roared his boss, Louis B. Mayer. In your hour of need like that, Dirienzo said, it just reminded you so much of home.. First to actress Lola Lane from 1931 until 1933, although they were separated much of that period. Education: Attended Lake Harriet Grammar School and West High School, Minneapolis; high school in San Diego, California. But having such a well-known public figure take this stance was poor publicity for the United States armed forces. Username. Shunned by the studios after he became a conscientious objector during World War II, he managed to revive his career and get an Academy Award nomination for "Johnny Belinda" in 1948. Sitelinks. They had been married for 32.9 years. Why, I even became a fan myself.". Ayres' played a Vice-President of the United States twice, in Advise and Consent and The Man, as well as the President of the United States in the made-for-TV Earth II. He played opposite many of Hollywood's leading ladies, including Lana Turner, Laraine Day, Ann Sothern, Ann Sheridan and Alice Faye. The courts and the Selective Service agreed that objections to the futility or stupidity of war or on grounds of a social or merely humanitarian character did not suffice. In May 1944, Ayres landed in New Guinea. Although nothing ever came of this, it would have consisted of the following ensemble had it did: Jeffrey Hunter (Martin Heal), Earl Holliman (Christopher Allen), Tab Hunter (Simon Fowler), Lew Ayres (Count Vancott), Robert Wagner (Mitchell Aarons), James Garner (Peter Day), Jerry Mathers (Little Martin), James Stewart (Mr. Their son Justin was born in 1968. Name. I was willing and wanted to go into the Medical Corps and I told the draft board that, he said. Justin Ayers: Description: Justin Ayres is the son of Lew Ayres. Supplement 1, pp. For his role as a doctor in ''Johnny Belinda,'' he received an Academy Award nomination; Jane Wyman, who starred in the film, won an Oscar as best actress. Diana Hall from 1964 until his death. The role made him a household name, introduced him to his closest friends, brought him to the attention of his first two wives, and would overshadow the rest of his career. Two months later, Ayres did his best, and he impressed all as serious and helpful and friendly with everyone he meets, a, IN THE FALL OF 1945, Ayres returned home to a public that was starkly different than it had been three years earlier. He was 88. Jump to . Ayres made few films after the war, but in 1948 his role in Johnny Belinda earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. Official Sites. Most of the 170 men in the camp did lumber work, clearing brush, felling trees, and cutting fire breaks. Born Lewis Frederick Ayres III on December 28, 1908 in Minneapolis, Minnesota and reared in San Diego, California, Ayres began acting in bit player roles in films in 1927. The armys favorable coverage of Ayres had likely had an impact, too; gone was the public vitriol of his refusal to take up arms. Ayres was assigned to first-aid work and was popular with the other men. In 1938, he played the title role in a B picture, "Young Dr. Kildare," as a doctor in practice with the older Dr. Gillespie, played by Lionel Barrymore. Born: Lewis Frederick Ayres III in Minneapolis, Minnesota, 28 December 1908. Lew was raised in Grand Rapids, Mi and Kankakee, IL. But glaring gaps remain. Cast as Paul Baumer, the sensitive young soldier in Lewis Milestone's disturbing film version of Erich Maria Remarque's antiwar novel ''All Quiet on the Western Front,'' Mr. Ayres made a riveting impression on the moviegoing public. He continued acting for almost 30 years, appearing in, among other films, ''The Carpetbaggers,'' ''Battle for the Planet of the Apes'' and ''Battlestar Galactica. Publicity Listings Male: Biological: Add/Edit a Child. He was leading . After being discovered by Ivan Kahn, a renowned talent agent, Lew Ayres made his movie debut in 1929 when he was included in the cast for the movie titled "The Kiss". These men earned his respect and the respect of the nation. Ayres ' college-boy good looks led to extra work in the movies, and before he was 21 the young actor was starring opposite Greta Garbo in The Kiss (1929). Its bad enough in the field, where soldiers expect cruelty and death; but in cities, among helpless civilians, the picture is far worse. He spoke of what a bombed city looks like; or what it feels like to hold a child in your arms while it bleeds to death; or to stand by while kids watch their parents being dumped into a mass grave. The most difficult task, he said, is taking care of little kids with bullet holes in them.. I would like to be of service to my country in a constructive way and not a destructive way.. The YOUNG DR. KILDARE did not make many friends when he became a conscientious objector during World War II due to his faith in the Bible and God. Americans were sick of war and its end was a relief to the country. Playing an idealistic young physician, Ayres became what the, Despite his screen popularity, the reserved Ayres was an outlier in Hollywood circles. Over the years, Mr. Ayres played opposite Greta Garbo and Jane Wyman and became identified as Dr. Kildare in the MGM film series. He recorded one of the earliest Vitaphone movie shorts called Carnival Night in Paris (Warner Brothers, 1927). IN THE FALL OF 1945, Ayres returned home to a public that was starkly different than it had been three years earlier. Big Band musician before becoming an actor. Goes Out newsletter, with the week's best events, to help you explore and experience our city. Born in 1908, Ayres made his credited film debut in Greta Garbo's 1929 silent "The Kiss" and became a star the following year in the Oscar-winning 1930 anti-war . Lew Ayres, 88, an actor for nearly seven decades who was the original Dr. Kildare of the 1930s and who starred in the Academy Award-winning classic "All Quiet on the Western Front," died here Dec. 30. 246 soon corrected its error and reclassified Ayres as I-A-O. [1] He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in Johnny Belinda (1948). Browse 518 lew ayres stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. Many of his subsequent films were lighter and far less demanding. He enlisted in the United States Army on May 18, 1942. Everybody, including the Filipino children, calls him Lew. Many Filipinos were avid moviegoers and were tickled to meet the real Dr. Kildare. Ayres got more of a thrill being recognized by the Filipinos than by people back home, he said. And he retained his antiwar views, but with a twist. He returned months later to pursue an acting career, but continued working full-time as a musician. To me, war was the greatest sin. They Say He Burned Down the Reichstag. Actually, a Medical Corps assignment was a fait accompli, and Ayres knew it. Mr. Ayres served for 3 1/2 years as a medic and a chaplain's aide in the Southwest Pacific theater, receiving three battle stars. Businessman G. W. Mingus seethed, saying that when compared with Ayres, Benedict Arnold was a Sunday school teacher. Even the German-born Erich Maria Remarque, combat veteran and author of, Others took a more sympathetic or neutral view. Los Angeles, CA: At the height of his popularity in November Lew Ayres was married to Ginger Rogers, rising young actress. Perhaps best of all, the actor's unpublished autobiography and the memories of the actor's son, Dr. Justin Ayres, who practices medicine in Los Angeles, helped to fill in much of the story. On-screen he did not always marry his co-star, but off screen he married Ginger Rogers; they were later divorced. Despite the critical acclaim awarded the film--and general approval of his performance in it--Ayres soon found himself wallowing in B pictures. This book is recommended to anybody who is interested in classic film stars and wants to know more about the life of Lew Ayres. SANTA MONICA, CA - MAY 16: Lew Ayres and wife Diana Hall attend SHARE Benefit Party on May 16, 1987 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California. He chose not to move to Hawaii to do the series, but did appear in the show in other roles from time to time. Ronald Reagan once boasted that he and Wyman would end their days together, but it didn't take long after the wedding vows were exchanged in 1940 for . Harmadik hzassga, Diana Hallal 1964-tl a hallig tartott. And although a soldier could not dictate where he would be assigned, Ayres had insisted that the medical corps alone is the only branch of the service which could be commensurate with my ideas of conscientious approval. With the government intent on selling him as the good CO, Ayres accepted his own brand of special celebrity treatment: a wink-and-nod assurance before induction that he would get the assignment he wanted. Ayres. Leyte was a populated island, and civilian casualties were inevitable. Upcoming Birthday Currently, Lew Ayres is 113 years, 7 months and 23 days old. Everyone has been swell to me. He was soon promoted to sergeant and made first-aid instructor at the camp. His body was buried under a simple headstone at Westwood Memorial Park in Westwood, Los Angeles. In 1974, he had appeared in a small role as Dr. Emil Vaslovik, creator of the title android, in The Questor Tapes, written for television by Gene Roddenberry and Gene L. Coon and directed by Richard A. Colla, who, almost four years later, again directed him in Battlestar Galactica: "Saga of a Star World". A college dropout, he was found by a talent scout in the Coconut Grove nightclub in Los Angeles and entered Hollywood as a bit player. [6], Within a month it was determined that he had initially requested to be A-O-1, so that he could serve as a non-combat medic. One thing that sets All Quiet on the Western Front apart is its use of young actors to play young soldiers, a realistic touch that has eluded even latter-day filmmakers like Steven . "My feeling was that a medical show, particularly one that might appeal to children, should not be used to sell cigarettes," he explained later. And then there was Lew Ayres. He was profoundly affected by the anti-war message of that film, and when, in 1942, the popular star of Young Dr. Kildare (1938) and subsequent Dr. Kildare films was drafted, he was a conscientious objector. His return to film after the war was undistinguished until Johnny Belinda (1948) - his role as the sympathetic physician treating the deaf-mute Jane Wyman won him an Academy Award nomination as Best Actor. Instead, the board inexplicably classified him IV-Emeant for those who objected to, The general public reacted just as harshly. Mr. Ayres's role as the disillusioned young German soldier would be the most memorable of his career. Lew Ayres: Hollywood's Conscientious Objector (Hollywood Legends Series) by Coffin, Lesley L. (2012) Hardcover: Books - Amazon.ca Although he told the press he had asked to go into the Army Medical Corps, people focused on the actors refusal to take up arms and his IV-E classification. He originated the character Dr. Kildare on film in 1938. Yet their relationship fizzled out after just a couple of months. But Was He Drugged Into Confessing? For a guest role in Kung Fu ("The Vanishing Image", 1974) he was nominated for an Emmy. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002. In 1934, Fox listed him as one of its second tier stars.[5]. Submitted on July 23, 2013. Ayres did his best, and he impressed all as serious and helpful and friendly with everyone he meets, a Life correspondent observed. Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. He appeared as the vice-president in Advise & Consent (1962), and in The Carpetbaggers (1964), but he was by then primarily a television actor, with only occasional film work. His instruments were tenor banjo, long-neck banjo and guitar. Lew Ayres was born on December 28, 1908 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, is Actor, Soundtrack, Director. Lew Ayres was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and raised in San Diego, California. 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