David Skal’s ‘Claude Rains: An Actor’s Voice’

Claude Rains, this most patrician and elegant ofscreen actors, still sustains a fascination for the average filmgoer. And hislife story is full of surprises: He spoke cockney and had been abused as achild. In Mr. Skeffington, he tellsBette Davis that his success is a rags-to-riches story. In David Skal’s Claude Rains: An Actor’s Voice(University Press of Kentucky) that parallel is made only too clear. Skal’sbiography does little to plumb the depths of Rains’ appeal, instead givingcareful step-by-step survey of his professional life without diagnosing hispersonal life. Still, it’s a fast, compelling read, leaving readers to reachtheir own conclusions.

Born into extreme poverty in 1889 London, he was one of three children(out of 10) in his family to survive. His father, a minor stage actor, whippedhim savagely, which may partially account for a severe speech impediment. AllRs sounded like Ws, a handicap he ironically fought to overcome before hecame to possess one of the most distinctive voices in the world.

He envied the fine outfits of the church choirboys,became one himself, worked on his speech impediment and moved on to a new jobfirst as callboy, then prompter, at His Majesty’s Theater. Yet the youngRains showed no interest in acting. As his speech improved, he was given asmall speaking role in a play (1904), marking the beginning of a stage careerthat led to rapid success in London and eventuallyNew York. Hisfirst film, The Invisible Man (1933),would become a classic. His voice dominated a performance by the usually unseenactor.

His years at Warner Bros. heralded his mostmemorable achievements. The glory years bequeathed us those roles for which heis most remembered, including the charmingly hypocritical Captain Renault in Casablanca,a performance that remains unforgettably sardonic against a formidable cast,immortalizing the film with Bogart’s unforgettable overture to Rains:“Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” Rains’tongue-in-cheek polish was again evidenced in the great Bette Davis vehicle Now, Voyager. In Mr. Skeffington the A-List actress found a co-star whosepenetrating performance as her neglected husband more than equaled her ownsuperlative gifts. The two of them provided one of the most moving finales infilm history.

Rains’ only collaboration with Hitchcock resulted inanother timeless classic, Notorious.The superb black-and-white photography only heightened Rains’ dark performanceas an eerie postwar Nazi, stealing attention from the riveting star power ofCary Grant and Ingrid Bergman. He continued to act and received offers forstage and screen to the end of his days, but, except for a brief appearance in Lawrence of Arabia, the golden yearswere over. He died in 1967 at the age of 78 from cirrhosis of the liver.

Rains’ humble origins were always somewhat inevidence even in his most sophisticated performances. He remained the mostaccessible of the great character actors, perpetually registering a sublimesimplicity.