Rex Harrison facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sir Rex Harrison
Harrison at his home in London in 1976, by Allan Warren
Born	Reginald Carey Harrison (1908-03-05)5 March 1908 Huyton, Merseyside, England, UK
Died	2 June 1990(1990-06-02) (aged 82) New York City, U.S.
Resting place	Ashes scattered in Portofino and Forest Lawn Memorial Park
Education	Liverpool College
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1930–1990
Spouse(s)	Noel Margery Colette-Thomas ​ ​ (m. 1934; div. 1942)​ Lilli Palmer ​ ​ (m. 1943; div. 1957)​ Kay Kendall ​ ​ (m. 1957; died 1959)​ Rachel Roberts ​ ​ (m. 1962; div. 1971)​ Elizabeth Rees-Williams ​ ​ (m. 1971; div. 1975)​ Mercia Tinker ​ (m. 1979)​
Children	Noel Carey
Relatives	Cathryn Harrison (granddaughter)

Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (born March 5, 1908 – died June 2, 1990) was a famous British actor. He started his acting journey on stage in 1924. He became well-known after appearing in the play French Without Tears in 1936.

Rex Harrison won his first Tony Award in 1949 for playing Henry VIII in the play Anne of the Thousand Days. He won his second Tony Award for his role as Professor Henry Higgins in the stage musical My Fair Lady in 1957.

Besides his stage work, Harrison also starred in many movies. His first main movie role was with Vivien Leigh in Storm in a Teacup (1937). He was praised for his acting in Major Barbara (1941), which was filmed in London during the Blitz. Some of his other famous films include Blithe Spirit (1945), Anna and the King of Siam (1946), The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947), and Cleopatra (1963).

He also played Henry Higgins again in the movie My Fair Lady (1964), which won him an Academy Award for Best Actor. He also played the main character in Doctor Dolittle (1967).

In 1975, Harrison wrote his first autobiography, which is a book about his own life. In June 1989, Queen Elizabeth II made him a knight, so he became "Sir Rex Harrison." He was married six times and had two sons, Noel and Carey Harrison. He kept acting in plays until shortly before he passed away from pancreatic cancer in June 1990, at 82 years old. His second autobiography, A Damned Serious Business: My Life in Comedy, was published after his death in 1991.

Early Life and First Steps in Acting

Reginald Carey Harrison was born on March 5, 1908, in Huyton, England. His parents were Edith Mary and William Reginald Harrison, who worked as a cotton broker. He was the youngest of three children and had two older sisters.

He went to Liverpool College for his education. After having measles as a child, Harrison lost most of the sight in his left eye. To cheer him up, his mother took him to the theatre. After seeing a play, young Rex decided he wanted to be an actor. He never took acting lessons during his six-decade career. He got his first acting job when he was 16 years old. Harrison was a fan of the Everton FC football team. He chose the stage name "Rex" when he was a child because he learned it meant "king" in Latin.

Rex Harrison's Stage Career

Harrison first performed on stage in 1924 in Liverpool. His acting career was paused during World War II, when he served in the Royal Air Force as a Flight Lieutenant. He continued to act in various plays until May 11, 1990.

He made his first appearance in London's West End in 1936. This was in the Terence Rattigan play French Without Tears. This role was a big success for him and made him a leading actor in English comedy plays.

Harrison as Professor Henry Higgins alongside Julie Andrews as Eliza Doolittle in the musical My Fair Lady

He often performed in both London and New York. Some of his plays included Bell, Book and Candle (1950), Venus Observed, The Cocktail Party, and The Love of Four Colonels, which he also directed. He won his first Tony Award for playing Henry VIII in Maxwell Anderson's play Anne of the Thousand Days. He became internationally famous and won a second Tony for his role as Henry Higgins in the musical My Fair Lady, where he acted with Julie Andrews.

Later, he appeared in plays like Pirandello's Henry IV. In 1984, he performed with Claudette Colbert in Aren't We All? at the Haymarket Theatre. He also appeared in J. M. Barrie's The Admirable Crichton with Edward Fox. He returned as Henry Higgins in a new production of My Fair Lady in 1981. He also played Shotover in Heartbreak House, Julius Caesar in Caesar and Cleopatra, and General Burgoyne in The Devil's Disciple.

Rex Harrison's Film Appearances

Harrison's first movie was The Great Game (1930). His first main role was in the romantic comedy Storm in a Teacup (1937), with Vivien Leigh. Other important early films include The Citadel (1938), Night Train to Munich (1940), and Major Barbara (1941). He was highly praised for his role in Major Barbara, which was filmed in London during The Blitz in 1940.

He also starred in Blithe Spirit (1945), Anna and the King of Siam (1946), The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947), and The Foxes of Harrow (1947). He is most famous for playing Professor Henry Higgins in the 1964 movie version of My Fair Lady. This movie was based on the 1956 Broadway show, which was based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play Pygmalion. For this role, Harrison won an Oscar for Best Actor.

Harrison as Julius Caesar in Cleopatra (1963) for which he was nominated for an Academy Award

He also starred in the 1967 movie Doctor Dolittle. At the peak of his fame after My Fair Lady, Harrison was sometimes difficult during the making of Doctor Dolittle. He wanted his singing to be recorded live during filming, but later agreed to re-record it. He also caused some delays during filming.

He starred in the 1968 comedy The Honey Pot, which was a modern version of Ben Jonson's play Volpone. Two of his co-stars, Maggie Smith and Cliff Robertson, became his lifelong friends. They both spoke at his memorial service in New York City after he died in 1990.

Rex Harrison was not known for being a great singer. He used a "talking on pitch" style in My Fair Lady. The music for his roles was often written to allow for long periods of speaking to the music. Even so, the song "Talk to the Animals", which Harrison performed in Doctor Dolittle, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1967.

Even though he was excellent in comedies, he also received good reviews for his serious roles. He played Julius Caesar in Cleopatra (1963) and Pope Julius II in The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965), where he acted alongside Charlton Heston. He also appeared in a Hindi film called Shalimar with Indian stars Dharmendra and Zeenat Aman.

Rex Harrison's Personal Life

Rex Harrison was married six times. In 1942, he divorced his first wife, Noel Margery Colette-Thomas. The next year, he married actress Lilli Palmer. They acted together in many plays and films, including The Four Poster. While married to Palmer, he built a home in Portofino, Italy, where he hosted many famous people. Harrison and Palmer divorced in 1957.

In 1957, Harrison married actress Kay Kendall. Kendall sadly passed away from a serious illness in 1959. Terence Rattigan's 1973 play In Praise of Love was written about the end of this marriage.

He then married Welsh actress Rachel Roberts in 1962. They divorced in 1971. Harrison later married Elizabeth Rees-Williams in 1971, and they divorced in 1975. Finally, in 1978, he married Mercia Tinker, who was his sixth and last wife.

Harrison's oldest son, Noel Harrison, became an Olympic skier, singer, and actor. He even performed in some productions of My Fair Lady in his father's famous role. Noel passed away in 2013. Rex's younger son, Carey Harrison, is a playwright.

Harrison owned homes in London, New York City, and Portofino, Italy. His home in Portofino was named San Genesio, after the patron saint of actors.

Rex Harrison's Marriages:

• Noel M Colette-Thomas, 1934–1942 (divorced); they had one son, Noel Harrison.
• Lilli Palmer, 1943–1957 (divorced); they had one son, Carey Harrison.
• Kay Kendall, 1957–1959 (she passed away).
• Rachel Roberts, 1962–1971 (divorced).
• Elizabeth Rees-Williams, 1971–1975 (divorced); he had three stepsons.
• Mercia Tinker, 1978–1990 (until his death).

Grandchildren:

• Granddaughters: Cathryn, Harriott, Chloe, Chiara, Rosie, Faith
• Grandsons: Will, Simon, Sam

Later Career and Final Years

After retiring from movies after A Time to Die, Harrison continued to act on Broadway and in the West End until the end of his life. He faced some health challenges, including glaucoma and a failing memory.

He was nominated for a third Tony Award in 1984 for his role as Captain Shotover in a new production of George Bernard Shaw's Heartbreak House. He then had two successful performances with Claudette Colbert in The Kingfisher (1985) and Aren't We All? (1986). In 1989, he appeared with Edward Fox in The Admirable Crichton in London. In 1989 and 1990, he performed on Broadway in The Circle by W. Somerset Maugham.

Death and Legacy

Rex Harrison passed away from pancreatic cancer at his home in Manhattan, New York City, on June 2, 1990. He was 82 years old. He had only been diagnosed with the illness a short time before. The play he was performing in at the time, The Circle, ended after his death.

His body was cremated. Some of his ashes were scattered in Portofino, Italy. The rest were scattered at his second wife Lilli Palmer's grave in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.

Harrison's second autobiography, A Damned Serious Business: My Life in Comedy, was published in 1991.

Honours and Recognition

On June 17, 1989, Queen Elizabeth II made Rex Harrison a knight at Buckingham Palace. This is why he is known as Sir Rex Harrison.

Rex Harrison has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. One is for his work in films, and the other is for his work in television. He is also a member of the American Theater Hall of Fame, having been inducted in 1979.

Because of his role in My Fair Lady, where he wore a checked wool hat, that style of hat was often called "The Rex Harrison."

Seth MacFarlane, who created the animated TV show Family Guy, based the voice of the character Stewie Griffin on Rex Harrison's voice after watching him in the movie My Fair Lady.

Rex Harrison Mask Used by CIA

Jonna Mendez, a former chief of disguise for the CIA, shared an interesting fact in 2019. She said that a mask of Rex Harrison's face was used by many CIA agents for secret missions. The molds of his face were larger, which meant they could fit over smaller agents' faces. These molds were made from aluminum and bought from Hollywood film studios.

Mendez mentioned that Rex Harrison's face was "taking part in a lot of operations." His aluminum facial mold became the standard "large" size for the over-the-head masks the agency created and used. This means that many undercover agents were disguised by masks that looked like Rex Harrison.

Filmography

Film

Television

Radio

Stage

Radio Appearances

See also

In Spanish: Rex Harrison para niños