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Richard Burton

Richard Burton

Birthday: 1925-11-10 | Place of Birth: Pontrhydyfen, Wales, UK

Richard Burton CBE (born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. 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 Kenneth Tynan. A heavy drinker, Burton's perceived failure to live up to those expectations disappointed some critics and colleagues and added to his image as a great performer who had wasted his talent. Nevertheless, he is widely regarded as one of the most acclaimed actors of his generation. 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. By the late 1960s, Burton 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 remained closely associated in the public consciousness with his second wife, actress Elizabeth Taylor. The couple's turbulent relationship, in which they were married twice and divorced twice, was rarely out of the news.

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Known For

Acting

Year
Title

Role

2025
Richard Burton: Wild Genius

as    Self (archive footage)

2024
Guilty Rebel

as    Narrator (archive footage)

2024
Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes

as    Self (archive footage)

2019
Julie Andrews Forever

as    Self (archive footage)

2009
Paris Hilton, Inc.

as    Self (archive footage)

2006
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds: Live

as    George Herbert, The Journalist (archive sound)

2001
Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood

as    Self (archive footage)

1992
Under Milk Wood

as    First Voice (voice) (archive sound)

1988
Absolution

as    Father Goddard

1988
In from the Cold? A Portrait of Richard Burton

as    Self (Archive Footage)

1985
To Be Hamlet

as    Self

1984
Nineteen Eighty-Four

as    O'Brien

1984
Ellis Island

as    Sen. Phipps Ogden

1983
To the Ends of the Earth

as    Narrator

1983
Wagner

as    Richard Wagner

1983
Wagner

as    Richard Wagner

1983
1983
I, Leonardo: A Journey of the Mind

as    Self - Narrator (voice)

1983
Alice in Wonderland

as    White Knight

1981
Circle of Two

as    Ashley St. Clair

1981
Lovespell

as    King Mark of Cornwall

1979
Breakthrough

as    Sergeant Steiner

1978
The Wild Geese

as    Col. Allen Faulkner

1978
The Medusa Touch

as    John Morlar

1978
Mystery of the Sacred Shroud

as    Self - Narrator

1977
Exorcist II: The Heretic

as    Father Philip Lamont

1977
Equus

as    Martin Dysart