Who was George C. Scott? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Also Known As: George Campbell Scott

Died At Age: 71

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Carolyn Hughes (m. 1951–1955), Colleen Dewhurst (m. 1967–1972), Patricia Reed (m. 1955–1960), Trish Van Devere (m. 1972–1999)

father: George Dewey Scott (1902–1988)

mother: Helena Agnes (née Slemp; 1904–1935)

children: Alexander R. Scott, Campbell Scott, Devon Scott, Matthew Scott, Michelle Scott, Victoria Scott

Actors Directors

Height: 6'1" (185 cm), 6'1" Males

Died on: September 22, 1999

place of death: Westlake Village, California, United States

Cause of Death: Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

U.S. State: Virginia

Ancestry: German American

Diseases & Disabilities: Heart Attack

More Facts

education: University Of Missouri

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University Of Missouri

Childhood & Early Life

George Campbell Scott was born to Helena Agnes and George Dewey Scott, in Wise, Virginia. His mother passed away when he was eight and his father, who worked as an executive with Buick, raised him up.

He studied at Redford High School in Detroit. Inspired by his favorite author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, he dreamt of becoming a writer. To follow the same, he wrote a number of short stories and even attempted to write a novel.

From 1945 to 1949, he served in the US Marines, where he was assigned the job to teach radio speaking/writing and English literature at the Marine Corps Institute.

He studied journalism at the University of Missouri and graduated from there in 1953. It was around this time that he started to show interest in theater and drama. Around this time, he starred in ‘Richard III’ and ‘Children of Darkness’, both of which earned him critical acclaim.

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Career

In 1958, he appeared as Jacques in an episode for ‘The DuPont Show of the Month’, a television anthology series.

In 1959, he made his debut in the film, ‘The Hanging Tree’ as George Grubb. His performance in the movie earned him an Oscar nomination. The same year, he starred in the film, ‘Anatomy of Murder’ opposite James Stewart.

In 1964, he starred in the critically-acclaimed, ‘Dr. Strangelove’ as General Buck Turgidson. The same year, he also starred as Paolo Maltese in ‘The Yellow Rolls-Royce’.

One of his most noteworthy performances was as General George Patton in the 1970 film, ‘Patton’. He captivated audiences with his indomitable screen presence and even won an Academy Award for his acting, but he refused the award. The same year, he also starred in ‘Jane Eyre’ as Edward Rochester, for which he was once again nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.

Through the 1970s, he starred in ‘The Hospital’, ‘Rage’, ‘The Day of Dolphin’ and ‘Bank Shot’. In 1971, he delivered a critically-acclaimed performance as ‘Sherlock Holmes’ in ‘They Might Be Giants’.

He then appeared on the CBS television adaptation of ‘A Christmas Carol’, in which he was cast as Ebenezer Scrooge, in 1984.

Through the mid-80s and 90s, he appeared in a plethora of films including, ‘Mussolini: The Untold Story’, ‘The Last Days of Patton’, ‘Descending Angel’, ‘Tyson’, ‘Titanic’ and the award-winning ‘12 Angry Men’.

In 1999, he made an appearance in his final TV-movie, ‘Inherit the Wind’, where he played the role of William Jennings Bryan.

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Major Works

He was cast as General George S. Patton in ‘Patton’, which released in 1970. The movie was one of his biggest hits of his career and won a total of 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. With a total box-office collection of $61,749,765, Scott became highly recognized for his acting skills and despite refusing his Academy Award; he reprised his role as Patton in the sequel, ‘The Last Days of Patton’.

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Scott played the role of ‘Ebenezer Scrooge’ in the 1984 TV-film, ‘A Christmas Carol’. This particular version is believed to have been the closest adaptation to the novella of the same title and he was praised tremendously for his acting abilities and his representation of the famous classic character, ‘Scrooge’.

Awards & Achievements

He won an Academy Award for ‘Best Actor’ for ‘Patton’ in 1970, but he did not accept the award.

He won a Genie Award for ‘Best Performance by a Foreign Actor’ for ‘The Changeling’, in 1980.

He won the Golden Globe Award for ‘Best Supporting Actor-Series, Miniseries or Television Film’ for ‘12 Angry Men’, in 1997.

Personal Life & Legacy

He married Carolyn Hughes in 1951 and divorced her four years later. They had one daughter together.

He then married Patricia Reed in 1955 and divorced her in 1960. He had two children with her - Mathew and Devon Scott. The year he divorced Reed, he married Colleen Dewhurst, with whom he had two more sons.

He divorced Colleen on February 2, 1972. His final marriage was to American actress, Trish Van Devere the same year, with whom he has also acted in a number of films.

He had an illegitimate daughter, Michelle with Karen Truesdell and was also involved in an affair with actress, Ava Gardner.

He suffered from frequent bouts of alcoholism and is believed to have been an extremely short-tempered man on the sets and even in his personal relationships.

He passed away of an abdominal aortic aneurysm and his remains were interred in Westwood, California.

Trivia

This famous American Actor of ‘Patton’ fame once served at Arlington National Cemetery as an honor guard for military funerals. This job depressed him, which got him into the habit of drinking too much alcohol.

1998	Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television	12 Angry Men (1997)
1971	Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama	Patton (1970)

1998	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie	12 Angry Men (1997)
1971	Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role	ITV Saturday Night Theatre (1969)

George C. Scott Biography