GRANT, CARY

born Jan. 18, 1904, Bristol, Gloucestershire, Eng. died Nov. 29, 1986, Davenport, Iowa, U.S. original name Archibald Alexander Leach British-born American motion-picture actor known for his witty, sophisticated screen persona. He began his show business career with an acrobatic comedy troupe in England. Following a tour of the United States in 1920, he emigrated there and performed in stage musical comedies before making his film debut in This Is the Night (1932), by which time he had adopted the euphonious name Cary Grant. Six more films followed that same year, and Grant's distinctive style prompted Mae West to cast him opposite herself in She Done Him Wrong (1933), a film that established Grant as a star. On screen, Grant combined debonair charm and an air of humorous intelligence with resilient good looks and elegant, self-possessed body movements. He also had a distinctive singsong speaking manner. His comic finesse brought Grant great popular success in the sophisticated slapstick of Topper and The Awful Truth (both 1937), Bringing Up Baby (1938), Holiday (1938), His Girl Friday (1940), The Philadelphia Story (1940), Monkey Business (1952), and Charade (1963). Four films with director Alfred Hitchcock gave him some of his finest roles: Suspicion (1941), Notorious (1946), To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959). Grant retired from the screen after Walk, Don't Run (1966) and became an executive for the Faberg cosmetics firm. He received a special Oscar from the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1970.