Michael Rennie: Elegant British Actor

"I wanted to be a film actor," said Michael Rennie. "I figured the only way to be one would be to watch how it was done." Rennie rose to screen stardom via the unlikely route of being an extra and stand-in, an almost unheard of means of breaking in. Not only did Rennie leap from extra to actor, he accomplished it despite a late start at age 26, lack of proper theatrical training and family objections. He followed his dream of acting and was one of the lucky ones succeeding over long odds.

Rennie was born into an affluent family August 25, 1910 in Bradford, Yorkshire. His father was Scottish and mother English. He attended Loy's College at Cambridge where his headmaster was H.W. Belgarmie who was the model for "Goodbye, Mr. Chips." Having his acting ambitions squelched, 18-year-old Rennie went to work sorting wool in his father's mill and was eventually promoted to manager.

The restless young man left the mill to work for his uncle who was managing director of Britain's largest rope maker. The uncle also had interests in the entertainment world but refused to provide his nephew with any introductions. Rennie then tried selling cars for awhile and returned to the rope factory for another four years. Finally, Rennie decided to push himself and walked into Gaumont-British Films where he talked his way into a contract for extra, bit and stand-in work. His strategy for film acting was simple: learn by watching.

"I was concerned with finding some way of getting inside a studio so I could watch everyone connected with picture making and learn as much as possible," explained rennie. "Being an extra may give you a day's work but being a stand-in means you're on a picture the entire twon months of its shooting schedule, watching every scene being made and observing top actors and directors and technicians at work. I even got a bit of acting in since i was always ready and eager to rehearse until the stars were ready to take over. A year of watching good actors perform and you learn many tricks of the trade."