Rex Harrison

Sir Reginald Carey Harrison, known professionally as Rex Harrison, was an English actor born on 5 March 1908 in Huyton, Lancashire, to a cotton broker father and a mother named Edith Mary. He was the youngest of three children, with two older sisters. After losing most of the sight in his left eye due to childhood measles, he pursued an early interest in acting, performing in school plays and attending the Liverpool Playhouse. His professional stage career began there in 1924 at age sixteen, playing a small part in *Thirty Minutes in a Street*. He spent several years touring and in repertory, including a production of *Charley’s Aunt*, before achieving critical notice for *Heroes Don’t Care* in 1936. That same year, he made his West End debut in Terence Rattigan’s *French Without Tears*, which became his breakthrough role and established him as a leading light comedian. During World War II, he served in the Royal Air Force as a flight lieutenant. Harrison alternated between London and New York stages, winning his first Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for portraying Henry VIII in *Anne of the Thousand Days* on Broadway in 1949. He achieved international superstardom and a second Tony for his performance as Professor Henry Higgins in the 1956 stage musical *My Fair Lady*, opposite Julie Andrews. His film career began with *The Great Game* (1930) and included his first starring role opposite Vivien Leigh in *Storm in a Teacup* (1937). He received critical acclaim for *Major Barbara* (1941), filmed in London during the Blitz. Other notable films include *Blithe Spirit* (1945), *Anna and the King of Siam* (1946), *The Ghost and Mrs. Muir* (1947), *Cleopatra* (1963), and *Doctor Dolittle* (1967). He reprised his stage role as Henry Higgins in the 1964 film adaptation of *My Fair Lady*, winning the Academy Award for Best Actor. Harrison released his first autobiography in 1975 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in June 1989. He was married six times and had two sons, Noel and Carey. He continued acting on stage until shortly before his death from pancreatic cancer on 2 June 1990 at age 82. His second autobiography, *A Damned Serious Business: My Life in Comedy*, was published posthumously in 1991.