Spencer Tracy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Born: 5 Apr 1900, Milwaukee, WI |
Actor |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Spencer Tracy: one of the most enduring stars of our time. Although he was plagued by alcoholism, a deteriorating marriage, and sleepless nights, his onscreen characters give a fascinating glimpse into this intriguing man. Spencer Bonaventure Tracy was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to John Edward Tracy and his wife Caroline Brown. His father was a truck salesman, and their relationship would be one that plagued Tracy long into his life. He attended Marquette Academy with Pat O'Brien. Both the boys left school to enlist in the Navy at the start of World War I, but Tracy never left Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia until the end of the war. He then attended Ripon College where he did so well in a play entitled, "The Truth" that he decided to act as a career. He went on to New York, rooming with Pat, while they attended the Academy of Dramatic Arts. While playing minor stock parts, he supported himself with jobs as bellhop, janitor and salesman. His big break came while doing "The Last Mile" in 1932. Director John Ford saw the play and signed Tracy to do Up the River for Fox Pictures. He and his family moved to Hollywood shortly after. In 1935 he moved to MGM. Oscar certainly loved Spence, especially in '37 and '38; for he was the first actor ever to win back-to-back Oscars for Captains Courageous and Boys Town (best actor category). He was nominated for San Francisco, Father of the Bride, Bad Day at Black Rock, The Old Man and the Sea, Inherit the Wind, Judgment at Nuremberg, and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||