Harold Russell

About Harold Russell

Who is it?: Actor, Soundtrack
Birth Day: January 14, 1914
Birth Place:  North Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Died On: January 29, 2002(2002-01-29) (aged 88)\nNeedham, Massachusetts
Birth Sign: Aquarius
Spouse(s): Rita Russell-Nixon (1944-1978) Betty Marshalsea (1981-2002)
Children: Adele, Gerald

Harold Russell Net Worth

Harold Russell was born on January 14, 1914 in  North Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, is Actor, Soundtrack. Harold John Russell was born in Nova Scotia in 1914. His family moved to Cambridge Massachusetts when his father died in 1919. He was training paratroopers at Camp MacKall NC on June 6, 1944 when some TNT he was using exploded in his hands. He lost both hands. After receiving hooks, and training on them, he was chosen to make an Army training film called "Diary Of A Sergeant". William Wyler saw the film and decided to cast him in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946). Harold Russell played Homer Parish. For this role he received 2 Oscars, a Best Supporting and one for being an inspiration to all returning veterans. He is the only actor to receive 2 Oscars for the same role. After the movie he attended Boston University. He later went on to help establish AMVETS as a viable alternative to the American Legion for veterans, though his dream of an international veterans organization was never realized. He later appeared in Inside Moves (1980) and Dogtown (1997). He lived with his wife on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. He wrote 2 biographies: "Victory In My Hands" (1947) & "The Best Years Of My Life" (1981).
Harold Russell is a member of Actor

💰 Net worth: Under Review

Some Harold Russell images

Biography/Timeline

1921

Harold Russell was born in North Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada and moved to Massachusetts with his family in 1921, after his father's death in 1920.

1941

In 1941, he was so profoundly affected by the December 7 attack on Pearl Harbor that he enlisted in the United States Army on the following day.

1944

While he was an Army instructor, and training with the U.S. 13th Airborne Division at Camp Mackall, North Carolina, on June 6, 1944, a defective fuse detonated an explosive he was handling while making a training film. As a result, he lost both hands and was given two hooks to serve as hands. After his recovery, and while attending Boston University as a full-time student, Russell was featured in an Army film called Diary of a Sergeant about rehabilitating war veterans.

1947

For his role as Parrish, Russell won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1947. Earlier in the ceremony, he was awarded an honorary Oscar for "bringing hope and courage to his fellow veterans." The special award had been created because the Board of Governors very much wanted to salute Russell, a non-professional actor, but assumed he had little chance for a competitive win. It was the only time in Oscar history that the Academy has awarded two Oscars for the same performance.

1949

Russell authored two autobiographies, Victory in My Hands (1949) and The Best Years of My Life (1981).

1951

Russell became active in AMVETS, serving three terms as National Commander. As such, he wrote to President Truman in 1951, supporting his decision to dismiss General MacArthur. In his letter, Russell wrote: "The issue is whether the ultimate civil authority of the United States can tolerate actions in contempt of constitutional lines of authority. Any lessening of civil power over military power must inevitably lead away from democracy."

1960

From the early 1960s to the late 1980s, Russell served as the Chairman of the President's Commission on Employment of the Handicapped, an unpaid position.

1980

Russell appeared in only two other films after his debut, Inside Moves in 1980 and Dogtown in 1997. He also appeared in an episode of Trapper John, M.D. in 1981 and a two-part episode of the television series China Beach in 1989.

1992

In 1992, in a controversial decision, Russell consigned his Oscar for Best Supporting Actor to Herman Darvick Autograph Auctions, and on August 6, 1992, in New York City, the Oscar sold to a private collector for $60,500 ($105,500 today). Claiming he needed money for his wife's medical expenses, Russell defended his action, saying, "I don't know why anybody would be critical. My wife's health is much more important than sentimental reasons. The movie will be here, even if Oscar isn't." However, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which objects to the selling of its awards, disputed that motivation, stating that in actuality his new wife merely "wanted to take a cruise". The Academy has required all Oscar recipients since 1950 to sign an agreement forbidding them from selling their award; as a pre-1950 winner, Russell was exempt from this provision.

2002

Russell died of a heart attack on January 29, 2002, 15 days after his 88th birthday, and is buried in Lakeview Cemetery in Wayland, Massachusetts.