James Mason

James Neville Mason (15 May 1909 – 27 July 1984) was an English actor who achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was nominated for three Academy Awards, three Golden Globes (winning once) and two BAFTA Awards throughout his career. Mason's career began as a stage actor, then he gradually became an influential figure in movies during the early 1940s. He became the top box-office attraction in the UK in 1944 and 1945 and starred in several celebrated films including 'The Seventh Veil (1945)', 'The Wicked Lady (1945)', and 'Odd Man Out (1947)'. He transferred to the United States in the subsequent decade and starred in notable films such as 'George Cukor's A Star Is Born (1954)', 'Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (1959)', 'Stanley Kubrick's Lolita (1962)', 'Warren Beatty's Heaven Can Wait (1978)', and 'Sidney Lumet's The Verdict (1982)'. Mason was educated at Marlborough College and took a first in architecture at Peterhouse, Cambridge. His acting career started remarkably after his graduation and continued flourishing till his death in 1984, where his ashes were interred close to the tomb of his close friend, fellow English actor Sir Charlie Chaplin.