Richard Burton
| Richard Burton | |
|---|---|
Burton in The Robe (1953)
|
|
| Born |
Richard Walter Jenkins, Jr. 10 November 1925 Pontrhydyfen, Neath Port Talbot, Wales |
| Died | 5 August 1984 (aged 58) Céligny, Geneva, Switzerland |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1943–1984 |
| Spouse(s) |
Sybil Williams (m. 1949; div. 1963) Elizabeth Taylor (m. 1964; div. 1974) (m. 1975; div. 1976) Suzy Miller (m. 1976; div. 1982) Sally Hay (m. 1983; his death 1984) |
| Children | 3, including Kate Burton |
Richard Burton, CBE (/ˈbɜːrtən/; born Richard Walter Jenkins, Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor who was noted for his mellifluous baritone voice. Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable performance of Hamlet in 1964. He was called "the natural successor to Olivier" by critic and dramaturg Kenneth Tynan. An alcoholic, Burton's failure to live up to those expectations disappointed critics and colleagues and fueled his legend as a great thespian wastrel.
Burton was nominated for an Academy Award seven times, but never won an Oscar. He was a recipient of BAFTAs, Golden Globes, and Tony Awards for Best Actor. In the mid-1960s, Burton ascended into the ranks of the top box office stars, and by the late 1960s was one of the highest-paid actors in the world, receiving fees of $1 million or more plus a share of the gross receipts. Burton remains closely associated in the public consciousness with his second wife, actress Elizabeth Taylor. The couple's turbulent relationship was rarely out of the news.
Burton was born Richard Walter Jenkins, Jr. on 10 November 1925 in a house at 2 Dan-y-bont in Pontrhydyfen, Neath Port Talbot. He was the twelfth of thirteen children born to Richard Walter Jenkins Sr. (1876-1957), and Edith Maude Jenkins (née Thomas; 1883-1927). Jenkins Sr., called Daddy Ni by the family, was a coal miner, while his mother worked as a bartender at a pub called the Miner's Arms, which was also the place where she met and married her husband. According to biographer Melvyn Bragg, Richard is quoted saying that Daddy Ni was "twelve-pints-a-day man" who sometimes went off on drinking and gambling sprees for weeks, and that "he looked very much like me". He remembered his mother to be "a very strong woman" and "a religious soul with fair hair and a beautiful face".
...
Wikipedia