Laurence Olivier (1907–1989) was an English actor who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century.[1] He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. From 1956, he performed in television roles, for which he won several awards.[2]
In 1939, Olivier appeared in the film Wuthering Heights in a role that saw him nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. The following year he was again nominated for the same award for his portrayal of Maxim de Winter in Rebecca. In 1944, he produced, directed and appeared as Henry V of England in Henry V. The film was nominated for several Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor, although it failed to win in any competitive category; instead Olivier received a "Special Award" for his work on the film.[3] His next film, Hamlet (1948), became the first non-American film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, and he also received the award for Best Actor.[4][5][a] In 1979, Olivier was presented with an Academy Honorary Award to recognize his lifetime of contribution to the art of film. In total he was nominated for nine other acting Academy Awards and one each for production and direction.[7] For his stage work, Olivier won three Evening Standard Theatre Awards and was nominated for a Tony Award. He made his television debut in 1956,[8] and was subsequently nominated nine times for an Emmy Award, winning on five occasions; he was also nominated for two British Academy Television Awards for his work in the medium.
In 1947, Olivier was appointed a Knight Bachelor,[9] and in 1970 he was given a life peerage;[10] the Order of Merit was conferred on him in 1981.[11] He also received honours from foreign governments. In 1949 he was made Commander of the Order of the Dannebrog by the Danish government; the French appointed him Officier, Legion of Honour, in 1953; the Italian government created him Grande Ufficiale, Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, in 1953; and in 1971 he was granted the Order of Yugoslav Flag with Golden Wreath.
In addition to the naming of the National Theatre's largest auditorium in his honour, Olivier is commemorated in the Laurence Olivier Awards, bestowed annually since 1984 by the Society of West End Theatre.[12] In 1991 Olivier's friend, the actor John Gielgud, unveiled a memorial stone commemorating Olivier in Poets' Corner at Westminster Abbey.[17] In 2007, the centenary of Olivier's birth, a life-sized statue of him was unveiled on the South Bank, outside the National Theatre;[18] the same year the British Film Institute held a retrospective season of his film work.[19]
A Swan rousant Argent membered Or gorged with a Baron's Coronet proper affixed thereto a Chain reflexed over the back the Terminal Ring encircling the sinister leg Or and holding in the beak an Olive Branch leaved and fructed proper
Escutcheon
Argent on a Mount in base Vert charged with a Plough Or an Olive Tree fructed proper over all two Bars gemel in fess each engrailed on the upper edge and invected on the lower edge Azure
Motto
Sicut Oliva Virens Laetor In Aede Dei (I rejoice in the House of the Lord even as the olive tree flourishes) [43]
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Notes[]
^The film also won Academy Awards for Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design, and was nominated for awards for Best Actress (Jean Simmons as Ophelia), Best Score and Olivier as Best Director.[6]
^Olivier was also offered an honorary degree from Yale University, but was unable to receive it.[13]
