- When asked by a reporter why he did not wear his omnipresent monocle while eating, he replied, "I once lost one in a bowl of soup.".
- Although he was born in Macon, Georgia, he was often thought to be English.
- His famous monocle was no affectation, but actually corrected an eye deficiency. "No point having two window panes where one will do," was always his explanation.
- He always carried a stack of cards with his autograph already written on them to satisfy fan requests.
- On February 28, 2012, Coburn's Oscar statuette was auctioned by Nate D. Sanders Memorabilia. It sold for $170,459.
- In the late 1930s and early 1940s, he only stayed eight months a year in Hollywood. He returned east each summer to New York, which he considered home. In 1946, he moved to Hollywood full time.
- According to Piper Laurie in her memoirs (Learning To Love Out Loud), Charles Coburn loved pinching women's bottoms. It was for him like a tic. Every female under one hundred and five had to move fast around. But no one ever considered reporting from sexual harassment.
- One of the few Hollywood actors who actually lived on Hollywood Boulevard.
- Formed a repertory company with his actress-wife Ivah Wills, which endured until her death in 1937.
- Started as an usher and doorman at a theater in his hometown of Savannah, Georgia. By age 17, he had become manager of that establishment. He later turned to acting himself and made his bow on Broadway in 1901.
- He instructed his executor not to have a public funeral or burial. He wished to have his body cremated and his ashes mixed and scattered in various locations with those of his wife, who had died many years before.
- The University of Georgia held a special day of celebration on January 30, 1956, as a distinguished native Georgian. The university has his archived library, correspondence, and memorabilia.
- Auditioned for the role of Judge Hardy in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's famous Andy Hardy series. Although he did not get the role, he was noticed by director Clarence Brown, who cast him in Of Human Hearts (1938).
- In 1928, he opened his own theater, the Coburn Theater, on Manhattan's 63rd Street, but the Depression brought hard times and he was forced to declare bankruptcy in December 1932.
- Appears in five Oscar Best Picture nominees: Kings Row (1942), The More the Merrier (1943), Heaven Can Wait (1943), Wilson (1944) and Around the World in 80 Days (1956). Only the last of these won.
- Said in an interview with local news reporters that his movie career began when he stood on the corner of Broughton Street in downtown Savannah, GA handing out playbills for the two downtown theaters.
- He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6268 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on February 8, 1960.
- Studied the techniques of such late 19th-century stars as Henry Irving, DeWolf Hopper Sr., John Drew and Richard Mansfield when he was a young theater usher.
- Made his Broadway debut in "Up York State" in 1901.
- Was an honorary member of the Bohemian Club.
- His last role was on a TV episode of The Best of the Post (1960) entitled Six Months More to Live (1961). In fact, he had seventeen months to live.
- He was a member of the White Citizens' Council.
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