1928-04-08 ( 96 years old ) in Shepard's Bush, London, UK
A highly respected Shakespearean for five decades until his death of colon cancer in 1995, classical actor Eric Porter's claim to international fame would, ironically, be outside of that realm, with one superb portrayal in one superb miniseries, The Forsyte Saga(1967), in which he won the BAFTA award. The son of Richard John Porter and Phoebe Elizabeth Spall, Porter first attended Wimbledon Technical College before stepping onto the stage as a walk-on in a production of William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" in February 1945 at the Arts Theatre in Cambridge. He continued in repertory until joining the National Service with the RAF during the war years. Early post-war credits would include touring with Sir Donald Wolfit and Sir Barry Jackson in their prestigious companies. Favorite roles in his repertoire would eventually include "Macbeth", "King Lear" and "Uncle Vanya". He won London's Evening Standard Award for "Rosmersholm" in 1959. Joining the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1960, he became a prime, esteemed resident for decades. Porter made his film debut in mid-career with The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) at age 36, but it was the BBC that made him an international favorite as the ever-proper but intensely emotional and unhinged "Soames Forsyte". Taboos were broken on that series with a violent rape scene that had people talking for months. Along with the newly acquired fame came leads in lesser films such as The Lost Continent(1968) and Hands of the Ripper (1971), adding class to both those atmospheric horrors. On the plus side, Porter engaged himself frequently in quality TV miniseries fare includingAnna Karenina (1977), The Jewel in the Crown (1984) and Oliver Twist (1985) (as Fagin), while transferring many classics to TV as well, with "Cyrano de Bergerac", "Man and Superman" and "Macbeth" being but a few.
Movies
Morecambe & Wise: Christmas Specials
2007-11-12
The Best of Morecambe and Wise
2001-10-01
Message for Posterity
1994-10-28
Oliver Twist
1985-01-01
A Shilling Life
1982-02-12
The Sin Bin
1981-03-17
Little Lord Fauntleroy
1980-12-01
Hamlet
1980-05-25
Why Didn't They Ask Evans?
1980-03-30
The Crucible
1980-01-01
Churchill and the Generals
1979-09-23
The Thirty Nine Steps
1978-11-04
The Winslow Boy
1977-01-16
The Shetland Experience
1977-01-01
Hennessy
1975-12-31
Callan
1974-05-23
The Day of the Jackal
1973-05-16
Hitler: The Last Ten Days
1973-04-19
The Belstone Fox
1973-01-01
Antony and Cleopatra
1972-03-18
Nicholas and Alexandra
1971-11-29
Hands of the Ripper
1971-10-17
Macbeth
1970-09-20
Separate Tables
1970-03-15
The Lost Continent
1968-06-19
The Last Invasion
1966-08-24
Kaleidoscope
1966-07-01
The Heroes of Telemark
1965-11-12
The Wars of the Roses
1965-04-08
The Fall of the Roman Empire
1964-03-24
Emma
1948-05-23
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