George Rose (actor)
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George Rose (February 19, 1920 - May 5, 1988) was a English award-winning actor in theatre and film.
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[edit] Biography
Born in Bicester in Oxfordshire the son of a butcher, Rose studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama.[1] After graduation he briefly worked as a farmer and secretary. After wartime service and studies at Oxford, he made his Old Vic stage debut in 1946.[2]
[edit] Career
Rose spent four years with the Old Vic company and made his Broadway debut in a 1946 production of Henry IV, Part I and continued to play in New York City and London's West End for the remainder of the decade. He spent most of the 1950s appearing in broad comedy roles in his Britain and then joined the Royal Shakespeare Company.[2] He returned to Broadway to portray Dogberry in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing in 1959. Two years later, he co-starred to much acclaim in Robert Bolt's A Man For All Seasons first in London and then in New York. From then on he appeared primarily in American plays and films.
Rose made his screen debut in Midnight Frolics in 1949 and went on to make more than 30 films. Notable film credits include The Pickwick Papers (1952), Track the Man Down (1955), A Night to Remember (1958), Hawaii (1966), A New Leaf (1971), and the film of The Pirates of Penzance (1983).[2] Rose was one of the stars of the 1975 television series Beacon Hill, a misguided effort to Americanize the popular Upstairs, Downstairs. Other television credits include Naked City, Trials of O'Brien, and several appearances on the Hallmark Hall of Fame.
On Broadway, among other roles, he played the Gravedigger in John Gielgud's 1964 Hamlet, a suspicious storekeeper in William Hanley's Slow Dance on Killing Ground (1964), a bitter soldier in Peter Shaffer's Royal Hunt of the Sun (1965)and the detective in Joe Orton's Loot (1968). His first Tony Award nomination was for his portrayal of Louis Greff, Coco Chanel's friend, in the musical Coco in 1969. In the 1974 comedy My Fat Friend, he won a Drama Desk Award and received another Tony nomination. In 1976, he finally won a Tony as Alfred P. Doolittle in the Broadway revival of My Fair Lady. He received further acclaim in the title role of Shaw's Devil's Disciple, and in Peter Pan and The Kingfisher, for which he won a 1979 Drama Desk Award.
In 1980, he appeared as Major General Stanley in the hit Joe Papp adaptation of The Pirates of Penzance, co-starring Kevin Kline, Rex Smith, Tony Azito and Linda Ronstadt, being nominated for another Tony award. He won his second Tony in 1986, for The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Rose was playing in a national tour of Drood at the time of his death in 1988.[3]
[edit] Private life and murder
Rose owned a pet Lynx, birds and other exotic creatures. He also enjoyed reading, cooking, classical music and jazz, and had a music collection numbering around 17,000 records. One of Rose's special friends was Lynn Redgrave.[1]
In 1984, Rose purchased a vacation home in Sosua, Dominican Republic, where he spent much of his time between his performances. Rose was gay and, as such, was a life long bachelor, having no immediate family or permanent partner; but he had longed to have a child and heir. Shortly after relocating, he took in a 14 year old boy whom he supported financially and to whom he planned to leave his estate. He adopted the boy in January 1988.[2]
During a two week vacation during his national tour of Drood, on May 5, 1988, Rose was beaten to death near his vacation home by his adopted son and three other men, including the son's biological father and uncle, who then tried to make the death look like an accident. Each of his assailants soon confessed to killing Rose.[2] Though all four men were charged and spent time in prison, no trial was ever held, and eventually all were released.[1]
Rose is buried in an unmarked grave in an unkept cemetery near his home in Sosua.[1]
[edit] Awards and nominations
- Awards
- 1974 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Performance - My Fat Friend
- 1976 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical - My Fair Lady
- 1976 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical - My Fair Lady
- 1979 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play - The Kingfisher
- 1986 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - Edwin Drood
- 1986 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical - The Mystery of Edwin Drood
- Nominations
- 1970 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical - Coco
- 1975 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play - My Fat Friend
- 1977 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical - She Loves Me
- 1981 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - The Pirates of Penzance
- 1981 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical - The Pirates of Penzance
[edit] Stage productions
- The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1985)
- Aren't We All? (1985)
- Dance a Little Closer (1983)
- You Can't Take It With You (1983)
- The Pirates of Penzance (1981)
- Peter Pan (1979)
- The Kingfisher (1978)
- My Fair Lady (1976)
- My Fat Friend (1974)
- Wise Child (1972)
- A New Leaf (1972)
- Sleuth (1970)
- Coco (1969)
- Canterbury Tales (1969)
- Loot (1968)
- Walking Happy (1966)
- The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1965)
- Slow Dance on the Killing Ground (1964)
- Hamlet (1964)
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Alix Kirsta. "The Killing of Mr. George", The Sunday Times, 25 May 1997. Retrieved on 2008-06-07.
- ^ a b c d e Dennis Hevesi. "Dominican Police Say 4 Men Killed George Rose", New York Times, 13 May 1988. Retrieved on 2008-06-07.
- ^ George Rose Biography. filmreference (2008). Retrieved on 2008-06-07.
[edit] External links
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Ted Ross for The Wiz |
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical 1975-1976 for My Fair Lady |
Succeeded by Michael Mark, Joseph Saulter, John Miller, and Ken Bichel for I Love My Wife |
| Preceded by Jeffrey DeMunn for A Prayer for My Daughter |
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play 1978-1979 for The Kingfisher |
Succeeded by Michael Gross for Bent |
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