Actor Hume Cronyn Dies at Age 91
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Actor Hume Cronyn, who with his late wife, Jessica Tandy (news), delighted stage and screen audiences, has died at age 91, according to his agent’s office.
Cronyn died on Sunday evening, according to staff at the International Creative Management office of Sam Cohn. Local news reports said the actor died after battling prostate cancer at his home in Fairfield, Connecticut.
The Canadian-born Cronyn, whose career on Broadway and in Hollywood spanned more than six decades, may be best known among moviegoers for his role in the 1980s films “Cocoon” and “Cocoon 2: The Return.”
Cronyn studied pre-law at McGill University in Montreal before switching to acting.
He made his film debut in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Shadow of a Doubt” in 1943 and went on to appear in such films as Hitchcock’s “Lifeboat” in 1944, “The Postman Always Rings Twice” in 1946, “12 Angry Men” in 1957 and “Cleopatra” in 1963. He also was a screenwriter, with Hitchcock’s “Rope” and “Under Capricorn” to his credit.
He married Tandy in 1942, and they remained together until her death in 1994. They appeared on stage in “The Gin Game,” “The Fourposter” and “Foxfire,” on screen in “The Seventh Cross,” “Cocoon” and “Batteries Not Included.”
Cronyn won a Tony Award in 1964 for his portrayal of Polonius in “Hamlet.” Together Cronyn and Tandy won a Tony Award for special lifetime theatrical achievement in 1994.
Cronyn wrote a memoir, “A Terrible Liar,” published in 1991. He married Susan Cooper, an author, in 1996.
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