Burton, Richard

Burton, Richard
orig. Richard Walter Jenkins, Jr.

born Nov. 10, 1925, Pontrhydyfen, Wales
died Aug. 5, 1984, Geneva, Switz.

British-U.S. actor.

He first won success on the stage in The Lady's Not for Burning in London (1949) and on Broadway (1950). His first Hollywood film role was in My Cousin Rachel (1952). During the filming of Cleopatra (1963) he had a highly publicized love affair with Elizabeth Taylor, whom he later twice married. Known for his resonant voice and his Welsh mournfulness, he starred again on Broadway in Camelot (1960) and an acclaimed Hamlet (1964). Among his other films are The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965), Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), and Equus (1977).

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▪ British actor
original name  Richard Walter Jenkins, Jr.  
born Nov. 10, 1925, Pontrhydyfen, Wales
died Aug. 5, 1984, Geneva, Switz.
 British stage and motion-picture actor noted for his portrayals of highly intelligent and articulate men who are world-weary, cynical, or self-destructive.

      He was the 12th of 13 children born to a Welsh coal miner. He studied acting under Philip Burton, a schoolteacher who became his mentor and helped him obtain a scholarship to the University of Oxford. In gratitude to his benefactor, he assumed the professional name Burton. His first stage appearance was in 1943, but subsequent service as a Royal Air Force navigator delayed his career. In 1948 he resumed his stage performances and had his first role in a motion picture, The Last Days of Dolwyn. He scored his first real stage triumph in 1949 in Christopher Fry's The Lady's Not for Burning.

      Burton's first Hollywood film role was in My Cousin Rachel (1952). Throughout the remainder of the 1950s he specialized in historical roles in motion pictures, including the leading role in the first wide-screen CinemaScope production, The Robe (1953). Burton rose to superstar status during the filming of Cleopatra (1963), when he and his American co-star Elizabeth Taylor (Taylor, Dame Elizabeth) became lovers. Both of his highly publicized marriages to Taylor (1964–74, 1975–76) ended in divorce. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) and The Taming of the Shrew (1967) are the best of the 11 films the couple made together. Burton's other important films include Becket and The Night of the Iguana (both 1964), The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965), The Comedians (1967), and Equus (1977).

      Burton meanwhile continued to receive critical acclaim for his theatre performances. He acted in Shakespearean productions at London's Old Vic in 1953–56, and he gave a memorable performance of Hamlet in John Gielgud's long-running Broadway production of that play in 1964. Burton also played on Broadway in Jean Anouilh's Time Remembered (1957) and portrayed King Arthur in the Broadway musical Camelot in 1960 and 1980.

Additional Reading
Paul Ferris, Richard Burton (1981); Penny Junor, Burton: The Man Behind the Myth (1985); Melvyn Bragg, Rich: The Life of Richard Burton (also published as Richard Burton: A Life, 1988).

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Burton, Richard — ► (1925 84) Nombre artístico de Richard Jenkins, actor teatral y cinematográfico británico. Entre sus interpretaciones cinematográficas destacan Mirando hacia atrás con ira (1958) y ¿Quién teme a Virginia Wolf? (1966). * * * orig. Richard Walter… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Burton, Richard — • БЁРТОН, (Бартон) Ричард (Burton) (наст. фам. Дженкинс, Jenkins) (10.11.1925 5.8.1984)    англ. актёр. Учился в Оксфорде. На сцене с 1941. Прославился в шекспировских ролях в т рах Стратфорда он Эйвон и Олд Вик . В кино с 1949 (ф. Последние дни… …   Кино: Энциклопедический словарь

  • Burton, Richard — pseud. di Jenkins, Richard …   Sinonimi e Contrari. Terza edizione

  • BURTON, Richard — (1821–1890)    The British explorer and author, best known as an Orientalist, who was also responsible for his Etruscan Bologna: A Study (1876), a rather lightweight study …   Historical Dictionary of the Etruscans

  • Burton, Richard — (1821 1890)    England. Writer, voyager, and linguist. One of his books was The Jew, the Gypsy and El Islam (1898). In spite of his probably being partly of Romany descent, he painted a bad picture of Gypsies in this work …   Historical dictionary of the Gypsies

  • Burton, Richard Francis — ► (1821 90) Explorador británico. Descubrió el lago Tanganica en 1858 …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Richard Burton (explorateur) — Richard Francis Burton Pour les articles homonymes, voir Burton. Richard Francis Burton …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Richard Francis Burton — Sir Richard Francis Burton retratado por Frederick Leighton, National Portrait Gallery, Londres. Nacimiento 19 de marzo de 1821 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Richard Burton — mit Sophia Loren (1974) Richard Burton, CBE (* 10. November 1925 in Pontrhydyfen, Wales; † 5. August 1984 in Genf, Schweiz), geboren als Richard Walter Jenkins jr., war ein britischer Schauspiel …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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