William Powell
Known for
William Powell was an American actor who defined the elegance and wit of high comedy in the 1930s. Born in Pittsburgh in 1892, he is inseparable from his role as detective Nick Charles in 'The Thin Man' series (1934), where his chemistry with Myrna Loy made history. He also shone in 'My Man Godfrey' (1936) and 'The Great Ziegfeld' (1936), and received several Oscar nominations over the course of his career. His register combined sophistication, dry humor and an impeccable diction that made him the quintessential gentleman of classic cinema. He retired after 'Mister Roberts' (1955) and died in 1984.
William Powell
95 Movies
William Powell was an American actor who defined the elegance and wit of high comedy in the 1930s. Born in Pittsburgh in 1892, he is inseparable from his role as detective Nick Charles in 'The Thin Man' series (1934), where his chemistry with Myrna Loy made history. He also shone in 'My Man Godfrey' (1936) and 'The Great Ziegfeld' (1936), and received several Oscar nominations over the course of his career. His register combined sophistication, dry humor and an impeccable diction that made him the quintessential gentleman of classic cinema. He retired after 'Mister Roberts' (1955) and died in 1984.
Movies
Plays J.D. Hanley
How to Marry a Millionaire
1953
Plays Johann Porok
The Baroness and the Butler
1938
Plays Nick Charles
The Thin Man
1934
Plays Bill Chandler
Libeled Lady
1936
Plays Doc
Mister Roberts
1955
Plays John Prentice
Evelyn Prentice
1934
Plays Godfrey
My Man Godfrey
1936
Plays Florenz 'Flo' Ziegfeld Jr.
The Great Ziegfeld
1936
Plays Nick Charles
After the Thin Man
1936
Plays Florenz Ziegfeld Jr.
Ziegfeld Follies
1945
Plays Clarence Day Sr.
Life with Father
1947
Plays Baron Stephan Wolensky
The Emperor's Candlesticks
1937
Plays Larry Wilson aka George Carey
I Love You Again
1940
Plays Nick Charles
Another Thin Man
1939
Plays Nick Charles
Shadow of the Thin Man
1941
Plays Jim Wade
Manhattan Melodrama
1934
Plays William Powell
The Youngest Profession
1943
Plays Steve Ireland
Love Crazy
1941
Plays Tito Melema
Romola
1924
Plays David Talbot aka Jean Pelletier
Crossroads
1942
Plays Professor
It's a Big Country
1951
Plays Arthur Peabody
Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid
1948
Plays Nick Charles
Song of the Thin Man
1947
Plays Nick Charles
The Thin Man Goes Home
1944
Plays DeValle
Outcast
1922
Plays William Foster
For the Defense
1930
Plays Donald Free
Private Detective 62
1933
Plays Charles Lodge
Double Wedding
1937
Plays Philo Vance
The Kennel Murder Case
1933
Plays Philo Vance
Paramount on Parade
1930
Plays Homer 'Doc' Brown
The Treasure of Lost Canyon
1952
Plays Robert Courtland
Pointed Heels
1929
Plays Lev Andreyev
The Last Command
1928
Plays Steve Latimer
The Girl Who Had Everything
1953
Plays Sherwood Nash
Fashions of 1934
1934
Plays Forman Wells
Sherlock Holmes
1922
Plays William S. Whitley
The Heavenly Body
1944
Plays Dan Hardesty
One Way Passage
1932
Plays Terence Ellerton 'Terry' O'Neill
The Hoodlum Saint
1946
Plays Lt. William 'Bill' Gordon / Anson Meridan
Rendezvous
1935
Plays The Robber
Jewel Robbery
1932
Plays Ned Riley
Reckless
1935
Plays Jim Montgomery aka John Nelson
Shadow of the Law
1930
Plays Charles
The Last of Mrs. Cheyney
1937
Plays Andrew Gentling
Take One False Step
1949
Plays Anton "Tony" Adam
Lawyer Man
1932
Plays Hugh Dawltry
The Road to Singapore
1931
Plays Emery Slade
Dancing in the Dark
1949
Plays Francis I
When Knighthood Was in Flower
1922
Plays John Fletcher
Double Harness
1933
Latest Trailers
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Mister Roberts
Full Filmography
Mister Roberts
Doc
1955
Film
How to Marry a Millionaire
J.D. Hanley
1953
Film
The Girl Who Had Everything
Steve Latimer
1953
Film
The Treasure of Lost Canyon
Homer 'Doc' Brown
1952
Film
It's a Big Country
Professor
1951
Film
Dancing in the Dark
Emery Slade
1949
Film
Take One False Step
Andrew Gentling
1949
Film
Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid
Arthur Peabody
1948
Film
The Senator Was Indiscreet
Senator Melvin G. Ashton
1947
Film
Photos
Frequently Asked Questions
Is William Powell still alive?
William Powell passed away on March 5, 1984 at age 91.
What are the most famous roles of William Powell?
William Powell is best known for roles in How to Marry a Millionaire, The Thin Man, My Man Godfrey.
How many movies has William Powell been in?
Over a 62-year career (since 1922), William Powell has appeared in 95 movies and 0 TV shows.
What was William Powell's first movie?
The career of William Powell began with Sherlock Holmes (1922).
What is William Powell's most recent movie or series?
William Powell's most recent release is Mister Roberts, which premiered on July 10, 1955.
William Powell
1892-07-29 · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor. A major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the Thin Man series based on the Nick and Nora Charles characters created by Dashiell Hammett. Powell was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor three times: for The Thin Man (1934), My Man Godfrey (1936), and Life with Father (1947). After high school, he left home for New York and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts at the age of 18. In 1912, Powell graduated from the AADA, and worked in some vaudeville and stock companies. After several successful experiences on the Broadway stage, he began his Hollywood career in 1922, playing a small role as an evil henchman of Professor Moriarty in a production of Sherlock Holmes with John Barrymore. His most memorable role in silent movies was as a bitter film director opposite Emil Jannings' Academy Award-winning performance as a fallen general in The Last Command (1928). This success, along with Powell's pleasant speaking voice, led to his first starring role as amateur detective Philo Vance in the "talkie" The Canary Murder Case (1929). Powell's most famous role was that of Nick Charles in six Thin Man films, beginning with The Thin Man in 1934, based upon Dashiell Hammett's novel. The role provided a perfect opportunity for Powell, with his resonant speaking voice, to showcase his sophisticated charm and witty sense of humor, and he received his first Academy Award nomination for The Thin Man. Myrna Loy played his wife, Nora, in each of the Thin Man films. Their on-screen partnership, beginning alongside Clark Gable in 1934 with Manhattan Melodrama, was one of Hollywood's most prolific, and they appeared in 14 films together. Loy and Powell starred in the Best Picture of 1936, The Great Ziegfeld, with Powell in the title role and Loy as Ziegfeld's wife Billie Burke. That same year, he also received his second Academy Award nomination, for the comedy My Man Godfrey. In 1935, he starred with Jean Harlow in Reckless. A serious romance developed between them, and in 1936, they were reunited on screen and with Loy and Spencer Tracy in the screwball comedy Libeled Lady. However, Harlow surprisingly and quickly became ill, and died from uremia at the age of 26 in June 1937 before they could marry. His distress over her death, as well as a cancer diagnosis of his own, caused him to accept fewer acting roles. Powell's career slowed considerably in the 1940s, although he received his third Academy Award nomination in 1947 for his role as the cantankerous Clarence Day, Sr., in Life with Father. His last film was 1955's Mister Roberts. Powell died in Palm Springs, California, on March 5, 1984, at the age of 91 from heart failure, nearly 30 years after his retirement. He is buried at the Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City, California, near his third wife Diana Lewis, and his only child, his son William David Powell.