James Dunn

Description

James Howard Dunn (November 2, 1901 - September 3, 1967) was an American film actor. <p>Born in New York, New York, of Irish descent, Dunn was the son of a Wall Street stockbroker who, according to Dunn, "either had a million or nothing." Dunn started his entertainment career in vaudeville before progressing to films in the early 1930s. He made a strong first impression with his early roles, including Society Girl (1932) with Peggy Shannon and Hello, Sister! (1933) with Boots Mallory and ZaSu Pitts. Dunn's other early successes included Bad Girl (1931), Change of Heart (1933) with Janet Gaynor, and three Shirley Temple films, Baby Take a Bow, Stand Up and Cheer, and Bright Eyes (all 1934). <p>The roles that followed did nothing to further his career, and during the late 1930s his prospects were further diminished by a battle with alcoholism. In 1945 his performance in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Ironically, he played an alcoholic in...