Walter Brennan is one of the most talented actors of all times who has won the Academy Award thrice. He was born on July 25, 1894. Right from his childhood he was keen on acting and in fact he studied engineering before becoming an actor. Even at school he was keen to act and began to perform in vaudeville.
Walter Brennan basically was a child who was christened Walter Andrew Brennan. His father was known to be an engineer and inventor. This talented actor was born in Swampscott, Massachusetts to Irish emigrants. Till this date he is best remembered as one of the premier character actors in motion picture history who has many a notable films to his credit. What sets this character actor part from the crowd is his great acting style and extraordinary skills.
Walter Brennan was a person who was in service during World War I and it is believed that here his vocal cords were damaged by mustard gas that at the same time caused him to age prematurely. Soon after his service this actor moved to Guatemala and raised pineapples. At a later time he moved to Los Angeles and settled there. A significant fact to know about him is that around the same time he became involved in the real estate market. Basically it is in this market he amasses some wealth; but significantly he lost much of the money when the market took a sudden downturn. Thus he was rendered broke and in fact it is this event that forced him to films.
Walter Brennan in the initial stages of his career also worked in minor roles in several films including The Bride of Frankenstein as well as also as a stunt man. Later however he got recognition for his talent and started to appear in better roles. Soon he received his first Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Swan Bostrom in the period film Come and Get It that was released in 1936. A significant factor to note about this actor was that all through his career he was asked to play the roles of characters that were considerably older than he was in real life and that was because of his aging appearance which was due to a 1932 accident that left him with thinning hair, thin build, and raspy voice.
Walter Brennan played successfully the role of a character actor that was given to him by director Jean Renoir and at the same time he also played the role of top-billed lead in Swamp Water. This was in a drama directed by Renoir and featuring Walter Huston.
Walter Brennan
