Richard Burton
Biography
Richard Burton CBE (born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his mellifluous baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable performance of Hamlet in 1964. He was called "the natural successor to Olivier" by critic Kenneth Tynan. A heavy drinker, Burton's perceived failure to live up to those expectations disappointed some critics and colleagues and added to his image as a great performer who had wasted his talent. Nevertheless, he is widely regarded as one of the most acclaimed actors of his generation. Burton was nominated for an Academy Award seven times, but never won an Oscar. He was a recipient of BAFTAs, Golden Globes, and Tony Awards for Best Actor. In the mid-1960s, Burton ascended into the ranks of the top box office stars. By the late 1960s, Burton was one of the highest-paid actors in the world, receiving fees of $1 million or more plus a share of the gross receipts. Burton remained closely associated in the public consciousness with his second wife, actress Elizabeth Taylor. The couple's turbulent relationship, in which they were married twice and divorced twice, was rarely out of the news.
Movies (97)
Sketch For Dawn
2025
Richard Burton: Wild Genius
2025
Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes
2024
Guilty Rebel
2024
Julie Andrews Forever
2019
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds: Live
2006
Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
2003
Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood
2001
Hollywood Screen Tests: Take 1
1999
Under Milk Wood
1992
John Huston: The Man, the Movies, the Maverick
1988
In from the Cold? A Portrait of Richard Burton
1988
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
1988
To Be Hamlet
1985
Nineteen Eighty-Four
1984
All-Star Party for Frank Sinatra
1983
Alice in Wonderland
1983
To the Ends of the Earth
1983
Circle of Two
1981
Lovespell
1981
Breakthrough
1979
The Wild Geese
1978
Absolution
1978
The Medusa Touch
1978
Stars' War: The Flight of the Wild Geese
1978
Equus
1977
Exorcist II: The Heretic
1977
CBS Salutes Lucy: The First 25 Years
1976
Brief Encounter
1976
Volcano: An Inquiry into the Life and Death of Malcolm Lowry
1976
The Gathering Storm
1974
The Klansman
1974
The Voyage
1974
Massacre in Rome
1973
The Battle of Sutjeska
1973
Bluebeard
1972
Hammersmith Is Out
1972
The Assassination of Trotsky
1972
Under Milk Wood
1972
Mooch Goes to Hollywood
1971
Villain
1971
Raid on Rommel
1971
Anne of the Thousand Days
1969
Staircase
1969
The Violent Universe
1969
Candy
1968
Where Eagles Dare
1968
A Wall in Jerusalem
1968
On Location: Where Eagles Dare
1968
Robert Kennedy Remembered
1968
Boom!
1968
The Comedians
1967
Doctor Faustus
1967
The Comedians in Africa
1967
Acting in the 60's: Richard Burton
1967
The Taming of the Shrew
1967
Lionpower from MGM
1967
For Florence
1966
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
1966
The Spy Who Came In from the Cold
1965
The Sandpiper
1965
What's New Pussycat?
1965
The Big Sur
1965
A Statue for "The Sandpiper"
1965
Hamlet
1964
The Night of the Iguana
1964
On the Trail of the Iguana
1964
Becket
1964
Zulu
1964
The V.I.P.s
1963
Cleopatra
1963
The Longest Day
1962
The Broadway of Lerner and Loewe
1962
A Tribute to Dylan Thomas
1962
A Subject of Scandal and Concern
1960
The Bramble Bush
1960
The Tempest
1960
The Fifth Column
1960
Ice Palace
1960
Borrowed Pasture
1960
Look Back in Anger
1959
March to Aldermaston
1959
Wuthering Heights
1958
Bitter Victory
1957
Sea Wife
1957
Alexander the Great
1956
The Rains of Ranchipur
1955
Prince of Players
1955
Thursday's Children
1954
The Robe
1953
The Desert Rats
1953
My Cousin Rachel
1952
Green Grow the Rushes
1951
The Woman with No Name
1950
Waterfront
1950
Now Barabbas
1949
The Last Days of Dolwyn
1949
TV Shows (22)
Talking Pictures
2013
Sphinx – Secrets of the History
1994
Ellis Island
1984
Wagner
1983
Entertainment Tonight
1981
Dinah!
1974
Spécial cinéma
1974
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
1973
Divorce His, Divorce Hers
1973
Great Performances
1971
Here's Lucy
1968
Tony Awards
1956
Tony Awards
1956
Tony Awards
1956
Tony Awards
1956
Tony Awards
1956
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951
The Ed Sullivan Show
1948
Bambi
1948
