by Gustaf Molander, starring Gösta Ekman and Ingrid Bergman – (Sweden)
- The Invisible Ray, directed by Lambert Hillyer, starring Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi
- It Had to Happen, directed by Roy Del Ruth, starring George Raft and Rosalind Russell
- It's Love Again, directed by Victor Saville, starring Jessie Matthews and Robert Young – (GB)
J
[edit]- The Jungle Princess, directed by Wilhelm Thiele, starring Dorothy Lamour and Ray Milland
K
[edit]- Der Kaiser von Kalifornien (The Emperor of California), directed by and starring Luis Trenker – (Germany)
- Klondike Annie, directed by Raoul Walsh, starring Mae West and Victor McLaglen
L
[edit]- Laburnum Grove, directed by Carol Reed, starring Edmund Gwenn and Cedric Hardwicke – (GB)
- The Last of the Mohicans, directed by George B. Seitz, starring Randolph Scott
- The Last Outlaw, directed by Christy Cabanne, starring Harry Carey and Hoot Gibson
- The Lawless Nineties, directed by Joseph Kane, starring John Wayne
- Legion of Terror, directed by Charles C. Coleman, starring Bruce Cabot
- Let's Go With Pancho Villa (Vámonos con Pancho Villa), directed by Fernando de Fuentes – (Mexico)
- Libeled Lady, directed by Jack Conway, starring Jean Harlow, William Powell, Myrna Loy and Spencer Tracy
- Limelight, directed by Herbert Wilcox, starring Anna Neagle – (GB)
- Little Lord Fauntleroy, directed by John Cromwell, starring Freddie Bartholomew and Dolores Costello
- Lloyd's of London, directed by Henry King, starring Freddie Bartholomew, Madeleine Carroll and Tyrone Power
- Love Before Breakfast, directed by Walter Lang, starring Carole Lombard, Preston Foster and Cesar Romero
- Love in Exile, directed by Alfred L. Werker, starring Clive Brook and Helen Vinson – (GB)
- Love on the Run, directed by W. S. Van Dyke. starring Joan Crawford, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone
- The Lower Depths (Les Bas-fonds), directed by Jean Renoir, starring Jean Gabin – (France)
M
[edit]- The Man Who Changed His Mind, directed by Robert Stevenson, starring Boris Karloff – (GB)
- Mayerling, directed by Anatole Litvak starring Charles Boyer and Danielle Darrieux – (France)
- Men Are Not Gods, directed by Walter Reisch, starring Miriam Hopkins and Gertrude Lawrence – (GB)
- A Message to Garcia, directed by George Marshall, starring Wallace Beery, Barbara Stanwyck and John Boles
- The Milky Way, directed by Leo McCarey, starring Harold Lloyd and Adolphe Menjou
- Modern Times, a Charlie Chaplin film, with Paulette Goddard
- The Moon's Our Home, directed by William A. Seiter, starring Margaret Sullavan, Henry Fonda and Walter Brennan
- Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, directed by Frank Capra, starring Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur
- My Man Godfrey, directed by Gregory La Cava, starring William Powell and Carole Lombard
N
[edit]- Next Time We Love, directed by Edward H. Griffith, starring Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart and Ray Milland
- Night Mail, documentary directed by Harry Watt and Basil Wright – (GB)
O
[edit]- The Only Son (Hitori musuko), directed by Yasujirō Ozu – (Japan)
- Osaka Elegy (Naniwa erejī), directed by Kenji Mizoguchi, starring Isuzu Yamada – (Japan)
- Our Relations, directed by Harry Lachman, starring Laurel and Hardy
P
[edit]- Palm Springs, directed by Aubrey Scotto, starring Frances Langford, Guy Standing and David Niven
- Paradise Road (Ulička v ráji), directed by Martin Frič, starring Hugo Haas – (Czechoslovakia)
- Pennies from Heaven, directed by Norman Z. McLeod, starring Bing Crosby, Madge Evans and Louis Armstrong
- The Petrified Forest, directed by Archie Mayo, starring Leslie Howard, Bette Davis and Humphrey Bogart
- The Plainsman, directed by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur and Charles Bickford
- Poor Little Rich Girl, directed by Irving Cummings, starring Shirley Temple, Alice Faye and Gloria Stuart
- Poppy, directed by A. Edward Sutherland, starring W. C. Fields
- The Prisoner of Shark Island, directed by John Ford, starring Warner Baxter and Gloria Stuart
- Private Number, directed by Roy Del Ruth, starring Loretta Young, Robert Taylor and Basil Rathbone
R
[edit]- Ramona, directed by Henry King, starring Loretta Young and Don Ameche
- Rebellion, directed by Lynn Shores, starring Tom Keene and Rita Hayworth
- Red River Valley, directed by B. Reeves Eason, starring Gene Autry
- Redes, directed by Fred Zinnemann – (Mexico)
- Reefer Madness, directed by Louis J. Gasnier
- Rembrandt, directed by Alexander Korda, starring Charles Laughton – (GB)
- Road Gang, directed by Louis King, starring Donald Woods
- The Road to Glory, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Fredric March, Warner Baxter and Lionel Barrymore
- Romeo and Juliet, directed by George Cukor, starring Norma Shearer, Leslie Howard, John Barrymore and Basil Rathbone
- Rose Marie, directed by W. S. Van Dyke, starring Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy
S
[edit]- Sabotage, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Sylvia Sidney and Oskar Homolka – (GB)
- San Francisco, directed by W. S. Van Dyke, starring Clark Gable, Jeanette MacDonald and Spencer Tracy
- Satan Met a Lady, directed by William Dieterle, starring Bette Davis and Warren William
- Secret Agent, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Madeleine Carroll, Peter Lorre, John Gielgud and Robert Young – (GB)
- Show Boat, directed by James Whale, starring Irene Dunne, Allan Jones and Paul Robeson
- Silly Billies, directed by Fred Guiol, starring Wheeler & Woolsey
- The Singing Kid, directed by William Keighley, starring Al Jolson
- Sisters of the Gion (Gion no kyōdai), directed by Kenji Mizoguchi – (Japan)
- Small Town Girl, directed by William Wellman, starring Janet Gaynor, Robert Taylor, Lewis Stone and James Stewart
- Son of Mongolia (Syn Mongolii), directed by Ilya Trauberg – (Mongolia)
- Sportszerelem (Love of Sport), directed by László Kardos – (Hungary)
- Spy of Napoleon, directed by Maurice Elvey, starring Richard Barthelmess and Dolly Haas – (GB)
- The Story of Louis Pasteur, directed by William Dieterle, starring Paul Muni
- Stowaway, directed by William A. Seiter, starring Shirley Temple, Robert Young and Alice Faye
- Strike Me Pink, directed by Norman Taurog, starring Eddie Cantor and Ethel Merman
- Sutter's Gold, directed by James Cruze, starring Edward Arnold
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, directed by George King, starring Tod Slaughter – (GB)
- Swing Time, directed by George Stevens, starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
T
[edit]- Tarzan Escapes, directed by Richard Thorpe, starring Johnny Weissmuller and Maureen O'Sullivan
- The Texas Rangers, directed by King Vidor, starring Fred MacMurray, Jack Oakie and Jean Parker
- Theodora Goes Wild, directed by Richard Boleslawski, starring Irene Dunne and Melvyn Douglas
- These Three, directed by William Wyler, starring Miriam Hopkins, Merle Oberon and Joel McCrea
- Things to Come, directed by William Cameron Menzies, starring Raymond Massey, Ralph Richardson and Cedric Hardwicke – (GB)
- Three Godfathers, directed by Richard Boleslawski, starring Chester Morris, Lewis Stone and Walter Brennan
- Till We Meet Again, directed by Robert Florey, starring Herbert Marshall and Gertrude Michael
- Too Many Parents, directed by Robert F. McGowan, starring Frances Farmer
- The Trail of the Lonesome Pine, directed by Henry Hathaway, starring Fred MacMurray, Sylvia Sidney and Henry Fonda
- Tudor Rose, directed by Robert Stevenson, starring Cedric Hardwicke, Nova Pilbeam and John Mills – (GB)
W
[edit]- The Walking Dead, directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Boris Karloff, Ricardo Cortez and Edmund Gwenn
- Where There's a Will, directed by William Beaudine, starring Will Hay and Graham Moffatt – (GB)
- Whom the Gods Love, directed by Basil Dean, starring Stephen Haggard – (GB)
- Wife vs. Secretary, directed by Clarence Brown, starring Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, Myrna Loy and James Stewart
- Windbag the Sailor, directed by William Beaudine, starring Will Hay, Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt – (GB)
- A Woman Rebels, directed by Mark Sandrich, starring Katharine Hepburn and Herbert Marshall
Y
[edit]- Yiddle with his Fiddle (Yidl Mitn Fidl), directed by Joseph Green, starring Molly Picon – (Poland)
Serials
[edit]- Ace Drummond, starring John (Dusty) King
- The Adventures of Frank Merriwell
- Template:Interlanguage link
- The Clutching Hand
- Custer's Last Stand
- Darkest Africa, starring Clyde Beatty
- Flash Gordon, starring Buster Crabbe
- The Phantom Rider
- Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island, starring Ray Mala
- Shadow of Chinatown
- Undersea Kingdom, starring Ray Corrigan
- The Vigilantes Are Coming
Comedy film series
[edit]- Harold Lloyd (1913–1938)
- Charlie Chaplin (1914–1940)
- Lupino Lane (1915–1939)
- Buster Keaton (1917–1928)
- Laurel and Hardy (1927–1940)
- Our Gang (1922–1944)
- Harry Langdon (1924–1936)
- Wheeler & Woolsey (1929–1937)
- The Marx Brothers (1929–1946)
- The Three Stooges (1934–1959)
Animated short film series
[edit]- Felix the Cat (1919-1936)
- Krazy Kat (1925–1940)
- Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (1927–1938)
- Mickey Mouse (1928–1953)
- Silly Symphonies
- Screen Songs (1929–1938)
- Looney Tunes (1930–1969)
- Terrytoons (1930–1964)
- Merrie Melodies (1931–1969)
- Scrappy (1931–1941)
- Betty Boop (1932–1939)
- Popeye (1933–1957)
- ComiColor Cartoons (1933-1936)
- Happy Harmonies (1934–1938)
- Color Rhapsodies (1934–1949)
- Rainbow Parades (1935-1936)
- Meany, Miny, and Moe (1936–1937)
Births
[edit]- January 9 – K Callan, American author and actress
- January 18 – Tim Barlow, English actor (d. 2023)
- January 22 – Nyree Dawn Porter, English actress (d. 2001)
- January 27 – Troy Donahue, American actor (d. 2001)
- January 28 – Alan Alda, American actor
- February 3 – Jeanine Basinger, American film historian
- February 4 – Gary Conway, American actor and screenwriter
- February 11 – Burt Reynolds, American actor (d. 2018)
- February 12
- Joe Don Baker, American character actor (d. 2025)
- Paul Shenar, American actor (d. 1989)
- February 14
- Joan O'Brien, American actor, singer (d. 2025)
- Andrew Prine, American actor (d. 2022)
- February 17 – Jim Brown, American actor (d. 2023)
- February 29 – Alex Rocco, American actor (d. 2015)
- March 1 – Georgina Spelvin, born Shelley Graham, American pornographic film actress
- March 5 – Dean Stockwell, American actor (d. 2021)
- March 8 – Sue Ane Langdon, American actress
- March 9 – Marty Ingels, American actor, comedian, comedy sketch writer and theatrical agent (d. 2015)
- March 17 - Patty Maloney, American actress (d. 2025)
- March 19 – Ursula Andress, Swiss actress
- March 23 – Luisa Mattioli, Italian actress (d. 2021)
- April 9 – Avery Schreiber, American actor and comedian (d. 2002)
- April 12 – Charles Napier, American character actor (d. 2011)
- April 19 – Andy Romano, American actor (d. 2022)
- April 29 - Lane Smith, American actor (d. 2005)
- May 1 – Danièle Huillet, French director (d. 2006)
- May 4 – Eleanor Coppola, American documentary filmmaker, artist, and writer (d. 2024)
- May 9
- Albert Finney, English actor (d. 2019)
- Glenda Jackson, English actress and politician (d. 2023)
- May 12 – Millie Perkins, American former actress
- May 14 – Bobby Darin, American singer, songwriter, actor (d. 1973)
- May 17 – Dennis Hopper, American actor and performance artist (d. 2010)
- May 20 – Anthony Zerbe, American actor
- May 23 – Charles Kimbrough, American actor (d. 2023)
- May 27 – Louis Gossett Jr., American actor (d. 2024)
- May 28 – John Wilder, American producer, writer and former actor
- May 30 – Keir Dullea, American actor
- June 3 – Larry McMurtry, American novelist and screenwriter (d. 2021)
- June 4 – Bruce Dern, American actor
- June 8 – James Darren, American actor, director and singer (d. 2024)
- June 19 - Takeshi Aono, Japanese voice actor and narrator (d. 2012)
- June 22 – Kris Kristofferson, American actor, musician and songwriter (d. 2024)
- June 24
- Robert Downey Sr., American actor and director (d. 2021)
- Paul L. Smith, American-Israeli actor and director (d. 2012)
- June 27 – Shirley Anne Field, English actress (d. 2023)
- July 1 – Ron Masak, American actor (d. 2022)
- July 5 – Shirley Knight, American actress (d. 2020)
- July 8 - William Cort, American actor (d. 1993)
- July 9
- Dick Richards, American director, producer and screenwriter
- Richard Wilson, Scottish actor, theatre director and broadcaster
- July 24
- Ruth Buzzi, American actress, comedian and singer (d. 2025)
- Mark Goddard, American actor (d. 2023)
- July 25 - August Schellenberg, Canadian actor (d. 2013)
- August 5 - John Saxon, American actor (d. 2020)
- August 15 - Pat Priest, American actress
- August 16 - Anita Gillette, American actress
- August 17 – Floyd Westerman, American musician, political activist, and actor (d. 2007)
- August 18 – Robert Redford, American actor and director
- August 20
- Míriam Colón, Puerto Rican actress (d. 2017)
- Philip Voss, British actor (d. 2020)
- August 25 – Hugh Hudson, English director (d. 2023)
- September 7 – Bruce Gray, Canadian actor (d. 2017)
- September 11 - Charles Dierkop, American character actor (d. 2024)
- September 14 - Walter Koenig, American actor and screenwriter
- September 19 - Anna Karen, British-South African actress (d. 2022)
- September 20
- Andrew Davies, Welsh writer
- Pepper Martin, Canadian-American actor (d. 2022)
- September 21 - Burr DeBenning, American character actor (d. 2003)
- September 24 - Jim Henson, American puppeteer, animator, actor, director and screenwriter (d. 1990)
- October 8 - Leonid Kuravlyov, Russian actor (d. 2022)
- October 9 – Brian Blessed, English actor
- October 16
- Peter Bowles, English actor (d. 2022)
- Irina Demick, French actress (d. 2004)
- October 19 - Tony Lo Bianco, Italian-American actor (d. 2024)
- October 23 - Philip Kaufman, American director and screenwriter
- October 24 – David Nelson, American actor, director and producer (d. 2011)
- October 26 - Shelley Morrison, American actress (d. 2019)
- October 28 - Joe Spinell, American character actor (d. 1989)
- November 4 - Jan Tříska, Czech actor (d. 2017)
- November 9 – Teddy Infuhr, American child actor (d. 2007)
- November 19 - Dick Cavett, American television personality, comedian and former talk show host
- November 25 - Matt Clark, American actor
- November 27 – Joel Barcellos, Brazilian actor (d. 2018)
- December 1 - Melissa Jaffer, Australian actress
- December 3
- Mary Alice, American actress (d. 2022)
- Sir Horace Ové, Trinidadian-born British filmmaker (d. 2023)
- December 5 - John Erwin, American voice actor (d. 2024)
- December 6 - David Ossman, American writer and comedian
- December 8 – David Carradine, American actor and martial artist (d. 2009)
- December 10 – Howard Smith, American journalist, director and producer (d. 2014)
- December 13 - Cliff Emmich, American actor (d. 2022)
- December 18 - Gary Gray, American child actor (d. 2006)
- December 22 – Hector Elizondo, American actor
- December 23
- Frederic Forrest, American actor (d. 2023)
- James Stacy, American actor (d. 2016)
- December 25 – Ismail Merchant, Indian film producer (d. 2005)
- December 28 - Rhys McConnochie, New Zealand-born Australian actor
- December 29 – Mary Tyler Moore, American actress (d. 2017)
Deaths
[edit]- January 9
- John Gilbert, American actor (b. 1897)
- Frank Rice, American actor (b. 1892)
- January 24 – Harry T. Morey, American actor (b. 1873)
- February 20 – Max Schreck, German actor (b. 1879)
- February 28 – Justus Hagman, Swedish actor (b. 1859)
- April 6 – Väinö Lehmus, Finnish actor (b. 1886)
- June 7 - Jobyna Howland, American actress (b. 1880)
- June 17 – Henry B. Walthall, American actor (b. 1878)
- July 11 - James Murray, American actor (b. 1901)
- September 14 – Irving Thalberg, American film producer (b. 1899)
- October 10 - William H. Tooker, American actor
- October 17 – Suzanne Bianchetti, French actress (b. 1889)