James Howard Dunn (November 2, 1901 - September 3, 1967) was an American Academy Award-winning film actor.
Born in New York, New York, of Irish descent, Dunn was the son of a Wall Street stockbroker who, according to Dunn, "either had a million or nothing." Dunn started his entertainment career in vaudeville before progressing to films at Paramount's Astoria studios in the late 1920s. He was signed by Fox in 1931, making 22 films and several more...
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James Howard Dunn (November 2, 1901 - September 3, 1967) was an American Academy Award-winning film actor.
Born in New York, New York, of Irish descent, Dunn was the son of a Wall Street stockbroker who, according to Dunn, "either had a million or nothing." Dunn started his entertainment career in vaudeville before progressing to films at Paramount's Astoria studios in the late 1920s. He was signed by Fox in 1931, making 22 films and several more on loan-out. He made a strong first impression with his first role, in Bad Girl. He went on to make several formula films, including Society Girl (1932) with Peggy Shannon and Hello, Sister! (1933) with Boots Mallory and ZaSu Pitts. Dunn's other early successes included four Shirley Temple films in 1934, Baby Take a Bow, Stand Up and Cheer!, Change of Heart and Bright Eyes.
The roles that followed did nothing to further his career, and during the late 1930s his prospects were further diminished by a battle with alcoholism. In 1945 his...
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