Leo Genn

Biography

Leo John Genn (9 August 1905 – 26 January 1978) was an English actor and barrister. Signified by his relaxed charm and smooth, "black velvet" voice, he had a lengthy career in theatre, film, television, and radio; often playing aristocratic or gentlemanly, sophisticate roles. Born to a Jewish family in London, Genn was educated as a lawyer and was a practicing barrister until after World War II, in which he served in the Royal Artillery as a Lieutenant-Colonel. He began his acting career at The Old Vic and made his film debut in 1935, starring in a total of 85 screen roles until his death in 1978. For his portrayal of Petronius in the 1951 Hollywood epic Quo Vadis, he received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Description above from the Wikipedia article Leo Genn, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.​

Known For

The Longest Day

as Brig. Gen. Edwin P. Parker Jr.

Moby Dick

as Starbuck

Quo Vadis

as Petronius

55 Days at Peking

as Gen. Jung-Lu

A Lizard in a Woman's Skin

as Edmond Brighton

Pygmalion

as Prince (uncredited)

Ten Little Indians

as General Mandrake

Henry V

as The Constable of France

Khartoum

as Narrator (voice)

The Persuaders!

as Sir Hugo Chalmers