Laurence Olivier

Born: 1907-05-22

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.


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as Marcus Licinius Crassus
Released: 1960-10-13

The rebellious Thracian Spartacus, born and raised a slave, is sold to Gladiator trainer...

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Clash of the Titans

as Zeus
Released: 1981-06-12

To win the right to marry his love, the beautiful princess Andromeda, and fulfil his destiny,...

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Romeo and Juliet

as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Released: 1968-04-02

Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet fall in love against the wishes of their feuding families....

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Rebecca

as Maxim de Winter
Released: 1940-03-23

Story of a young woman who marries a fascinating widower only to find out that she must live in...

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as Dr. Jan Spaander
Released: 1977-06-15

The story of Operation Market Garden—a failed attempt by the allies in the latter stages of WWII...

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The Prince and the Showgirl

as The Regent
Released: 1957-06-13

An American showgirl becomes entangled in political intrigue when the Prince Regent of a foreign...

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Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

as Dr. Totenkopf (archive footage)
Released: 2004-09-17

When gigantic robots attack New York City, "Sky Captain" uses his private air force to fight...

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Dracula

as Prof. Abraham Van Helsing
Released: 1979-07-20

Romanticized adaptation of Bram Stoker's 1897 classic. Count Dracula is a subject of fatal...

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Marathon Man

as Szell
Released: 1976-10-08

A graduate student and obsessive runner in New York is drawn into a mysterious plot involving...

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The Bounty

as Admiral Hood
Released: 1984-05-04

The familiar story of Lieutenant Bligh, whose cruelty leads to a mutiny on his ship. This...

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Battle of Britain

as Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding
Released: 1969-09-15

In 1940, the Royal Air Force fights a desperate battle against the might of the Luftwaffe for...

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The Shoes of the Fisherman

as Piotr Ilyich Kamenev
Released: 1968-11-14

All eyes focus on the Vatican, watching for the traditional puffs of white smoke that signal the...

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Khartoum

as Mahdi
Released: 1966-06-09

English General Charles George Gordon is appointed military governor of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan by...

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Wuthering Heights

as Heathcliff
Released: 1939-04-07

The Earnshaws are Yorkshire farmers during the early 19th Century. One day, Mr. Earnshaw returns...

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The Boys from Brazil

as Ezra Lieberman
Released: 1978-10-05

Nazi hunter Ezra Lieberman discovers a sinister and bizarre plot to rekindle the Third Reich.

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Sleuth

as Andrew Wyke
Released: 1972-12-10

A mystery novelist devises an insurance scam with his wife's lover – but things aren't exactly...

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Hamlet

as Hamlet - Prince of Denmark / Voice of Ghost
Released: 1948-12-10

Winner of four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor, Sir Laurence Olivier’s...

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Bunny Lake Is Missing

as Supt. Newhouse
Released: 1965-10-03

A woman reports that her young daughter is missing, but there seems to be no evidence that she...

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Pride and Prejudice

as Mr. Darcy
Released: 1940-07-26

Mr. and Mrs. Bennet have five unmarried daughters, and Mrs. Bennet is especially eager to find...

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as Richard III
Released: 1955-12-13

Having helped his brother King Edward IV take the throne of England, the jealous hunchback...

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49th Parallel

as Johnnie, the Trapper
Released: 1941-11-24

In the early days of World War II, a German U-boat is sunk in Canada's Hudson Bay. Hoping to...

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This Happy Breed

as Narrator (voice)
Released: 1944-05-28

In 1919, Frank Gibbons returns home from army duty and moves into a middle-class row house,...

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as Count Witte
Released: 1971-11-29

Tsar Nicholas II, the inept last monarch of Russia, insensitive to the needs of his people, is...

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That Hamilton Woman

as Lord Horatio Nelson
Released: 1941-04-03

The story of courtesan and dance-hall girl Emma Hamilton, including her relationships with Sir...

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The Kid Stays in the Picture

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2002-08-16

Documentary about legendary Paramount producer Robert Evans, based on his famous 1994 autobiography.

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Oh! What a Lovely War

as Field Marshal Sir John French
Released: 1969-03-10

Satire about the First World War based on a stage musical of the same name, portraying the "Game...

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The Seven-Per-Cent Solution

as Professor James Moriarty
Released: 1976-10-24

Concerned about his friend's cocaine use, Dr. Watson tricks Sherlock Holmes into travelling to...

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Carrie

as George Hurstwood
Released: 1952-07-17

Carrie's dreams of adventure in the big city are quickly squashed as she discovers all that...

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A Little Romance

as Julius
Released: 1979-04-27

A young American girl and a young French boy meet in Paris and fall in love, with the assistance...

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The Jazz Singer

as Cantor Rabinovitch
Released: 1980-12-17

Jess Robin dreams of a career in popular music, but his father, Cantor Rabinovitch, forbids it,...

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Henry V

as King Henry
Released: 1944-11-24

In the midst of the Hundred Years' War, the young King Henry V of England embarks on the...

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The Jigsaw Man

as Adm. Sir Gerald Scaith
Released: 1983-11-11

Philip Kimberly, the former head of the British Secret Service who defected to Russia, is given...

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Hannibal Hopkins et Sir Anthony

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2021-03-26

Hopkins’ career has spanned several decades, which is why we will also use many interviews that...

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And the Oscar Goes To...

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2014-02-01

The story of the gold-plated statuette that became the film industry's most coveted prize, AND...

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The Filth and the Fury

as Richard III (archive footage)
Released: 2000-03-29

Julien Temple's second documentary profiling punk rock pioneers the Sex Pistols is an...

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Terror in the Aisles

as Doctor Christian Szell (Archive Footage)
Released: 1984-10-26

A non-stop roller coaster ride through the scariest moments of the greatest terror films of all...

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The Devil's Disciple

as Gen. Burgoyne
Released: 1959-08-20

In a small New England town during the American War of Independence, Dick Dudgeon, a...

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Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2018-07-27

A deliciously scandalous portrait of unsung Hollywood legend Scotty Bowers, whose bestselling...

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The Divorce of Lady X

as Everard Logan
Released: 1938-01-15

The morning after a London barrister lets a mystery woman stay in his suite, a friend files for...

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Nothing Like a Dame

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2018-05-02

BBC Arena's documentary on the Dames of British Theatre and film featuring Maggie Smith, Elieen...

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Lady Caroline Lamb

as Duke of Wellington
Released: 1972-11-22

Lady Caroline Lamb, dissatisfied in her marriage, has an affair with the dashing Romantic poet...

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The Betsy

as Loren Hardeman
Released: 1978-02-02

Ruthless patriarch Loren hires racecar driver Angelo to build a more efficient vehicle against...

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Othello

as Othello
Released: 1965-12-15

General Othello's marriage is destroyed when vengeful Ensign Iago convinces him that his new...

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Wild Geese II

as Rudolf Hess
Released: 1985-10-18

A group of mercenaries is hired to spring Rudolf Hess from Spandau Prison in Berlin.

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Fire Over England

as Michael Ingolby
Released: 1937-03-05

The film is a historical drama set during the reign of Elizabeth I (Flora Robson), focusing on...

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Q Planes

as Tony McVane
Released: 1939-02-21

In England, an eccentric police inspector, an earnest test pilot and a spunky female reporter...

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The Entertainer

as Archie Rice
Released: 1960-07-25

Archie Rice, an old-time British vaudeville performer sinking into final defeat, schemes to stay...

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The Power and the Glory

as Priest
Released: 1963-05-31

Based on Graham Greene's novel about a flawed but devoted priest in 1930s Mexico who attempts to...

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Love Among the Ruins

as Sir Arthur Glanville-Jones
Released: 1975-03-06

An aging actress and socialite, Jessica Medlicott has ended her engagement with a younger man...

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David Copperfield

as Mr. Creakle
Released: 1969-12-01

A made for TV movie of the Charles Dickens' classic novel, turns Dickens' picaresque tale into...

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Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2010-05-05

In 2001 Jack Cardiff (1914-2009) became the first director of photography in the history of the...

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21 Days

as Larry Durrant
Released: 1940-01-07

After Larry Darrent accidentally kills his lover's blackmailing husband, someone else is...

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Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend

as Self (from The Prince and the Showgirl [1957]) (archive footage)
Released: 1986-04-19

Her story is well-known — the lonely child who yearned for affection and approval which she...

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Term of Trial

as Graham Weir
Released: 1962-08-16

A schoolteacher plagued by alcoholism and his refusal to serve in World War II, Graham Weir...

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Cavalcade of the Academy Awards

as Self
Released: 1940-07-31

This 1940 presentation features highlights of earlier (1928 onward) Oscar ceremonies including...

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The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind

as (archive footage)
Released: 1988-10-01

This documentary revisits the making of Gone with the Wind via archival footage, screen tests,...

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Gregory Peck: His Own Man

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1988-03-08

Talented and enduring Academy Award-winning star, Gregory Peck, tells how it was when studios...

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The Beggar's Opera

as MacHeath
Released: 1953-08-24

Adaptation of John Gay's 18th century opera, featuring Laurence Olivier as MacHeath and Hugh...

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Inchon

as Gen. Douglas MacArthur
Released: 1981-05-04

Gen. Douglas MacArthur leads a Korean War campaign, and the war tests a married couple's...

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Mad About the Boy: The Noël Coward Story

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2023-06-02

The first ever feature documentary about one of the most talented, accomplished and...

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Three Sisters

as Dr. Ivan Chebutikin
Released: 1970-04-01

Nearly a thousand miles away from their beloved Moscow, Chekhov's Three Sisters live in virtual...

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Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Released: 1983-02-25

Out-takes (mostly from Warner Bros.), promotional shorts, movie premieres, public service pleas,...

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The Magic Box

as Police Constable 94-B
Released: 1952-01-01

Now old, ill, poor, and largely forgotten, William Freise-Greene was once very different. As...

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The Yellow Ticket

as Julian Rolfe
Released: 1931-10-30

A young Russian girl is forced into a life of prostitution in Czarist Russia, and she and a...

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The Merchant of Venice

as Shylock
Released: 1973-10-07

An Edwardian take on the Shakespeare play starring Laurence Olivier.

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Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker

as Superintendent Newhouse (archive footage) (uncredited)
Released: 1991-10-28

This documentary, hosted by actor Burgess Meredith, explores the life and career of movie...

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The Conquest of the Air

as Vincent Lunardi
Released: 1936-12-01

This early docudrama uses dramatic reenactment, working models of early flying machines, and...

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Discovering Hamlet

as Hamlet (archive footage)
Released: 2011-11-01

Journey into "Hamlet"-the play and the man-through the experiences of some of the major actors...

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Hollywood: Style Center of the World

as Self
Released: 1940-05-29

This short promotes the premise that movies often create a demand for the fashions seen in them....

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War Requiem

as The Old Soldier
Released: 1989-01-06

A film with no spoken dialogue, just follows the music and lyrics of Benjamin Britten's "War...

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Hollywood: The Selznick Years

as Maxim de Winter (archive footage) (uncredited)
Released: 1961-12-31

Henry Fonda hosts this retrospective on the career and films of iconic filmmaker David O....

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As You Like It

as Orlando
Released: 1936-09-02

Film version of Shakespeare's comedy of a young woman who disguises herself as a man to win the...

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Male of the Species

as Presenter
Released: 1969-01-03

Never trust a man whoever he is. This is the bitter lesson learned by Mary MacNeil in her...

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The Moon and Sixpence

as Charles Strickland
Released: 1959-10-30

A staid, dull Englishman abruptly deserts his wife and children to become a painter in the South...

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King Lear

as King Lear
Released: 1983-04-03

An aging King invites disaster when he abdicates to his corrupt, toadying daughters and rejects...

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Friends and Lovers

as Lieutenant Ned Nichols
Released: 1931-10-03

British Army captain Geoff Roberts carries on an affair with Alva, the wife of the cruel Victor...

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The Gentleman Tramp

as Narrator
Released: 1976-10-10

A film about the life and work of the master comedy filmmaker, Charles Chaplin.

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The Rehearsal

as Self
Released: 1974-01-01

An indictment of the Greek military junta of 1967–1974. The film tries to give a reconstruction...

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Westward Passage

as Nicholas 'Nick' Allen
Released: 1932-05-27

A struggling writer divorces his wife to pursue his career without interference, but they meet...

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Directed by William Wyler

as Self
Released: 1986-05-01

Documentary about the famed Hollywood director.

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To Be Hamlet

as Laurence Olivier
Released: 1985-01-19

Documentary examination of the role of Hamlet, in which ten prominent actors who have played the...

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Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love

as Himself (Archive Footage)
Released: 2001-09-13

A portrait of the 30 year relationship between Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier. With comments...

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Daphne Laureola

as Sir Joseph
Released: 1978-01-15

A young man becomes infatuated with the exotic Lady Pitts whose much older husband is not pleased.

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Jornal Português (1938-1951)

as Himself (archive footage)
Released: 2005-12-12

The newsreel series Jornal Português (1938-1951) was produced for the Secretariat of National...

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Vivien Leigh: Scarlett and Beyond

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1990-10-22

The life and career of two-time Oscar winner Vivien Leigh, who battled tuberculosis and...

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Come Back, Little Sheba

as Doc Delaney
Released: 1977-12-31

An emotionally remote recovering alcoholic and his dowdy, unambitious wife face a personal...

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Perfect Understanding

as Nicholas Randall
Released: 1933-01-15

A young couple decide to marry under the condition that they agree never to disagree. That...

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Saturday, Sunday, Monday

as Antonio
Released: 1978-01-01

One Saturday evening Rosa Priore is preparing a magnificent Sunday lunch for her family and...

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The Demi-Paradise

as Ivan Kouznetsoff
Released: 1943-11-18

Ivan Kouznetsoff, a Russian engineer, recounts during World War II his stay in England prior to...

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The Ebony Tower

as uncredited
Released: 1984-04-01

A brash young artist invades the secluded retirement of an elderly painter and finds that the...

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Night of 100 Stars II

as Self
Released: 1985-03-10

This special is the second "Night of 100 Stars" to benefit The Actors Fund of America. Edited...

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The Collection

as Harry
Released: 1976-01-01

Set in the rarefied world of West End boutique owners and fashion designers, The Collection...

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The Volunteer

as Himself
Released: 1944-01-10

World War II propaganda film.

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Vivien Leigh, autant en emporte le vent

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2020-01-03

In "Gone with the Wind" she was an unforgettable Scarlett O'Hara. Beauty, two-time Oscar winner,...

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Moscow Nights

as Captain Ivan Ignatoff
Released: 1935-11-05

During the First World War, Russian officer Ignatoff, wounded, falls in love with his nurse,...

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Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

as Big Daddy
Released: 1976-12-06

An alcoholic ex-football player drinks his days away, having failed to come to terms with his...

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A Talent for Murder

as Dr. Anthony Wainwright
Released: 1983-12-19

A famed mystery writer and her doctor ex-lover solve her daughter-in-law's murder.

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The Dance of Death

as Edgar
Released: 1969-01-01

An egocentric artillery captain and his venomous wife engage in savage unremitting battles in...

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Sir John Mills' Moving Memories

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2000-08-01

A film biography with a difference, Sir John Mills' Moving Memories charts the life of one of...

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A Queen Is Crowned

as Narrator
Released: 1953-06-02

A lavish documentary film of Queen Elizabeth II's Coronation in 1953.

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Long Day's Journey Into Night

as James Tyrone Sr.
Released: 1973-03-10

On a day in the summer of 1912, the family of retired matinee idol James Tyrone grapples with...

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Words for Battle

as Narrator (voice)
Released: 1941-01-24

Poetry by Rudyard Kipling, John Milton, and William Blake, and excerpts from speeches by Abraham...

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A Voyage Round My Father

as Clifford Mortimer
Released: 1984-04-19

A successful lawyer struck with blindness in middle age continues his battles in the courtroom...

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Malta G.C.

as Narrator
Released: 1942-01-01

Short WW II documentary

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Too Many Crooks

as The Boy
Released: 1930-08-01

A man tries to burgle his own safe on the same night that a professional criminal attempts it.

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Potiphar's Wife

as Straker
Released: 1931-03-28

'A good-looking chauffeur, employed by an aristocratic married lady is tempted to misconduct....

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No Funny Business

as Clive Dering
Released: 1933-03-30

'Riviera. Professional co-respondents mistake one another for clients.' (British Film Catalogue)

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At the Haunted End of the Day

as Self
Released: 1981-01-01

A documentary by Tony Palmer on English composer Sir William Walton (1902–1983), made shortly...

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The Magic of Hollywood... Is the Magic of People

as Self
Released: 1976-10-06

Producer Robert Evans dominates with his trademark promotional style, but Schlesinger gets a...

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Revisiting Brideshead

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2005-10-15

Documentary with an affectionate look back at the classic Granada TV dramatisation of Evelyn...

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The Oscars

as Self
First aired: 1953-03-19

An annual American awards ceremony honoring cinematic achievements in the film industry. The...

TV Show page

Tony Awards

as Self - Recipient
First aired: 1956-04-01

The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award,...

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Tony Awards

as Self
First aired: 1956-04-01

The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award,...

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Great Performances

as Harry
First aired: 1971-01-28

The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse...

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Great Performances

as Self
First aired: 1971-01-28

The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse...

TV Show page

The Mike Douglas Show

as Self
First aired: 1961-12-11

The Mike Douglas Show is an American daytime television talk show hosted by Mike Douglas that...

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The Dick Cavett Show

as Self - Guest
First aired: 1968-06-06

The Dick Cavett Show has been the title of several talk shows hosted by Dick Cavett on various...

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The Carol Burnett Show

as Self - Audience Member
First aired: 1967-09-11

The Carol Burnett Show is an American variety/sketch comedy television show starring Carol...

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The Ed Sullivan Show

as Self
First aired: 1948-06-20

The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June...

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Jesus of Nazareth

as Nicodemus
First aired: 1977-03-27

Dramatizes the Birth, Life, Ministry, Crucifixion, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, largely...

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Brideshead Revisited

as Alexander Flyte, Lord Marchmain
First aired: 1981-10-12

Charles Ryder, an agnostic man, becomes involved with members of the Flytes, a Catholic family...

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The World at War

as Narrator
First aired: 1973-10-31

A documentary series that gives a historical account of the events of World War II, from its...

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ABC Stage 67

as Self
First aired: 1966-09-14

ABC Stage 67 is the umbrella title for a series of 26 weekly shows that included dramas, variety...

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Talking Pictures

as Self (archive footage)
First aired: 2013-01-05

A look back at television appearances by legends of the silver screen, using archive footage to...

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Peter the Great

as King William III of Orange
First aired: 1986-02-02

Peter the Great is a 1986 NBC television mini-series starring Maximilian Schell as Russian...

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The Last Days of Pompeii

as Gaius
First aired: 1984-05-06

This seven-hour British-Italian adaptation of Edward Bulwer-Lytton's 1834 epic, set against the...

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Lost Empires

as Harry Burrard
First aired: 1986-10-24

Lost Empires is a 1986 television adaptation of J. B. Priestley's novel of the same name, and...

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Wagner

as Pfeuffer
First aired: 1983-10-03

A huge panorama of Wagner's life and work, from before the 1848 Revolution, through his exile in...

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Male of the Species

as Self - Presenter
First aired: 1969-02-01

Never trust a man whoever he is. This is the bitter lesson learned by Mary MacNeil in her...

TV Show page