Biographie

Twice won Broadway's Tony Award as Best Actor (Musical): in 1958, for "The Music Man," a performance he recreated in the film version of the same name, Le marchand de fanfares (1962); and, in 1967, for "I Do! I Do!". He was also nominated in the same category in 1975 for "Mack and Mabel", in which he played movie pioneer Mack Sennett.

During the early 1950s he and his wife Catherine and 16 of their friends maintained an informal acting group called "Eighteen Actors". They were film actors trying to gain theatrical experience with their actress wives. Included were Charles Lane, Dana Andrews, Moroni Olsen, Addison Richards, Victor Jory and Don Porter. Their productions ran four consecutive weekends in a small state-donated building near the Rose Bowl.

Before starring in the musical "The Music Man", he had not only never appeared in a musical before, he had never sung a note professionally before.

Was in three Oscar Best Picture nominees: La sentinelle du Pacifique (1942), Le marchand de fanfares (1962) and La Conquête de l'Ouest (1962).

Served three years in the US Army Air Corps--the predecessor of the US Air Force--as an S-2 (Intelligence Officer), 386th Bombardment Group (Medium), a B-26 Marauder bomber unit assigned to the 8th Air Force and later to the 9th Air Force, based primarily in England, during World War II. By war's end the 386th had moved forward, in pursuit of its own invading forces, and Capt. Robert Meservey (his birth name) and the 386th was re-stationed in Belgium. His job was to receive intelligence reports from 9th Air Force headquarters, in turn briefing 386th bomber crews about what they would most likely encounter, and also to apprise them of HQ expectations.

I've done my best to avoid B pictures. Why should I go into them now and call it television?

I'd get the best role in every B picture and the second best in the A pictures.

[on Gary Cooper] I loved working with Gary Cooper. People refer to Cooperisms and Cooper tricks, but I always found him to be a tremendous actor.

[on working with Julie Andrews on Victor/Victoria (1982)] I suppose what I like most about working with Julie is that one has the feeling that the other half of the scene is well taken care of. You can relax and do your own role because you know she's doing hers.

[on Loretta Young] She worked with a full-length mirror behind the camera. I didn't know which Loretta to play to -- the one in the mirror or the one that was with me.