Gregory Peck

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

139

Gender

Male

Birthday

1916-04-05

Day of death

2003-06-12 (87 years old)

Place of Birth

La Jolla, California, USA

Gregory Peck

Biography

Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the 12th-greatest male star of Classic Hollywood Cinema. After studying at the Neighborhood Playhouse with Sanford Meisner, Peck began appearing in stage productions, acting in over 50 plays and three Broadway productions. He first gained critical success in The Keys of the Kingdom (1944), a John M. Stahl–directed drama which earned him his first Academy Award nomination. He starred in a series of successful films, including romantic-drama The Valley of Decision (1944), Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound (1945), and family film The Yearling (1946). He encountered lukewarm commercial reviews at the end of the 1940s, his performances including The Paradine Case (1947) and The Great Sinner (1948). Peck reached global recognition in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing back-to-back in the book-to-film adaptation of Captain Horatio Hornblower (1951) and biblical drama David and Bathsheba (1951). He starred alongside Ava Gardner in The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1952) and Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday (1953), which earned Peck a Golden Globe award. Other notable films in which he appeared include Moby Dick (1956, and its 1998 mini-series), The Guns of Navarone (1961), Cape Fear (1962, and its 1991 remake), The Omen (1976), and The Boys from Brazil (1978). Throughout his career, he often portrayed protagonists with "fiber" within a moral setting. Gentleman's Agreement (1947) centered on topics of antisemitism, while Peck's character in Twelve O'Clock High (1949) dealt with post-traumatic stress disorder during World War II. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), an adaptation of the modern classic of the same name which revolved around racial inequality, for which he received universal acclaim. In 1983, he starred opposite Christopher Plummer in The Scarlet and The Black as Hugh O'Flaherty, a Catholic priest who saved thousands of escaped Allied POWs and Jewish people in Rome during the Second World War. Peck was also active in politics, challenging the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947 and was regarded as a political opponent by President Richard Nixon. President Lyndon B. Johnson honored Peck with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969 for his lifetime humanitarian efforts. Peck died in his sleep from bronchopneumonia at the age of 87.

Known For

  • The Mike Douglas Show

    The Mike Douglas Show

  • The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

    The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

  • Bambi

    Bambi

  • Champs-Elysées

    Champs-Elysées

  • The Oscars

    The Oscars

  • Spécial cinéma

    Spécial cinéma

  • Les Rendez-vous du dimanche

    Les Rendez-vous du dimanche

  • The Ed Sullivan Show

    The Ed Sullivan Show

  • Dinah!

    Dinah!

  • The Kennedy Center Honors

    The Kennedy Center Honors

  • Moby Dick

    Moby Dick

  • Arabesque

    Arabesque

  • Baseball

    Baseball

  • Duel in the Sun

    Duel in the Sun

  • Night People

    Night People

  • V.I.P. Schaukel

    V.I.P. Schaukel

  • David and Bathsheba

    David and Bathsheba

  • Marooned

    Marooned

  • To Kill a Mockingbird

    To Kill a Mockingbird

  • Charlton Heston: For All Seasons

    Charlton Heston: For All Seasons

  • Mirage

    Mirage

  • The Omen

    The Omen

  • Cape Fear

    Cape Fear

  • Only the Valiant

    Only the Valiant

  • The American Film Institute Salute to ...

    The American Film Institute Salute to ...

  • Roman Holiday

    Roman Holiday

  • Yellow Sky

    Yellow Sky

  • Anthony Quinn: An Original

    Anthony Quinn: An Original

  • MGM Parade

    MGM Parade

  • Reflets de Cannes

    Reflets de Cannes

  • The Dick Powell Show

    The Dick Powell Show

  • The Guns of Navarone

    The Guns of Navarone

  • On the Beach

    On the Beach

  • How the West Was Won

    How the West Was Won

  • Fun in the Big Country

    Fun in the Big Country

  • I Walk the Line

    I Walk the Line

  • Moby Dick

    Moby Dick

  • Directed by William Wyler

    Directed by William Wyler

  • Billy Two Hats

    Billy Two Hats

  • Night of 100 Stars

    Night of 100 Stars

  • Old Gringo

    Old Gringo

  • Audrey Hepburn: Remembered

    Audrey Hepburn: Remembered

  • The Big Country

    The Big Country

  • Talking Pictures

    Talking Pictures

  • Pictura

    Pictura

  • Gentleman's Agreement

    Gentleman's Agreement

  • The Blue and the Gray

    The Blue and the Gray

  • The Yearling

    The Yearling

  • Spellbound

    Spellbound

  • Mackenna's Gold

    Mackenna's Gold

  • Cape Fear

    Cape Fear

  • The Boys from Brazil

    The Boys from Brazil

  • The Pearl Bailey Show

    The Pearl Bailey Show

  • The Bravados

    The Bravados

  • The Curse of 'The Omen'

    The Curse of 'The Omen'

  • The Million Pound Note

    The Million Pound Note

  • The Gunfighter

    The Gunfighter

  • The Sea Wolves

    The Sea Wolves

  • The Snows of Kilimanjaro

    The Snows of Kilimanjaro

  • The Paradine Case

    The Paradine Case

  • MacArthur

    MacArthur

  • The Movie Orgy

    The Movie Orgy

  • Other People's Money

    Other People's Money

  • Shoot Out

    Shoot Out

  • The Keys of the Kingdom

    The Keys of the Kingdom

  • Behold a Pale Horse

    Behold a Pale Horse

  • The Making of Moonwalker

    The Making of Moonwalker

  • The Great Sinner

    The Great Sinner

  • The Valley of Decision

    The Valley of Decision

  • Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N.

    Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N.

  • The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit

    The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit

  • Twelve O'Clock High

    Twelve O'Clock High

  • The Scarlet and the Black

    The Scarlet and the Black

  • The Stalking Moon

    The Stalking Moon

  • Pork Chop Hill

    Pork Chop Hill

  • Beloved Infidel

    Beloved Infidel

  • The World in His Arms

    The World in His Arms

  • The Chairman

    The Chairman

  • The Purple Plain

    The Purple Plain

  • Designing Woman

    Designing Woman

  • Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood

    Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood

  • Captain Newman, M.D.

    Captain Newman, M.D.

  • Close Up

    Close Up

  • Stars of Cabaret

    Stars of Cabaret

  • James Bond: The First 21 Years

    James Bond: The First 21 Years

  • A Conversation with Gregory Peck

    A Conversation with Gregory Peck

  • Amazing Grace and Chuck

    Amazing Grace and Chuck

  • Uncertain Verification

    Uncertain Verification

  • Days of Glory

    Days of Glory

  • Mickey's 50

    Mickey's 50

  • Island of Whales

    Island of Whales

  • Hollywood: The Dream Factory

    Hollywood: The Dream Factory

  • The Making of 'Cape Fear'

    The Making of 'Cape Fear'

  • Roger Moore: A Matter of Class

    Roger Moore: A Matter of Class

  • Sanford Meisner: The American Theatre's Best Kept Secret

    Sanford Meisner: The American Theatre's Best Kept Secret

  • The Extraordinary Seaman

    The Extraordinary Seaman

  • Sinatra: 80 Years My Way

    Sinatra: 80 Years My Way

  • Fearful Symmetry

    Fearful Symmetry

  • Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick

    Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick

  • The Portrait

    The Portrait

  • Sammy Davis, Jr. 60th Anniversary Celebration

    Sammy Davis, Jr. 60th Anniversary Celebration

  • The Macomber Affair

    The Macomber Affair

  • The Will Rogers Follies: A Life In Revue

    The Will Rogers Follies: A Life In Revue

  • The All-Star Christmas Show

    The All-Star Christmas Show

  • The Hunt for Adolf Eichmann

    The Hunt for Adolf Eichmann

  • Fallout

    Fallout

  • Jack Lemmon: America's Everyman

    Jack Lemmon: America's Everyman

  • The Men Who Made the Movies: King Vidor

    The Men Who Made the Movies: King Vidor

  • Boom on Paris

    Boom on Paris

  • Hollywood: The Selznick Years

    Hollywood: The Selznick Years

  • Legenden: Audrey Hepburn

    Legenden: Audrey Hepburn

  • Discovering Audrey Hepburn

    Discovering Audrey Hepburn

  • Broadway's Dreamers: The Legacy of the Group Theatre

    Broadway's Dreamers: The Legacy of the Group Theatre

  • NBC: The First Fifty Years

    NBC: The First Fifty Years

  • Intimate Portrait: Lauren Bacall

    Intimate Portrait: Lauren Bacall

  • Edith Head: The Paramount Years

    Edith Head: The Paramount Years

  • Ingrid Bergman Remembered

    Ingrid Bergman Remembered

  • Barbra Streisand: The Concert - Live at the MGM Grand

    Barbra Streisand: The Concert - Live at the MGM Grand

  • The Art Director

    The Art Director

  • Gregory Peck: His Own Man

    Gregory Peck: His Own Man

  • Restoring Roman Holiday

    Restoring Roman Holiday

  • Hitchcock, Selznick and the End of Hollywood

    Hitchcock, Selznick and the End of Hollywood

  • Salute to Stan Laurel

    Salute to Stan Laurel

  • From Russia to Hollywood: The 100-Year Odyssey of Chekhov and Shdanoff

    From Russia to Hollywood: The 100-Year Odyssey of Chekhov and Shdanoff

  • The Making of 'Cape Fear'

    The Making of 'Cape Fear'

  • Super Chief: The Life and Legacy of Earl Warren

    Super Chief: The Life and Legacy of Earl Warren

  • John F. Kennedy: Years of Lightning, Day of Drums

    John F. Kennedy: Years of Lightning, Day of Drums

  • To Kill a Mockingbird: All Points of View

    To Kill a Mockingbird: All Points of View

  • Audrey Hepburn: In Her Own Words

    Audrey Hepburn: In Her Own Words

  • Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star

    Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star

  • Backstory: 'Gentleman's Agreement'

    Backstory: 'Gentleman's Agreement'

  • Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey

    Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey

  • The Hidden World

    The Hidden World

  • Lykke og krone

    Lykke og krone

  • Gregory Peck, le gentleman acteur

    Gregory Peck, le gentleman acteur

  • American Prophet: The Story of Joseph Smith

    American Prophet: The Story of Joseph Smith

  • Africa

    Africa

  • Look at Life: All in a Day's Work

    Look at Life: All in a Day's Work

  • The Infinite Journey

    The Infinite Journey