• Name: Robert Preston
  • Date of Birth: June 08, 1918
  • Place of Birth: Newton Highlands, Massachusetts, USA
Mini-bio: A vital, virile, exciting Broadway performer, Preston was once called, "the best American actor -- with a voice like golden thunder," by Richard Burton. He decided to become an actor at age 15. After ... read morestudying acting at the Pasadena Playhouse, he became a steady, dependable performer in Hollywood films from the late '30s. Preston became well-known after Cecil B. De Mille cast him as Barbara Stanwyck's gambler husband in Union Pacific (1939). He was almost strictly a second-lead actor for 20 years, finally breaking through to lead roles after becoming a star on Broadway. For his Broadway performance (his first in a musical) as ebullient con-artist Harold Hill in The Music Man he won a Tony Award; he repeated the role in the screen version (1962) and it became the work for which he is best known. Preston went on to earn another Tony Award for his performance in the 1966 musical I Do! I Do!, opposite Mary Martin. Another outstanding performance was as Julie Andrews' gay friend Toddie in Blake Edwards' Victor/Victoria (1982), a performance which earned him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination. ~ Rovi
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Replace this image with an actor photoRobert Preston mini-bio: Preston was born in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of a garment worker. After attending Abraham Lincoln High School in Los Angeles, California, he studied acting at the Pasadena Community Playhouse. He would later serve as an intelligence officer with the U.S. 9th Air Force during World War II.

Preston appeared in many Hollywood films, predominantly Westerns, but is probably best remembered for his portrayal of the character "Professor" Harold Hill in Meredith Willson's musical, The Music Man (1962). He won a Tony Award for his performance in the original Broadway production. In 1974, he starred opposite Bernadette Peters in the Broadway musical "Mack and Mabel" as Mack Sennett, the famous silent film director.

Although he was not a singer, he appeared in several other stage and film musicals, notably Mame (1974) and Victor/Victoria (1982), for which he received an Academy Award nomination. His final role was in the TV movie Outrage! (1986). His final role in a film made for theatres was in The Last Starfighter, in which he played intergalactic con man/military recruiter "Centauri." He died of lung cancer at the age of 68.

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  • I starred in both 'The Music Man' and 'The Last Starfighter'. Who am I?  Answer »
  • In the film "The Music Man," Professor Harold Hill was played by which actor?  Answer »
  • I had very similar roles - as a traveling salesman, and then a videogame designer from another world. Who am I?  Answer »
  • Name the actor by the roles he has played David Callaway Jack Byrnes Paul Vitti Mitch Preston Father Bobby Sam "Ace" Rothstein Vito Corleone  Answer »

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