What Was Patrick Macnee's Net Worth?
Patrick Macnee was an English actor, producer, and author who had a net worth of $3 million at the time of his death in 2015. Patrick Macnee was best known for playing the role of John Steed on the TV series "The Avengers" (1961–1969), and he reprised his role on "The New Avengers" in 1976.
Macnee had more than 170 acting credits to his name, including the films "A Christmas Carol" (1951), "King Solomon's Treasure" (1979), "The Howling" (1981), "This Is Spinal Tap" (1984), "A View to a Kill" (1985), and "Masque of the Red Death" (1989) and the television series "Tales of Adventure" (1952–1953), "Encounter" (1952–1960), "Battlestar Galactica" (1978–1979), "Gavilan" (1982–1983), "Empire" (1984), "Lime Street" (1985–1986), "P.S.I. Luv U" (1991), "Thunder in Paradise" (1994), and "Nightman" (1997–1998). Patrick also performed on Broadway, playing Demetrius in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (1954) and Andrew Wyke in "Sleuth" (1972–1973). He was a producer on the TV series "Winston Churchill: The Valiant Years" in the early '60s, and he published the books "Avengers: Deadline" (1965), "Avengers: Dead Duck" (1966), "Blind in One Ear: The Avenger Returns" (1988), and "The Avengers: The Inside Story" (2008).
Early Life
Patrick Macnee was born Daniel Patrick Macnee on February 6, 1922, in Paddington, London, England. He was the son of Daniel and Dorothea Mabel Macnee, and he had a younger brother named James. Dorothea was a socialite, and Daniel Sr. trained race horses, served in the Yorkshire Dragoons as an officer during World War I, and was the grandson of artist Sir Daniel Macnee. Patrick's maternal grandmother, Frances Alice Hastings, was The 12th Earl of Huntingdon's granddaughter and Vice-Admiral George Fowler Hastings' daughter. Macnee's parents split up due to Dorothea coming out as a lesbian. Daniel Sr. moved to India, and Dorothea moved in with her partner, Evelyn Spottiswoode, who was wealthy because of the Dewar's whisky business. Patrick attended Summer Fields School in Oxford and Eton College in Berkshire. At Eton, he joined the Officer Training Corps and was a guard of honour at St George's Chapel for King George V in 1936. He was expelled from the school for selling pornography. Macnee enrolled at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art to study acting, but the Royal Navy called him up just before he was set to take his first leading role on the West End, which he would have performed alongside Vivien Leigh. In October 1942, he entered the Royal Navy as an ordinary seaman, and less than a year later, he was promoted to sub-lieutenant, serving as a navigator on Motor Torpedo Boats. Patrick was later reassigned as a first lieutenant, and he came down with bronchitis right before D-Day. He was in the hospital recuperating when his crew and boat were lost in action. When Patrick left the Royal Navy in 1946, he had reached the rank of lieutenant.
Career
Early in his career, Macnee had uncredited roles in the films "Pygmalion" (1938), "The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp" (1943), "Hamlet" (1948), and "The Small Back Room" (1949). He also appeared in the films "The Fatal Night" (1948) and "All Over the Town" (1949) and played Edgar Linton in the 1948 BBC adaptation "Wuthering Heights." In the '50s, Patrick was in films such as "The Girl Is Mine" (1950), "Dick Barton at Bay" (1950), "The Fighting Pimpernel" (1950), "The Battle of the River Plate" (1956), and "Les Girls" (1957), and he played Scrooge in "A Christmas Carol" (1951). He appeared in 12 episodes of "Tales of Adventure" (1952–1953), and from 1961 to 1969, he starred as John Steed on the ITV spy series "The Avengers" alongside Diana Rigg. The series aired 161 episodes over six seasons and earned two Primetime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Dramatic Series. Macnee reprised his role in the spin-off "The New Avengers" from 1976 to 1977. In the '70s, Patrick appeared in the films "Incense for the Damned" (1970), "Mister Jerico" (1979), "The Billion Dollar Threat" (1979), and "King Solomon's Treasure" (1979) and guest-starred on "The Virginian" (1970), "Alias Smith and Jones" (1971), "Columbo" (1975), "The Hardy Boys" (1978), and "$weepstake$" (1979).
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Macnee played Dr. George Waggner in the 1981 horror movie "The Howling," Sir Denis Eton-Hogg in the 1984 mockumentary "This Is Spinal Tap," and Sir Godfrey Tibbett in the 1985 James Bond film "A View to a Kill." Around this time he also appeared in the films "The Sea Wolves" (1980), "The Hot Touch" (1981), "Young Doctors in Love" (1982), "Sweet Sixteen" (1983), "Shadey" (1985), "Waxwork" (1988), and "Masque of the Red Death" (1989) and the TV movies "Rehearsal for Murder" (1982), "Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E." (1983), "Dick Francis: Blood Sport" (1989), "Dick Francis: In the Frame" (1989), "Dick Francis: Twice Shy" (1989), and "The Return of Sam McCloud" (1989). From 1982 to 1983, Patrick starred as Milo Bentley on the NBC drama "Gavilan," and in 1985, he played Sir Geoffrey Rimbatten on ABC's "Lime Street." Next, he appeared in the 1992 film "Waxwork II: Lost in Time," lent his voice to the 1998 big screen adaptation of "The Avengers," and played Dr. Watson in the TV movies "Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady" (1991) and "Incident at Victoria Falls" (1992) and Sherlock Holmes in "The Hound of London" (1993) and "The Case of the Temporal Nexus" (1996). Macnee starred as Edward Whitaker on the 1994 syndicated series "Thunder in Paradise," and he had a recurring role as Dr. Walton on the superhero series "Night Man" from 1997 to 1998. He guest-starred on "Spy Game" (1997), "Diagnosis: Murder" (1997), "Through the Keyhole" (1999), "Family Law" (2000), and "Frasier" (2001). Patrick's final acting role was Dr. Ballard in the 2003 film "The Low Budget Time Machine."
Personal Life
Patrick married Barbara Douglas in November 1942, and they welcomed daughter Jenny and son Rupert before divorcing in 1956. Rupert is a producer known for projects such as "An Evening at the Improv" (1981), "History's Mysteries" (1998), and "Exploring Space: The Quest for Life" (2006). Macnee wed actress Katherine Woodville on March 29, 1965. After their 1969 divorce, Patrick married author Baba Majos de Nagyzsenye on February 25, 1988. Baba was the daughter of internationally famous opera singer Ella Némethy. Patrick and Baba remained married until her death in July 2007. In 1959, Macnee became an American citizen.
Death
Patrick passed away at his Rancho Mirage home on June 25, 2015, at the age of 93. After the sad news was announced, Dame Diana Rigg stated, "Patrick was a very dear man and I owe him a great deal." Sir Roger Moore tweeted, "So very sad to hear Pat MacNee has left us. We were mates from 1950s and I have so many happy memories of working with him. A true gent."
Awards and Nominations
Macnee earned two Bravo Otto nominations for Best Male TV Star, winning in 1968. In 1967, he and Rigg shared a Photoplay Award nomination for Favorite TV Program for "The Avengers." At the 1983 Golden Camera awards, Patrick received an Honorary Camera for "30 Years of TV."
Real Estate
In 2000, Macnee paid $400,000 for a home in Rancho Mirage, California. Measuring more than 3,000 square feet, the home includes three bedrooms and three bathrooms. Patrick's family sold the property for $870,000 in 2022.
