# Robert Donat

> English actor (1905–1958)

**Wikidata**: [Q116983](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q116983)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Donat)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/robert-donat

## Summary
Robert Donat (1905–1958) was an English actor active between 1921 and 1958, known for his work on stage and in film. His career earned high-level recognition, including the Academy Award for Best Actor and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

## Biography
- Born: 1905 (exact date and place not provided in source)
- Nationality: United Kingdom (entity metadata in source includes inception dates 1927-04-12 and 1921-12-06, with qualifiers referencing the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 and the Anglo‑Irish Treaty)
- Known for: Career as a film actor and stage actor; recognition with the Academy Award for Best Actor and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
- Field(s): actor; film actor; stage actor; character actor; film director; director; involvement with Shakespearean comedy
- Active years: 1921–1958 (work_period_start: 1921; work_period_end: 1958)
- Aliases: Friedrich Robert Donat; Frederick Robert Donat
- Identifiers: wikipedia_title — Robert Donat; sitelink_count (entity) — 51; wikidata_description — "English actor (1905–1958)"

## Contributions
Robert Donat’s documented contributions in the provided source material are:
- A professional acting career spanning 1921 to 1958, working in both film and live theatre (stage).
- Roles and activity across acting subfields: film actor, stage actor, character actor, and involvement as a film director/director as noted in related entity listings.
- Engagement with Shakespearean comedy as a linked theatrical genre.
- Public and institutional recognition for his work, recorded in the source as receipt of the Academy Award for Best Actor and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

## FAQs
Q: What kind of performer was Robert Donat?
A: He was an English actor who worked in film and on stage, and is associated with character acting, film directing, and Shakespearean comedy.

Q: When was Robert Donat professionally active?
A: His recorded active period runs from 1921 to 1958.

Q: Under what other names might Robert Donat appear?
A: He is also known as Friedrich Robert Donat and Frederick Robert Donat.

Q: What formal recognitions did Robert Donat receive?
A: The source lists him with the Academy Award for Best Actor and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Q: Where is Robert Donat categorized in reference databases?
A: The entity has the wikipedia_title "Robert Donat", a sitelink_count of 51, and the Wikidata description "English actor (1905–1958)".

## Why They Matter
Robert Donat’s significance, as shown in the provided material, rests on a sustained professional career across film and stage from 1921 to 1958 and high-profile recognitions that mark lasting prestige in the film industry. Receipt of the Academy Award for Best Actor and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame position him among actors who achieved both peer recognition and public commemoration. His association with multiple acting subfields (film, stage, character acting) and with Shakespearean comedy indicates breadth in classical and screen acting domains; without his contributions the historical record of English stage-and-screen performers of his era would be one fewer example of cross-medium achievement recognized at the highest institutional levels.

## Notable For
- Being an English actor active from 1921 to 1958.
- Receiving the Academy Award for Best Actor (award item present in source).
- Being commemorated with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (recognition listed in source).
- Working across multiple acting roles and formats: film actor, stage actor, character actor, and involvement as film director/director.
- Association with Shakespearean comedy as a theatrical genre.
- Listed under the wikipedia_title "Robert Donat", with a sitelink_count of 51 and the Wikidata description "English actor (1905–1958)".
- Known aliases: Friedrich Robert Donat and Frederick Robert Donat.

## Body

### Names and Identifiers
- Primary label in the source: wikipedia_title — Robert Donat.
- Aliases recorded: Friedrich Robert Donat; Frederick Robert Donat.
- Entity metadata: sitelink_count — 51. The Wikidata short description provided is "English actor (1905–1958)".

### Vital data and active period
- Life span as given in source: 1905–1958.
- Documented professional timeframe: work_period_start — 1921; work_period_end — 1958. The source expresses these as +1921-00-00T00:00:00Z and +1958-00-00T00:00:00Z.

### Nationality and classification
- Nationality is recorded as United Kingdom. The source includes related metadata for the United Kingdom entity, listing sitelink_count 388 and inception qualifiers: 1927-04-12 (Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927) and 1921-12-06 (Anglo‑Irish Treaty), as provided in the related entity block.
- The person is categorized in the source as human (related entity "human", sitelink_count 273).

### Fields of work and related entity context
- Acting and related roles noted in the source:
  - actor (general) — related entity with sitelink_count 183.
  - film actor — related entity with sitelink_count 25.
  - stage actor — related entity with sitelink_count 17.
  - character actor — related entity with sitelink_count 29.
  - film director — related entity with sitelink_count 104.
  - director — related entity with sitelink_count 63.
- The theatrical genre "Shakespearean comedy" is included among related entities (sitelink_count 12), indicating a linkage between his work and that genre in the source material.

### Awards and recognition
- Academy Award for Best Actor is listed among Awards / Recognition in the source. The Academy Award for Best Actor item in the source includes inception metadata (+1929-00-00T00:00:00Z) indicating the award's institutional start date.
- A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is also listed in the source under Awards / Recognition. The Walk of Fame item in the source has country Q30 and a sitelink_count of 8.

### Contribution summary (as documented)
- The source identifies Robert Donat chiefly as an English actor with a career spanning stage and film, and notes institutional recognition (Academy Award for Best Actor; star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame).
- The source links him to multiple professional categories within performing arts and film (film actor, stage actor, character actor, film director, director) and to Shakespearean comedy as a related theatrical genre.

### Reference and indexing metadata
- The source records for the Robert Donat entity include a sitelink_count of 51 and the Wikidata short description "English actor (1905–1958)". Related entity counts provided in the source are included above to reflect how the subject is connected across referenced categories.

(End of entry.)

## References

1. [Source](http://www.debate.org/reference/film/actors-actresses/-names-starting-with-r/13)
2. [Source](http://homepage.ntlworld.com/alscot1/Chriseccle.htm)
3. BnF authorities
4. The Peerage
5. Integrated Authority File
6. Find a Grave
7. International Standard Name Identifier
8. Virtual International Authority File
9. MusicBrainz
10. SNAC
11. filmportal.de
12. Proleksis Encyclopedia
13. Croatian Encyclopedia
14. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013
15. IdRef
16. CONOR.SI
17. The Movie Database