British Actor. He is best remembered for his role of Captain William Bligh in "Mutiny on the Bounty" (1962), the role of Major Eric Fincham in "Von Ryan's Express" (1965), and the role of Father Collins in "Ryan's Daughter" (1970). Born in Cliftonville, in Kent, England, he was oldest child and only son of Arthur John Howard-Smith, a banker who represented Lloyd's of London Bank in Ceylon, and his Canadian born wife, Mabel Grey Wallace, who worked as a nurse. Shortly after his birth, he lived in Colombo, Ceylon with his parents, then in 1921, sent to school at Clifton College in Bristol, and later attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, following which he acted on the London Stage. His first career salary was in the play "Revolt in a Reformatory" (1934), and a year later, he was offered a job with Paramount Studios in Hollywood, but turned it down to continue with the stage. He continued to work on the British stage, until 1939, when he volunteered for the RAF and the British Army, but was rejected by both. In 1940, however, while working at the Colchester Repertory Theater, he was called up (drafted) into the British Army Signal Corps, where he obtained a commission as a Second Lieutenant. Although his military career is somewhat sketchy, he claimed to have parachuted into German occupied Norway, and to have fought in Sicily, before he was invalided out of the Army in late 1943. Returning to the London theater, he played in "The Recruiting Officer" (1943), where he met actress Helen Cherry. They married on September 8, 1944, and remained together for life, although they would have no children. His role in the British war film, "The Way Ahead" (1944) paved the way to his best known role, that of Dr. Alec Harvey in "Brief Encounter" (1946), which won an award at the 1946 Cannes Film Festival and brought him critical acclaim. Slipping between films and stage for the next several years, he finally settled on making films in 1948, stating that he enjoyed the idea of being able to travel that films afforded him. His reputation as a film actor was secured in 1949 with his role of Major Calloway in "The Third Man" (1949), in which he played a dry, crusty, but thoroughly professional British military officer, a role that suited his talents perfectly. He would reprise military officer roles or authority figures often throughout his remaining career. In the early 1960s, Howard also tried out the newer medium of television, acting in several made of television movies, such as "The Invincible Mr. Disraeli" (1963), for which he won an Emmy Award. In 1975, he was nominated for an Emmy for his role in the television movie, "The Count of Monte Cristo". In all of his film career, he would insist that his contracts contain a clause that allowed him to be excused from work to attend a cricket match. He made 74 films, during which he would play the traditional quiet, well-bred Englishman in his earlier years, and the crusty eccentric Englishman in his later years. His last role was that of Father Silva, in "The Unholy" (1988), which was released shortly after his death from bronchitis, influenza and jaundice, in Bushey, Hertfordshire, England. He was awarded the Commander of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE), but reportedly turned down the higher award of knighthood.