Peck, Gregory, 1916–2003, American movie actor, b. La Jolla, Calif., as Eldred Gregory Peck. Peck studied at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse and debuted on Broadway in The Morning Star (1942) and in film in Days of Glory (1944). He achieved stardom in 1944 with his role in The Keys to the Kingdom and went on to become one of the screen's most enduring leading men. Tall and dark with a resonant baritone voice, Peck often portrayed characters who displayed quiet strength and nobility in the face of adversity, as he did most notably in his Academy Award–winning role of Alabama lawyer Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). Among the many other movies in which he starred are Spellbound (1945), Gentleman's Agreement (1947), Twelve O'Clock High (1949), The Gunfighter (1950), Roman Holiday (1953), Moby Dick (1956), On the Beach (1959), Cape Fear (1962, 1991), The Omen (1976), The Boys from Brazil (1978), and Old Gringo (1989). He appeared in several television productions in the 1980s and 90s. A prominent Hollywood liberal who was active in many charities, Peck also served as chairman (1967–69) of the American Film Institute and president (1967–70) of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Bibliography

See biographies by M. Freedland (1980), G. Molyneaux (1995), G. Fishgall (2002), and L. Haney (2004); J. Griggs, The Films of Gregory Peck (1984, repr. 1988); Barbara Kopple, dir., A Conversation with Gregory Peck (documentary film, 1999).

Peck, (Eldred) Gregory

(born April 5, 1916, La Jolla, Calif., U.S.—died June 12, 2003, Los Angeles, Calif.) U.S. film actor. While a premed student at the University of California at Berkeley, he developed a taste for acting. He appeared on Broadway in The Morning Star (1942) and played several other stage roles before making his film debut in Days of Glory (1944). Known for playing likeable, honest men of high moral quality, he starred in movies such as The Keys of the Kingdom (1944), Spellbound (1945), Gentleman's Agreement (1947), Twelve O'Clock High (1949), Roman Holiday (1953), and To Kill a Mockingbird (1962, Academy Award). His later films include MacArthur (1977), The Old Gringo (1989), and Cape Fear (1991). He also served for three years as president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Peck, (Eldred) Gregory (1916– ) movie actor; born in La Jolla, Calif. He was a premed student at the University of California: Berkeley when he became interested in acting. He studied with New York's Neighborhood Playhouse before making his Broadway debut in Morning Star (1942). A spinal injury prevented him from serving in World War II and he made his Hollywood debut in a war movie, Days of Glory (1943). He went on to star in a long string of serious films, winning an Oscar for best actor in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). Durable and sympathetic rather than glamorous and sexy, he earned the respect of his fellow professionals and his public for his high-minded actions on and off the screen.