Edmund Purdom
| Edmund Purdom | |
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Edmund Purdom in 1962
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| Born |
Edmund Anthony Cutlar Purdom 19 December 1924 Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England, UK |
| Died | 1 January 2009 (aged 84) Rome, Italy |
| Years active | 1950–2001 |
| Spouse(s) | Tita Phillips (1951–1956) (divorced) 2 children Alicia Darr (1957–1958) (divorced) Linda Christian (1962–1963) (divorced) Vivienne Purdom (2000–2009) (his death) |
Edmund Anthony Cutlar Purdom (19 December 1926 – 1 January 2009) was a British actor. He worked first on stage in Britain, performing various works by Shakespeare, then later in America on Broadway, until making his way to Hollywood, and eventually spent the remainder of his life appearing in Italian cinema. He is perhaps best known for his starring role in 1954's historical epic The Egyptian.
Purdom was born in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England and educated at St. Augustine's Abbey School, Ramsgate, Kent, then by the Jesuits at St. Ignatius Grammar School and Welwyn Garden City Grammar School.
He began his acting career in 1946 by joining the Northampton Repertory Company, appearing in productions which included Romeo and Juliet and Molière's The Imaginary Invalid. Followed by two years of military service where he joined the Army Pool of Artists. He then joined the Royal Shakespeare Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon for two seasons. He was seen by Laurence Olivier who offered Purdom a chance to tour in the US
In 1951–52, Purdom appeared in small roles with the Laurence Olivier/Vivien Leigh company on Broadway in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra and Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra. His good looks brought him to the attention of Hollywood. Warner Bros wanted to test him and offered him $600 advance to come to Hollywood. He did a screen test directed by Michael Curtiz from a scene from Force of Arms but Warners was not interested. Because Purdom had left his play he did not have the fare to return to Britain so he decided to stay in Hollywood.
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