Ray Milland was born Reginald Alfred Truscott-Jones on 3 January 1907 in Neath, Glamorganshire. When he later needed a stage name, he took inspiration from the 'mill lands' area of his home town, becoming Ray Milland.
He appeared in his first film in the late 1920s and moved to Hollywood in 1930, quickly establishing himself as a debonair leading man in romantic comedies and dramas throughout the 1930s and 1940s, with credits including 'Easy Living' (1937) and 'Beau Geste' (1939).
His dramatic breakthrough came with the role of an alcoholic writer in Billy Wilder's 'The Lost Weekend' (1945), which won him the Academy Award for Best Actor and the Golden Globe Award — making him the first Welsh-born actor to win an Academy Award for Best Actor. He went on to star opposite Grace Kelly in Alfred Hitchcock's 'Dial M for Murder' (1954), played the obsessive Dr Xavier in 'X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes' (1963), and was later remembered by television audiences for roles including the father in 'Love Story' (1970) and an appearance in 'Battlestar Galactica' (1978).
Milland continued acting into the 1980s, amassing more than 130 film and television credits across a career spanning almost six decades. He died of lung cancer on 10 March 1986 in Torrance, California, aged 79.
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Neath-born Academy Award-winning actor, star of The Lost Weekend and Dial M for Murder.
Ray Milland
Actor born in Neath
Born in Neath, Glamorganshire; took his stage name from the town's 'mill lands' area before moving to Hollywood in 1930.
Milland also worked behind the camera, directing several films and television episodes during the 1950s and early 1960s, including instalments of 'Schlitz Playhouse of Stars' and the feature 'A Man Alone' (1955), alongside his continuing career as an actor.
Career Highlights
Won the Academy Award for Best Actor for The Lost Weekend (1945) — the first Welsh-born actor to win an Academy Award for Best Actor.
Starred opposite Grace Kelly in Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M for Murder (1954).
Appeared in more than 130 films across a near six-decade career, from the silent era to Battlestar Galactica (1978).
ℹ️ Born Reginald Alfred Truscott-Jones, 3 January 1907, Neath, Glamorganshire, Wales; died 10 March 1986, Torrance, California, aged 79.
Born in Neath, Glamorganshire; took his stage name from the town's 'mill lands' area before moving to Hollywood in 1930.
From: TheSaint
Attended Gnoll School in Neath.
From: Sanchez
There is talk from older people in Pontypool that he lived there during the war! Anybody know more?
From: persian
My grandfather worked for Paramount Studios and booked many of the stars of Ray Milland's era on liners going to and from the USA and Europe for work. I have a very old bone handled 'pen knife' once belonging to Ray Milland.