Page 212 - Cousins - Celebrities, Saints & Sinners

Tyrone Power

9th Cousin

Common Ancestor

Father: Richard Baldwin
Chesham, Buckinghamshire, England
1570- 1632

Mother: Isabel Harding
Buckinghamshire, England
1577 - 1630 Born: Died:
5 May 1914 15 November 1958
Santa Monica, California Woodside, California
Tyrone Edmund Power III was an American film, stage and
radio actor. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Power appeared in
dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads.
His better-known films include The Mark of Zorro, Marie
Antoinette, Blood and Sand, The Black Swan, Prince of
Foxes, Witness for the Prosecution, The Black Rose,
and Captain from Castile. Power's own favorite film among
those that he starred in was Nightmare Alley.

Though largely a matinee idol in the 1930s and early 1940s
and known for his striking looks, Power starred in films in a
number of genres, from drama to light comedy. In the 1950s
he began placing limits on the number of films he would make
in order to devote more time for theater productions. He
received his biggest accolades as a stage actor in John Brown's
Body and Mister Roberts. Power died from a heart attack at
the age of 44.

Power was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1914, son of Helen Emma "Patia" (née Reaume) and the Irish-
ancestry English-born US stage and screen actor Tyrone Power Sr., often known by his first name "Fred".
Power was descended from a long Irish theatrical line going back to his great-grandfather, the Irish actor
and comedian Tyrone Power (1795–1841).

Power went to Cincinnati-area Catholic schools and graduated from Purcell High School in 1931. Upon his
graduation, he opted to join his father to learn what he could about acting from one of the stage's most
respected actors.

Power joined his father for the summer of 1931, after being separated from him for some years due to his
parents' divorce. His father suffered a heart attack in December 1931, dying in his son's arms, while
preparing to perform in The Miracle Man. Tyrone Power Jr., as he was then known, decided to continue his
pursuit of an acting career.
Power went to Hollywood in 1936. The director Henry King was impressed with his looks and poise, and he
insisted that Power be tested for the lead role in Lloyd's of London, a role thought already to belong to Don
Ameche. Despite his own reservations, Darryl F. Zanuck decided to give Power the role, once King and Fox
editor Barbara McLean convinced him that Power had a greater screen presence than Ameche. Power was
billed fourth in the movie, but he had by far the most screen time of any actor. He walked into the premiere
of the movie an unknown and he walked out a star, which he remained the rest of his career.

212