August 4, 1981, New York City, New York, United States
Spouse
Elisabeth von Essen, Helen Gahagan Douglas, Rosalind Hightower
Mark
He often played smooth characters with a strong sense of humor
Fact
According to the March 31, 1941, issue of Time magazine, Douglas and Edward G. Robinson, who were both Democratic activists, bid $3,200 for the fedora hat that 'Franklin Delano Roosevelt' had worn during his three successful campaigns for the presidency. They acquired the hat at a special Hollywood auction to benefit the Motion Picture Relief Fund. Douglas was active in liberal and progressive political causes in the 1930s and 1940s, which led to charges being leveled against him of being a Communist and/or a "fellow traveler" by far-right-wing Republicans during the McCarthy "Red Scare" era of the 1950s. Douglas' wife, Helen Gahagan Douglas, would later be elected to the US House of Representatives as a Democrat from California, but was defeated in her 1950 bid for the U.S. Senate by Republican Congressman Richard Nixon, who derisively called her "The Pink Lady" for what he termed her "leftist" leanings. President John F. Kennedy would appoint her Treasurer of the United States in 1961. When Ronald Reagan was elected US President in 1980, Douglas said that his former friend (who changed from a liberal Democrat to an extremely conservative Republican) had begun to believe the speeches he delivered for General Electric Co. when he was the host of General Electric Theater (1953),an anthology series sponsored by the company for which Reagan, in addition to acting, also did the commercials.
Gustaf Douglas was born on May 12, 1966, in Stockholm, Sweden. His parents were both Swedish nobility; his father, Gustaf Douglas, was a count, and his mother, Ingeborg Douglas, was a baroness. He has two older sisters, Christina and Madeleine. He was educated at the prestigious Wartburg College in Germany, where he studied economics and political science. After college, he worked in the Swedish government as a civil servant. In 1992, he was elected to the Swedish Parliament as a member of the Moderate Party. He served in Parliament for six years, before resigning in 1998 to focus on his business career.
In 2001, Douglas founded the investment firm EQT Partners. The firm has since become one of the largest private equity firms in Europe, with over €40 billion in assets under management. Douglas himself is estimated to be worth over €2 billion. He is a major donor to the Moderate Party and has served on its board of directors since 2004.
Douglas is married to Katarina Douglas, with whom he has three children. The couple resides in Stockholm.
General Info
Full Name
Gustaf Douglas
Net Worth
5.3 billion USD
Date Of Birth
March 3, 1938
Died
August 4, 1981, New York City, New York, United States
Height
1.86 m
Profession
Politician, Actor
Education
Harvard Business School, Upper Canada College
Nationality
Swedish, American
Family
Spouse
Elisabeth von Essen, Helen Gahagan Douglas, Rosalind Hightower
Children
Carl Douglas, Eric Douglas, Melvyn Gregory Hesselberg, Peter Gahagan Douglas, Mary Helen Douglas
Parents
Carl Douglas, Edouard Gregory Hesselberg, Lena Priscilla Hesselberg
Siblings
George Douglas
Accomplishments
Awards
Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture, Tony Award for Best Lead Actor in a Play, Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance By An Actor In A Leading Role
Nominations
Academy Award for Best Actor, Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture – Drama, National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor
Movies
Being There, Ninotchka, Hud, I Never Sang for My Father, The Changeling, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, Captains Courageous, The Vampire Bat, The Candidate, Tonight or Never, That Uncertain Feeling, Ghost Story, The Tenant, As You Desire Me, She Married Her Boss, Two-Faced Woman, The Old Dark...
TV Shows
Steve Randall, Frontier Justice, The Arthur Murray Party, Benjamin Franklin, Blind Date
He often played smooth characters with a strong sense of humor
Quotes
#
Quote
1
The Hollywood roles I did were boring: I was soon fed up with them. It's true they gave me a world-wide reputation I could trade on, but they also typed me as a one-dimensional non-serious actor.
Facts
#
Fact
1
He played a Presidential candidate in Gore Vidal's play, and, years later, Vidal (who was not normally very complimentary about actors) remarked that he would have made a fine President in real life.
2
Douglas' father was a Russian-born concert pianist, who taught at the Toronto Conservatory of Music and encouraged his son to be a musician, but his Kentucky-born mother wanted him to take up law.
Two grandsons from son Gregory, named Stefan and Erik.
7
Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume One, 1981-1985, pages 240-242. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998.
8
According to the March 31, 1941, issue of Time magazine, Douglas and Edward G. Robinson, who were both Democratic activists, bid $3,200 for the fedora hat that 'Franklin Delano Roosevelt' had worn during his three successful campaigns for the presidency. They acquired the hat at a special Hollywood auction to benefit the Motion Picture Relief Fund. Douglas was active in liberal and progressive political causes in the 1930s and 1940s, which led to charges being leveled against him of being a Communist and/or a "fellow traveler" by far-right-wing Republicans during the McCarthy "Red Scare" era of the 1950s. Douglas' wife, Helen Gahagan Douglas, would later be elected to the US House of Representatives as a Democrat from California, but was defeated in her 1950 bid for the U.S. Senate by Republican Congressman Richard Nixon, who derisively called her "The Pink Lady" for what he termed her "leftist" leanings. President John F. Kennedy would appoint her Treasurer of the United States in 1961. When Ronald Reagan was elected US President in 1980, Douglas said that his former friend (who changed from a liberal Democrat to an extremely conservative Republican) had begun to believe the speeches he delivered for General Electric Co. when he was the host of General Electric Theater (1953),an anthology series sponsored by the company for which Reagan, in addition to acting, also did the commercials.
9
Won Broadway's 1960 Tony Award as Best Actor (Dramatic) for "The Best Man."
10
He had two children with second wife, Helen Gahagan: a son named Peter (b. 1933) and daughter Mary Helen (b. 1938).
He had one son with his first wife, Rosalind, named Melvyn Gregory Hesselberg (b. January 28, 1926).
In 1967, he became the fifth performer to win the triple crown of acting. Oscar: Best Supporting Actor, Hud (1963) & Best Supporting Actor, Being There (1979), Tony: Best Actor-Play, The Best Man (1960), and Emmy: Best Actor-Drama, CBS Playhouse: Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night (1967) .
Dr. Paul Harelson - accused of his terminally-ill wife mercy killing
The Death Squad
1974
TV Movie
Police Captain Earl Kreski
The Going Up of David Lev
1973
TV Movie
Grandfather
Circle of Fear
1972
TV Series
Grandpa
The Candidate
1972
John J. McKay
Two Is a Happy Number
1972
Joseph Provo
Death Takes a Holiday
1971
TV Movie
Judge Earl Chapman
NET Playhouse
1971
TV Series
I Never Sang for My Father
1970
Tom Garrison
Hunters Are for Killing
1970
TV Movie
Keller Floran
The Choice
1969
TV Movie
Companions in Nightmare
1968
TV Movie
Dr. Lawrence Strelson - a psychiatrist
CBS Playhouse
1967
TV Series
Peter Schermann
The Crucible
1967
TV Movie
Governor Danforth
Hotel
1967
Warren Trent
Lamp at Midnight
1966
TV Movie
Galileo Galilei
The Fugitive
1966
TV Series
Dr. Mark Ryder
Inherit the Wind
1965
TV Movie
Henry Drummond
Once Upon a Tractor
1965
Short
Martin
Rapture
1965
Frederick Larbaud
The Americanization of Emily
1964
Adm. William Jessup
Advance to the Rear
1964
Col. Claude Brackenbury
A Very Close Family
1964
TV Movie
Father
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre
1963
TV Series
Pat Konke
Kraft Mystery Theater
1963
TV Series
Hud
1963
Homer Bannon
Ben Casey
1963
TV Series
Burton Strang
Billy Budd
1962
The Dansker - Sailmaker
Sunday Showcase
1960
TV Series
Mark Twain
Frontier Justice
1959
TV Series
Host
Playhouse 90
1957-1959
TV Series
Gen. Parker / Ansel Gibbs / Stalin / ...
The United States Steel Hour
1957-1958
TV Series
Dr. Victor Payson / Census Taker / Narrator
General Electric Theater
1957
TV Series
Professor Barris
Goodyear Playhouse
1957
TV Series
Ira Sterling
The Alcoa Hour
1955-1956
TV Series
Jim Conway / Charles Turner
Kraft Theatre
1955
TV Series
Windows
1955
TV Series
The Ford Television Theatre
1955
TV Series
George Manners
Steve Randall
1952
TV Series
Steve Randall
Lights Out
1952
TV Series
Studio One in Hollywood
1952
TV Series
Stefan
Celanese Theatre
1952
TV Series
Archduke Rudolph von Hapsburg
On the Loose
1951
Frank Bradley
My Forbidden Past
1951
Paul Beaurevel
Starlight Theatre
1951
TV Series
Pulitzer Prize Playhouse
1950
TV Series
Martin Luther Cooper / Eugene Morgan
Lux Video Theatre
1950
TV Series
James Strickland
The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse
1949
TV Series
Richard Gordon
The Great Sinner
1949
Armand de Glasse
My Own True Love
1949
Clive Heath
A Woman's Secret
1949
Luke Jordan
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House
1948
Bill Cole
The Guilt of Janet Ames
1947
Smithfield 'Smitty' Cobb
The Sea of Grass
1947
Brice Chamberlain
Three Hearts for Julia
1943
Jeff Seabrook
They All Kissed the Bride
1942
Michael 'Mike' Holmes
We Were Dancing
1942
Nicholas Eugen August Wolfgang 'Nikki' Prax, aka Mr. Manescu
Two-Faced Woman
1941
Larry Blake
Our Wife
1941
Jerome 'Jerry' Marvin
A Woman's Face
1941
Dr. Gustaf Segert
That Uncertain Feeling
1941
Larry Baker
This Thing Called Love
1940
Tice Collins
Third Finger, Left Hand
1940
Jeff Thompson
He Stayed for Breakfast
1940
Paul Boliet
Too Many Husbands
1940
Henry Lowndes
The Amazing Mr. Williams
1939
Police Lieutenant Kenny Williams
Ninotchka
1939
Count Leon d'Algout
Good Girls Go to Paris
1939
Ronald Brooke
Tell No Tales
1939
Michael Cassidy
There's That Woman Again
1938
William 'Bill' Reardon
The Shining Hour
1938
Henry Linden
Soundtrack
Title
Year
Status
Character
We Were Dancing
1942
"The Wedding March" 1843, uncredited
Third Finger, Left Hand
1940
performer: "The Riddle" 1940 - uncredited
Arsène Lupin Returns
1938
performer: "Nocturne No. 2 in E flat major Opus 9" 1830-1 - uncredited
Angel
1937
performer: "Angel" 1937
Theodora Goes Wild
1936
"Pop! Goes the Weasel", "The Farmer in the Dell", "Be Still My Heart" 1936, uncredited / performer: "The Last Round-Up Git Along, Little Dogie, Git Along" 1933, "Three Blind Mice" - uncredited
And So They Were Married
1936
performer: "In the Gloaming" 1877 - uncredited
The Old Dark House
1932
"Oh! Mr. Porter", "Here Comes the Bride", uncredited / performer: "Singin' in the Rain" 1929 - uncredited
Thanks
Title
Year
Status
Character
The Man You Loved to Hate
1979
Documentary special thanks
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
The 37th Annual Golden Globe Awards
1980
TV Special
Himself
The 43rd Annual Academy Awards
1971
TV Special
Himself - Nominee: Best Actor in a Leading Role & Co-Presenter: Honorary Award to Lillian Gish
The David Frost Show
1970
TV Series
Himself - Guest
The Dick Cavett Show
1968-1970
TV Series
Himself - Guest
Project XX
1969
TV Series documentary
Narrator
The Ed Sullivan Show
1955-1968
TV Series
Spofford / Griffith P. Hastings / Himself
The 17th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards
1965
TV Special
Himself - Accepting Emmy Award for Alfred Lunt
Gala Adlai on Broadway
1960
TV Movie
Himself - Performer
Land of Promise
1960
TV Movie documentary
Himself - Narrator
The 14th Annual Tony Awards
1960
TV Special
Himself - Winner: Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play
The Garry Moore Show
1958
TV Series
Himself - Guest
Playhouse 90
1958
TV Series
Himself - Host
The Arthur Murray Party
1953-1957
TV Series
Himself
What's My Line?
1951-1957
TV Series
Himself - Guest Panelist / Himself - Mystery Guest
I've Got a Secret
1952
TV Series
Himself - Guest
The Name's the Same
1952
TV Series
Himself - Contestant
Your Show of Shows
1950
TV Series
Himself - Guest Performer
Your Big Moment
1949
TV Series
Host
The Cavalcade of Academy Awards from 1928-1939
1940
Documentary short
Himself
Screen Snapshots Series 19, No. 1
1939
Documentary short
Himself
Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 8
1939
Documentary short
Himself
Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 4
1938
Documentary short
Himself
Archive Footage
Title
Year
Status
Character
A Night at the Movies: Hollywood Goes to Washington
2012
TV Movie documentary
John J. McKay
Love, Hate & Propaganda: The Cold War
2011
TV Series documentary
Leon
A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss
2010
TV Mini-Series documentary
Roger Penderel
Cinemassacre's Monster Madness
2009
TV Series documentary
Penderel
Elvis Mitchell: Under the Influence
2008
TV Series
Homer Bannon
How the West Was Lost
2008
TV Movie documentary
Homer Bannon (uncredited)
The Naked Archaeologist
2008
TV Series documentary
Brettschneider
Billy Wilder Speaks
2006
TV Movie documentary
Himself
Garbo
2005
Documentary
Count Leon d'Algout (uncredited)
Hollywoodism: Jews, Movies and the American Dream
1998
TV Movie documentary
Himself
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
1988
TV Movie documentary
Himself - Actor Testing as Ashley
Horrible Horror
1986
Video
Karl Brettschneider
Hollywood: The Gift of Laughter
1982
TV Movie documentary
Actor - 'Being There' (uncredited)
That's Entertainment, Part II
1976
Documentary
Leon
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
1969
TV Movie documentary
Himself (uncredited)
The Big Parade of Comedy
1964
Documentary
Leon
MGM Parade
1956
TV Series
Leon / Mr. Cheyne
The Cinematographer
1951
Documentary short
Himself - film clip (uncredited)
From the Ends of the Earth
1939
Documentary short
Himself
Awards
Won Awards
Year
Award
Ceremony
Nomination
Movie
1980
Oscar
Academy Awards, USA
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Being There (1979)
1980
Golden Globe
Golden Globes, USA
Best Actor in a Supporting Role - Motion Picture
Being There (1979)
1979
LAFCA Award
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards
Best Supporting Actor
Being There (1979)
1979
NYFCC Award
New York Film Critics Circle Awards
Best Supporting Actor
Being There (1979)
1968
Primetime Emmy
Primetime Emmy Awards
Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Drama
CBS Playhouse (1967)
1964
Golden Laurel
Laurel Awards
Top Male Supporting Performance
Hud (1963)
1964
Oscar
Academy Awards, USA
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Hud (1963)
1963
NBR Award
National Board of Review, USA
Best Supporting Actor
Hud (1963)
1960
Star on the Walk of Fame
Walk of Fame
Motion Picture
On 8 February 1960. At 6423 Hollywood Blvd.
1960
Star on the Walk of Fame
Walk of Fame
Television
Awarded February 8, 1960 at 6601 Hollywood Blvd.
Nominated Awards
Year
Award
Ceremony
Nomination
Movie
1981
Saturn Award
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
Best Supporting Actor
The Changeling (1980)
1971
Oscar
Academy Awards, USA
Best Actor in a Leading Role
I Never Sang for My Father (1970)
1971
Golden Globe
Golden Globes, USA
Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama
I Never Sang for My Father (1970)
1971
Golden Laurel
Laurel Awards
Best Dramatic Performance, Male
I Never Sang for My Father (1970)
1966
Primetime Emmy
Primetime Emmy Awards
Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Drama