George C. Scott

September 23, 1999
Web posted at: 1:13 p.m. EDT (1713 GMT)

In this story: Complete filmography Rocky personal life Soaring to stardom Turning down the Oscar RELATED STORIES, SITES

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, California (CNN) -- George C. Scott, whose gravel-voiced demeanor commanded recognition from "Anatomy of a Murder" to "Patton," has died. He was 71.

Scott died Wednesday at his home, according to Pat Mahoney, the wife of his publicist. She said Thursday she didn't know the cause of death.

"They just found him and are trying to find out what happened," she told The Associated Press. "He was on again, off again for a while. He just expired."

The answering service for the Ventura County Coroner's Office confirmed that Scott had died but had no other information, The Associated Press reported.

In 1996, doctors discovered a life-threatening aneurysm in his heart.

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Scott may have been best known for his role as the general in "Patton." Watch a clip from "Patton" 1Mb QuickTime movie

Born on October 18, 1927, George Campbell Scott abandoned his goal of having a writing career -- he said he didn't have enough talent for it -- instead trying out for a college play. That was enough to convince him he'd found his career niche.

Scott made his mark on the theater, especially for his standout performance as salesman Willy Loman in "Death of a Salesman." He brought that talent to television, remembered early on for his definitive portrayal of Scrooge in "A Christmas Carol."

He had rocky personal life. Scott was for years a bellicose drinker whose profile was marked by a nose broken five times, in four barroom brawls and one mugging. He was married five times -- twice to the same woman, actress Colleen Dewhurst.

Scott also faced a $3 million sexual harassment lawsuit filed in the late 1990s by his 26-year-old personal assistant. He vehemently denied her allegations.

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Scott's performance on a TV version of "A Christmas Carol" is considered by many to be the definitive portrayal of Ebenezer Scrooge. Watch a clip of "A Christmas Carol" here 1.7Mb QuickTime movie

As his career began, the unknown Scott played the title role in "Richard III" in November 1957, Jacques in "As You Like It" in January 1958 and a poisoning peer in the off-Broadway "Children of Darkness" in March 1958.

For his work in all three productions he received the off- Broadway best actor Obie and a Theatre World award as a "promising personality." For the Shakespeare performances, he won a Clarence Derwent Award as most promising actor and a Vernon Rice Award for contribution to off-Broadway theater.

Later in 1958, his Broadway debut in "Comes a Day" earned the first of his four Tony Award nominations. The others were for "The Andersonville Trial" in 1959, "Uncle Vanya" in 1974 and "Death of a Salesman," which he also directed, in 1975.

In his career, he also won a second Obie, two television Emmys out of five nominations and was nominated for Oscars four times.

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View a complete filmography of George C. Scott

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Remembering George C. Scott

His film debut came in 1959, as a charismatic loony who stirs up a lynch mob against Gary Cooper in "The Hanging Tree."

Scott won his first Oscar award for "Patton" -- and promptly refused it. He was the first actor to turn down the honor.

"I know what he (Oscar) stands for ... and it's terrific ... I think when people used to hang around and pat each other on the back over drink and dinner, it was wonderful. But when it became an international hoopla where careers lived and died on whether or not you did or didn't get an Oscar, then it got out of hand," Scott once said.

Scott's other film credits include "The Hospital," "A Tale of Two Cities," "The List of Adrian Messenger," "The Hustler," "The Crucible," "The Flim Flam Man," "The New Centurions," "The Day of the Dolphin," "Bank Shot," "The Hindenburg" and "Exorcist III."

Scott also starred in the highly acclaimed but short-lived TV series "East Side/West Side" in 1963. Scott rose from a sickbed at age 68 to star in the 1996 Broadway revival of "Inherit the Wind," and portrayed a terminally ill blind man in "Wrong Turn at Longfish."

He met Dewhurst when they appeared together in "Children of Darkness." They were married in 1960, divorced in 1965, remarried in 1967 and divorced in 1972. They had two sons, Alexander and Campbell. He married actress Trish Van Devere in 1972.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.