John Uhler "Jack" Lemmon III, was born on February 8, 1925. An only child, he was raised in Boston, Massachusetts, and was that rarity among Hollywood stars, a man with affectionate memories of his parents. Graduating from Harvard, Jack headed for New York City to become a professional actor. A job playing piano to silent movies gave him the chance to study comics like Keaton and Chaplin up close. His first acting was on soap opera and live TV drama. But it was his appearance in a Broadway revival of Room Service that led to a co-starring role with Judy Holliday in his first movie, It Should Happen To You (1954). However, Jack had no intention of "going Hollywood" and he adamantly refused to change his name. His unmistakable intellect and his boyish but average looks played against him becoming a romantic leading man.