Robert Morley

His son, Sheridan Morley, is a well-known critic. Notable film roles also include:. Renowned for excelling at repartee and generally being an eloquent conversationalist, Morley gained the epitheton of being a "wit". His oldest son, Jonathan, had killed himself in 1975. A versatile actor who, especially in his younger years, played roles as divergent as those of Louis XVI (Marie Antoinette, 1938), Oscar Wilde (1960) and a missionary in The African Queen (1951), Morley personified the conservative Brit in many comedy and caper films. He was survived by Veronique, their two children and two of his children from his earlier marriage. Born Robert Adolph Wilton Morley in Semley, Wiltshire, England, he attended RADA and made his West End stage debut in 1929 and his Broadway debut in 1938 but was soon won over to the big screen. He died in his sleep at the age of 87 in his Los Angeles home, with his second wife, Veronique, at his side.

In his Movie Encyclopedia, film critic Leonard Maltin describes Morley as "recognizable by his ungainly bulk, bushy eyebrows, thick lips, and double chin, […] particularly effective when cast as a pompous windbag". Like Cary Grant did before him, Peck spent the last few years of his life touring the world doing speaking engagements in which he would show clips from his movies, reminisce, and answer questions from the audience. Robert Morley (May 26, 1908 - June 3, 1992) was a British actor who, often in supporting roles, was time and again cast as the archetypal English gentleman representing the Establishment. He was a founding patron of the University College Dublin School of Film, where he persuaded Martin Scorsese to become an honorary patron. Marie Antoinette (1938) (King Louis XVI). In 2000 he was made a Doctor of Letters by the National University of Ireland. Major Barbara (1941) (Andrew Undershaft). Dornan, first by a slim margin and later by a wider gap.

The Young Mr. Pitt (1942) (Charles James Fox). Cary Peck was defeated on both accounts in Southern California, in 1978 and in 1980, by conservative Congressman Robert K. The African Queen (1951) (Reverend Samuel Sayer). Peck encouraged his son, Cary, to run for national political office. Beat the Devil (1953) (Crook #1). In an interview with the Irish media, Peck revealed that former President Lyndon Johnson had told him that, had he sought re-election, he intended to offer Peck the post of US ambassador to Ireland - a post Peck, on account of his Irish ancestry, said he might well have taken, saying "it would have been a great adventure". Beau Brummell (1954) (King George III). A lifelong supporter of the Democratic Party, he was suggested once as a possible Democratic candidate to run against Ronald Reagan for the office of Governor of California.

The Doctor's Dilemma (1959) (Sir Ralph Bloomfield-Bonington). Peck retired from active film-making in the early 1990s, having received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute in 1989. The Battle of the Sexes (1959) (Robert MacPherson). He also starred in the TV film The Scarlet and The Black, about a real-life Catholic priest in the Vatican who smuggled Jews and other refugees away from the Nazis during World War II. Oscar Wilde (1960) (Oscar Wilde). In the 1980s he moved to television, where he starred in the mini-series The Blue and the Gray, playing Abraham Lincoln. Murder at the Gallop (1963) (Hector Enderby) (opposite Margaret Rutherford). He was outspoken against the Vietnam War, while remaining supportive of his son, Stephen, who was fighting there. In 1972 Peck produced the film version of Philip Berrigan's play The Trial of the Catonsville Nine about the prosecution of a group of Vietnam protesters for civil disobedience.

Jacobs). In 1947, while many Hollywood figures were being blacklisted for similar activities, he signed a letter deploring a House Un-American Activities Committee investigation of alleged communists in the film industry. Of Human Bondage (1964) (Dr. His other popular films include Roman Holiday, in which he appeared as a reporter alongside Audrey Hepburn in her Oscar-winning debut. Topkapi (1964) (Cedric Page). In 2003, Atticus Finch was named the top film hero of the past 100 years by the American Film Institute. Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965) (Lord Rawnsley). Released in 1962 during the height of the US civil rights movement in the South; this movie is said to have been Peck's favorite.

The Loved One (1965) (Sir Ambrose Ambercrombie). Peck won the award for his fifth nomination, playing the role of Atticus Finch, a Depression-era lawyer and widowed father, in the film adaptation of the Harper Lee novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Life at the Top (1965) (Tiffield). He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor five times, four of which came in his first five years of film acting: for The Keys of the Kingdom (1944), The Yearling (1946), Gentleman's Agreement (1947), and Twelve O'Clock High (1949). The Alphabet Murders (aka The ABC Murders) (1965) (Captain Arthur Hastings). Peck's first film was Days of Glory, released in 1944. Hot Millions (1968) (Caesar Smith). I've been trying to straighten out that story for years.".

Cromwell (1970) (The Earl of Manchester). In Peck's words, "In Hollywood, they didn't think a dance class was macho enough, I guess. Theatre of Blood (1973) (Meredith Merridew). Twentieth Century Fox claimed he had injured his back while rowing a boat at university. Great Expectations (1974) (TV) (Uncle Pumblechook). Peck's acting abilities were in high demand during World War II, since he was exempt from military service due to a back injury suffered while receiving dance and movement lessons from Martha Graham as part of his acting training. Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (aka Too Many Chefs) (1978) (Max). His second Broadway performance that year was in 'The Willow and I' with Edward Pawley.

The Human Factor (1980) (Dr Percival). He made his Broadway debut as the lead in Emlyn Williams' "Morning Star" in 1942. The Old Men at the Zoo (1982) (TV mini-series) (Lord Godmanchester). He worked at the 1939 World's Fair and as a tour guide for NBC television. Alice in Wonderland (1985) (TV) (King of Hearts). He was often broke and sometimes slept in Central Park. Little Dorrit (1988) (Lord Decimus Barnacle). After graduation, Peck dropped the name "Eldred" and headed to New York City in 1939 to study at the Neighborhood Playhouse.

He was recruited by the school's Little Theater and appeared in five plays his senior year. He majored in English and rowed on the university crew. In 1936, he enrolled as a pre-med student at the University of California, Berkeley. For a short time, he took a job driving a truck for an oil company.

When he graduated, he went to San Diego State University, but dropped out a year later. Peck was sent to a Roman Catholic military school in Los Angeles at the age of 10. Peck's parents divorced when he was five and he was reared by his grandmother. Catherine Ashe was related to the Irish patriot Thomas Ashe, who took part in the Irish Easter Rising in the year of Peck's birth and died on hunger strike in 1917.

Born Eldred Gregory Peck in La Jolla, California, he was the son of a Missouri mother and a chemist called Gregory Peck, whose mother Catherine Ashe was an Irish immigrant from County Kerry. Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 - June 12, 2003) was an American film actor. Mackenna's Gold. The Boys from Brazil.

MacArthur. The Omen. Mirage. Cape Fear.

The Guns of Navarone. On the Beach. The Big Country. Designing Woman.

Moby Dick. Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N.. The Gunfighter. The Paradine Case.

Duel in the Sun. Spellbound.