Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM (22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson, Peggy Ashcroft and John Gielgud, dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Late in his career, he had considerable success in television roles. His family had no theatrical connections, but Olivier's father, a clergyman, decided that his son should become an actor. After attending a drama school in London, Olivier learned his craft in a succession of acting jobs during the late 1920s. In 1930 he had his first important West End success in Noël Coward's Private Lives, and he appeared in his first film. In 1935 he played in a celebrated production of Romeo and Juliet alongside Gielgud and Ashcroft, and by the end of the decade he was an established star. In the 1940s, together with Richardson and John Burrell, Olivier was the co-director of the Old Vic, building it into a highly respected company. There his most celebrated roles included Shakespeare's Richard III and Sophocles's Oedipus. In the 1950s Olivier was an independent actor-manager, but his stage career was in the doldrums until he joined the avant garde English Stage Company in 1957 to play the title role in The Entertainer, a part he later played on film. From 1963 to 1973 he was the founding director of Britain's National Theatre, running a resident company that fostered many future stars. His own parts there included the title role in Othello (1965) and Shylock in The Merchant of Venice (1970). Among Olivier's films are Wuthering Heights (1939), Rebecca (1940), and a trilogy of Shakespeare films as actor-director: Henry V (1944), Hamlet (1948), and Richard III (1955). His later films included The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968), Sleuth (1972), Marathon Man (1976), and The Boys from Brazil (1978). His television appearances included an adaptation of The Moon and Sixpence (1960), Long Day's Journey into Night (1973), Love Among the Ruins (1975), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1976), Brideshead Revisited (1981) and King Lear (1983). Olivier's honours included a knighthood (1947), a life peerage (1970) and the Order of Merit (1981). For his on-screen work he received four Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, five Emmy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. The National Theatre's largest auditorium is named in his honour, and he is commemorated in the Laurence Olivier Awards, given annually by the Society of London Theatre. He was married three times, to the actresses Jill Esmond from 1930 to 1940, Vivien Leigh from 1940 to 1960, and Joan Plowright from 1961 until his death. Description above from the Wikipedia article Laurence Olivier, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Rebecca
(Maxim de Winter)
Spartacus
(Marcus Licinius Crassus)
Sleuth
(Andrew Wyke)
Marathon Man
(Szell)
Wuthering Heights
(Heathcliff)
To Be Hamlet
(Self)
Clash of the Titans
(Zeus)
Bunny Lake Is Missing
(Supt. Newhouse)
The Bounty
(Admiral Hood)
Sir John Mills' Moving Memories
(Self (archive footage))
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
(Dr. Totenkopf (archive footage))
A Bridge Too Far
(Dr. Jan Spaander)
Oh! What a Lovely War
(Field Marshal Sir John French)
A Little Romance
(Julius)
Fire Over England
(Michael Ingolby)
49th Parallel
(Johnnie, the Trapper)
The Prince and the Showgirl
(The Regent)
Battle of Britain
(Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding)
Hamlet
(Hamlet - Prince of Denmark / Voice of Ghost)
Henry V
(King Henry)
Dracula
(Prof. Abraham Van Helsing)
The Dance of Death
(Edgar)
The Jigsaw Man
(Adm. Sir Gerald Scaith)
Khartoum
(Mahdi)
War Requiem
(The Old Soldier)
The Seven-Per-Cent Solution
(Professor James Moriarty)
Richard III
(Richard III)
Carrie
(George Hurstwood)
The Jazz Singer
(Cantor Rabinovitch)
That Hamilton Woman
(Lord Horatio Nelson)
Pride and Prejudice
(Mr. Darcy)
Q Planes
(Tony McVane)
The Divorce of Lady X
(Everard Logan)
As You Like It
(Orlando)
Othello
(Othello)
The Boys from Brazil
(Ezra Lieberman)
Nicholas and Alexandra
(Count Witte)
A Voyage Round My Father
(Clifford Mortimer)
21 Days Together
(Larry Durrant)
The Shoes of the Fisherman
(Piotr Ilyich Kamenev)
King Lear
(King Lear)
Wild Geese II
(Rudolf Hess)
The Entertainer
(Archie Rice)
The Magic Box
(Police Constable 94-B)
Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story
(Self (archive footage))
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
(Self (archive footage) (uncredited))
Term of Trial
(Graham Weir)
The Devil's Disciple
(Gen. Burgoyne)
The Betsy
(Loren Hardeman)
The Yellow Ticket
(Julian Rolfe)
The Kid Stays in the Picture
(Self (archive footage))
The Drawings of Leonardo da Vinci
(Narrator)
Love Among the Ruins
(Sir Arthur Glanville-Jones)
The Power and the Glory
(Priest)
Inchon
(Gen. Douglas MacArthur)
David Copperfield
(Mr. Creakle)
Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood
(Self (archive footage))
Words for Battle
(Narrator (voice))
The Gentleman Tramp
(Narrator)
The Conquest of the Air
(Vincent Lunardi)
The Collection
(Harry)
Moscow Nights
(Captain Ivan Ignatoff)
Westward Passage
(Nicholas 'Nick' Allen)
Friends and Lovers
(Lieutenant Ned Nichols)
Male of the Species
(Presenter)
Perfect Understanding
(Nicholas Randall)
Discovering Hamlet
(Hamlet (archive footage))
Hannibal Hopkins & Sir Anthony
(Self (archive footage))
Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend
(Self (from The Prince and the Showgirl [1957]) (archive footage))
The Demi-Paradise
(Ivan Kouznetsoff)
Revisiting Brideshead
(Self (archive footage))
The Merchant of Venice
(Shylock)
Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love
(Self (archive footage))
Long Day's Journey Into Night
(James Tyrone Sr.)
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
(Maxim de Winter (archive footage) (uncredited))
Three Sisters
(Dr. Ivan Chebutikin)
Come Back, Little Sheba
(Doc Delaney)
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
(Big Daddy)
The Beggar's Opera
(MacHeath)
Malta G.C.
(Narrator)
Lady Caroline Lamb
(Duke of Wellington)
The Ebony Tower
(Henry Breasley)
The Rehearsal
(Self)
Gregory Peck: His Own Man
(Self (archive footage))
This Happy Breed
(Narrator (voice))
No Funny Business
(Clive Dering)
The South Bank Show: Noël Coward
(Self (archival footage))
Night of 100 Stars II
(Self)
A Talent for Murder
(Dr. Anthony Wainwright)
Romeo and Juliet
(Narrator (voice) (uncredited))
A Queen Is Crowned
(Narrator)
The Bannfoot Ferry
(Self (archive footage))
Daphne Laureola
(Sir Joseph)
Hitchcock, Selznick and the End of Hollywood
(Self (archive footage))
The Volunteer
(Self)
The Temporary Widow
(Peter Bille)
Too Many Crooks
(The Boy)
Potiphar's Wife
(Straker)
Saturday, Sunday, Monday
(Antonio)
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
(Self)
Hollywood: Style Center of the World
(Self)
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
(Self (archive footage))
Jornal Português (1938-1951)
(Self (archive footage))
At the Haunted End of the Day
(Self)
Great Acting: Laurence Olivier
(Self - Interviewee)
The Magic of Hollywood... Is the Magic of People
(Self)
The Filth and the Fury
(Richard III (archive footage))
Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker
(Superintendent Newhouse (archive footage) (uncredited))
And the Oscar Goes To...
(Self (archive footage))
Directed by William Wyler
(Self)
Uncle Vanya
(Dr. Astrov)
Olivier Talks About Othello
(Self - Host)
Mr. Halpern and Mr. Johnson
(Joe Halpern)
Vivien Leigh: Scarlett and Beyond
(Self (archive footage))
Vivien Leigh, autant en emporte le vent
(Self (archive footage))
Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff
(Self (archive footage))
Nothing Like a Dame
(Self (archive footage))
The Moon and Sixpence
(Charles Strickland)
Jesus Of Nazareth
(Nicodemus)
The World at War
(Narrator)
Brideshead Revisited
(Alexander Flyte, Lord Marchmain)
Lost Empires
(Harry Burrard)
ABC Stage 67
(Self)
Jesus of Nazareth
(Nicodemus)
The Oscars
(Self)
Talking Pictures
(Self (archive footage))
Wagner
(Pfeuffer)
Male of the Species
(Self - Presenter)
Laurence Olivier Presents
(Big Daddy)
Laurence Olivier Presents
(Antonio)
Laurence Olivier Presents
(Doc Delaney)
Laurence Olivier Presents
(Sir Joseph)
Peter the Great
(King William III of Orange)
Tony Awards
(Self)
The Ed Sullivan Show
(Self)
The Last Days of Pompeii
(Gaius)
The Carol Burnett Show
(Self - Audience Member)
The Mike Douglas Show
(Self)
Tony Awards
(Self - Recipient)
Omnibus
(Self (archive footage))
The Dick Cavett Show
(Self - Guest)
Golden Globe Awards
(Self - Winner)
Great Performances
(Harry)
Great Performances
(Self)
Iconic Couples
(Self (archive footage))
Henry V
(Director)
Hamlet
(Screenplay)
Hamlet
(Director)
The Prince and the Showgirl
(Producer)
The Prince and the Showgirl
(Director)
Richard III
(Director)
The Collection
(Producer)
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
(Producer)
Three Sisters
(Director)
Henry V
(Writer)
Hindle Wakes
(Producer)
Hamlet
(Producer)
Richard III
(Screenplay)
Daphne Laureola
(Executive Producer)
The Beggar's Opera
(Producer)
Saturday, Sunday, Monday
(Producer)
Uncle Vanya
(Director)
Hindle Wakes
(Director)
Richard III
(Producer)
Come Back, Little Sheba
(Creative Producer)
Henry V
(Producer)
Laurence Olivier Presents
(Creator)