Remembering the incomparable Vivien Leigh on the anniversary of her birth. Whilst most probably know her primarily from her Academy Award winning performance as the fiery Scarlett O’Hara in ‘Gone With The Wind‘, she had a long and varied career both on stage & screen. She originated the ‘showgirl’ role in the original stage production of The Sleeping Prince with her husband Sir Laurence Olivier.
Remembering the late, great Lord Laurence Olivier, born on this day in 1907. Olivier (22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Some of his biggest pictures include: “Rebecca,” “Hamlet,” “Spartacus” and “Richard III.” He was highly acclaimed in his field and was nominated for a staggering 13 Academy Awards (winning 3) 6 Golden Globes (winning 3 ) 9 Primetime Emmey Awards (winning 5) and 11 BAFTA’s (winning 3) among many others.
Marilyn fans will best remember him for his starring role opposite Monroe in “The Prince And The Showgirl” which he also directed.
Although tensions were high between Monroe and Olivier on set and the production has now gone down in history as one of the most fractured. Olivier did manage to compliment Marilyn quite beautifully in this quote:
”She is a brilliant comedienne, and therefore an extremely good actress. She has the cunning gift of being able to suggest one minute that she is the naughtiest little thing, and the next minute that she is beautifully dumb and innocent.”
