30 Facts About Adolphe Menjou

Adolphe Jean Menjou was an American actor, whose career spanned both silent films and talkies.

Adolphe Menjou became a leading man during the 1920's, known for his debonair and sophisticated screen presence.

Adolphe Menjou was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Front Page.

Adolphe Menjou played prominent roles in The Sheik, A Woman of Paris, The Marriage Circle, Morocco, A Farewell to Arms, Morning Glory, and the original A Star Is Born.

Adolphe Jean Menjou was born on February 18,1890, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to a French father, Albert Menjou, and an Irish mother, Nora.

Adolphe Menjou's mother was the first cousin of James Joyce.

Adolphe Menjou's brother, Henry Arthur Menjou, was a year younger and an actor.

Adolphe Menjou attended the Culver Military Academy, and graduated from Cornell University with a degree in engineering.

Adolphe Menjou's supporting role in 1923's A Woman of Paris solidified the image of a well-dressed man-about-town, and he was voted Best Dressed Man in America nine times.

Adolphe Menjou was noted as an example of a suave type of actor, one who could play lover or villain.

Adolphe Menjou closed the end of the 1920s with star roles such as His Private Life and Fashions in Love.

Adolphe Menjou was nominated for an Academy Award for The Front Page, after having received the role upon the death of Louis Wolheim during rehearsals.

Adolphe Menjou's roles decreased slightly in the 1940s, but he did overseas work for World War II alongside supporting roles in films like Roxie Hart and State of the Union.

Adolphe Menjou had just eleven roles in the 1950s, but he managed to snag one last leading role with the film noir The Sniper.

In 1955, Adolphe Menjou played Dr Elliott Harcourt in "Barrier of Silence", episode 19 of the first season of the television series Science Fiction Theatre.

Adolphe Menjou guest-starred as Fitch, with Orson Bean and Sue Randall as John and Ellen Monroe, in a 1961 episode, "The Secret Life of James Thurber", based on the works of American humorist James Thurber, in the CBS anthology series The DuPont Show with June Allyson.

Adolphe Menjou appeared in the Thanksgiving episode of NBC's The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford, which aired on November 22,1956.

Adolphe Menjou ended his film career with such roles as French General George Broulard in Stanley Kubrick's film Paths of Glory and his final film role was that of the town curmudgeon in Disney's Pollyanna.

Adolphe Menjou was a staunch Republican who equated the Democratic Party with socialism.

Adolphe Menjou supported the Hoover administration's policies during the Great Depression.

Adolphe Menjou told a friend that he feared that if a Democrat won the White House, they "would raise taxes [and] destroy the value of the dollar," depriving Adolphe Menjou of a good portion of his wealth.

In 1947, Adolphe Menjou co-operated with the House Committee on Un-American Activities saying that Hollywood "is one of the main centers of Communist activity in America".

Adolphe Menjou added: "it is the desire and wish of the masters of Moscow to use this medium for their purposes" which is "the overthrow of the American government".

Adolphe Menjou was a leading member of the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals, a group formed to oppose "communist influence" in Hollywood, whose other members included John Wayne, Barbara Stanwyck and her husband, actor Robert Taylor.

Adolphe Menjou married Kathryn Carver in 1928; they divorced in 1934.

Adolphe Menjou had adopted Tinsley's son, Harold Lawton Tinsley, but after his death, his will revealed that he had included only Peter Adolphe Menjou as his heir.

Adolphe Menjou was an avid golfer, regularly playing with Clark Gable.

In 1948, Adolphe Menjou published his autobiography, It Took Nine Tailors.

Adolphe Menjou died on October 29,1963, of hepatitis in Beverly Hills, California.

Adolphe Menjou is interred beside Verree at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.