Anthony Dawson

Anthony Dawson
Dawson as Professor Dent in the James Bond film Dr. No
Born	Anthony Douglas Gillon Dawson 18 October 1916 Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland, UK
Died	8 January 1992(1992-01-08) (aged 75) Sussex, England, UK
Nationality	Scottish
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1940–1991

Anthony Douglas Gillon Dawson (18 October 1916 – 8 January 1992) was a Scottish actor, best known for his supporting roles as villains in British films such as Dial M for Murder (1954) and Midnight Lace (1960), as well as playing Professor Dent in the James Bond film Dr. No (1962). He also appeared as Ernst Stavro Blofeld in From Russia With Love (1963) and Thunderball (1965).

Dawson was born in Edinburgh, the son of Ida Violet (Kittel) and Eric Francis Dawson.

He made his film debut in 1943's They Met in the Dark, going on to appear in such classic British films as The Way to the Stars (1945), The Queen of Spades (1948) and The Wooden Horse (1950), before moving to America in the early 1950s.

It was while there that he appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M for Murder (1954), playing C. A. Swann/Captain Lesgate. In the film, he is blackmailed by Tony Wendice (Ray Milland) into murdering his wife Margot (Grace Kelly). In his unpublished memoirs, Rambling Recollections, Dawson reminisced about getting the part:

... I had never met Hitchcock before, and yet he was about to do me the most fantastic good turn I could imagine. In that wonderful fat man's Cockney voice, he said, slowly, drooping every word separately, as though he had all day: 'Tony, I just called to let you know that I want you for this picture, so you're quite safe to make yourself a nice deal.' What could I say? I mumbled my thanks and put the phone down, feeling rather dazed, electrified, stunned; all of these. The full impact of this call from Hitch was very soon to come home to me.