Stewart Granger, the swashbuckling star of such films as "King Solomon's Mines," "Scaramouche" and "The Prisoner of Zenda," has died of cancer at age 80.
The tall, suave-looking actor, who died Monday, battled villains and wild beasts in dozens of movies.He played opposite many of Hollywood's most famous leading ladies, including Vivien Leigh, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly, Elizabeth Taylor, Rita Hayworth and Jean Simmons. From 1950 to 1960, he was married to Simmons.
He made his film debut in "So This is London" in 1939.
He became one of Hollywood's most consistent box-office draws, starring in such films as "King Solomon's Mines" (1950), "Scaramouche," (1952); "Beau Brummel," (1954); and "The Prisoner of Zenda," (1952).
Granger admitted his movies rated higher in entertainment value than artistic merit. "I've never done a film I've proud of," he once said.
Later movies included "Sodom and Gommorah" in 1961 and "Requiem for a Secret Agent" in 1966.
Born James Lablanche Stewart in Britain, he attended London's Webber Douglas School of Dramatic Art. He changed his name to avoid being confused with Jimmy Stewart. Granger became a U.S. citizen in 1956.
He played Sherlock Holmes in a 1972 TV version of "The Hound of the Baskervilles." In 1991, he played an aging Hollywood actor in an episode of the CBS series "Gabriel's Fire."
Granger didn't make his Broadway debut until 1989, acting with Rex Harrison and Glynis Johns in a revival of Somerset Maugham's "The Circle."
Granger is survived by three daughters and a son.
Funeral arrangements were incomplete.