Dennis Price

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Dennis Price (actually Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose-Price , born June 23, 1915 in Ruscombe , † October 6, 1973 in Guernsey ) was a British actor .

Life

He was born in Ruscombe under the name Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose-Price and studied at Oxford . He later became an actor and served two years, from 1940 to 1942, as a soldier. He then had his first film role in A Canterbury Tale in 1944 , directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger . He was able to establish himself in leading roles in British post-war cinema. Most famous is his portrayal of the cosmopolitan and charming murderer Louis Mazzini in aristocracy .

In private life, Price was married to actress Joan Schofield from 1939 to 1950 . They had two children together. At a time when homosexuality was criminalized , he struggled to lead a conventional life. On April 19, 1954, Price attempted to commit suicide by gas in his London residence . Public expressions of sympathy then led to a resurgence of its popularity and also to a larger number of film offers.

His personal life continued to cause distress, however, and he turned to gambling and alcohol , which in turn affected his health, appearance, and professional success. It was possibly a consequence of his private problems that he played a role in the 1961 controversial film Victim , which portrayed the dilemma of a group of gay men who were blackmailed for their sexual orientation .

In 1966 Price filed for bankruptcy and relocated to the tax haven island of Sark , which he described with his own joke as a "strategic retreat". From this point on, his alcohol consumption increased. Price died of heart failure on Guernsey in 1973 , the death attributed to a femoral neck fracture . His grave is on the island of Sark.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Price, Dennis
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Rose-Price, Dennistoun Franklyn John (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British actor
DATE OF BIRTH June 23, 1915
PLACE OF BIRTH Ruscombe , England
DATE OF DEATH October 6, 1973
Place of death guernsey