He was alone among British stars in Hollywood in doing so; the British Embassy advised most British actors to stay, and indeed many were over the age for military service anyway and did not have Niven's existing military education and experience. Following a suicide attempt involving a handgun that failed to go off, he eventually rallied and returned to filmmaking. Previous image. After McGeachin affirmed that he was, Niven quipped, "Did you have the misfortune to have me as your officer?". Niven was reluctant to take a supporting part in Wuthering Heights (1939) for Goldwyn, but eventually relented and the film was a big success. At that point, Niven had a brief but pleasant reunion. David's father, William Edward Graham Niven, was a military man, and his mother's family was also involved in the military. Two hours later, he was back, full of rage. Herbert Marshall and the imperious C. Aubrey Smith, who ran the It also won the Academy Award for Best Picture. I found it where they told me I would, but it was among 27,000 others, and I told myself that here, Niven, were 27,000 reasons why you should keep your mouth shut after the war." He then headed for America. a succession of barbaric prep schools from which he either absconded She was among the VIP guests at his London memorial service. Fox Studios gave him the lead in a B picture, Dinner at the Ritz (1938) and he again had a supporting role in Bluebeard's Eighth Wife (1938) directed by Ernst Lubitsch at Paramount. Niven joined what became known as the Hollywood Raj, a group of British actors in Hollywood which included Rex Harrison, Errol Flynn, Boris Karloff, Stan Laurel, Basil Rathbone, Ronald Colman, Leslie Howard and C. Aubrey Smith. unsettled childhood, being pushed by an unsympathetic step-father into Niven later wrote, "How he did this, I shall never know, but he made every single boy at that school feel that what he said and what he did were of real importance to the headmaster. He was gazetted a Lieutenant in the Highland Light Infantry. Lieutenant Colonel James David Graham Niven (/nvn/; 1 March 1910 29 July 1983)[1][2] was a British actor, soldier, memoirist, and novelist. Bridgerton Family Book Series Complete Books 1 - 9 Collection Set By Julia Quinn. Niven had a far better part in the British war film Appointment with Venus (1952), which was popular in England. David Niven commanded "A" Squadron GHQ Liaison Regiment, better known as "Phantom". She grew up with a sister in Portland.. Barbara initially did not have any interest in acting or performance arts. For Goldwyn, Niven again had a small role in Splendor (1935). English private schools at the time of Niven's boyhood were noted for their strict and sometimes brutal discipline. appear in films: "The First of the Few", with Leslie Howard, which [citation needed]. [17], Niven grew tired of the peacetime army. I had difficulty swallowing and had champagne in my knees.[16]. . His father was killed during the World War I in 1915. Actor David Niven holding his Best Actor Oscar for the film 'Separate Tables', at the 31st Academy Awards, Los Angeles, April 6th 1959. POWELL TOWNSHIP - David Michael Niven, age 64, of Powell Township, entered eternal life Sunday afternoon, May 22, 2016, at his home, in the loving, comforting care of his family. In 1948 Niven met Hjrdis Paulina Tersmeden (ne Genberg, 19191997), a divorced Swedish fashion model. This ended his chances for Eton, a significant blow to his family. Rosalind Russell later named the house "Cirrhosis-by-the-Sea". In 1960, Niven bought a chalet in Chteau-d'x near Gstaad in Switzerland for financial reasons, living near expatriate friends that included Deborah Kerr, Peter Ustinov, and Nol Coward. A 1981 interview on Michael Parkinson's talk show alarmed family and friends; viewers wondered if Niven had either been drinking or suffered a stroke. or was expelled. people and force of personality he managed not only to break into as "Raffles" the gentleman burglar. She also divorced her second husband. Hjordis Tersmeden; they had two adopted daughters. Sophisticated actor who starred in the Pink Panther detective comedy films and appeared in The Bishop's Wife. Niven played Alexander 'Alec' Fleming, one of a family of retired con-artists who now fleece villains in the interests of justice. [32] He won the 1958 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Major Pollock in Separate Tables, his only nomination for an Oscar. He had supporting roles in several major films: Rose-Marie (1936), Dodsworth (1936), The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), The Prisoner of Zenda (1937); and leading roles in The Dawn Patrol (1938), Three Blind Mice (1938), and Wuthering Heights (1939), playing opposite such stars as Errol Flynn, Loretta Young and Laurence Olivier. In Goldwyn's drawing room, Niven noticed a picture of himself in uniform that he had sent to Goldwyn from England during World War II. The family's country home at Buckland, Carswell Manor, was sold shortly after David's birth. In 1933, she wed US golfer and gambler Charles Sweeny in a glamorous, highly publicised wedding, which 3,000 Londoners tried to gatecrash. A Thanksgiving service was held at St Martin-in-the-Fields, London, on 27 October 1983. Niven later claimed credit for bringing future Major General Sir Robert Laycock to the Commandos. David Niven was in the early stages of motor neurone disease, and his voice had to be overdubbed by impressionist Rich Little. Mark you, had you not done so it would have been despicable. I said, sir, you had discharged him, he left for Deauville to gamble at the casino. [citation needed], While on leave in 1940, Niven met Primula "Primmie" Susan Rollo (18 February 1918 21 May 1946), the daughter of London lawyer William H.C. Rollo. Hjrdis Genberg Niven. DAVID NIVEN OBITUARY. Mother Jessie Robertson. [10], Literary editor and biographer, Graham Lord, wrote in Niv: The Authorised Biography of David Niven, that Comyn-Platt and Niven's mother may have been in an affair well before her husband's death in 1915 and that Comyn-Platt was actually Niven's biological father, a supposition that had some support among Niven's siblings. After detours to Bermuda and Cuba, he arrived in Hollywood in 1934. Please enable JavaScript in your browser's settings to use this part of Geni. Niven's next few films were made in England: The Love Lottery (1954), a comedy; Carrington V.C. Find out about David Niven's family tree, family history, ancestry, ancestors, genealogy, relationships and affairs! Born on 15 December 1942 in Unknown, David Niven Jr. started his career as actor . Other than, this there is no information on her siblings or early childhood. On 14 March 1944, Niven was promoted war-substantive major (temporary lieutenant-colonel). Jessica Niven's age and the niceties of Wikipedia are currently absent on the internet . Both sound pretty fancy to me, but Niven's origin story involved anothereven greater . His father was an army man, as were both his grandfathers. That same year, he hosted David Niven's World for London Weekend Television, which profiled contemporary adventurers such as hang gliders, motorcyclists, and mountain climbers: it ran for 21 episodes. His ultimate decision to resign came after a lengthy lecture on machine guns, which was interfering with his plans for dinner with a particularly attractive young lady. He once said: I will, however, tell you just one thing about the war, my first story and my last. She fractured her skull in a fall in the Beverly Hills, California home of Tyrone Power, while playing a game of sardines. Infantry, mainly on Malta, but resigned his commission after three years and took a succession of casual jobs in Canada and the United - Lerner & Loewe; Bishop Sheen; David Niven [panel] (Oct 21, 1956), (fee usually required to view full pdf of original recommendation), Last edited on 15 February 2023, at 09:47, Learn how and when to remove these template messages, Learn how and when to remove this template message, BBC Allied Expeditionary Forces Programme, David Niven on screen, stage, radio, record and in print, "Niven, (James) David Graham (19101983), actor and author", "Casualty detailsNiven, William Edward Graham", "1917 David Niven's mother marries Thomas Comyn Platt", "David Niven's idyllic childhood home comes up for sale: 'I adored it and was happier there than I had ever been', "It's being so cheerful that keeps me going", "The flawed real life of the perfect movie gentleman", "David Niven was the only British star in Hollywood to enlist during WWII", "Recommendation for Award for Niven, John David Rank: Lieutenant Colonel", "The Politics of Oscar: Inside the Academy's Long, Hard Road to a Hostless Show", "David Niven Dead at 73; Witty Actor Won Oscar", "Archival material relating to David Niven", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=David_Niven&oldid=1139476105, This page was last edited on 15 February 2023, at 09:47. Ex-partner of Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll He came to films almost by accident, and with no previous acting He returned to the US and was accepted by Central Casting as "Anglo-Saxon Type No. Born August 26, 1951, in Saginaw, a son of Robert and Norma (Sian) Niven, David was raised in Saginaw and graduated from the Arthur Hill High School. This role led to him being cast in further war and/or action movies: The Captive City (1962); The Best of Enemies (1962); Guns of Darkness (1962); 55 Days at Peking (1963) with Charlton Heston and Ava Gardner. with Laurence Olivier gave a creditable performance as Edgar Linton in Niven resumed his acting career after his demobilization, and was voted the second most popular British actor in the 1945 Popularity Poll of British film stars. David Niven Jr. was born on 1942-12-15. His ultimate decision to resign came after a lengthy lecture on machine guns, which was interfering with his plans for dinner with a particularly attractive young lady. He made his way to Hollywood in the mid-1930s and began performing as an extra. Local doctors wished to operate immediately to remove the bird shot. There I saw David lose his British phlegm, his politeness and class. The new family were photographed enjoying the gardens and swimming . second wife, whom he married in 1948, was a leading Swedish model, 47 sold. Niven played a role in the operation to move the Miller band to France prior to Miller's December 1944 disappearance while flying over the English Channel. "Bachelor Mother", with Ginger Rogers, and he was appropriately cast extra. He secured a small role in A Feather in Her Hat (1935) at Columbia before returning to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for a bit role, billed as David Nivens, in Rose Marie (1936). He received his resident alien visa from the American consulate when his birth certificate arrived from Britain. Clouseau. he was one of famous actor and novelist with the age years old group. After selling their chain of stores, the . Niven returned to Hollywood and encountered tragedy when his first wife died after falling down a flight of stairs at a party. . It was this behaviour that finally led to his expulsion from his next school, Heatherdown Preparatory School, at the age of 10. James David Graham Niven was born March 1, 1910, at Kirriemuir, Scotland. Both were made with a view to winning support for the British war effort, especially in the U.S. Niven's Film Unit work included a small part in the deception operation that used minor actor M. E. Clifton James to impersonate Field Marshal Montgomery. Niven's father, William Niven, was of Scottish descent; he was killed in the First World War serving with the Berkshire Yeomanry during the Gallipoli campaign on 21 August 1915. My first story and my last Set By Julia Quinn the casino comedy ; Carrington V.C from the consulate. Rallied and returned to filmmaking his grandfathers break into as `` Raffles '' the gentleman burglar said I. 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