Stagestruck from boyhood, suave British actor Rex Harrison joined the Liverpool Repertory Theatre at the... (Learn more)
Top Projects: My Fair Lady, Cleopatra, Doctor Dolittle (View All)
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Rex Harrison’s Milestones
| Became stage star in Terrence Rattigan's "French Without Tears" | |
| Performed the part of Lord Porteus in W Somerset Maugham's 1920s comedy "The Circle" on Broadway up unitl three weeks prior to his death | |
| Played Lord Grenham in "Aren't We All?", first in London and then on Broadway; again teamed opposite Claudette Colbert | |
| Served in Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve | |
| 1924 - 1927 | Was member of Liverpool Repertory Theatre |
| 1930 | Film debut, "The Great Game" |
| 1930 | London stage debut as Honorable Fred Thripplehorn in "Getting George Married" |
| 1936 | Broadway debut as Tubbs Barrow in "Sweet Aloes" |
| 1938 | Had supporting part in King Vidor's "The Citadel", based on the A J Cronin novel |
| 1939 | Acted onstage in S N Behrman's "No Time for Comedy" and Noel Coward's "Design for Living" |
| 1940 | Starred in Carol Reed's "Night Train to Munich" |
| 1941 | Offered brilliant turn opposite Wendy Hiller in Gabriel Pascal's "Major Barbara" |
| 1945 | Portrayed Charles Condimine in David Lean's film version of Coward's "Blithe Spirit" |
| 1946 | Scored major triumph as the 19th Century Siamese King Mongkut in his Hollywood debut, "Anna and the King of Siam"; years later Rodgers and Hammerstein would offer him the role of the King in their musical version of the tale, but other commitments prevented him from accepting |
| 1946 | Signed by 20th Century-Fox to seven year contract |
| 1947 | Followed with another film success, "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir", opposite Gene Tierney |
| 1948 | Returned to Broadway as Henry VIII in Maxwell Anderson's "Anne of the Thousand Days"; earned first Tony Award |
| 1948 | Starred as a music conductor who plots to kill his adulterous wife in Preston Sturges' comedy "Unfaithfully Yours" |
| 1950 | Received acclaim for his performances in T S Eliot's "The Cocktail Party" in London and in John van Druten's "Bell, Book and Candle" on both sides of the Atlantic |
| 1953 | Directed and appeared as the Man in Broadway production of "The Love of Four Colonels" |
| 1956 | "My Fair Lady" opened on Broadway with Harrison as Professor Henry Higgins and Julie Andrews as Eliza Doolittle; received TOny Award for Best Actor in a Musical |
| 1958 | After two years on Broadway, reprised "My Fair Lady" in London |
| 1960 | Played Doris Day's husband in "Midnight Lace" |
| 1963 | Earned first Best Actor Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Julius Caesar in "Cleopatra", stealing the film from his more famous co-stars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton |
| 1964 | Acted in "The Yellow Rolls-Royce"; screenplay by Rattigan |
| 1964 | Reprised Higgins for film version of "My Fair Lady" opposite Audrey Hepburn; won Best Actor Oscar |
| 1965 | Reteamed with director Carol Reed to play Pope Julius II in "The Agony and the Ecstacy" |
| 1967 | Portrayed title role in "Doctor Dolittle" |
| 1974 | Played title role in Luigi Pirandello's "Henry IV" on London stage and Sebastian Crutwell in Rattigan's "In Praise of Love" on Broadway |
| 1977 | Appeared as Caesar in Broadway production of "Caesar and Cleopatra" |
| 1978 | Returned to drawing-room comedy for Broadway production of "The Kingfisher", opposite Claudette Colbert |
| 1979 | Filmed last feature, "A Time to Die" (released in 1983) |
| 1981 | Reprised "My Fair Lady" on Broadway |
| 1983 | Received much critical acclaim for his portrayal of the aging Captain Shotover in Broadway revival of Shaw's "Heartbreak House"; Walter Kerr of THE NEW YORK TIMES called it "the best work the actor has ever done"; filmed for Showtime in 1985 |
| 1986 | Portrayed Grand Duke Cyril Romanov in NBC miniseries, "Anastasia: The Story of Anna" |
| 1988 | Last appearance on the London stage, "The Admirable Crichton" |
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