| Tom Conway | |
|---|---|
 from the trailer for Grand Central Murder (1942) |
|
| Birth name | Thomas Sanders |
| Born | September 15, 1904 St. Petersburg, Russia |
| Died | April 22, 1967 Culver City, Los Angeles |
Tom Conway (September 15, 1904 – April 22, 1967) was an British actor. He was born to English parents as Thomas Charles Sanders in St. Petersburg, Russia; his brother was the actor George Sanders, whom Conway resembled remarkably both in looks and speaking voice. The family eventually moved back to England, where both brothers were educated at Brighton College. According to the IMDB, Tom lost a coin toss with George to decide which of the two of them would change his last name to avoid any confusion with each other. Conway is remembered today for playing "The Falcon" in ten of that series' entries, taking over from his brother. Conway has also played Sherlock Holmes following Basil Rathbone's departure from the 1946 - 1947 radio series. Despite an uncanny similarity to the sound of Rathbone's voice, he was not accepted as Holmes by the listening audience and was replaced in the same year by John Stanley. Conway also starred in three of film producer Val Lewton's horror films while a contract actor for RKO Pictures, twice playing Dr. Louis Judd in two otherwise unrelated films—Cat People (1942) and The Seventh Victim a year later—even though the character was killed in the first film. His screen career diminished in the 1950s, but he appeared in a number of English films, on radio, and on television. In 1951, Conway replaced Vincent Price as the star of the radio mystery series The Saint, coincidentally taking on a role that his brother, Sanders, had played on film a decade earlier. In October, 1957, Conway performed as Max Collodi in Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode "The Glass Eye" to critical praise. In an unusual twist, the ventriloquist was a midget, and Conway was actually the dummy. Poor eyesight and bouts of alcoholism took a toll on Conway later in his life. His brother stopped all contact with him over his drinking problem. Though he reportedly amassed a fortune in excess of one million dollars during his Hollywood years, in September of 1965 Conway was reported by newspaper tabloids to be living in a $2-a-day flophouse in Venice, California. On April 22, 1967, Conway died from cirrhosis of the liver at the age of 62.
