Home » Reading & Literature » Biographies » JAMES MAITLAND STEWART

JAMES MAITLAND STEWART

© Mary M. Alward

James Maitland Steward was born on May 20, 1908, in Indiana, Pennsylvania. He was the only son of Alex and Elizabeth Stewart. He had two younger sisters, Mary and Virginia.

Jimmy's father owned the J.M. Stewart Hardware Store and moved the family to Vinegar Hill when Jimmy was five-years-old. Jimmy, like his father, attended Princeton University. From 1928 to 1932, Jimmy studied architecture and graduated with a degree. While at Princeton, he belonged to the cheerleading team, played an accordion and was on the football team. He joined the University Players, a group of fledgling actors, where he met Henry Fonda. Their friendship would last for decades.

Though Jimmy never took acting lessons, he started his career as an actor after he graduated. In 1935, the movie giant, MGM Studios, offered him a contract. Jimmy accepted. He packed up his belongings and moved to Hollywood, California, where he boarded with friend Henry Fonda.

In just one year Jimmy starred in a host of films. (Rosemarie, Murder Man and After the Thin Man.) He was a clean-cut, handsome fellow who portrayed the image of "the boy next door." In 1938, he starred in director Frank Capra's movie, "You Can't Take It With You." He received an Oscar nomination the same year for his role in Capra's "Mr. Smith Goes To Washington."

In 1940, Jimmy starred in "The Philadelphia Story," directed by George Cukor. His co-stars in the film were Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. Jimmy won an Academy Award for his portrayal of a newspaper man caught in a love triangle.

In 1940, Jimmy signed up with the U.S. Army Air Corps. He was the first Hollywood actor to enlist. Others soon followed suit. Jimmy flew hundreds of missions over Germany as a bomber pilot and rose through the ranks from private to colonel. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal for his efforts to keep his country free.

In 1946, Jimmy starred with Donna Reed in Capra's movie, "It's A Wonderful Life" - the story of a man who is trying to provide for a large family at Christmas, during the Great Depression. "It's a Wonderful Life," is now a holiday classic watched by millions of people each year. Jimmy received a Best Actor nomination for his role in the film.

In 1947, Jimmy starred in the Broadway play, "Harvey." He played an alcoholic who befriends a six-foot tall rabbit. In 1959, the show was filmed. Jimmy received a Best Actor nomination for his role in this film as well.