Charles Douville Coburn (June 19, 1877 – August 30, 1961) was an American film and theatre actor. Best known for his work in comedies, Coburn received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for 1943's The More the Merrier. Coburn was born in Macon, Georgia, the son of Scotch-Irish Americans Emma Louise Sprigman (May 11, 1838 Springfield, Ohio – November 12, 1896 Savannah, Georgia) and Moses Douville Coburn (April 27, 1834 Savannah, Georgia – December 27, 1902 Savannah, Georgia). Growing up in Savannah, he started out at age 14 doing odd jobs at the local Savannah Theater, handing out programs, ushering, or being the doorman. By age 17 or 18, he was the theater manager. He later became an actor, making his debut on Broadway in 1901. Coburn formed an acting company with actress Ivah Wills in 1905. They married in 1906. In addition to managing the company, the couple performed frequently on Broadway. After his wife's death in 1937, Coburn relocated to Los Angeles, California and began film work. He won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a retired millionaire playing Cupid in The More the Merrier in 1943. He was also nominated for The Devil and Miss Jones in 1941 and The Green Years in 1946. Other notable film credits include Of Human Hearts (1938), The Lady Eve (1941), Kings Row (1942), The Constant Nymph (1943), Heaven Can Wait (1943), Wilson (1944), Impact (1949), The Paradine Case (1947), Everybody Does It (1950), Has Anybody Seen My Gal? (1952), Monkey Business (1952), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), and John Paul Jones (1959). He usually played comedic parts, but Kings Row and Wilson were dramatic parts, showing his versatility. For his contributions to motion pictures, in 1960, Coburn was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6268 Hollywood Boulevard.

Filmography

• 1960Pepe — Charles Coburn
• 1959A Stranger in My Arms — Vance Beasley
• 1959John Paul Jones — Benjamin Franklin
• Startime — Colonel Sykes
• 1959The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker — Grampa Pennypacker
• 1957How to Murder a Rich Uncle — Uncle George Clitterbern
• 1957The Story of Mankind — Hippocrates
• 1957Town on Trial — Dr. John Fenner
• 1956Around the World in 80 Days — Steamship Company Clerk
• 1956The Power and the Prize — Guy Eliot
• 1955How to Be Very, Very Popular — Dr. Tweed
• December Bride
• Studio 57
• 1954The Long Wait — Gardiner
• 1954The Rocket Man — Mayor Ed Johnson
• 1953Gentlemen Prefer Blondes — Sir Francis 'Piggy' Beekman
• 1953Trouble Along the Way — le Père Matthew William Burke
• 1952Has Anybody Seen My Gal? — Samuel Fulton / John Smith
• 1952Monkey Business — Oliver Oxley
• 1951The Highwayman — Lord Walters
• 1950Louisa — Mr. Burnside
• Lux Video Theatre — Pa Harrington
• 1950Mr. Music — Alex Conway
• 1950Peggy — Professor Brookfield
• 1949Everybody Does It — Major Blair
• 1949Impact — Lieutenant Quincy
• 1949The Doctor and the Girl — Dr. John Corday
• 1949The Gal Who Took the West — General Michael O'Hara
• 1949Yes Sir, That's My Baby — Jason Hartley
• 1948B.F.'s Daughter — Burton F. 'B.F.' Fulton
• 1948Green Grass of Wyoming — Beaver Greenway
• Studio One — Louis Hurst
• 1947Lured — Harley Temple
• 1947The Paradine Case — Sir Simon Flaquer
• 1946Colonel Effingham's Raid — Colonel Will Seaborn Effingham
• 1946The Green Years — Alexander Gow
• 1945A Royal Scandal — Nicolai Iiyitch
• 1945Over 21 — Robert Drexel Gow
• 1945Rhapsody in Blue — Max Dreyfus
• 1945Shady Lady — Col. John Appleby
• 1944Knickerbocker Holiday — Peter Stuyvesant
• 1944The Impatient Years — William Smith
• 1944Together Again — Jonathan Crandall Sr
• 1944Wilson — Professor Henry Holmes
• 1943Heaven Can Wait — Hugo Van Cleve
• 1943My Kingdom for a Cook — Rudyard Morley
• 1943Princess O'Rourke — Uncle Holman
• 1943The Constant Nymph — Charles Creighton
• 1943The More the Merrier — Benjamin Dingle
• 1942George Washington Slept Here — Stanley Menninger
• 1942In This Our Life — William Fitzroy
• 1942Kings Row — Henry Gordon
• 1941H.M. Pulham, Esq. — John Pulham
• 1941Our Wife — Professor Drake
• 1941The Devil and Miss Jones — John P. Merrick/Thomas Higgins
• 1941The Lady Eve — 'Colonel' Harrington
• 1941Unexpected Uncle — Seton Mansley
• 1940Edison, the Man — General Powell
• 1940Florian — Dr. Johannes Hofer
• 1940Road to Singapore — Joshua Mallon IV
• 1940The Captain is a Lady — Captain Abe Peabody
• 1940Three Faces West — Dr. Karl Braun
• 1939Bachelor Mother — J. B. Merlin
• 1939Idiot's Delight — Dr. Hugo Waldersee
• 1939In Name Only — Richard Walker
• 1939Made for Each Other — Joseph Doolittle
• 1939Stanley and Livingstone — Lord Tyce
• 1939The Story of Alexander Graham Bell — Gardner Hubbard
• 1938Lord Jeff — Captain Briggs
• 1938Of Human Hearts — Dr. Charles Shingle
• 1938Vivacious Lady — Mr. Morgan
• 1938Yellow Jack — Dr. Finlay
• 1935The People's Enemy — Judge

Appearances as themselves (9)

• 1997Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down the Line — Self (archive footage)
• 1976It's Showtime — Self (archive footage)
• The Rosemary Clooney Show — Self
• The George Gobel Show — Self
• This Is Your Life — Self
• The Colgate Comedy Hour — Self
• What's My Line? — Self
• The Ed Sullivan Show — Self
• 1942Breakdowns of 1942 — Self