ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, January 1, 1997 TAG: 9701020039
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-3 EDITION: HOLIDAY
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES
TYPE: NEWS OBIT
SOURCE: Associated Press
Lew Ayres, whose film career covered six decades and weathered the furor of his objection to combat duty in World War II, has died. He was 88.
Ayres died at his home Monday after being in a coma for several days, said Diana Ayres, his wife of 32 years. The cause of death was not revealed.
During his long career, Ayres played opposite Greta Garbo, starred in the Oscar-winning ``All Quiet on the Western Front,'' and found success portraying Dr. Kildare in the MGM film series.
Shunned by the studios after he became a conscientious objector during the war, he managed to revive his career and get an Academy Award nomination for ``Johnny Belinda.''
Long a student of comparative religion, Ayres produced ``Altars of the World,'' a film on world faiths that won the Golden Globe Award for Best Documentary of 1976.
``He was a man who had great religious beliefs,'' Diana Ayres said. ``In spite of all his successes, the proudest moment of his life was when he received an award for his documentary.''
He had two failed marriages, to actresses Lola Lane (1931-33) and Ginger Rogers (1934-41). He and Diana Ayres, a former flight attendant, married in 1964. They had one son, Justin.
Born Lewis Ayer in Minneapolis in 1908, he studied medicine at the University of Arizona. The musical life appealed to him more, and while touring with a band in Hollywood in 1928 he was discovered for films.
Ayres first big role came opposite Garbo in her last silent film, ``The Kiss.'' He followed that in 1930 with ``All Quiet on the Western Front,'' Lewis Milestone's acclaimed film on World WarI.
In 1938, Ayres got the title role in ``Young Dr. Kildare,'' with Lionel Barrymore. They made eight Dr. Kildare films from 1939 to 1942.
But when war arrived, Ayres, then 34, declined combat duty for religious reasons. His movies were picketed and theaters refused to book them.
``I decided I would quit pictures after I went into the service,'' the actor said in 1946. ``I thought I might enter the ministry or medicine - some field where I could accomplish something important. Making movies seemed to me very trivial.
``But when I went overseas, I changed my mind. I realized how important movies are to the lives of so many people. Why, I even became a fan myself.''
Ayres served 31/2 years as a medic and chaplain's aide, earning three battle stars.
His wartime service restored him to favor in Hollywood, and in 1948 Ayres won an Academy Award nomination for his role as a doctor in ``Johnny Belinda'' a film that won Jane Wyman an Oscar as a raped deaf woman. Ayres played the doctor who helps her.
Later in his career, Ayres eased into character roles with such films as ``Advise and Consent,'' ``The Carpetbaggers,'' and ``Battle for the Planet of the Apes.''
When movie roles grew scarce, he went into television and was offered the Kildare role in a series. He declined when the network refused to agree to his request for no cigarette sponsorship.
LENGTH: Medium: 65 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Ayresby CNB