Conrad Nagel (March 16, 1897 â€" February 24, 1970) was an American
film, stage, television and radio actor. He was considered a famous
matinée idol and leading man of the 1920s and 1930s. He was given an
Academy Honorary Award in 1940 and three stars on the Hollywood Walk
of Fame in 1960.Born in Keokuk, Iowa, into an upper-middle-class
family, he was the son of a musician father, Dr. Frank L. Nagel, who
was of German descent, and a mother, Frances (née Murphy), who was a
locally praised singer. Nagel's mother died early in his life, and he
always attributed his artistic inclination to growing up in a family
environment that encouraged self-expression. His father, Frank, became
dean of the music conservatory at Highland Park College and when Nagel
was three, the family moved to Des Moines.After graduating from
Highland Park College in Des Moines, Iowa, Nagel left for California
to pursue a career in the relatively new medium of motion pictures
where he garnered instant attention from the Hollywood studio
executives. With his 6-foot-tall (1.8 m) frame, blue eyes, and wavy
blond hair; the young, Midwestern Nagel was seen by studio executives
as a potentially wholesome matinee idol whose unpretentious
all-American charm would appeal to the nation's nascent
film-goers.Nagel was immediately cast in film roles that cemented his
unspoiled lover image. His first film was the 1918 retelling of Little
Women, which quickly captured the public's attention and set Nagel on
a path to silent film stardom. His breakout role came in the 1920
film, The Fighting Chance, opposite Swedish starlet Anna Q. Nilsson.
In 1918, Nagel joined The Lambs, the historical theater club.
film, stage, television and radio actor. He was considered a famous
matinée idol and leading man of the 1920s and 1930s. He was given an
Academy Honorary Award in 1940 and three stars on the Hollywood Walk
of Fame in 1960.Born in Keokuk, Iowa, into an upper-middle-class
family, he was the son of a musician father, Dr. Frank L. Nagel, who
was of German descent, and a mother, Frances (née Murphy), who was a
locally praised singer. Nagel's mother died early in his life, and he
always attributed his artistic inclination to growing up in a family
environment that encouraged self-expression. His father, Frank, became
dean of the music conservatory at Highland Park College and when Nagel
was three, the family moved to Des Moines.After graduating from
Highland Park College in Des Moines, Iowa, Nagel left for California
to pursue a career in the relatively new medium of motion pictures
where he garnered instant attention from the Hollywood studio
executives. With his 6-foot-tall (1.8 m) frame, blue eyes, and wavy
blond hair; the young, Midwestern Nagel was seen by studio executives
as a potentially wholesome matinee idol whose unpretentious
all-American charm would appeal to the nation's nascent
film-goers.Nagel was immediately cast in film roles that cemented his
unspoiled lover image. His first film was the 1918 retelling of Little
Women, which quickly captured the public's attention and set Nagel on
a path to silent film stardom. His breakout role came in the 1920
film, The Fighting Chance, opposite Swedish starlet Anna Q. Nilsson.
In 1918, Nagel joined The Lambs, the historical theater club.
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