Richard Burton

<p>Richard Walter Jenkins Jr. was born on November 10, 1925, into an impoverished coal-mining family in Pontrhydyfen, South Wales, the twelfth of thirteen children. Mentored by his schoolmaster Philip Burton (whose surname he legally adopted), Burton won a scholarship to Exeter College, Oxford, and trained with the Royal Air Force before making his West End and Broadway theatrical breakthroughs.</p><p>Renowned for his commanding physical presence and rich, volcanic baritone voice, Burton was hailed as the natural heir to Laurence Olivier in British Shakespearean theater, delivering legendary performances as Hamlet, Henry V, and Coriolanus at the Old Vic. He achieved Hollywood stardom in the 1950s with <em>My Cousin Rachel</em> (1952) and the religious epic <em>The Robe</em> (1953).</p><p>In 1963, Burton starred as Mark Antony opposite Elizabeth Taylor in the lavish historical epic <em>Cleopatra</em>. Their explosive off-screen romance, subsequent two marriages, and frequent on-screen pairings captivated the global media. Burton delivered career-defining dramatic performances in <em>Becket</em> (1964), <em>The Spy Who Came in from the Cold</em> (1965), <em>Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?</em> (1966), and <em>Equus</em> (1977), receiving seven Academy Award nominations. He passed away from a cerebral hemorrhage in Switzerland on August 5, 1984, at age 58.</p>