Burt Lancaster

Birthday: 2 November 1913, New York City, New York, USA

Height: 6' 1" (1.85 m)

Biography

Burt Lancaster was one of five children born to a New York City postal worker. He was a tough street kid who took an early interest in gymnastics. He joined the circus as an acrobat and worked there until he was injured. It was in the Army during WW II that he was introduced to the USO and acting. His first film was The Killers (1946), and that made him a star. He was a self-taught actor who learned the business as he went along. He set up his own production company in 1948 with Harold Hecht and James Hill to direct his career. He played many different roles in pictures as varied as The Crimson Pirate (1952), From Here to Eternity (1953), Elmer Gantry (1960) and Atlantic City (1980).

His production company, Hecht-Hill-Lancaster, produced the such films as Paddy Chayefsky's Marty (1955) (Oscar winner 1955) and The Catered Affair (1956). In the 1980s he appeared as a supporting player in a number of movies, such as Local Hero (1983) and Field of Dreams (1989). However, it will be the sound of his voice, the way that he laughed, and the larger-than-life characters he played that will always be remembered 

Acting

With Ava Gardner in The Killers (1946)

Though initially unenthusiastic about acting, he returned from service, auditioned for a Broadway play, and was offered a role. Although Harry Brown's A Sound of Hunting had a run of only three weeks, Lancaster's performance drew the attention of a Hollywood agent, Harold Hecht, and through him to Hal Wallis, who cast Lancaster in The Killers (1946). (Hecht and Lancaster later formed several production companies in the 1950s to give Lancaster greater creative control.) The tall, muscular actor won significant acclaim and appeared in two more films the following year. Subsequently, he played in a variety of films, especially in dramas, thrillers, and military and adventure films. In two, The Flame and the Arrow and The Crimson Pirate, a friend from his circus years, Nick Cravat, played a key supporting role, and both actors impressed audiences with their acrobatic prowess.

With Deborah Kerr in From Here to Eternity (1953)

In 1953, Lancaster played one of his best remembered roles with Deborah Kerr in From Here to Eternity. The American Film Institute acknowledged the iconic status of the scene from that film in which he and Deborah Kerr make love on a Hawaiian beach amid the crashing waves. The organization named it one of "AFI's top 100 Most Romantic Films" of all time.

Lancaster won the 1960 Academy Award for Best Actor, a Golden Globe Award, and the New York Film Critics Award for his performance in Elmer Gantry.

In 1966, at the age of 52, Lancaster appeared nude in director Frank Perry's film, The Swimmer.

During the latter part of his career, Lancaster left adventure and acrobatic films behind and portrayed more distinguished characters. This period brought him work on several European productions, with directors such as Luchino Visconti and Bernardo Bertolucci. Lancaster sought demanding roles, and if he liked a part or a director, he was prepared to work for much lower pay than he might have earned elsewhere. He even helped to finance movies whose artistic value he believed in. He also mentored directors such as Sydney Pollack and John Frankenheimer and appeared in several television films. Lancaster's last film was Field of Dreams (1989).

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Lancaster has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard.

Filmography and awards

Films

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1946	The Killers	'Swede' Andersen	With Ava Gardner
1947	Brute Force	Joe Collins	With Hume Cronyn
1947	Desert Fury	Tom Hanson	With Lizabeth Scott
1948	I Walk Alone	Frankie Madison	With Kirk Douglas
1948	All My Sons	Chris Keller	With Edward G. Robinson
1948	Sorry, Wrong Number	Henry Stevenson	With Barbara Stanwyck
1948	Kiss the Blood Off My Hands	William Earle 'Bill' Saunders	With Joan Fontaine
1949	Criss Cross	Steve Thompson, narrator	With Yvonne de Carlo
1949	Rope of Sand	Michael (Mike) Davis	With Paul Henreid
1950	The Flame and the Arrow	Dardo Bartoli	With Virginia Mayo
1950	Mister 880	Steve Buchanan	With Dorothy McGuire
1951	Vengeance Valley	Owen Daybright	With Robert Walker
1951	Jim Thorpe – All-American	Jim Thorpe	With Charles Bickford
1951	Ten Tall Men	Sgt Mike Kincaid	With Jody Lawrance
1952	The Crimson Pirate	Capitan Vallo	With Nick Cravat
1952	Come Back, Little Sheba	Doc Delaney	With Shirley Booth
1953	South Sea Woman	Master Gunnery Sgt. James O'Hearn	With Virginia Mayo
1953	From Here to Eternity	1st Sgt. Milton Warden	New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor
1953	Three Sailors and a Girl	Marine (uncredited)	With Jane Powell
1954	His Majesty O'Keefe	Captain David Dion O'Keefe, narrator	With Joan Rice
1954	Apache	Massai	With Jean Peters
1954	Vera Cruz	Joe Erin	With Gary Cooper
1955	The Kentuckian	Elias Wakefield (Big Eli)	Director Nominated—Golden Lion
1955	The Rose Tattoo	Alvaro Mangiacavallo	With Anna Magnani
1956	Trapeze	Mike Ribble	Silver Bear for Best Actor at Berlin[12]
1956	The Rainmaker	Bill Starbuck, aka Bill Smith, Bill Harley, Tornado Johnson	Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
1957	Gunfight at the O.K. Corral	Marshal Wyatt Earp	With Kirk Douglas
1957	Sweet Smell of Success	J.J. Hunsecker	Written by Ernest Lehman
1958	Run Silent, Run Deep	Lt. Commander Jim Bledsoe	With Clark Gable
1958	Separate Tables	John Malcolm	With David Niven
1959	The Devil's Disciple	The Rev. Anthony Anderson	With Kirk Douglas and Laurence Olivier
1960	The Unforgiven	Ben Zachary	With Audrey Hepburn
1960	Elmer Gantry	Elmer Gantry	Academy Award for Best Actor Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role
1961	The Young Savages	ADA Hank Bell	With Dina Merrill
1961	Judgment at Nuremberg	Dr. Ernst Janning	With Spencer Tracy
1962	Birdman of Alcatraz	Robert Stroud	BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Volpi Cup Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
1963	A Child Is Waiting	Dr. Ben Clark	With Judy Garland
1963	The Leopard	Prince Don Fabrizio Salina	With Claudia Cardinale
1963	The List of Adrian Messenger	Cameo	With George C. Scott
1964	Seven Days in May	Gen. James Mattoon Scott	With Kirk Douglas
1964	The Train	Paul Labiche	With Jeanne Moreau
1965	The Hallelujah Trail	Col. Thaddeus Gearhart	With Lee Remick
1966	The Professionals	Bill Dolworth	With Lee Marvin
1967	All About People	Narrator
1968	The Scalphunters	Joe Bass	With Shelley Winters
1968	The Swimmer	Ned Merrill	With Janice Rule
1969	Castle Keep	Maj. Abraham Falconer	With Peter Falk
1969	The Gypsy Moths	Mike Rettig	With Deborah Kerr
1970	Airport	Mel Bakersfeld	With Dean Martin
1971	Lawman	Bannock Town Marshal Jered Maddox	With Robert Ryan
1971	Valdez Is Coming	Marshal Bob Valdez	With Susan Clark
1972	Ulzana's Raid	U.S. Cavalry Scout McIntosh	With Bruce Davison
1973	Scorpio	Cross	With Alain Delon
1973	Executive Action	James Farrington	With Robert Ryan
1974	The Midnight Man	Jim Slade	Co-Director
1974	Gruppo di famiglia in un interno (Conversation Piece)	The Professor	David di Donatello for Best Actor
1976	Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson	Ned Buntline	With Paul Newman
1976	1900 (Novecento)	Alfredo's Grandfather	With Robert De Niro
1976	The Cassandra Crossing	Col. Stephen Mackenzie	With Sophia Loren
1977	Twilight's Last Gleaming	Gen. Lawrence Dell	With Richard Widmark
1977	The Island of Dr. Moreau	Dr. Paul Moreau	Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor
1978	Go Tell the Spartans	Maj. Asa Barker	With Craig Wasson
1979	Zulu Dawn	Col. Anthony Durnford	With Peter O'Toole
1980	Atlantic City	Lou Pascal	BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor David di Donatello for Best Actor Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated—Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
1981	Cattle Annie and Little Britches	Bill Doolin, the Oklahoma outlaw	With Amanda Plummer and Diane Lane
1981	La pelle	Gen. Mark Clark	With Marcello Mastroianni
1983	Local Hero	Felix Happer	Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
1983	The Osterman Weekend	CIA Director Maxwell Danforth	With Rutger Hauer
1985	Little Treasure	Delbert Teschemacher	With Margot Kidder
1986	Tough Guys	Harry Doyle	With Kirk Douglas
1987	Il Giorno prima	Dr. Herbert Monroe	With Ben Gazzara
1988	Rocket Gibraltar	Levi Rockwell	With Patricia Clarkson
1989	Field of Dreams	Dr. Archibald 'Moonlight' Graham	With Kevin Costner
1989	La Bottega dell'orefice	The Jeweller	With Olivia Hussey

TV

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1974	Moses the Lawgiver	Moses	mini-series
1976	Victory at Entebbe	Shimon Peres	with Anthony Hopkins
1978	The Unknown War	As himself, narrator	20 episode USA-USSR archival documentary series on WWII
1982	Marco Polo	Teobaldo Visconti / Pope Gregory X	mini-series
1982	Verdi	Narrator in American version	mini-series
1985	Scandal Sheet	Harold Fallen
1986	Väter und Söhne - Eine deutsche Tragödie	Geheimrat Carl Julius Deutz	mini-series
1986	On Wings of Eagles	Lieutenant Colonel Arthur D. "Bull" Simons	mini-series
1989	I Promessi sposi	Cardinal Federigo Borromeo	mini-series
1990	The Phantom of the Opera	Gerard Carriere	mini-series
1990	Voyage of Terror: The Achille Lauro Affair	Leon Klinghoffer
1991	Separate But Equal	John W. Davis