James Neville Mason (15 May 1909 – 27 July 1984) was an English actor notable for a long and distinct career as leading man and character actor whose distinct looks, smooth voice and intense presence made him flexible to play roles ranging from hero to villain, as well as characters who were somewhere in between. He specialized in playing the Byronic Hero who is handsome, demanding, passionate and self-destructive.
Mason was one of the rare British film stars of his generation without a long career in the stage or any formal training as an actor. Indeed, he found greater fame, renown and success acting on the screen than he ever did on stage. He initially began his career making quota quickies in the 1930s, steadily building a reputation as a dependable, and highly intelligent, actor who directors and technicians liked. Then in the '40s he appeared in more notable films until achieving his Breakthrough Hit with The Seventh Veil. The success of that film brought him to Hollywood, and Mason would continue to make films in both England and America along with many other European productions. He was especially famous for his role as Captain Nemo in the classic Disney adaptation of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, as well as the self-destructive Norman Maine in George Cukor's 1954 version of A Star Is Born (opposite Judy Garland). Among his other notable films are Carol Reed's Odd Man Out, Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (as the villain Phillip Vandamm), and Stanley Kubrick's Lolita (as Humbert Humbertnote ).
In his long career, he appeared in several notable films, remaining prolific until his death in 1984 with his final appearances released posthumously. He was nominated three times for an Academy Award but never won; nevertheless, he is considered one of the greatest actors of his generation. He was especially known for his cultured voice and frequently worked as a voiceover artist for documentaries, including documentaries on film history (Mason was a cinephile) and in particular the works of Buster Keaton. In fact, Mason helped preserve much of the Keaton filmography, when he found a cache of Keaton reels in a house he'd bought that once belonged to Keaton.
James Mason works with pages on TV Tropes include:
- The Return of the Scarlet Pimpernel (1937) as Jean Tallien
- Fire Over England (1937) as Hillary Vane
- The Man in Grey (1943) as Lord Rohan
- The Wicked Lady (1945) as Capt. Jerry Jackson
- Odd Man Out (1947) as Johnny McQueen
- Caught (1949) as Larry Quinada
- The Reckless Moment (1949) as Martin Donnelly
- The Desert Fox (1951) as Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
- The Desert Rats (1953) as Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
- Pandora and the Flying Dutchman (1951) as Hendrik van der Zee
- Five Fingers (1952) as Ulysses Diello
- The Prisoner of Zenda (1952) as Rupert of Hentzau
- Ellis in Freedomland (1952) as Frosty
- Julius Caesar (1953) as Brutus
- The Man Between (1953) as Ivo
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954) as Capt. Nemo
- The Tell-Tale Heart (1954) as Narrator (voice)
- Prince Valiant (1954) as Sir Brack
- A Star Is Born (1954) as Norman Maine
- Bigger Than Life (1956) as Ed Avery (also producer and screenwriter)
- Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959) as Sir Oliver S. Lindenbrook
- North by Northwest (1959) as Phillip Vandamm
- Lolita (1962) as Prof. Humbert Humbert
- The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) as Timonides
- Lord Jim (1965) as Gentleman Brown
- The Blue Max (1966) as Gen. Count von Klugermann
- Genghis Khan (1966) as Kam Ling
- Georgy Girl (1966) as James Leamington
- Age of Consent (1969) as Bradley Morahan
- Cold Sweat (1970) as Capt. Ross
- The Last of Sheila (1973) as Phillip
- Cross of Iron (1977) as Oberst Brandt
- The Boys from Brazil (1978) as Eduard Seibert
- Heaven Can Wait (1978) as Mr. Jordan
- Murder by Decree (1979) as Dr. John H. Watson
- North Sea Hijack (1979) as Adm. Brinsden
- The Passage (1979) as Prof. John Bergson
- Evil Under the Sun (1982) as Odell Gardener
- The Verdict (1982) as Ed Conannon
- Yellowbeard (1983) as Capt. Hughes
- The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1 episode, 1962) as Warren Barrow
- Jesus of Nazareth (1977) as Joseph of Arimathea
- 'Salem's Lot (1979) as Richard K. Straker
- Hollywood (1980) as Narrator
- Ivanhoe (1982) as Isaac of York
- Don't Eat the Pictures (1983) as Demon
