Ray Milland is an actor.
Ray Milland . -- 10 March 1986 ) was a Welsh actor and director . His screen career ran from 1929 to 1985 , and he is best remembered for his Academy Award-winning portrayal of an alcoholic writer in The Lost Weekend ( 1945 ) , a sophisticated leading man opposite a corrupt John Wayne in Reap the Wild Wind ( 1942 ) , the murder-plotting husband in Dial M for Murder ( 1954 ) , and as Oliver Barrett III in Love Story ( 1970 ) . Before becoming an actor , Milland served in the Household Cavalry of the British Army , becoming a proficient marksman , horse-rider and aeroplane pilot . He left the army to follow a career in acting and appeared as an extra in several British productions before getting his first major role in The Flying Scotsman ( 1929 ) . He was loaned out to Universal for a film called Three Smart Girls ( 1936 ) , and its success saw Milland given a lead role in The Jungle Princess ( also 1936 ) alongside new starlet Dorothy Lamour .