Birthday:
Birthday:

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.
Birthday: April 08, 1928
Death: May 15, 1995

May 16, 1973

June 19, 1968

July 01, 1966

November 04, 1978

March 24, 1964

October 17, 1971

May 23, 1974

March 18, 1972

March 30, 1980

January 01, 1973

October 28, 1994

January 01, 1985

September 20, 1970

January 01, 1977

December 01, 1980

January 16, 1977

October 01, 2001

April 19, 1973

December 31, 1975

November 12, 1965

January 01, 1980

September 23, 1979

May 25, 1980

March 17, 1981

March 15, 1970

November 29, 1971

April 08, 1965

October 31, 2003

November 12, 2007

August 24, 1966

May 23, 1948

February 12, 1982

April 07, 1975

April 30, 1975

Unknown

Unknown

April 10, 1976

May 23, 1975

October 15, 1970

October 13, 1985

October 19, 1965

September 06, 1981

September 25, 1977

January 07, 1967

February 23, 1969

April 24, 1984

December 25, 1969

October 05, 1991

March 13, 1974

January 09, 1984

May 03, 1964

January 21, 1957

August 12, 1994