Lewis Frederick "Lew" Ayres III (December 28, 1908 – December 30, 1996) was an American actor.
He appeared in many films during The Pre-Code Era and The Golden Age of Hollywood. He is known for his memorable appearance in the Lewis Milestone film adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front and was one of the most popular actors throughout the 1930s. He was also a musician, playing banjo in a band as a teenager, but his interest withered away to acting after he left school.
Strangely, Ayres' acting popularity would only be for a decade and dimmed greatly after World War II; this might have been related to the fact that he'd initially declared himself a conscientious objector, although he later served in the Army as a medic, earning three battle stars. He continued to act after the war in films and television, earning a Best Actor Academy Award nomination for Johnny Belinda.
Ayres was married three times, including to Ginger Rogers, and had a son named Justin.
Lew Ayres on TV Tropes:
- The Kiss (1929) — Notable as the last silent film ever made by a Hollywood studio (MGM)
- All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
- State Fair (1933)
- Nine Dr. Kildare films (1938-42)
- Holiday (1938)
- The Dark Mirror (1946)
- The Way of Peace (1947)(animated short; narrator)
- Johnny Belinda (1948)
- Advise & Consent (1962)
- Hawaii Five-O (1968) — He played the Governor in the Pilot Movie and could have had the role in the series, but he was unwilling to move to Hawaii full-time, so Richard Denning got the role in the series. Ayers did guest-star twice on the series proper in different roles, in "Anybody Can Build a Bomb" (1973) and "Legacy of Terror" (1976).
- Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)
- Columbo, episode "Mind Over Mayhem" (1974)
- Damien: Omen II (1978)
- 'Salem's Lot (1979)
