Cooper: Acting Style
Gary Cooper was n0t an actor of deep intellectual resources; he was a natural actor who greatly relied on his extremely good looks and strong physical screen presence.
William Wyler, who directed Cooper twice, including themp[opular period drama, Friendly Persuasion in 1956, has said: “He’s a superb film actor, a master of screen acting.”
Carl Foreman (who wrote the 1952 western High Noon, for which Cooper received his second Competitive Best Actor Oscar), repeated that sentiment: “Within his limitations, Cooper was an excellent actor, with complete control and awareness of what he was doing.”
My Oscar Book:
Robert Preston called Cooper “the finest actor I ever worked with. I know Cooper doesn’t have the reputation of a great actor with us who knew him. But he was great. People used to comment on his little foibles, his idiosyncracies. But Cooper never made a move that was not thoroughly thought out and planned.”
Source: Swindell Book
