ACTOR · BORN 1908 · DIED 1997
James Stewart
- Born
- 20 May 1908, Indiana, Pennsylvania, USA
- Died
- 2 July 1997
- Known for
- Rear Window (1954), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
91 archived facts 7 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
James Stewart (20 May 1908 – 2 July 1997) was an actor best known for Rear Window, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Anatomy of a Murder.
91 Interesting Facts About James Stewart
Interesting Facts (5)
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In his 2017 dual biography of Henry Fonda and James Stewart, "Hank & Jim", film historian Scott Eyman writes that an actor complained to director John Ford that although he had worked with Stewart several times, he still didn't know the man. Ford replied: "You don't get to know Jimmy Stewart. Jimmy Stewart gets to know you".
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Production Story (5)
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Very much wanted the role of Roger Thornhill in North by Northwest (1959) and he was the original choice for it, but after the financial failure of Vertigo (1958), director Alfred Hitchcock blamed the film's box office woes on Stewart, claiming Stewart looked too old to still attract audiences and cast Cary Grant instead, even though Grant was actually four years older than Stewart. Previously one of the director's favorite collaborators, he and Stewart never worked together again.
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Fell out with Anthony Mann during the shooting of Night Passage (1957), resulting in Mann being replaced (by James Neilson). A year later Mann shot Man of the West (1958), regarded by many as his greatest western of all and totally suited to Stewart, but with Gary Cooper in the lead role.
Behind the Scenes (9)
- #011
He and Richard Widmark both wore toupees and had hearing problems. On the set of Two Rode Together (1961) director John Ford became frustrated with the two stars being unable to hear his instructions and exclaimed, "Fifty years in this goddamn business, and what do I end up doing? Directing two deaf hairpieces!".
- #012
Introduced the Cole Porter standard "Easy to Love" in Born to Dance (1936). His undubbed, reedy tenor voice was actually not so bad. He would later say of the experience, "The song had become such a big hit that they felt even my singing couldn't ruin it." He would later sing a few bars of "Over the Rainbow" as part of his Oscar-winning performance in The Philadelphia Story (1940).
- #013
While filming The Big Sleep (1978) in August 1977, he appeared to be much older than his actual age of 69, playing the rich, wheelchair-bound Gen. Sternwood. The fact is that he had a hearing impairment and was having memory problems, which caused him to keep flubbing his lines. It is believed that these health problems brought about his retirement from films shortly afterwards, although he was also concerned with the violence and explicit sexual content of modern films, and he saw no future for himself in the movie business.
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Agreed to a cameo role in The Shootist (1976) only after John Wayne specifically requested him. His short time on the film proved to be trying. The bad acoustics of the huge, hollow sound stages worsened his hearing difficulties, and he stayed by himself most of the time. He and Wayne muffed their lines so often in the main scene between them that director Don Siegel accused them of not trying hard enough. Wayne's reply was a variation on an old line by John Ford, advising the director that "if you'd like the scene done better, you'd better get a couple of better actors." Later on, the star told friends that Stewart had known his lines, but hadn't been able to hear his cues, and that in turn had caused his own fumbling.
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He and Richard Widmark both wore toupees and had hearing problems. On the set of Two Rode Together (1961) director John Ford became frustrated with the two stars being unable to hear his instructions and exclaimed, "Fifty years in this goddamn business, and what do I end up doing? Directing two deaf hairpieces!".
- #019
Fell out with Anthony Mann during the shooting of Night Passage (1957), resulting in Mann being replaced (by James Neilson). A year later Mann shot Man of the West (1958), regarded by many as his greatest western of all and totally suited to Stewart, but with Gary Cooper in the lead role.
Characters & Cast (11)
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In his 2017 dual biography of Henry Fonda and James Stewart, "Hank & Jim", film historian Scott Eyman writes that an actor complained to director John Ford that although he had worked with Stewart several times, he still didn't know the man. Ford replied: "You don't get to know Jimmy Stewart. Jimmy Stewart gets to know you".
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Very much wanted the role of Roger Thornhill in North by Northwest (1959) and he was the original choice for it, but after the financial failure of Vertigo (1958), director Alfred Hitchcock blamed the film's box office woes on Stewart, claiming Stewart looked too old to still attract audiences and cast Cary Grant instead, even though Grant was actually four years older than Stewart. Previously one of the director's favorite collaborators, he and Stewart never worked together again.
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Easter Eggs & References (3)
Career & Awards (19)
- #034
Upon accepting his Honorary Oscar in 1985, he stated, "This was the greatest award I received, to know that, after all these years, I haven't been forgotten." The audience gave him a ten-minute standing ovation, making the show run long. Steven Spielberg, who was in attendance, said that he was humbled to even be in the same room as Stewart, because he respected him so much.
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Along with Robert De Niro and Harrison Ford, has eight films in IMDb's Top 250 movie list.
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While a student at Princeton, he acted in stage productions with the Triangle Club, many of them produced by future Hollywood writer / director Joshua Logan. In his senior year in 1931 he acted in a show called "The Spanish Blades," which happened to be seen by a talent scout for MGM named William Grady Jr.. Years later Grady wrote that the cast had been "a motley group, and, like all amateurs, accentuated their . . . appearance with excessive mugging and gestures . . . All but the skinny guy at the end. He was six foot four, towered over all the others, and looked uncomfortable as hell. While the others hammed it up, the thin one played it straight and was a standout." Grady introduced himself backstage, then wrote in his notebook that the boy had "an ingratiating personality" but was a type in which the studio would have "no particular interest." Eighteen years later, Grady would serve as best man at Stewart's wedding.
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- #051
Introduced the Cole Porter standard "Easy to Love" in Born to Dance (1936). His undubbed, reedy tenor voice was actually not so bad. He would later say of the experience, "The song had become such a big hit that they felt even my singing couldn't ruin it." He would later sing a few bars of "Over the Rainbow" as part of his Oscar-winning performance in The Philadelphia Story (1940).
- #052
As a student at Princeton University, James Stewart appeared in Triangle Club productions, most of them staged by the future Hollywood writer and director Joshua Logan. In his senior year, in 1931, he performed in a show called 'The Spanish Blades' that was seen by chance by William Grady Jr., a talent scout working for MGM. Years later Grady described the cast as 'a mixed bunch' and wrote that the amateurs typically made exaggerated grimaces and gestures, but that 'the skinny guy at the end' stayed quiet. The show was an important step at the start of Stewart's film career.
Life & Family (39)
- #053
Was once refused a room at the Madrid Ritz as they had a policy of not admitting actors. Stewart solved the problem by pointing out that at that moment he was a military reservist recalled to active duty, therefore not technically an actor but a Brigadier General in the United States Air Force.
- #054
He was the first movie star to enter the service in World War II, joining a year before Pearl Harbor was bombed. He was initially refused entry into the Air Force because he weighed five pounds less than the required 148 pounds, but he talked the recruitment officer into ignoring the test. He eventually became a colonel (active duty) and then brigadier general in the US Air Force Reserve, and earned the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Croix de Guerre (from France) and seven battle stars. In 1959 he served in the Air Force Reserve, before retiring as a brigadier general (Walter Matthau was a sergeant in his unit).
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His best friend was probably Henry Fonda, whom he met while at acting camp. Early on they got into a fistfight over politics (Stewart was a very conservative Republican, Fonda a very liberal Democrat) that was won by Fonda, but they apparently never discussed politics again. When Fonda moved to Hollywood he lived with Stewart and the two gained a reputation as Hollywood's biggest playboys. However, after each married and settled down, their children noted that their favorite activity when not working seemed to be silently painting model airplanes together.
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According to the 3/31/41 issue of "Time" magazine, he was drafted into the Army. Prior to induction, he flew in a private plane to California and the next day braved a large crowd of female admirers to board a Los Angeles trolley car that took him and other draftees off to be inducted for a one-year hitch in the Army. "Time" said that his salary would drop to $21 a month from $6,000 a month.
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Burt Reynolds was a neighbor a life-long devoted fan. In an interview for the TC Palm in 2010, Reynolds said how much he admired Stewart and that he was always gracious and kind towards him and others. "So modest, so wonderful", Reynolds said. "He was more than an actor. He was every man you wish you could be".
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Nearly declined to support his friend Ronald Reagan's campaign for the governorship of California in 1966, since Reagan had been a Democrat until 1962. In 1976 Stewart campaigned extensively in California for Reagan in the presidential primaries, especially visiting shopping malls and airports.
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Despite having been a decorated war hero in World War II, he declined to talk about this, in part because of the traumatic experiences he had in killing others and watching friends die. The roles he chose after returning from the war were generally darker, some say because he was hardened by combat. The sole exception was doing an interview for the award winning British documentary series 'The World at War' where he insisted on being credited purely as "Squadron Commander".
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He remained faithful to his wife Gloria Stewart throughout their marriage. While this may seem ordinary, it was rare in Hollywood for male stars to stay devoted to their wives, with many of his colleagues, such as Gary Cooper, John Wayne, and his friend Henry Fonda, having had a series of infidelities.
- #072
During the 1980s he was one of the most prominent critics of the colorization of old movies, even testifying before a Congressional committee about what he called the "denaturing" of It's a Wonderful Life (1946). "If these color-happy folks are so concerned about the audience," he said, "let them put their millions of dollars into new films, or let them remake old stories if they see fit, but let our great film artists and films live in peace. I urge everyone in the creative community to join in our efforts to discourage this terrible process.".
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In February 1944, Major Stewart was on an Air-Force base in England. One afternoon he walked into the hut of one of the crews and moved aside a pile of rugs to reveal a keg of beer. He helped himself to a glass, drank it, praised its quality, then got up to leave. In the doorway he turned and said, "I'm told a keg of beer was stolen from the Officers' Club a few days ago. Do you guys know anything abut it?" The crew denied all knowledge. "I thought not," said Stewart, and left.
- #076
Upon his death on 7/2/97, a small group of fans and admirers placed a few items on his Hollywood star, not the least of which was a rather tall (although not six feet tall) plush rabbit wearing overalls, a tribute to one of his most beloved films, Harvey (1950). It was reportedly stolen later in the night.).
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He was the first movie star to enter the service in World War II, joining a year before Pearl Harbor was bombed. He was initially refused entry into the Air Force because he weighed five pounds less than the required 148 pounds, but he talked the recruitment officer into ignoring the test. He eventually became a colonel (active duty) and then brigadier general in the US Air Force Reserve, and earned the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Croix de Guerre (from France) and seven battle stars. In 1959 he served in the Air Force Reserve, before retiring as a brigadier general (Walter Matthau was a sergeant in his unit).
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His best friend was probably Henry Fonda, whom he met while at acting camp. Early on they got into a fistfight over politics (Stewart was a very conservative Republican, Fonda a very liberal Democrat) that was won by Fonda, but they apparently never discussed politics again. When Fonda moved to Hollywood he lived with Stewart and the two gained a reputation as Hollywood's biggest playboys. However, after each married and settled down, their children noted that their favorite activity when not working seemed to be silently painting model airplanes together.
- #082
His two natural children, twin daughters Judy Stewart and Kelly Stewart, were born on 5/7/51. His wife, Gloria Stewart (the former Gloria Hatrick McLean), a former model from Larchmont, NY, also brought two sons to the marriage: Ronald and Michael (aged 5 and 2 at the time of the wedding in 1949), whom he adopted. Ronald later died on active service, as a Marine Corps officer on 6/8/69 in Vietnam.
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Never recovered from his wife's death on 2/16/94, and vowed to make no further public appearances after her funeral service. Thereafter, he spent most of his time in his bedroom, coming out only at the insistence of his housekeeper for his meals. Newspaper reports suggested that he had Alzheimer's disease. Over the Christmas holiday season in 1995, he failed to negotiate a rise leading to a dining area and he fell, cracking his head on the bill of a wooden duck that his daughter Judy had given him some years previously. In December 1996, when he was due to have his battery changed in his pacemaker, he told his children that he would rather not have that done. He wanted to let things take their natural course. However, on 1/31/97 he tripped over a potted plant in his bedroom and cut open his forehead. He was taken to St John's Hospital, in Santa Monica, CA, where he was given 12 stitches. A few weeks later he was hospitalized for a blood clot and an irregular heartbeat. He had a blood clot in his right knee, and the swelling soon spread through his entire leg. At 11:05 a.m. on 7/2/97 he died of cardiac arrest at age 89.
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According to the 3/31/41 issue of "Time" magazine, he was drafted into the Army. Prior to induction, he flew in a private plane to California and the next day braved a large crowd of female admirers to board a Los Angeles trolley car that took him and other draftees off to be inducted for a one-year hitch in the Army. "Time" said that his salary would drop to $21 a month from $6,000 a month.
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Related pages
- Coyote vs. Acme — James Stewart comes up in the facts on that page
- Mickey Rooney — James Stewart comes up in the facts on that page
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
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