Robert Morley

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Robert Morley (1975)

Robert Adolph Wilton Morley , CBE (born May 26, 1908 in Semley, Wiltshire , † June 3, 1992 in Wargrave, Berkshire ) was a British actor and writer . The heavyweight mime usually played prominent supporting roles as a British snob or eccentric and was successful in this role for decades.

Life

The officer's son Robert Morley was intended by his parents for a diplomatic career and initially received training at the military-oriented Wellington College , which he hated, then in France, Germany and Italy. His mother came from a German-born South African family. Soon Morley turned from diplomacy to the theater. He completed his acting training at the renowned Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) . He made his stage debut in 1929 at the Strand Theater in a performance of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island . His first major success in a leading role was in 1936 as Oscar Wilde in the West End of London in the play of the same name by Leslie Stokes. Two years later he also made his debut on New York Broadway . In the following years he played on various stages in London , New York and Sydney .

Film career

In 1938 Robert Morley made his film debut as Louis XVI. in Marie-Antoinette . His interpretation of the naive, fearful and at the same time unyielding ruler earned him an Oscar nomination. In a film career spanning fifty years, the mime with the imposing stature and the distinguished, slightly nasal manner of speaking often embodied snobbish nobles and dignitaries with a sense of understatement and a dash of self-irony. His suitable German dubbing voice was found with Erich Fiedler , whose organ and articulation corresponded perfectly to Morley's voice.

In films of the most varied genres, Robert Morley mostly gave supporting roles an unmistakable character. He starred in adventure films such as African Queen (as the pastor and brother of Katharine Hepburn ), in period films such as Beau Brummell (as George III ) and Genghis Khan (as Emperor of China), in comedies like The Daredevil Men in Their Flying Chests and Das Millionending (with Peter Ustinov ), in dramas like The American (with Charles Bronson ) and The Damned of the Islands (based on Joseph Conrad ), thrillers like the German-English Edgar Wallace film adaptation of The Secret of the White Nun and as Mycroft Holmes , the Brother of the master detective, in Sherlock Holmes' greatest case , in crime comedies such as Topkapi (with Peter Ustinov and Melina Mercouri ), horror films such as Theater des Horens (as a victim of Vincent Price ) as well as literary adaptations such as Alice in Wonderland based on Lewis Carroll and Little Dorritt based on Charles Dickens . He played a cranky club member twice in Jules Verne's Around the World in 80 Days - both in the 1956 film with David Niven as Phileas Fogg and in the 1989 television multipart with Pierce Brosnan in the lead role. Robert Morley also appeared twice in crime comedies based on Agatha Christie : while he played the affected and briefly murder suspect Hector Enderby in the Miss Marple film The Wax Bouquet in 1963 , he assisted Arthur Hastings in The Murders of Mr ABC two years later as British secret agent Arthur Hastings Hercule Poirot . In 1979 he played the role of the cynical Doctor Perceval in Otto Preminger 's last feature film, The Human Factor .

Morley as a writer

In addition to his stage and film work, Robert Morley was also successful as a writer. He wrote light, humorous and profound short stories, satires, autobiographical works ( Responsible Gentleman ) and stage works such as the play Edward, My Son, filmed by George Cukor in 1949 with Spencer Tracy . Some books, such as the Book of Bricks published in 1978 and dedicated to autistic children, became bestsellers .

Honors

In 1957 he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) by the British Queen . However, he refused to be raised to the knighthood. In 1980 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Reading for his artistic and literary work .

family

Robert Morley married Joan North Buckmaster (1910-2005) in 1940, the daughter of the renowned British actress Dame Gladys Cooper , with whom he had three children: Sheridan (1941-2007), Annabel (* 1946) and Wilton (* 1951). The eldest son worked as a theater critic and writer and wrote a biography of his father ( Robert, My Father ) published in 1993 , like his sister-in-law Margaret Morley in 1979 with the title Larger than Life .

Robert Morley died on June 3, 1992 at the age of 84 after a stroke. He is buried in St. Marys Churchyard in Wargrave (Berkshire / England).

Filmography (selection)

Works (selection)

  • 1935 short story
  • 1948 Edward, My Son (Eng.Eduard , my son )
  • 1953 Hippo Dancing
  • 1966 Responsible Gentleman , London: Heineman.
  • 1974 A Musing Morley: the selected writings of Robert Morley , London: Robson.
  • 1975 A Ghost on Tiptoe: a comedy Robert Morley and Rosemary Anne Sisson , London-New York: S. French.
  • 1976 Morley Marvels , London: Robson.
  • 1978 Robert Morley's Book of Bricks , London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
  • 1979 Robert Morley's Book of Worries , London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
  • 1979 More Morley , London: Coronet.
  • 1980 Morley Matters , London: Robson.
  • 1981 The Best of Robert Morley , London: Robson.
  • 1981 The Second Book of Bricks , London: Wiedenfeld & Nicolson.
  • 1981 Worry: How to Kick the Serenity Habit in 98 Easy Steps Ill , New York: Putnam.
  • 1983 "Pardon Me, but You're Eating My Doily!" New York: St. Martin's Press.
  • 1988 The Pleasures of Age , London: Hodder & Stoughton.
  • 1990 Aerobics for the Spirit , Dallas: Word Publications.
  • 1990 Around the World in Eighty-one Years , London: Hodder & Stoughton.

literature

  • Margaret Morley: Larger than Life. The Biography of Robert Morley. Robson, London 1979, ISBN 0-860-51064-6 .
  • Sheridan Morley: Robert, My Father. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London 1983, ISBN 0-297-81329-3 .

Web links

Commons : Robert Morley  - Collection of Images
personal data
SURNAME Morley, Robert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Morley, Robert Adolph Wilton
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British actor and writer
DATE OF BIRTH May 26, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Semley , Wiltshire
DATE OF DEATH 3rd June 1992
Place of death Wargrave , Berkshire