Norman Kaye
| Norman Kaye | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Norman James Kaye 17 January 1927 Melbourne, Australia |
| Died | 28 May 2007 (aged 80) Sydney, Australia |
| Occupation | Actor/Musician |
| Years active | 1961–2004 |
Norman James Kaye (17 January 1927 – 28 May 2007) was an Australian actor and musician. He was best known for his roles in the films of director Paul Cox.
Kaye was born in Melbourne and won a scholarship to study at Geelong Grammar School. His parents were distant, and both died early, his mother in a psychiatric hospital. He was an exemplary musician; he was noticed by Dr A E Floyd, the organist of St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne, who gave him free tuition in recognition of his great potential as an organist. He travelled to France to study the organ with Pierre Cochereau at Notre Dame de Paris, and he won a Premier Prix for conducting at the Nice Conservatoire.
As an adult he was the choirmaster and music teacher at Caulfield Grammar School from 1958 to 1977. It was the security of a teacher's salary that allowed Kaye to explore the acting world.
As an actor, he was strongly associated with the films of Paul Cox, appearing in 16 of them. He had small roles in Cox's Illuminations (1976) and Kostas (1979), and shared the lead with Wendy Hughes in Cox's 1982 film Lonely Hearts and the lead in Man of Flowers (1983), for which he won an AFI Award. He appeared in minor roles in many subsequent Cox films including Innocence (2000). Other films in which he appeared included Mad Dog Morgan, Turtle Beach, Oscar and Lucinda and Moulin Rouge!. He also wrote a number of film scores.
Kaye is the subject of Cox's biographical film The Remarkable Mr Kaye (2005), a tribute to their long standing friendship and working relationship.
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