James Neville Mason was an English actor. He achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was the top box-office attraction in the UK in 1944 and 1945; his British films included The Seventh Veil (1945) and The Wicked Lady (1945). He starred in Odd Man Out (1947), the first recipient of the BAFTA Award for Best British Film.
Mason was born on 15 May 1909 in Huddersfield, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the youngest of three sons of John Mason and Mabel Hattersley, daughter of Joseph Shaw Gaunt. A wealthy wool merchant like his father, John Mason travelled often on business, mainly in France and Belgium. Mabel—who was "uncommonly well-educated" and had lived in London to study and begin work as an artist before returning to Yorkshire to care for her father—was "attentive and loving" in raising her sons. The Masons lived in a house in its own grounds on Croft House Lane in Marsh. (It was replaced in the mid-1970s by flats called Arncliffe Court.) A small residential development opposite where the house once stood is now called James Mason Court.
Mason was educated at Marlborough College and took a first in architecture at Peterhouse, Cambridge, where he became involved in stock theatre companies in his spare time. He had no formal acting training, and initially embarked upon it for fun.
| Date of Birth | 15th May 1909 |
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| Date of Death | 27th July 1984 |
| Age at Death | 75 Years |
| Zodiac Sign | Taurus |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Current City | Huddersfield |
| Birth Place | Huddersfield |
| Nationality | United Kingdom |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Spouses | Pamela Mason Clarissa Kaye |
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| Children | Portland Mason Morgan Mason |
| Education |
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| University of Cambridge, Peterhouse, Marlborough College |
| Occupation | actor, film actor, writer, autobiographer, screenwriter, stage actor, manufacturer, film director |
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| Awards |
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