Henry Fonda

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

201

Gender

Male

Birthday

1905-05-16

Day of death

1982-08-12 (77 years old)

Place of Birth

Grand Island, Nebraska, USA

Henry Fonda

Biography

Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor who had a career that spanned five decades in Hollywood. Fonda cultivated a strong, appealing screen image in several films now considered to be classics, earning one Academy Award for Best Actor on two nominations. Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor and made his Hollywood film debut in 1935. His film career began to gain momentum with roles such as Bette Davis's fiancee in her Academy Award-winning performance in Jezebel (1938), brother Frank in Jesse James (1939), and the future President in Young Mr. Lincoln (1939), directed by John Ford. His early career peaked with his Academy Award-nominated performance as Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath, about an Oklahoma family who moved to California during the Dust Bowl 1930s. This film is widely considered to be among the greatest American films. In 1941 he starred opposite Barbara Stanwyck in the screwball comedy classic The Lady Eve. Book-ending his service in WWII were his starring roles in two highly regarded westerns: The Ox-Bow Incident (1943) and My Darling Clementine (1946), the latter directed by John Ford, and he also starred in Ford's western Fort Apache (1948). After a seven-year break from films, during which Fonda focused on stage productions, he returned with the WWII war-boat ensemble Mister Roberts (1955). In 1957 he starred as Juror No.8, the hold-out juror, in 12 Angry Men. Fonda, who was also co-producer, won the BAFTA for Best Foreign Actor. Later in his career, Fonda moved into darker roles, such as the villain in the epic Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), underrated and a box office disappointment at its time of release, but now regarded as one of the best westerns of all time. He also played in lighter-hearted fare such as Yours, Mine and Ours with Lucille Ball, but also often played important military figures, such as a Colonel in Battle of the Bulge (1965), and Admiral Nimitz in Midway (1976). He finally won the Academy Award for Best Actor at the 54th Academy Awards for his final film role in On Golden Pond (1981), which also starred Katharine Hepburn and his daughter Jane Fonda, but was too ill to attend the ceremony. He died from heart disease a few months later.

Known For

  • The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

    The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

  • The Mike Douglas Show

    The Mike Douglas Show

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Golden Globe Awards

    Golden Globe Awards

  • The Merv Griffin Show

    The Merv Griffin Show

  • The Doris Day Show

    The Doris Day Show

  • Spécial cinéma

    Spécial cinéma

  • The Dick Cavett Show

    The Dick Cavett Show

  • 12 Angry Men

    12 Angry Men

  • What's My Line?

    What's My Line?

  • Dinah!

    Dinah!

  • All in the Family

    All in the Family

  • The Ed Sullivan Show

    The Ed Sullivan Show

  • The Steve Allen Show

    The Steve Allen Show

  • Family

    Family

  • Once Upon a Time in the West

    Once Upon a Time in the West

  • How the West Was Won

    How the West Was Won

  • The Deputy

    The Deputy

  • The Kennedy Center Honors

    The Kennedy Center Honors

  • Midway

    Midway

  • The Bell Telephone Hour

    The Bell Telephone Hour

  • V.I.P. Schaukel

    V.I.P. Schaukel

  • Yours, Mine and Ours

    Yours, Mine and Ours

  • The Ox-Bow Incident

    The Ox-Bow Incident

  • The Grapes of Wrath

    The Grapes of Wrath

  • The Swarm

    The Swarm

  • The Fabulous Fifties

    The Fabulous Fifties

  • The Tin Star

    The Tin Star

  • War and Peace

    War and Peace

  • The Bill Cosby Show

    The Bill Cosby Show

  • Stage Struck

    Stage Struck

  • Sometimes a Great Notion

    Sometimes a Great Notion

  • Henry Fonda for President

    Henry Fonda for President

  • The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts

    The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts

  • The American Film Institute Salute to ...

    The American Film Institute Salute to ...

  • City on Fire

    City on Fire

  • Spanish Western

    Spanish Western

  • Ash Wednesday

    Ash Wednesday

  • A Special Sesame Street Christmas

    A Special Sesame Street Christmas

  • The Boston Strangler

    The Boston Strangler

  • The Longest Day

    The Longest Day

  • Advise & Consent

    Advise & Consent

  • Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker

    Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker

  • I Met My Love Again

    I Met My Love Again

  • The Serpent

    The Serpent

  • Wings of the Morning

    Wings of the Morning

  • Tales of Manhattan

    Tales of Manhattan

  • The Mad Miss Manton

    The Mad Miss Manton

  • Roots: The Next Generations

    Roots: The Next Generations

  • Cadet Rousselle

    Cadet Rousselle

  • Captains and the Kings

    Captains and the Kings

  • The Return of Frank James

    The Return of Frank James

  • Rollercoaster

    Rollercoaster

  • The Wrong Man

    The Wrong Man

  • In Harm's Way

    In Harm's Way

  • The Male Animal

    The Male Animal

  • The Rounders

    The Rounders

  • Paul's Case

    Paul's Case

  • Fort Apache

    Fort Apache

  • Spencer's Mountain

    Spencer's Mountain

  • Stranger on the Run

    Stranger on the Run

  • The Really Big Family

    The Really Big Family

  • Daisy Kenyon

    Daisy Kenyon

  • Born to Buck

    Born to Buck

  • The Music School

    The Music School

  • On Golden Pond

    On Golden Pond

  • My Name Is Nobody

    My Name Is Nobody

  • Collision Course: Truman vs. MacArthur

    Collision Course: Truman vs. MacArthur

  • Battle of the Bulge

    Battle of the Bulge

  • Young Mr. Lincoln

    Young Mr. Lincoln

  • I'm a Fool

    I'm a Fool

  • The Wages of Sin

    The Wages of Sin

  • Spendthrift

    Spendthrift

  • The Big Street

    The Big Street

  • The Cheyenne Social Club

    The Cheyenne Social Club

  • The Displaced Person

    The Displaced Person

  • Meteor

    Meteor

  • An Opera of Violence

    An Opera of Violence

  • Hallmark Hall of Fame

    Hallmark Hall of Fame

  • The Sky Is Gray

    The Sky Is Gray

  • Warlock

    Warlock

  • Slim

    Slim

  • La Classe américaine

    La Classe américaine

  • Mister Roberts

    Mister Roberts

  • Parker Adderson, Philosopher

    Parker Adderson, Philosopher

  • Firecreek

    Firecreek

  • The Smith Family

    The Smith Family

  • My Darling Clementine

    My Darling Clementine

  • The Lady Eve

    The Lady Eve

  • Welcome to Hard Times

    Welcome to Hard Times

  • Breakdowns of 1938

    Breakdowns of 1938

  • Stiletto

    Stiletto

  • You Belong to Me

    You Belong to Me

  • The Great Smokey Roadblock

    The Great Smokey Roadblock

  • A Space to Grow

    A Space to Grow

  • Inside 'the Swarm'

    Inside 'the Swarm'

  • The Magnificent Dope

    The Magnificent Dope

  • Tentacles

    Tentacles

  • The Battle of Midway

    The Battle of Midway

  • Wild Geese Calling

    Wild Geese Calling

  • Wanda Nevada

    Wanda Nevada

  • There Was a Crooked Man...

    There Was a Crooked Man...

  • Sex and the Single Girl

    Sex and the Single Girl

  • Going Hollywood: The '30s

    Going Hollywood: The '30s

  • The Star and the Story

    The Star and the Story

  • John Ford & Monument Valley

    John Ford & Monument Valley

  • The Jilting of Granny Weatherall

    The Jilting of Granny Weatherall

  • Drums Along the Mohawk

    Drums Along the Mohawk

  • Jigsaw

    Jigsaw

  • John Ford: The Man Who Invented America

    John Ford: The Man Who Invented America

  • Fedora

    Fedora

  • The Long Night

    The Long Night

  • Blockade

    Blockade

  • I Dream Too Much

    I Dream Too Much

  • Rappaccini's Daughter

    Rappaccini's Daughter

  • The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg

    The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg

  • Madigan

    Madigan

  • The American West of John Ford

    The American West of John Ford

  • General Electric Theater

    General Electric Theater

  • The Best Man

    The Best Man

  • The Story of Alexander Graham Bell

    The Story of Alexander Graham Bell

  • That Certain Woman

    That Certain Woman

  • The Alpha Caper

    The Alpha Caper

  • Fail Safe

    Fail Safe

  • Parkinson: Meet Henry Fonda

    Parkinson: Meet Henry Fonda

  • The Last Four Days

    The Last Four Days

  • Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still

    Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still

  • Let Poland Be Poland

    Let Poland Be Poland

  • You Only Live Once

    You Only Live Once

  • It's Everybody's War

    It's Everybody's War

  • Gideon's Trumpet

    Gideon's Trumpet

  • Spawn of the North

    Spawn of the North

  • The Fugitive

    The Fugitive

  • Hollywood: The Selznick Years

    Hollywood: The Selznick Years

  • Chad Hanna

    Chad Hanna

  • Guilt Trip: Hitchcock and 'The Wrong Man'

    Guilt Trip: Hitchcock and 'The Wrong Man'

  • Barn Burning

    Barn Burning

  • Jezebel

    Jezebel

  • Directed by John Ford

    Directed by John Ford

  • The Greatest Man in the World

    The Greatest Man in the World

  • The Sensational Shocking Wonderful Wacky 70's

    The Sensational Shocking Wonderful Wacky 70's

  • Revisiting 'Fail-Safe'

    Revisiting 'Fail-Safe'

  • The Dirty Game

    The Dirty Game

  • The Blue Hotel

    The Blue Hotel

  • A Big Hand for the Little Lady

    A Big Hand for the Little Lady

  • Laugh-In

    Laugh-In

  • Laugh-In

    Laugh-In

  • The Petrified Forest

    The Petrified Forest

  • Too Late the Hero

    Too Late the Hero

  • The Farmer Takes a Wife

    The Farmer Takes a Wife

  • Benjy

    Benjy

  • Something to Do with Death

    Something to Do with Death

  • The Trail of the Lonesome Pine

    The Trail of the Lonesome Pine

  • Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line

    Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line

  • Henry Fonda: Hollywood's Quiet Hero

    Henry Fonda: Hollywood's Quiet Hero

  • The Red Pony

    The Red Pony

  • The Biggest Battle

    The Biggest Battle

  • Way Down East

    Way Down East

  • Fonda on Fonda

    Fonda on Fonda

  • Hidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults

    Hidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults

  • Soldier's Home

    Soldier's Home

  • The World About Us

    The World About Us

  • Rings on Her Fingers

    Rings on Her Fingers

  • Jesse James

    Jesse James

  • The Fondas: A Cinematic Dynasty

    The Fondas: A Cinematic Dynasty

  • The Man Who Understood Women

    The Man Who Understood Women

  • Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To

    Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To

  • Barbara Stanwyck: Fire and Desire

    Barbara Stanwyck: Fire and Desire

  • The Moon's Our Home

    The Moon's Our Home

  • Home to Stay

    Home to Stay

  • Let Us Live

    Let Us Live

  • Bernice Bobs Her Hair

    Bernice Bobs Her Hair

  • Henry James' The Jolly Corner

    Henry James' The Jolly Corner

  • The Golden Honeymoon

    The Golden Honeymoon

  • Sacco and Vanzetti

    Sacco and Vanzetti

  • The Man Who Loved Bears

    The Man Who Loved Bears

  • Pat Paulsen for President

    Pat Paulsen for President

  • Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: Making '12 Angry Men'

    Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: Making '12 Angry Men'

  • The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind

    The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind

  • The Oldest Living Graduate

    The Oldest Living Graduate

  • Hollywood: The Fabulous Era

    Hollywood: The Fabulous Era

  • On Our Merry Way

    On Our Merry Way

  • 'Fail-Safe' and the Cold War

    'Fail-Safe' and the Cold War

  • Pictura

    Pictura

  • Lillian Russell

    Lillian Russell

  • Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia

    Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia

  • President Kennedy's Birthday Salute

    President Kennedy's Birthday Salute

  • The Real Miss America

    The Real Miss America

  • To Save a Soldier

    To Save a Soldier

  • Immortal Sergeant

    Immortal Sergeant

  • Jezebel: Legend of the South

    Jezebel: Legend of the South

  • Summer Solstice

    Summer Solstice

  • Clarence Darrow

    Clarence Darrow

  • An Impression of John Steinbeck: Writer

    An Impression of John Steinbeck: Writer

  • Hollywood: The Great Stars

    Hollywood: The Great Stars

  • Underground Doctors

    Underground Doctors