- Born
- Died
- Birth nameHenry Kenneth Alfred Russell
- Height5′ 7½″ (1.71 m)
- Ken Russell tried several professions before choosing to become a film director; he was a still photographer and a dancer and he even served in the Army, but film was his destiny. He began by making several short films which paved the way for his brilliant television films of the 1960s that are acclaimed for his attention to detail and opulent visuals. His third feature film Women in Love (1969) was a triumph that made him known internationally. In the 1970s, his talent truly blossomed. Over the next two decades he would direct a succession of remarkable films, most containing the trademark flamboyance that critics generally dismiss but many find engrossing. He will forever be remembered as a controversial, visionary artist with something of a third eye for oddball dramas with captivating images and themes.
- IMDb mini biography by: che <che@telerama.com> - When he was age eight, he was given a 9.5 mm projector for Xmas. He graduated to 35mm, together with a box of silents that had been salvaged from the liner Mauretania when she was being broken up. He attended a nautical school, where he made his first short film, trained as an Air Force electrician and tried unsuccessfully to break into the world of ballet and the theatre. He then took a course in photography. Soon, he began to sell his pictures to magazines. Having married a fellow student and turned to Catholicism, he made two short films: 'Amelia and the Angel' and 'Lourdes', both with the aid of a Catholic Institute. He took them to the BBC and showed them to Huw Weldon, the director of 'Monitor', a new arts program. He was immediately hired to replace John Schlessinger and stayed for ten years, making 34 films. The last one, 'Dance of the Seven Veils' (70), caused an outcry that even raised questions in Parliament. He never worked for the BBC again.
- IMDb mini biography by: tonyman5
- SpousesElize Tribble Russell(2001 - November 27, 2011) (his death)Hetty Baynes(1992 - 1999) (divorced, 1 child)Vivian Russell(1983 - 1991) (divorced, 2 children)Shirley Russell(1956 - 1978) (divorced, 5 children)
- Children
- Frequent snake imagery
- Use of primary colors
- Frequent use of trains and train settings
- Frequent use of baptism imagery
- Frequent use of fire and fire imagery
- Russell once met Federico Fellini, of whom he had been a fan, outside an Italian movie studio. They approached each other and spoke briefly, complimenting each other by calling themselves "the Italian Ken Russell," and "the English Federico Fellini," respectively.
- Was part of a legendary incident in British television when he appeared on Late Night Line-Up (1964) on BBC2 to discuss his new film The Devils (1971) alongside critic Alexander Walker, who did not like the film. As Walker began critiquing the film, Russell interrupted him repeatedly. The two began shouting at each other, and Russell eventually hit Walker over the head with a rolled-up copy of his own review. The incident took place on live television and no footage is known to exist.
- Stanley Kubrick once called him in the early 1970s to ask him where he had found the lovely locations for his films. Russell complied and Kubrick used the locations in his next film Barry Lyndon (1975). Russell later said, "I felt quite chuffed".
- After the controversy surrounding Altered States (1980), he had trouble getting financial backing, so he directed opera for a while, including a version of Madame Butterfly.
- Was dubbed "England's Orson Welles" early in his career.
- [concerning his style of biographical films] The whole idea had degenerated into a series of third-rate clichés. I wanted to dress people in old clothes and do it in a totally unreal way, and thus make it more real than ever, and in the process send up this new civil service/academic way of doing films.
- The Devils (1971) is a harsh film, but it's a harsh subject. I wish the people who were horrified and appalled by it had read the book, because the facts are more horrible than anything in the film.
- It is a pity when one, either through force of circumstance or because one is afraid of being ridiculed by others, won't produce and expose to everyone that little spark of something special which is unique to him alone.
- A critic's typical praise is "Beautifully understated." That means beautifully false . . . I'd rather go the other way - to gamble rather than play it safe. If I err it's by overstating, but I try to get it right.
- I never want to do a violent, disturbing film like The Devils (1971) again. That's why I did The Boy Friend (1971). It's pure escapism and fun.
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