Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor, noted for his natural style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy won two Academy Awards for Best Actor from nine nominations, sharing the record for nominations in that category with Laurence Olivier. Tracy first discovered his talent for acting while attending Ripon College, and he later received a scholarship for the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He spent seven years in the theatre, working in a succession of stock companies and intermittently on Broadway. Tracy's breakthrough came in 1930, when his lead performance in The Last Mile caught the attention of Hollywood. After a successful film debut in John Ford's Up the River starring Tracy and Humphrey Bogart, he was signed to a contract with Fox Film Corporation. His five years with Fox featured one acting tour de force after another that were usually ignored at the box office, and he remained largely unknown to audiences after 25 films, almost all of them starring Tracy as the leading man. None of them were hits although The Power and the Glory (1933) features arguably his most acclaimed performance in retrospect. In 1935, Tracy joined Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, at the time Hollywood's most prestigious studio. His career flourished with a series of hit films, and in 1937 and 1938 he won consecutive Oscars for Captains Courageous and Boys Town. He made three smash hit films supporting Clark Gable, the studio's principal leading man, firmly fixing the notion of Gable and Tracy as a team in the public imagination. By the 1940s, Tracy was one of the studio's top stars. In 1942, he appeared with Katharine Hepburn in Woman of the Year, beginning another popular partnership that produced nine movies over 25 years. Tracy left MGM in 1955, and continued to work regularly as a freelance star, despite an increasing weariness as he aged. His personal life was troubled, with a lifelong struggle against severe alcoholism and guilt over his son's deafness. Tracy became estranged from his wife in the 1930s, but never divorced, conducting a long-term relationship with Katharine Hepburn in private. Towards the end of his life, Tracy worked almost exclusively for director Stanley Kramer. It was for Kramer that he made his last film, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner in 1967, completed just 17 days before his death. During his career, Tracy appeared in 75 films and developed a reputation among his peers as one of the screen's greatest actors. In 1999 the American Film Institute ranked Tracy as the 9th greatest male star of Classic Hollywood Cinema.
Filmography
Gene Kelly: An American in Hollywood
as Self (archive footage)
Gene Kelly: An American in Hollywood
as Self (archive footage)
Heart of a Servant: The Father Flanagan Story
as Fr. Edward Flanagan (archive footage)
Heart of a Servant: The Father Flanagan Story
as Fr. Edward Flanagan (archive footage)
DEVO
as Henry Drummond (archive footage) (uncredited)
DEVO
as Henry Drummond (archive footage) (uncredited)
Rat Pack
as Self (archive footage)
Rat Pack
as Self (archive footage)
Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood
as Self (archive footage)
Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood
as Self (archive footage)
Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
as Self (archive footage)
Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
as Self (archive footage)
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
as Self (archive footage)
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
as Self (archive footage)
Stardust: The Bette Davis Story
as Self (archive footage)
Stardust: The Bette Davis Story
as Self (archive footage)
Hidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults
as (archive footage)
Hidden Hollywood II: More Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Vaults
as (archive footage)
Hidden Hollywood: Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Film Vaults
as Self (Archival Footage)
Hidden Hollywood: Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Film Vaults
as Self (Archival Footage)
Bogart: The Untold Story
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Bogart: The Untold Story
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Ingrid Bergman Remembered
as Self (archive footage)
Ingrid Bergman Remembered
as Self (archive footage)
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
as Self (archive footage)
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
as Self (archive footage)
Legends in Light: The Photography of George Hurrell
as Self (archive footage)
Legends in Light: The Photography of George Hurrell
as Self (archive footage)
La Classe américaine
as The Professional Witness (archive footage)
La Classe américaine
as The Professional Witness (archive footage)
Movie Tough Guys
as Self (archive footage)
Movie Tough Guys
as Self (archive footage)
Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To
as (archive footage)
Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To
as (archive footage)
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
as Self (archive footage)
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
as Self (archive footage)
James Stewart: A Wonderful Life
as Self (archive footage)
James Stewart: A Wonderful Life
as Self (archive footage)
The Spencer Tracy Legacy: A Tribute by Katharine Hepburn
as Self (archive footage)
The Spencer Tracy Legacy: A Tribute by Katharine Hepburn
as Self (archive footage)
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
as (archive footage)
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
as (archive footage)
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
That's Entertainment, Part II
as (archive footage)
That's Entertainment, Part II
as (archive footage)
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
as Self (archive footage)
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
as Self (archive footage)
That's Entertainment!
as (archive footage) (uncredited)
That's Entertainment!
as (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
as Self (archive footage)
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
as Self (archive footage)
Brasileiros em Hollywood
as Self (archive footage)
Brasileiros em Hollywood
as Self (archive footage)
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
as Matt Drayton
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
as Matt Drayton
The Big Parade of Comedy
as Haggerty in 'Libeled Lady' (archive footage)
The Big Parade of Comedy
as Haggerty in 'Libeled Lady' (archive footage)
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
as C. G. Culpepper
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
as C. G. Culpepper
How the West Was Won
as Narrator (voice)
How the West Was Won
as Narrator (voice)
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Judgment at Nuremberg
as Dan Haywood
Judgment at Nuremberg
as Dan Haywood
The Devil at 4 O'Clock
as Father Matthew Doonan
The Devil at 4 O'Clock
as Father Matthew Doonan
Inherit the Wind
as Henry Drummond
Inherit the Wind
as Henry Drummond
The Last Hurrah
as Mayor Frank Skeffington
The Last Hurrah
as Mayor Frank Skeffington
The Old Man and the Sea
as The Old Man
The Old Man and the Sea
as The Old Man
Desk Set
as Richard Sumner
Desk Set
as Richard Sumner
The Mountain
as Zachary Teller
The Mountain
as Zachary Teller
Bad Day at Black Rock
as John J. Macreedy
Bad Day at Black Rock
as John J. Macreedy
The Actress
as Clinton Jones
The Actress
as Clinton Jones
Plymouth Adventure
as Capt. Christopher Jones
Plymouth Adventure
as Capt. Christopher Jones
Pat and Mike
as Mike Conovan
Pat and Mike
as Mike Conovan
The People Against O'Hara
as James P. Curtayne
The People Against O'Hara
as James P. Curtayne
Father's Little Dividend
as Stanley Banks
Father's Little Dividend
as Stanley Banks
Father of the Bride
as Stanley T. Banks
Father of the Bride
as Stanley T. Banks
Malaya
as Carnaghan
Malaya
as Carnaghan
Adam's Rib
as Adam Bonner
Adam's Rib
as Adam Bonner
Edward, My Son
as Arnold Boult
Edward, My Son
as Arnold Boult
State of the Union
as Grant Matthews
State of the Union
as Grant Matthews
Cass Timberlane
as Cass Timberlane
Cass Timberlane
as Cass Timberlane
The Sea of Grass
as Col. James B. Brewton
The Sea of Grass
as Col. James B. Brewton
Without Love
as Pat Jamieson
Without Love
as Pat Jamieson
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo
as Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo
as Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle
The Seventh Cross
as George Heisler
The Seventh Cross
as George Heisler
A Guy Named Joe
as Pete Sandidge
A Guy Named Joe
as Pete Sandidge
Twenty Years After
as (archive footage)
Twenty Years After
as (archive footage)
Keeper of the Flame
as Stevie O'Malley
Keeper of the Flame
as Stevie O'Malley
His New World
as Narrator (voice)
His New World
as Narrator (voice)
Tortilla Flat
as Pilon
Tortilla Flat
as Pilon
Ring of Steel
as Narrator (voice)
Ring of Steel
as Narrator (voice)
Woman of the Year
as Sam Craig
Woman of the Year
as Sam Craig
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
as Dr. Henry 'Harry' Jekyll / Mr. Hyde
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
as Dr. Henry 'Harry' Jekyll / Mr. Hyde
Men of Boys Town
as Edward Flanagan
Men of Boys Town
as Edward Flanagan
Edison, the Man
as Thomas A. Edison
Edison, the Man
as Thomas A. Edison
Northwest Passage
as Major Robert Rogers
Northwest Passage
as Major Robert Rogers
Northward, Ho!
as Himself
Northward, Ho!
as Himself
Stanley and Livingstone
as Henry M. Stanley
Stanley and Livingstone
as Henry M. Stanley
From the Ends of the Earth
as Self
From the Ends of the Earth
as Self
Boys Town
as Father Flanagan
Boys Town
as Father Flanagan
Test Pilot
as Gunner Morse
Test Pilot
as Gunner Morse
Another Romance of Celluloid
as Self (uncredited)
Another Romance of Celluloid
as Self (uncredited)
Big City
as Joe Benton
Big City
as Joe Benton
They Gave Him a Gun
as Fred P. Willis
They Gave Him a Gun
as Fred P. Willis
Whipsaw
as Ross 'Mac' McBride aka Danny Ross Ackerman
Whipsaw
as Ross 'Mac' McBride aka Danny Ross Ackerman
Dante's Inferno
as Jim Carter
Dante's Inferno
as Jim Carter
The Murder Man
as Steven 'Steve' Grey
The Murder Man
as Steven 'Steve' Grey
It's A Small World
as Bill Shevlin
It's A Small World
as Bill Shevlin
Now I'll Tell
as Murray Golden
Now I'll Tell
as Murray Golden
The Power and the Glory
as Tom Garner
The Power and the Glory
as Tom Garner
20,000 Years in Sing Sing
as Tommy Connors
20,000 Years in Sing Sing
as Tommy Connors
She Wanted a Millionaire
as William Kelley
She Wanted a Millionaire
as William Kelley
Quick Millions
as Daniel J. 'Bugs' Raymond
Quick Millions
as Daniel J. 'Bugs' Raymond