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 mid20th 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 Oliviers 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 Cowards 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 codirector of the Old Vic building it into a highly respected company There his most celebrated roles included Shakespeares Richard III and Sophocless Oedipus In the 1950s Olivier was an independent actormanager 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 Britains 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 Oliviers films are Wuthering Heights 1939 Rebecca 1940 and a trilogy of Shakespeare films as actordirector 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 Days Journey into Night 1973 Love Among the Ruins 1975 Cat on a Hot Tin Roof 1976 Brideshead Revisited 1981 and King Lear 1983 Oliviers honours included a knighthood 1947 a life peerage 1970 and the Order of Merit 1981 For his onscreen work he received four Academy Awards two British Academy Film Awards five Emmy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards The National Theatres 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 CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia