Biography
Philip Asheton Tonge (26 April 1897 – 28 January 1959) was an English actor. Born in Hampstead, London, into a theatrical family, he made his stage debut at the age of five in 1902 and appeared as a child performer alongside Henry Irving, Herbert Beerbohm Tree, Ellen Terry and Johnston Forbes-Robertson. His fellow child actors included Hermione Gingold, Mary Glynne, Esmé Wynne-Tyson and Noël Coward.
After the First World War, Tonge and his parents settled in the United States. He built a career on Broadway, appearing in numerous productions including nine plays by Noël Coward. His film roles included Julian Shellhammer in Miracle on 34th Street (1947), Otto in Hans Christian Andersen (1952) and Inspector Hearne in Witness for the Prosecution (1957). On television he played District Attorney Cortland in Perry Mason (1957).
Tonge died in Hollywood, California, at the age of 61. He was married to Lyda.
