Biography for
Ralph Richardson (I)

advertisement

Date of Birth

19 December 1902, Tivoli Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, UK

Date of Death

10 October 1983, Marylebone, London, England, UK (stroke)

Birth Name

Ralph David Richardson

Height

6' (1.83 m)

Spouse

Meriel Forbes	(26 January 1944 - 10 October 1983) (his death) 1 child
Muriel Hewitt	(August 1924 - 5 October 1942) (her death)

Trivia

Hobby was collecting motorbikes.

Knighted in 1947.

Interred at Highgate Cemetery (East), Highgate, London, England, UK.

The son of a Quaker father and a Roman Catholic mother, Ralph Richardson lived with his mother after she deserted the family home in Gloucestershire, and was raised Catholic by her.

Once found by police walking very slowly along the gutter of an Oxford street, he explained he was taking his pet mouse for a stroll.

He was awarded the Laurence Olivier Theatre Special Award in 1982 (1981 season) for his lifetime achievement in the theatre.

Played both God - in Time Bandits (1981) - and the Devil - in Tales from the Crypt (1972).

Played two roles originally played by Basil Rathbone. He played Karenin in Anna Karenina (1948) (Rathbone was Karenin in the Anna Karenina (1935) film version). Richarson also played Dr. Sloper in The Heiress (1949) after Rathbone had played Sloper in the Broadway stage version.

Was nominated three times for Broadway's Tony Award as Best Actor (Dramatic): in 1957, for "The Waltz of the Toreadors" in 1971, for "Home" and, in 1977, for "No Man's Land" -- but never won.

Was offered The part of Lord Bartelsham (played by Richard Vernon) in Ripping Yarns: Roger Of The Raj, but could not agree to terms and conditions.

Is portrayed by Rhys McConnochie in Darlings of the Gods (1989) (TV)

Was part of a trio of great English stage actors, the other two being Laurence Olivier and John Gielgud. They appeared in several scenes together in the epic mini series "Wagner" (1983), which was released shortly after Richardson's death.

Was originally considered for one of the leading roles of Lady L (1965).

Famously eccentric, he once stopped in a middle of a stage performance, and addressed the audience enquiring "Is there doctor in the house". When a doctor made himself known, Richardson calmly enquired "Isn't this a terrible play doctor ?".

Personal Quotes

"Acting on the screen is like acting under a microscope. The slightest movement becomes a gesture and therefore the discipline has to be very severe."

"I don't like my face at all. It's always been a great drawback to me."

"I've never been one of those stage chaps who scoff at films. I think they're a marvellous medium, and are to the stage what engravings are to paintings."

"My idea of a director is a chap who puts me in the middle of a stage and shines a bright light on me."

"The art of acting lies in keeping people from coughing."

"Actors never retire; they just get offered fewer parts."

"Film is a wonderful medium and I love it, but I find that I cannot increase my talent by working in pictures, any more than a painter can do so by increasing the size of his brush."

"I have put on so many make-ups that sometimes I have feared that when I go to wipe it off there will be nobody left underneath."

Browse biographies section by name

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z