Paul Rogers (22 March 1917 - 6 October 2013) was an English actor of film, stage and television. He was a BAFTA TV Award Best Actor winner in 1955 and a Tony Award Best Actor winner for The Homecoming in 1967.

Early life and career

Paul Rogers was born in Plympton, Devon, and attended Newton Abbot Grammar School. He later trained at the Michael Chekhov Theatre Studio at Dartington Hall. From 1940 to 1946 he served in the Royal Navy, before returning to acting at the Bristol Old Vic.

He went on to appear in many West End and Broadway productions, and won the Tony for Best Actor for his role in Harold Pinter's play The Homecoming in 1967. He played the role of Sir in the first Broadway production of Ronald Harwood's play The Dresser.

Later career

Rogers was a long-serving member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. His most notable performances with the Company included Nick Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Sir John Falstaff in Henry IV parts 1 and 2.

His film appearances include Beau Brummel (1954), Our Man in Havana (1959), The Trials of Oscar Wilde (1960), Billy Budd (1962), The Third Secret (1964), The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968), A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968), The Looking Glass War (1969), Three Into Two Won't Go (1969), The Homecoming (1973) and Oscar and Lucinda (1997).

He also appeared frequently on television, in productions such as Romeo and Juliet on Producers' Showcase.

Personal life

Paul Rogers was married to Muriel Jocelyn Maire Wynne, by whom he had two children. He married, secondly, Rosalind Boxall and had two more children. He and Boxall remained married until her death in 2004. He died in London in 2013, aged 96.

Selected filmography

• Nothing Lasts Forever (1984)
• The Beachcomber (1954)
• Beau Brummel (1954)
• Svengali (1954)
• Our Man in Havana (1959)
• The Trials of Oscar Wilde (1960)
• No Love for Johnnie (1961)
• The Pot Carriers (1962)
• Life for Ruth (1962)
• The Wild and the Willing (1962)
• Billy Budd (1962)
• Stolen Hours (1963)
• The Third Secret (1964)
• He Who Rides a Tiger (1965)
• The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968)
• Decline and Fall... of a Birdwatcher (1968)
• A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968)
• The Looking Glass War (1969)
• Three Into Two Won't Go (1969)
• The Reckoning (1969)
• I Want What I Want (1972)
• The Homecoming (1973)
• The Abdication (1974)
• Mister Quilp (1975)
• Oscar and Lucinda (1997)

[ Source: Wikipedia ]