Rex Harrison Biography (1908-1990) - Film Reference

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Rex Harrison Biography (1908-1990)

Born Reginald Carey Harrison, March 5, 1908, in Huyton, Lancashire, England;died of pancreatic cancer, June 2, 1990, in New York, NY. Stage and screen actor and writer. In a career spanning more than six decades, Harrison was popular for his portrayals of sophisticated and debonair Englishmen. He will be best remembered, perhaps, for his role as Professor Henry Higgins in both thestage and film versions of My Fair Lady. Harrison's role in the musical--an adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion that opened on Broadway in 1956and ran for more than 2700 performances--earned the actor a Tony Award. For his work in the 1964 movie adaptation, Harrison received a Golden Globe Award,a New York Film Critics Award, and that year's Academy Award for best actor.Harrison began his acting career with the Liverpool Repertory Theater, whichhe joined at age sixteen. After touring with various British productions forthe next several years, Harrison made his London debut to favorable press inthe 1931 play Getting George Married. Additional stage roles in the 1930s led Harrison to parts in films, and his work in the 1948 Anna and the King of Siam, his first American movie, was widely praised. Returning to the stage inthe late 1940s, Harrison received his first Tony for his appearance in Anne of a Thousand Days. Among Harrison's numerous other credits are the films TheGhost and Mrs. Muir, Cleopatra, and Doctor Doolittle, as well as the 1980s play Heartbreak House. Harrison recounted his life as an actor in his 1974 autobiography Rex; he also published a book of poems titled If Love Be Love.

Nationality English Gender Male Occupation actor Birth Details March 5, 1908 Huyton, England Death Details June 2, 1990 New York, New York, United States

Further Reference

PERIODICALS

• Los Angeles Times, June 3, 1990.
• Times (London), June 4, 1990.
• Washington Post, June 3, 1990.

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