Leo Genn

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Leo Genn
Genn at the 24th Academy Awards in 1952
Born	Leopold John Genn (1905-08-09)9 August 1905 Stamford Hill, London, England
Died	26 January 1978(1978-01-26) (aged 72) London, England
Alma mater	St Catharine's College, Cambridge
Occupations	Actor barrister
Years active	1935–1975
Spouse	Marguerite van Praag ​ ​ (m. 1933)​
Military career
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Unit	Royal Artillery
Battles/wars	World War II

Leopold John Genn (/ɡɛn/; 9 August 1905 – 26 January 1978) was an English actor and barrister. Distinguished by his relaxed charm and smooth, "black velvet" voice,^[1] he had a lengthy career in theatre, film, television, and radio; often playing aristocratic or gentlemanly, sophisticate roles.^[1]

Born to a Jewish family in London, Genn was educated as a lawyer and was a practising barrister until after World War II, in which he had served in the Royal Artillery as a Lieutenant-Colonel. He began his acting career at The Old Vic and made his film debut in 1935, starring in a total of 85 screen roles until his death in 1978. For his portrayal of Petronius in the 1951 Hollywood epic Quo Vadis, he received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.