Lew Ayres
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- December 28, 1908
- Died
- December 30, 1996
- Birthplace
- Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Lew Ayres was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and raised in San Diego, California. A college dropout, he was found by a talent scout in the Coconut Grove nightclub in Los Angeles and entered Hollywood as a bit player. He was leading man to Greta Garbo in The Kiss (1929), but it was the role of Paul Baumer in All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) that was his big break. He was profoundly affected by the anti-war message of that film, and when, in 1942, the popular star of Young Dr. Kildare (1938) and subsequent Dr. Kildare films was drafted, he was a conscientious objector. America was outraged, and theaters vowed never to show his films again, but quietly he achieved the Medical Corps status he had requested, serving as a medic under fire in the South Pacific and as a chaplain's aid in New Guinea and the Phillipines. His return to film after the war was undistinguished until Johnny Belinda (1948) - his role as the sympathetic physician treating the deaf-mute Jane Wyman won him an Academy Award nomination as Best Actor. Subsequent movie roles were scarce; an opportunity to play Dr. Kildare in television was aborted when the network refused to honor his request for no cigarette sponsorship. He continued to act, but in the 1970s put his long experience into a project to bring to the west the philosophy of the East - the resulting film, Altars of the World (1976), while not a box-office success, won critical acclaim and a Golden Globe Award. Lew Ayres died in Los Angeles, California on December 30, 1996, just two days after his 88th birthday.
Filmography
- Checking Out: Grand Hotel
Checking Out: Grand Hotel 2004
as Self (archive footage)
Hart to Hart: Crimes of the Hart 1994
as Professor Cabel
Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker 1991
as actor 'Advise and 'Consent' (archive footage) (uncredited)
Cast the First Stone 1989
as Martin
Under Siege 1986
as John Pace
Don Camillo 1984
as Doc
Bruised Celluloid 1984
as Himself
Of Mice and Men 1981
as Candy
Reunion 1980
as Bob Hollander
Letters from Frank 1979
as Dan Miller
Suddenly, Love 1978
as Mr. Graham
The Story of Noah 1978
as Noah
Battlestar Galactica 1978
as President Adar
Damien - Omen II 1978
as Bill Atherton
End of the World 1977
as Com. Joseph Beckerman
Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident 1976
as Allen Dulles
That's Entertainment, Part II 1976
as (archive footage)
Altars of the World 1976
Director
Heatwave! 1974
as Dr. Grayson
The Questor Tapes 1974
as Vaslovik
Battle for the Planet of the Apes 1973
as Mandemus
The Stranger 1973
as Prof. Dylan MacAuley
The Man 1972
as Noah Calvin
The Biscuit Eater 1972
as Mr. Ames
She Waits 1972
as Dr. Sam Carpenter
Earth II 1971
as President Charles Carter Durant
Marcus Welby, M.D.: A Matter of Humanities 1969
as Dr. Andrew Swanson
Cocoon 1968
as The Governor
The Carpetbaggers 1964
as Mac McAllister
- The Upper Chamber
The Upper Chamber 1963
Actor
Advise & Consent 1962
as The Vice President
The Family Nobody Wanted 1956
as Carl Doss
- One Against Many
One Against Many 1956
as Dr. John Mohler
Donovan's Brain 1953
as Dr. Patrick J. Cory
No Escape 1953
as John Howard Tracy
New Mexico 1951
as Captain Hunt
The Capture 1950
as Lin Vanner / Lindley Brown
Johnny Belinda 1948
as Robert Richardson
The Unfaithful 1947
as Larry Hannaford
The Way of Peace 1947
as Narrator (voice)
Blow-Ups of 1946 1946
as Self
The Dark Mirror 1946
as Scott Elliott
Fingers at the Window 1942
as Oliver Duffy
Dr. Kildare's Victory 1942
as Dr. James Kildare
Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day 1941
as Dr. James Kildare
The People Vs. Dr. Kildare 1941
as Dr. James Kildare
Maisie Was a Lady 1941
as Bob Rawlston
Dr. Kildare's Crisis 1940
as Dr. James Kildare
A New Romance of Celluloid: The Miracle of Sound 1940
as Self
Dr. Kildare Goes Home 1940
as Dr. James Kildare
The Golden Fleecing 1940
as Henry Twinkle
Hollywood: Style Center of the World 1940
as Self
Dr. Kildare's Strange Case 1940
as James Kildare
Remember? 1939
as Sky Ames
The Secret of Dr. Kildare 1939
as James Kildare
These Glamour Girls 1939
as Philip S. Griswold III
From the Ends of the Earth 1939
as Self
Calling Dr. Kildare 1939
as Dr. James Kildare
Broadway Serenade 1939
as James Geoffrey 'Jimmy' Seymour
The Ice Follies of 1939 1939
as Eddie Burgess
Spring Madness 1938
as Sam Thatcher
Young Dr. Kildare 1938
as Dr. James Kildare
Rich Man, Poor Girl 1938
as Henry Thayer
Holiday 1938
as Ned Seton
King of the Newsboys 1938
as Jerry Flynn
Scandal Street 1938
as Joe McKnight
Hold 'Em Navy 1937
as Tommy Graham
The Last Train from Madrid 1937
as Bill Dexter
The Crime Nobody Saw 1937
as Nick Milburn
Murder with Pictures 1936
as Kent Murdock
Lady Be Careful 1936
as Chester aka Dynamite
Shakedown 1936
as Bob Sanderson
Hearts in Bondage 1936
Director
Panic on the Air 1936
as Jerry
The Leathernecks Have Landed 1936
as Woodruff 'Woody' Davis
Silk Hat Kid 1935
as Eddie Howard
Spring Tonic 1935
as Caleb Enix
The Lottery Lover 1935
as Cadet Frank Harrington
Servants' Entrance 1934
as Erik Landstrom
She Learned About Sailors 1934
as Larry Wilson
Let’s Be Ritzy 1934
as Jimmy Sterling
Cross Country Cruise 1934
as Norman Winthrop
My Weakness 1933
as Ronnie Gregory
Don't Bet on Love 1933
as Bill McCaffrey
State Fair 1933
as Pat Gilbert
Okay, America! 1932
as Larry Wayne
Night World 1932
as Michael Rand
The Cohens and Kellys in Hollywood 1932
as Lew Ayres
The Impatient Maiden 1932
as Dr. Myron Brown
Heaven on Earth 1931
as States
The Spirit of Notre Dame 1931
as Edward Aloysius "Bucky" O'Brian
Up for Murder 1931
as Robert Marshall
Iron Man 1931
as Kid Mason
Many a Slip 1931
as Jerry Brooks
East Is West 1930
as Billy Benson
The Doorway to Hell 1930
as Louie Ricarno
Common Clay 1930
as Hugh Fullerton
All Quiet on the Western Front 1930
as Paul Bäumer
The Kiss 1929
as Pierre
Big News 1929
as Copyboy (uncredited)
The Sophomore 1929
as Sophomore Fraternity Brother (uncredited)
Credits from TMDB.