Raymond Hart Massey (August 30, 1896 – July 29, 1983) was a Canadian/American actor.
| # | Fact |
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| 1 | He and his children Daniel Massey and Anna Massey all worked with Laurence Olivier: Raymond in Fire Over England (1937) and 49th Parallel (1941), Daniel in The Entertainer (1960) and Anna in Bunny Lake Is Missing (1965), David Copperfield (1970) and A Little Romance (1979). |
| 2 | Distantly related to Anthony Steel. |
| 3 | He has three roles in common with Charlton Heston: (1) Massey played Sherlock Holmes in The Speckled Band (1931) while Heston played him in The Crucifer of Blood (1991), (2) Massey played Cardinal Richelieu in Under the Red Robe (1937) while Heston played him in The Three Musketeers (1973) and The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge (1974) and (3) Massey played Abraham Lincoln in Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940), Pulitzer Prize Playhouse: Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1950), Ford Star Jubilee: The Day Lincoln Was Shot (1956) and How the West Was Won (1962) while Heston played him in The Great Battles of the Civil War (1994). |
| 4 | Former father-in-law of Penelope Wilton. |
| 5 | Is one of two actors to have received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for portraying Abraham Lincoln; the other is Daniel Day-Lewis for Lincoln (2012). |
| 6 | Was a veteran of the Canadian Siberian Expeditionary Force (CSEF) composed of 4,000 soldiers that were sent to Russia to combat the Bolshevik menace. This was authorized on August 12, 1918. Massey announced his participation during the airing of The Lux Radio Theater:Action in the North Atlantic broadcast on May 15, 1944. |
| 7 | Massey's divorce from his ex-wife Adrianne Allen was the inspiration for the 1949 film Adam's Rib (1949). Each was represented by one half of a famous husband-and-wife team of divorce lawyers, Dorothy Whitney and her husband William Dwight Whitney. After the trial was over, the Whitneys divorced. The ex-Mrs. Whitney married Massey, and the ex-Mrs. Massey married the ex-Mrs. Whitney's ex-husband. |
| 8 | During the 1964 presidential race, he endorsed Republican candidate Barry Goldwater. |
| 9 | Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume One, 1981-1985, pages 554-555. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998. |
| 10 | Died the same day as his The Prisoner of Zenda (1937) and Stairway to Heaven (1946) co-star David Niven. |
| 11 | Was a two-time Wound Badge winner, having been wounded in both world wars. |
| 12 | Spoke the lines given to Abraham Lincoln in the staged dramatic reading of Stephen Vincent Benet's "John Brown's Body", in which he also spoke John Brown's lines. |
| 13 | There was much dissatisfaction among the public when it was learned that Massey, a Canadian with clear diction and a fine speaking voice, had been selected to play Abraham Lincoln in the stage production of "Abe Lincoln in Illinois" - until he received rave reviews for his performance. His subsequent reprise of the role in the 1940 film version (Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940)) earned him an Oscar nomination. |
| 14 | Played Abraham Lincoln a total of four times; once on TV, twice in the movies, as well as in the stage play "Abe Lincoln in Illinois.". Massey portrayed Abraham Lincoln in the 1950s "Du Pont Show of the Month" television drama "The Day That Lincoln Was Shot", opposite Lillian Gish as Mary Todd Lincoln, in the films Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940), and How the West Was Won (1962). |
| 15 | Massey said the British thought he was American and the Americans thought he was British. He was actually Canadian. But his mother and paternal grandmother were both Americans and his branch of the Massey family migrated from England to Canada via the United States. |
| 16 | Scion of the Massey family whose farm implement manufacturing business merged with the Harris company in 1891 to form Massey-Harris. Then in 1953, it merged with the Ferguson company to become Massey-Harris-Ferguson, shortened to Massey-Ferguson in 1957. Massey-Ferguson, now an AGCO (formerly Varity) subsidiary, is the largest selling farm tractor brand in the world. Vincent and Raymond Massey were the last Masseys to have a direct role in the company. Each elected to pursue other careers. |
| 17 | He is buried in the Ludington family plot in Beaverdale Cemetary, in the suburb of Hampden area, which is in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.A. |
| 18 | Although born a Canadian and serving in the Canadian Army in both world wars, he later became an American citizen. |
| 19 | Younger brother of Canadian politician Vincent Massey (1887-1967), who was the first Canadian-born Governor General of Canada (1952-1959). |
| 20 | Father of Anna Massey, Daniel Massey and Geoffrey Massey. Grandfather of the producer Raymond Massey and Alice Massey. |
| Title | Year | Status | Character |
|---|
| Omar Khayyam | 1957 | The Shah |
| Kraft Theatre | 1957 | TV Series |
| Producers' Showcase | 1955-1957 | TV Series | The Prime Minister / Stackpoole |
| Man's Heritage | 1956 | TV Series | Host |
| Climax! | 1956 | TV Series | Doc Woodward / Sir George Sidney |
| Goodyear Playhouse | 1956 | TV Series |
| Robert Montgomery Presents | 1952-1956 | TV Series | Judge Benton / Dr. Clark Evans / Dr. Henry Craig |
| Ford Star Jubilee | 1956 | TV Series | Abraham Lincoln |
| The 20th Century-Fox Hour | 1955 | TV Series | George Apley |
| Seven Angry Men | 1955 | John Brown |
| East of Eden | 1955 | Adam Trask |
| Battle Cry | 1955 | Maj. Gen. Snipes |
| Prince of Players | 1955 | Junius Brutus Booth |
| The Desert Song | 1953 | Sheik Yousseff |
| Carson City | 1952 | Big Jack Davis |
| Lights Out | 1952 | TV Series |
| Come Fill the Cup | 1951 | John Ives |
| David and Bathsheba | 1951 | Nathan |
| Lux Video Theatre | 1951 | TV Series | Abe Lincoln |
| Sugarfoot | 1951 | Jacob Stint |
| Dallas | 1950 | Will Marlow |
| Pulitzer Prize Playhouse | 1950 | TV Series | Abraham Lincoln |
| The Clock | 1950 | TV Series |
| Barricade | 1950 | Boss Kruger |
| Chain Lightning | 1950 | Leland Willis |
| The Ford Theatre Hour | 1948-1950 | TV Series | Mr. Radfern
Clinton Jones |
| Roseanna McCoy | 1949 | Old Randall McCoy |
| The Fountainhead | 1949 | Gail Wynand |
| Mourning Becomes Electra | 1947 | Brig. Gen. Ezra Mannon |
| Possessed | 1947 | Dean Graham |
| Stairway to Heaven | 1946 | Abraham Farlan |
| God Is My Co-Pilot | 1945 | Maj. Gen. Claire L. Chennault |
| Hotel Berlin | 1945 | Arnim von Dahnwitz |
| The Woman in the Window | 1944 | Dist. Atty. Frank Lalor |
| Arsenic and Old Lace | 1944 | Jonathan Brewster |
| A Canterbury Tale | 1944 | Narrator (US version) (voice) |
| Action in the North Atlantic | 1943 | Capt. Steve Jarvis |
| Desperate Journey | 1942 | Major Otto Baumeister |
| Reap the Wild Wind | 1942 | King Cutler |
| Dangerously They Live | 1941 | Dr. Ingersoll |
| 49th Parallel | 1941 | Andy Brock |
| Santa Fe Trail | 1940 | John Brown |
| Abe Lincoln in Illinois | 1940 | Abe Lincoln |
| Footsteps in the Sand | 1939 | Peter Charrington |
| Drums | 1938 | Prince Ghul |
| Picture Page | 1938 | TV Series |
| The Hurricane | 1937 | DeLaage |
| The Prisoner of Zenda | 1937 | Black Michael |
| Under the Red Robe | 1937 | Cardinal Richelieu |
| Dreaming Lips | 1937 | Miguel del Vayo |
| Fire Over England | 1937 | King Philip II of Spain |
| Things to Come | 1936 | John Cabal / Oswald Cabal |
| The Scarlet Pimpernel | 1934 | Chauvelin |
| The Old Dark House | 1932 | Philip Waverton |
| The Face at the Window | 1932 | Paul le Gros |
| The Speckled Band | 1931 | Sherlock Holmes |
| The Crooked Billet | 1929 | Undetermined Role (uncredited) |
| High Treason | 1929 | Member of Federated States Council (uncredited) |
| My Darling Daughters' Anniversary | 1973 | TV Movie | Matthew Cunningham |
| The President's Plane Is Missing | 1973 | TV Movie | Secretary of State Freeman Sharkey |
| All My Darling Daughters | 1972 | TV Movie | Matthew Cunningham |
| Night Gallery | 1971-1972 | TV Series | Dr. Glendon / Colonel Archie Dittman (segment "Clean Kills and Other Trophies") |
| Mackenna's Gold | 1969 | The Preacher |
| Saint Joan | 1967 | TV Movie | The Inquisitor |
| Insight | 1960-1967 | TV Series | POW in Communist China |
| The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. | 1966 | TV Series | B. Elzie Bubb |
| Dr. Kildare | 1961-1966 | TV Series | Dr. Leonard Gillespie / Graham Lanier |
| The Eleventh Hour | 1963 | TV Series | Dr. Leonard Gillespie |
| How the West Was Won | 1962 | Abraham Lincoln |
| Kraft Mystery Theater | 1962 | TV Series |
| The Queen's Guards | 1961 | Captain Fellowes |
| Adventures in Paradise | 1961 | TV Series | Captain William Brooks |
| The Fiercest Heart | 1961 | Willem Prinsloo |
| The Great Impostor | 1961 | Abbott Donner |
| Wagon Train | 1960 | TV Series | Montezuma IX |
| Riverboat | 1960 | TV Series | Sir Oliver Garnett |
| Zane Grey Theater | 1960 | TV Series | Malachi West |
| Playhouse 90 | 1960 | TV Series | Father Ricquoi |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | 1959 | TV Series | Sam Pine |
| General Electric Theater | 1955-1959 | TV Series | Paul von Hindenburg / Lord Hook |
| Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse | 1959 | TV Series | Amos Claypool |
| The Naked and the Dead | 1958 | Gen. Cummings |
| Now That April's Here | 1958 | Narrator |
| Armchair Theatre | 1958 | TV Series | Sir George Sidney, MP |
| I Spy | 1955-1957 | TV Series | Anton the Spymaster / Anton, the Spymaster / Host / ... |
| Title | Year | Status | Character |
|---|
| Dinah! | 1976 | TV Series | Himself |
| Look Who's Here | 1975 | TV Series | Himself - Interviewee |
| Stars on Sunday | 1970-1972 | TV Series | Himself / Himself - Guest |
| The Joey Bishop Show | 1967 | TV Series | Himself |
| The Land We Love | 1966 | Documentary short | Narrator |
| The Celebrity Game | 1965 | TV Series | Himself - Panelist |
| The Match Game | 1964 | TV Series | Himself - Team Captain |
| Missing Links | 1964 | TV Series | Himself |
| The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson | 1962-1963 | TV Series | Himself / Himself - Guest |
| The Bob Hope Show | 1963 | TV Series | Himself |
| Jacqueline Kennedy's Asian Journey | 1962 | Documentary short | Narrator (voice) |
| The Merv Griffin Show | 1962 | TV Series | Himself |
| What's My Line? | 1962 | TV Series | Himself - Mystery Guest |
| Here's Hollywood | 1961 | TV Series | Himself |
| Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall | 1949-1960 | TV Series | Himself / Abraham Lincoln in skit |
| Eight Steps to Peace: Does Disarmement Make Sense | 1957 | Documentary short | Narrator |
| Eight Steps to Peace: The Answer Now | 1957 | Documentary | Narrator |
| The True Story of the Civil War | 1957 | Documentary short | Narrator (voice) |
| The Arthur Murray Party | 1957 | TV Series | Himself |
| Person to Person | 1956 | TV Series documentary | Himself |
| I Spy | 1956 | TV Series | Himself - Host / Narrator |
| The Naked Eye | 1956 | Documentary | Narrator |
| The Ed Sullivan Show | 1951-1955 | TV Series | Himself / Prospero |
| Uncommon Valor | 1955 | Documentary short | Narrator (voice, as Mr. Raymond Massey) |
| The American Road | 1953 | Documentary short | Narrator |
| Omnibus | 1953 | TV Series | Himself |
| The Fred Waring Show | 1951 | TV Series | Himself |
| TV Club | 1951 | TV Series documentary | Himself |
| Texaco Star Theatre | 1950 | TV Series | Himself - Actor |
| Breakdowns of 1942 | 1942 | Short | Himself (uncredited) |
| For Auld Lang Syne | 1939 | Documentary short | Scenes from stage production of 'Abe Lincoln in Illinois' |
| Picture Page | 1938 | TV Series | Himself - Guest |
| Round the Film Studios | 1937 | TV Series | Himself - Actor |
