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Thread: Laird Cregar

  1. #1
    TobbeJ Guest

    Laird Cregar

    Few know his name, But the performances he made in films during the early 40's will never be forgotten. He was only in his mid 20's but always played older men because of his appearance - very overweight and looking much older than his years. His performances in 'The black swan' (1942), 'This gun for hire' (1942), 'Heaven can wait' (1943) and 'The Lodger' (1944) are now classic but his name is forgotten. He died while on a crash diet during the making of ' Hangover Square' in 1944 at the age of 28. An actor that always caught my eyes when watching his films, but a name I couldn't remember. Sadly I know very little of him besides the films I've seen, and hoped someone had some info on whatever trivial thing you know. That would be worth alot to me.

  2. #2
    Ron Burgundy Guest
    Laird was always back and forth on his weight, and left us the same way Mario Lanza did. Too many crash diets did in their hearts.

  3. #3
    Morrissey Guest
    He was indeed a great actor.

  4. #4
    TobbeJ Guest
    Quote Originally Posted by Morrissey View Post
    He was indeed a great actor.
    And one that was most enjoyable fat. Just like Sydney Greenstreet I just can't imagine them in any other way.

  5. #5
    knothere Guest
    if Scott don't have it then Wikipedia does

  6. #6
    Danny62 Guest
    His name only sounds familiar from some episodes from the "Suspense" radio shows! I love old time radio!!

    What a sad way to die.

    I heard Oliver Hardy dropped to much weight at once which contributed to his death as well.

  7. #7
    leevancleef Guest
    i think that his acting in The Lodger is superb.
    His funeral's eulogy was delivered by actor Vincent Price.

  8. #8
    Jack-O-Lantern Guest
    Quote Originally Posted by TobbeJ View Post
    Few know his name, But the performances he made in films during the early 40's will never be forgotten. He was only in his mid 20's but always played older men because of his appearance - very overweight and looking much older than his years. His performances in 'The black swan' (1942), 'This gun for hire' (1942), 'Heaven can wait' (1943) and 'The Lodger' (1944) are now classic but his name is forgotten. He died while on a crash diet during the making of ' Hangover Square' in 1944 at the age of 28. An actor that always caught my eyes when watching his films, but a name I couldn't remember. Sadly I know very little of him besides the films I've seen, and hoped someone had some info on whatever trivial thing you know. That would be worth alot to me.
    Just finished watching both "The Lodger" and "Hangover Square." What a fantastic actor this guy was !!
    The only info I can add is that he was gay, and very conflicted about this fact (as one would have been in the 40's). He was very adamant about losing weight over the studio's objections...he wanted to play 'leading man' parts and Fox wanted a "heavy" in the Lon Chaney mold. It was following a recent massive weight loss (100+ pounds) that he collapsed and died. Very sad, he was a great actor and would have gone on to even greater things, but with these two films he definitely left us quite a legacy.
    This information I obtained in a documentary (on DVD) included with the film, "Hangover Square."
    If his films are to your liking, I highly recommend a new DVD boxed set which contains both "The Lodger" and "Hangover Square." Both films have been restored to near-perfect condition and both are very, very good. Here's the link to that release if anyone's interested:

    http://www.amazon.com/Classics-Colle...6818279&sr=8-1

  9. #9
    mxwe Guest
    Watched Hangover Square last night and he was great. Learned many things during the commentary and a bio on the special features section. My understanding is he had the surgery and died from complications. You can see him losing weight during the movie. He was on a mission to lose weight and date women(he was gay) so he could become a leading man. Shame he died trying to do it. A fat Laird Cregar would have had a great future in movies because he was so talented.

  10. #10
    Guest Guest
    I agree! Great actor and sinister heavy. 'The Lodger' is an excellently moody film.

  11. #11
    Northern Lights Guest

  12. #12
    Northern Lights Guest
    A little info about him:

    Laird Cregar (July 28, 1916 â?? December 9, 1944)

    The son of a prosperous Philadelphian, Laird Cregar was educated at Winchester Academy in England, spending his summers as a page boy and bit player with the Stratford-on-Avon theatrical troupe. Upon completing his schooling, Cregar won a scholarship at California's Pasadena Playhouse, supporting himself as a nightclub bouncer when funds ran out. So broke that at times he had to sleep in his car, Cregar forced Hollywood to pay attention to him by staging his own one-man show, in which he portrayed Oscar Wilde.

    After a few minor film roles, the 24-year-old Cregar was signed to a 20th Century-Fox contract; among his first major roles was the middle-aged Francis Chesney in Charley's Aunt (1941), the first of several showcases for the actor's delightful comic flair. With his sinister portrayal of the psychopathic detective in I Wake Up Screaming (1941), Cregar became one of filmdom's top "heavies"--both figuratively and literally. Seldom weighing less than 300 pounds throughout his adult life, Cregar came to a tragic end because of his obsession to become a slim "beautiful man".

    After top-billing in The Lodger (1944), playing the reclusive British musician who may or may not be Jack the Ripper, the increasingly sensitive Cregar was growing tired of being thought of as merely a hulking villain. When assigned the role of demented pianist George Bone in Hangover Square (1945), Cregar decided to give the character a romantic veneer, and to that end lost one hundred pounds in a crash diet. The strain on his system resulted in severe abdominal problems; a few days after undergoing stomach surgery, the 28-year-old Laird Cregar died of heart attack. He was laid to rest in a simple grave beside the road in the Eventide Section, at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, CA.

  13. #13
    Guest Guest
    Thanks for the pics NL. Great creepy face!

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