#1
Posted: 11/16/09 at 4:10pm
Edward Albert Arthur Woodward OBE (1 June 1930 16 November 2009) was an English actor and singer.
Originally a Shakespearean stage actor, he was best known for his roles in the 1960s-1970s television spy series Callan, the 1973 film The Wicker Man, the 1980 Australian biographical film drama Breaker Morant and his lead role in the 1980s American television series The Equalizer.
Theatre
Woodward wanted to become an actor but initially in the post World War II period became an associate member of RADA while taking amateur roles. Wanting to train as a journalist he eventually took work in a sanitary engineer's office before attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
He was reputedly torn between becoming an actor or a professional footballer. Woodward was on the books of Leyton Orient and Brentford, making three appearances in the Football League for the latter; however, a serious knee injury kept him out of the game for over a year.[citation needed] He began as stage actor at the Castle Theatre, Farnham, in 1946. After graduation from RADA he worked extensively in repertory companies as a Shakespearean actor throughout England and Scotland, making his London debut in Where There's A Will in 1955 and also starred in the film adaptation that same year.
His work in the West End included Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet (1955), as well as Cyrano de Bergerac (1971). Having established himself, he also worked in Broadway theatre in New York and in Australia. Woodward first appeared on Broadway in Rattle of a Simple Man (1963) and the musical comedy High Spirits (19641965), which won three Tony Awards, followed by the 1966 comedy The Best Laid Plans.
Stage
* 1955 - Where There's a Will
* 1958 - Romeo and Juliet
* 1958 - Hamlet
* 1962 - Rattle of a Simple Man
* 1968 - Two Cities
* 1971 - Cyrano de Bergerac
* 1971 - The White Devil
* 1973 - The Wolf
* 1975 - Male of the Species
* 1976 - On Approval
* 1978 - The Dark Horse
* 1980 - The Beggar's Opera (also director)
* 1980 - Private Lives
* 1982 - The Assassin
* 1982 - Richard III
* 1992 - The Dead Secret
Health
Woodward underwent triple bypass surgery in 1996 and quit smoking after two heart attacks. In February 2003 it was announced that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
Death
Edward Woodward died at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro on 16 November 2009 at the age of 79. He had lived in Hawker's Cove, Cornwall, near Padstow and had been suffering from various illnesses, including pneumonia
Originally a Shakespearean stage actor, he was best known for his roles in the 1960s-1970s television spy series Callan, the 1973 film The Wicker Man, the 1980 Australian biographical film drama Breaker Morant and his lead role in the 1980s American television series The Equalizer.
Theatre
Woodward wanted to become an actor but initially in the post World War II period became an associate member of RADA while taking amateur roles. Wanting to train as a journalist he eventually took work in a sanitary engineer's office before attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
He was reputedly torn between becoming an actor or a professional footballer. Woodward was on the books of Leyton Orient and Brentford, making three appearances in the Football League for the latter; however, a serious knee injury kept him out of the game for over a year.[citation needed] He began as stage actor at the Castle Theatre, Farnham, in 1946. After graduation from RADA he worked extensively in repertory companies as a Shakespearean actor throughout England and Scotland, making his London debut in Where There's A Will in 1955 and also starred in the film adaptation that same year.
His work in the West End included Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet (1955), as well as Cyrano de Bergerac (1971). Having established himself, he also worked in Broadway theatre in New York and in Australia. Woodward first appeared on Broadway in Rattle of a Simple Man (1963) and the musical comedy High Spirits (19641965), which won three Tony Awards, followed by the 1966 comedy The Best Laid Plans.
Stage
* 1955 - Where There's a Will
* 1958 - Romeo and Juliet
* 1958 - Hamlet
* 1962 - Rattle of a Simple Man
* 1968 - Two Cities
* 1971 - Cyrano de Bergerac
* 1971 - The White Devil
* 1973 - The Wolf
* 1975 - Male of the Species
* 1976 - On Approval
* 1978 - The Dark Horse
* 1980 - The Beggar's Opera (also director)
* 1980 - Private Lives
* 1982 - The Assassin
* 1982 - Richard III
* 1992 - The Dead Secret
Health
Woodward underwent triple bypass surgery in 1996 and quit smoking after two heart attacks. In February 2003 it was announced that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
Death
Edward Woodward died at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro on 16 November 2009 at the age of 79. He had lived in Hawker's Cove, Cornwall, near Padstow and had been suffering from various illnesses, including pneumonia
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