Tall, balding character actor in US films from 1921 until the year he died, usually portraying obstinate or irascible types. A man so disagreeable on celluloid, Claude Gillingwater's characters seemed to subsist on a steady diet of persimmons. Fondly recalled as the cranky old skinflint whose seemingly cold heart could only be warmed by the actions of a cute little tyke, the tall and rangy Gillingwater invariably played much older than he was. He, with the omnipresent bushy brows, crop of silver hair and perpetually sour puss, had a much more versatile career than perhaps realized -- on both stage and in film. Most assuredly, this caustic screen image he perfected belied a softer, gentler off-screen demeanor for he was a kind and sympathetic gent and devoted husband to wife Carlyn Stiletz (or Stellith). Their only child, Claude Gillingwater Jr., briefly became an actor himself. Sadly, Gillingwater Sr.'s thriving character career ended on a grim and tragic note in 1939. A serious accident on the movie set of the picture Florida Special (1936) (he fell from a platform and injured his back) damaged his health and threatened his career, and the death of his long-time wife Carlyn left him irrevocably depressed. Fearing the possibility of becoming an invalid and wishing not to become a serious burden to anyone, the 69-year-old actor committed suicide at his Beverly Hills home with a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. Gillingwater left a fine Hollywood legacy and the fun of some of his old films is watching his vinegar turn to sugar. Date of Birth 2 August 1870, Louisiana, Missouri Date of Death 2 November 1939, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California (suicide)
89 movies
Cafe Society
1939·7.5
Just Around the Corner
1938·5.8
There Goes My Heart
1938·7.3
Little Miss Broadway
1938·6.5
A Yank at Oxford
1938·6.7
Conquest
1937·6.6
Top of the Town
1937·6.0
Can This Be Dixie?
1936·7.0
Wives Never Know
1936·9.0
Poor Little Rich Girl
1936·6.6
Ticket to Paradise
1936·7.5
Counterfeit
1936·6.3
Florida Special
1936·7.0
The Prisoner of Shark Island
1936·6.9
A Tale of Two Cities
1935·6.9
Together We Live
1935·7.0
Calm Yourself
1935·6.0
Baby Face Harrington
1935·5.4
Mississippi
1935·6.8
The Woman in Red
1935·6.0
Strange Wives
1934·7.0
The Captain Hates the Sea
1934·6.4
Green Eyes
1934·5.8
In Love with Life
1934·6.0
Unknown Blonde
1934·3.3
City Limits
1934·5.5
The Show-Off
1934·6.3
You Can't Buy Everything
1934·8.0
Before Midnight
1933·4.6
Back Page
1933·7.0
I Loved a Woman
1933·4.8
Skyway
1933·5.8
The Avenger
1933·8.0
Ann Carver's Profession
1933·7.0
Tess of the Storm Country
1932·7.0
Running Hollywood
1932·9.0
The Wide Open Spaces
1931·7.0
Compromised
1931·4.0
How I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 8: 'The Brassie'
1931·7.0
Gold Dust Gertie
1931·6.0
Daddy Long Legs
1931·4.8
The Conquering Horde
1931·7.0
Illicit
1931·5.7
Kiss Me Again
1931·8.0
The Flirting Widow
1930·5.7
Dumb-bells in Ermine
1930·5.7
Mexicali Rose
1929·5.6
So Long Letty
1929·6.3
The Great Divide
1929·5.3
Smiling Irish Eyes
1929·9.0
Glad Rag Doll
1929·9.0
Stolen Kisses
1929·6.3
Stark Mad
1929·5.5
Oh Kay!
1928·7.0
Women They Talk About
1928·7.0
Husbands for Rent
1927·10.0
The Gorilla
1927·10.0
Barbed Wire
1927·6.8
Naughty But Nice
1927·9.0
Fast and Furious
1927·4.5
45 Minutes from Hollywood
1926·5.3
For Wives Only
1926·10.0
Into Her Kingdom
1926·9.0
That's My Baby
1926·9.0
Wages for Wives
1925·7.0
We Moderns
1925·10.0
Seven Sinners
1925·6.5
Winds of Chance
1925·6.5
A Thief in Paradise
1925·6.5
Cheaper to Marry
1925·7.0
Idle Tongues
1924·9.0
Madonna of the Streets
1924·9.0
How to Educate a Wife
1924·9.0
Daddies
1924·6.0
Tiger Rose
1923·5.4
A Chapter in Her Life
1923·6.5
Dulcy
1923·7.0
Three Wise Fools
1923·10.0
Souls for Sale
1923·6.3
Alice Adams
1923·9.0
Crinoline and Romance
1923·7.0
The Christian
1923·10.0
The Strangers' Banquet
1922·10.0
Remembrance
1922·9.0
The Dust Flower
1922·8.0
Fools First
1922·8.0
My Boy
1921·6.1
Little Lord Fauntleroy
1921·7.0
Wild Primrose
1918·7.0