Biography

Ralph Richardson

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Sir Ralph Richardson was one of the greatest actors of the 20th Century English-language theater, ascending to the height of his profession in the mid-1930s when he became a star in London's West End. He became the first actor of his generation to be knighted. He became Sir Ralph in 1947, and was quickly followed by Laurence Olivier in 1948, and then by John Gielgud in 1953. Co-stars and friends, the three theatrical knights were considered the greatest English actors of their generation, primarily for their mastery of the Shakespearean canon. They occupied the height of the British acting pantheon in the post-World War II years.
- IMDb mini biography by: Jon C. Hopwood (Corrected U.N. Owen '15)

Famously eccentric, he once stopped in a middle of a stage performance, and addressed the audience enquiring "Is there a doctor in the house?" When a doctor made himself known, Richardson calmly enquired "Isn't this a terrible play, doctor?".
Once, visiting the home of Laurence Olivier and his then-wife Vivien Leigh, he was invited to inspect certain paintings which were kept in the attic. Somehow, he contrived to fall over; the floor of the attic gave way under his weight and he fell through it, landing on a bed (which then collapsed) in a room below. He was unhurt, but shaken; he was then scolded at some length by Vivien Leigh, whom he had already annoyed earlier in the day. He later said, "There was a rational basis to Vivien's fury, which we must salute. If you prod a tigress twice in her lair, you must not expect her to purr.".
Police once found him walking very slowly along the gutter of an Oxford street. He explained that he was taking his pet mouse for a stroll.
He was created a Knight Bachelor in the 1947 King's New Year Honours List for his services to the stage.
Hobby was collecting motorbikes.

Acting on the screen is like acting under a microscope. The slightest movement becomes a gesture and therefore the discipline has to be very severe.
I don't like my face at all. It's always been a great drawback to me.
I've never been one of those stage chaps who scoff at films. I think they're a marvellous medium, and are to the stage what engravings are to paintings.
My idea of a director is a chap who puts me in the middle of a stage and shines a bright light on me.
The art of acting lies in keeping people from coughing.

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