"...for the rain, it raineth every day..."
Father Geek here to inform you that Sir John Gielgud, the velvet-throated patrician acting giant whose
Hamlet is regarded as the finest live performance of the 20th century, has died at the ripe old age of 96.
Sir John died peacefully of old age at his home Sunday near Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire
west of London, his agent, Laurence Evans, announced today.
The last of an immortal trio of English actor-knights who conquered the British stage and screen, and then set out to establish worldwide reputations for flawlish acting skills,
Gielgud held his own alongside 20th century dramatic icons Laurence Olivier and Ralph Richardson.
"Everyone currently working in the live theater will agree that his death
is the end of an era," said Trevor Nunn, director of the Royal National
Theatre. "As Shakespeare said, `There's a great spirit gone."
"He was the greatest actor and his life was exactly the history of British
theater in the last century," said Sheridan Morley, Gielgud's official
biographer.
Gielgud's unequaled dramatic range as a Shakespearean actor stretched from the octogenarian
Lear, performed to perfection at the age of 27, to playing Prospero when he himself was an octogenarian, once again to perfection.
Late in his life, he took up screen comedy as Hobson the butler inDudley Moore's "Arthur",
and won an Academy Award for it. He touched audiences everywhere with his tender
patience toward his drunken playboy employer--and with the charming impishness
for which he also was well known off screen and stage."I have been extraordinarily lucky," Gielgud told The Associated Press
in a 1991 interview.
John Gielgud's stage career embraced the classics and provocative new works,
and his films ranged from the great visionary Alain Resnais' intellectual ``Providence''
(1977) to the infamous Bob Guccione's trashy, not-so-soft-porn ``Caligula'' (1979).
On television, he stoodout in ``Brideshead Revisited'' (1981), playing Jeremy
Irons' eccentric father, and in ``Summer's Lease'' (1990), as the somewhat randy
columnist, Haverford Downs. He was in 98's mini series "Merlin" and the great 96 series "Gulliver's Travels". On television he appeared in 2 Frankensteins, as the blindman in 1984 and in 1972's very well done "Frankenstein, The True Story".
Sir John's skills grace our film screens in TIME AFTER TIME, CHARIOTS OF FIRE, AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, BECKET, GANDHI, MURDER BY DECREE, SHINE, and the fantastic ELEPHANT MAN. He continued to act right up to the end, including a eye catching role in the 1998
film ELIZABETH.
"It's my whole life. It's all I can do," he once said. And even when we didn't SEE him on screen his unmistakable voice worked its magic in films like DRAGONHEART and QUEST FOR CAMELOT.
Gielgud was born April 14, 1904, in London, the third of four children.
His great-aunt was the celebrated stage actress Ellen Terry.
He was, as he wrote in his 1979 memoir, ``An Actor and His Time,'' ``theatrically
englamored by my family.''
He intended first to be a stage designer, but turned to acting ``only
to please my parents.''
Gielgud won a scholarship to London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and
made his professional debut in 1921, playing a French herald in Shakespeare's
``Henry V.''
His first major London role was as Trofimov, the perpetual student, in
a 1925 staging of Chekhov's ``The Cherry Orchard.''
In the 1991 interview, he reflected unsparingly on his early days: ``I
spoke rather well but rather too well, and fell in love with my own voice.
All that took me years to get away from.''
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Sir John died peacefully of old age at his home Sunday near Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire
west of London, his agent, Laurence Evans, announced today.
The last of an immortal trio of English actor-knights who conquered the British stage and screen, and then set out to establish worldwide reputations for flawlish acting skills,
Gielgud held his own alongside 20th century dramatic icons Laurence Olivier and Ralph Richardson.
"Everyone currently working in the live theater will agree that his death
is the end of an era," said Trevor Nunn, director of the Royal National
Theatre. "As Shakespeare said, `There's a great spirit gone."
"He was the greatest actor and his life was exactly the history of British
theater in the last century," said Sheridan Morley, Gielgud's official
biographer.
Gielgud's unequaled dramatic range as a Shakespearean actor stretched from the octogenarian
Lear, performed to perfection at the age of 27, to playing Prospero when he himself was an octogenarian, once again to perfection.
Late in his life, he took up screen comedy as Hobson the butler inDudley Moore's "Arthur",
and won an Academy Award for it. He touched audiences everywhere with his tender
patience toward his drunken playboy employer--and with the charming impishness
for which he also was well known off screen and stage."I have been extraordinarily lucky," Gielgud told The Associated Press
in a 1991 interview.
John Gielgud's stage career embraced the classics and provocative new works,
and his films ranged from the great visionary Alain Resnais' intellectual ``Providence''
(1977) to the infamous Bob Guccione's trashy, not-so-soft-porn ``Caligula'' (1979).
On television, he stoodout in ``Brideshead Revisited'' (1981), playing Jeremy
Irons' eccentric father, and in ``Summer's Lease'' (1990), as the somewhat randy
columnist, Haverford Downs. He was in 98's mini series "Merlin" and the great 96 series "Gulliver's Travels". On television he appeared in 2 Frankensteins, as the blindman in 1984 and in 1972's very well done "Frankenstein, The True Story".
Sir John's skills grace our film screens in TIME AFTER TIME, CHARIOTS OF FIRE, AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, BECKET, GANDHI, MURDER BY DECREE, SHINE, and the fantastic ELEPHANT MAN. He continued to act right up to the end, including a eye catching role in the 1998
film ELIZABETH.
"It's my whole life. It's all I can do," he once said. And even when we didn't SEE him on screen his unmistakable voice worked its magic in films like DRAGONHEART and QUEST FOR CAMELOT.
Gielgud was born April 14, 1904, in London, the third of four children.
His great-aunt was the celebrated stage actress Ellen Terry.
He was, as he wrote in his 1979 memoir, ``An Actor and His Time,'' ``theatrically
englamored by my family.''
He intended first to be a stage designer, but turned to acting ``only
to please my parents.''
Gielgud won a scholarship to London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and
made his professional debut in 1921, playing a French herald in Shakespeare's
``Henry V.''
His first major London role was as Trofimov, the perpetual student, in
a 1925 staging of Chekhov's ``The Cherry Orchard.''
In the 1991 interview, he reflected unsparingly on his early days: ``I
spoke rather well but rather too well, and fell in love with my own voice.
All that took me years to get away from.''
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
"Everyone currently working in the live theater will agree that his death
is the end of an era," said Trevor Nunn, director of the Royal National
Theatre. "As Shakespeare said, `There's a great spirit gone."
"He was the greatest actor and his life was exactly the history of British
theater in the last century," said Sheridan Morley, Gielgud's official
biographer.
Gielgud's unequaled dramatic range as a Shakespearean actor stretched from the octogenarian
Lear, performed to perfection at the age of 27, to playing Prospero when he himself was an octogenarian, once again to perfection.
Late in his life, he took up screen comedy as Hobson the butler inDudley Moore's "Arthur",
and won an Academy Award for it. He touched audiences everywhere with his tender
patience toward his drunken playboy employer--and with the charming impishness
for which he also was well known off screen and stage."I have been extraordinarily lucky," Gielgud told The Associated Press
in a 1991 interview.
John Gielgud's stage career embraced the classics and provocative new works,
and his films ranged from the great visionary Alain Resnais' intellectual ``Providence''
(1977) to the infamous Bob Guccione's trashy, not-so-soft-porn ``Caligula'' (1979).
On television, he stoodout in ``Brideshead Revisited'' (1981), playing Jeremy
Irons' eccentric father, and in ``Summer's Lease'' (1990), as the somewhat randy
columnist, Haverford Downs. He was in 98's mini series "Merlin" and the great 96 series "Gulliver's Travels". On television he appeared in 2 Frankensteins, as the blindman in 1984 and in 1972's very well done "Frankenstein, The True Story".
Sir John's skills grace our film screens in TIME AFTER TIME, CHARIOTS OF FIRE, AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, BECKET, GANDHI, MURDER BY DECREE, SHINE, and the fantastic ELEPHANT MAN. He continued to act right up to the end, including a eye catching role in the 1998
film ELIZABETH.
"It's my whole life. It's all I can do," he once said. And even when we didn't SEE him on screen his unmistakable voice worked its magic in films like DRAGONHEART and QUEST FOR CAMELOT.
Gielgud was born April 14, 1904, in London, the third of four children.
His great-aunt was the celebrated stage actress Ellen Terry.
He was, as he wrote in his 1979 memoir, ``An Actor and His Time,'' ``theatrically
englamored by my family.''
He intended first to be a stage designer, but turned to acting ``only
to please my parents.''
Gielgud won a scholarship to London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and
made his professional debut in 1921, playing a French herald in Shakespeare's
``Henry V.''
His first major London role was as Trofimov, the perpetual student, in
a 1925 staging of Chekhov's ``The Cherry Orchard.''
In the 1991 interview, he reflected unsparingly on his early days: ``I
spoke rather well but rather too well, and fell in love with my own voice.
All that took me years to get away from.''
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Gielgud's unequaled dramatic range as a Shakespearean actor stretched from the octogenarian
Lear, performed to perfection at the age of 27, to playing Prospero when he himself was an octogenarian, once again to perfection.
Late in his life, he took up screen comedy as Hobson the butler inDudley Moore's "Arthur",
and won an Academy Award for it. He touched audiences everywhere with his tender
patience toward his drunken playboy employer--and with the charming impishness
for which he also was well known off screen and stage."I have been extraordinarily lucky," Gielgud told The Associated Press
in a 1991 interview.
John Gielgud's stage career embraced the classics and provocative new works,
and his films ranged from the great visionary Alain Resnais' intellectual ``Providence''
(1977) to the infamous Bob Guccione's trashy, not-so-soft-porn ``Caligula'' (1979).
On television, he stoodout in ``Brideshead Revisited'' (1981), playing Jeremy
Irons' eccentric father, and in ``Summer's Lease'' (1990), as the somewhat randy
columnist, Haverford Downs. He was in 98's mini series "Merlin" and the great 96 series "Gulliver's Travels". On television he appeared in 2 Frankensteins, as the blindman in 1984 and in 1972's very well done "Frankenstein, The True Story".
Sir John's skills grace our film screens in TIME AFTER TIME, CHARIOTS OF FIRE, AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, BECKET, GANDHI, MURDER BY DECREE, SHINE, and the fantastic ELEPHANT MAN. He continued to act right up to the end, including a eye catching role in the 1998
film ELIZABETH.
"It's my whole life. It's all I can do," he once said. And even when we didn't SEE him on screen his unmistakable voice worked its magic in films like DRAGONHEART and QUEST FOR CAMELOT.
Gielgud was born April 14, 1904, in London, the third of four children.
His great-aunt was the celebrated stage actress Ellen Terry.
He was, as he wrote in his 1979 memoir, ``An Actor and His Time,'' ``theatrically
englamored by my family.''
He intended first to be a stage designer, but turned to acting ``only
to please my parents.''
Gielgud won a scholarship to London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and
made his professional debut in 1921, playing a French herald in Shakespeare's
``Henry V.''
His first major London role was as Trofimov, the perpetual student, in
a 1925 staging of Chekhov's ``The Cherry Orchard.''
In the 1991 interview, he reflected unsparingly on his early days: ``I
spoke rather well but rather too well, and fell in love with my own voice.
All that took me years to get away from.''
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
John Gielgud's stage career embraced the classics and provocative new works,
and his films ranged from the great visionary Alain Resnais' intellectual ``Providence''
(1977) to the infamous Bob Guccione's trashy, not-so-soft-porn ``Caligula'' (1979).
On television, he stoodout in ``Brideshead Revisited'' (1981), playing Jeremy
Irons' eccentric father, and in ``Summer's Lease'' (1990), as the somewhat randy
columnist, Haverford Downs. He was in 98's mini series "Merlin" and the great 96 series "Gulliver's Travels". On television he appeared in 2 Frankensteins, as the blindman in 1984 and in 1972's very well done "Frankenstein, The True Story".
Sir John's skills grace our film screens in TIME AFTER TIME, CHARIOTS OF FIRE, AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, BECKET, GANDHI, MURDER BY DECREE, SHINE, and the fantastic ELEPHANT MAN. He continued to act right up to the end, including a eye catching role in the 1998
film ELIZABETH.
"It's my whole life. It's all I can do," he once said. And even when we didn't SEE him on screen his unmistakable voice worked its magic in films like DRAGONHEART and QUEST FOR CAMELOT.
Gielgud was born April 14, 1904, in London, the third of four children.
His great-aunt was the celebrated stage actress Ellen Terry.
He was, as he wrote in his 1979 memoir, ``An Actor and His Time,'' ``theatrically
englamored by my family.''
He intended first to be a stage designer, but turned to acting ``only
to please my parents.''
Gielgud won a scholarship to London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and
made his professional debut in 1921, playing a French herald in Shakespeare's
``Henry V.''
His first major London role was as Trofimov, the perpetual student, in
a 1925 staging of Chekhov's ``The Cherry Orchard.''
In the 1991 interview, he reflected unsparingly on his early days: ``I
spoke rather well but rather too well, and fell in love with my own voice.
All that took me years to get away from.''
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Sir John's skills grace our film screens in TIME AFTER TIME, CHARIOTS OF FIRE, AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, BECKET, GANDHI, MURDER BY DECREE, SHINE, and the fantastic ELEPHANT MAN. He continued to act right up to the end, including a eye catching role in the 1998
film ELIZABETH.
"It's my whole life. It's all I can do," he once said. And even when we didn't SEE him on screen his unmistakable voice worked its magic in films like DRAGONHEART and QUEST FOR CAMELOT.
Gielgud was born April 14, 1904, in London, the third of four children.
His great-aunt was the celebrated stage actress Ellen Terry.
He was, as he wrote in his 1979 memoir, ``An Actor and His Time,'' ``theatrically
englamored by my family.''
He intended first to be a stage designer, but turned to acting ``only
to please my parents.''
Gielgud won a scholarship to London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and
made his professional debut in 1921, playing a French herald in Shakespeare's
``Henry V.''
His first major London role was as Trofimov, the perpetual student, in
a 1925 staging of Chekhov's ``The Cherry Orchard.''
In the 1991 interview, he reflected unsparingly on his early days: ``I
spoke rather well but rather too well, and fell in love with my own voice.
All that took me years to get away from.''
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Gielgud was born April 14, 1904, in London, the third of four children.
His great-aunt was the celebrated stage actress Ellen Terry.
He was, as he wrote in his 1979 memoir, ``An Actor and His Time,'' ``theatrically
englamored by my family.''
He intended first to be a stage designer, but turned to acting ``only
to please my parents.''
Gielgud won a scholarship to London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and
made his professional debut in 1921, playing a French herald in Shakespeare's
``Henry V.''
His first major London role was as Trofimov, the perpetual student, in
a 1925 staging of Chekhov's ``The Cherry Orchard.''
In the 1991 interview, he reflected unsparingly on his early days: ``I
spoke rather well but rather too well, and fell in love with my own voice.
All that took me years to get away from.''
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
But before long, his reputation for Shakespeare grew. In 1930, he acted
the first of his many Hamlets, a part he played more than 500 times.
Gielgud's Shakespeare repertory included Cassius, Benedick, Leontes,
and Richard II, as well as Prospero in ``The Tempest''--a role that obsessed
him throughout his career.
In 1991, he played Prospero in the Peter Greenaway movie ``Prospero's
Books,'' calling it ``the best part I've had, ever.''
Gielgud's work in modern plays included Alan Bennett's ``Forty Years
On,'' and two standout parts in the 1970s--the aging Harry, confined
to a rest home, in David Storey's ``Home'' (1970) and the seedy poet
Spooner in Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1975).
His final stage role was as Sir Sydney Cockerell, friend of George Bernard
Shaw, in Hugh Whitemore's ``The Best of Friends'' (1989). He played the
part on radio and TV as well.
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Gielgud never ceased to take his craft seriously, even when age left
him with occasional memory problems.
``I've been able to take no notice of the flattery and praise and concentrate
on the things that were wrong,'' he said. ``I'm frightened, now that
I'm old, that people will be so respectful.''
He said there was a danger that old actors will fall back on old tricks:
``One must guard all the time against that and try and find a fresh approach.''
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Gielgud made his Broadway debut in 1928 in Alfred Neumann's ``The Patriot,''
and returned to the New York stage regularly throughout his life. He
acted Hamlet there in 1936, and triumphed with his solo recital, ``The
Ages of Man,'' in 1958 and again in 1963. His last New York appearance
was in ``No Man's Land,'' in 1977.
Gielgud's directing credits started with Shakespeare (``The Merchant
of Venice'' and ``Romeo and Juliet'' in 1932) and went on to include
Tennessee Williams (``The Glass Menagerie'' in 1948), and Edward Albee
(``All Over'' on Broadway in 1971).
He won the best director Tony Award for Hugh Wheeler's ``Big Fish Little
Fish'' in 1961, and also directed opera in Britain.
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Gielgud made his film debut in 1924 in ``Who Is the Man?'', going on
to play Benjamin Disraeli in ``The Prime Minister'' (1941) and Clarence
to Laurence Olivier's Richard in ``Richard III'' (1955).
He spoke frankly about the ways in which he and Olivier differed: ``He
was very much more extrovert. He had a tremendous actual physical side
of acting, which I'm not good at all.''
Gielgud lived most of his life in London. He moved in 1976 to an elegant
1690s carriage house west of London, where he enjoyed gardening and catching
up on his reading between roles.
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
``One's had the odd horror and mishap, but on the whole I have very,
very much to be thankful for,'' he said when he was 87. ``And that I
can still go on working at this age is extraordinary really; the only
sadness is so many of my contemporaries are gone. Most of the actors
that I knew well and worked with have died.''
Sir John has left his earthly theatre reign, he has had his final curtain call, but his unmistakable voice will be with us forever, ringing out from our televisions and motion picture screens for eternity...
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
He is after all an immortal...
sadly, Father Geek signing off.
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
Thanx to: IMDB, the AP wire, and the many E-mails from fans for all the info... and a special thank you to Foxy Dana for reminding us all of that great line I open with, and to Jeffery for the following:
For those who need reminding, Gielgud was a mighty presence in these films, and more:
Elizabeth (1998)
Quest for Camelot (1998) (voice) .... Merlin aka Magic Sword: Quest for Camelot, The (1998)
Merlin (1998/II) (TV) .... King Constant
Hamlet (1996) (long version) .... Priam ... aka William Shakespeare's Hamlet (1996)
Portrait of a Lady, The (1996) .... Mr. Touchett
Shine (1996) .... Cecil Parkes
Looking for Richard (1996) .... Himself
Dragonheart (1996) (voice) (uncredited) .... King Arthur
First Knight (1995) .... Oswald
Shining Through (1992) .... Konrad Friedrichs/Sunflower
Power of One, The (1992) .... St. John
Prospero's Books (1991) .... Prospero
Getting It Right (1989) .... Sir Gordon Munday
Whistle Blower, The (1986) .... Sir Adrian Chapple
Ingrid (1985) .... Himself
Invitation to the Wedding (1985) .... Reverend Clyde Ormiston
Leave All Fair (1985) .... John Middleton Murry
Plenty (1985) .... Sir Leonard Darwin
Time After Time (1985) .... Jasper Swift
Scandalous (1984) .... Uncle Willie
Shooting Party, The (1984) .... Cornelius Cardew
Wicked Lady, The (1983) .... Hogarth
Gandhi (1982) .... Lord Irwin
Arthur (1981) .... Hobson
Sphinx (1981) .... Abdu Hamdi
Chariots of Fire (1981) (as Sir John Gielgud) .... Master of Trinity College
Caligula (1980) .... Nerva ... aka Caligula, My Son (1980) (UK: changed title) ... aka Io, Caligola (1980) (Italy)
Elephant Man, The (1980) .... Carr Gomm
Formula, The (1980) .... Dr. Esau ... aka Formel, Die (1980) (West Germany)
Human Factor, The (1980) .... Brigadier Tomlinson
Lion of the Desert (1980) .... Sharif el-Gariani ... aka Omar Mukhtar: Lion of the Desert (1980)
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, A (1979) .... The Preacher
Joseph Andrews (1977) .... The Doctor
Murder on the Orient Express (1974) .... Beddoes
Julius Caesar (1970) .... Julius Caesar
Charge of the Light Brigade, The (1968) .... Lord Raglan
Hamlet (1964) (voice) .... Ghost
Becket (1964) .... King Louis VII
Saint Joan (1957) .... Warwick
Around the World in Eighty Days (1956) .... Foster
Romeo and Juliet (1954) .... Chorus
Julius Caesar (1953) .... Cassius
Who Is the Man? (1924) .... Daniel
and many others...
