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Noël Coward

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 1899 – 26 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise". Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy in London as a child, making his professional stage début at the age of eleven. As a teenager he was introduced into the high society in which most of his plays would be set. Coward achieved enduring success as a playwright, publishing more than 50 plays from his teens onwards. Many of his works, such as Hay Fever, Private Lives, Design for Living, Present Laughter and Blithe Spirit, have remained in the regular theatre repertoire. He composed hundreds of songs, in addition to well over a dozen musical theatre works (including the operetta Bitter Sweet and comic revues), poetry, several volumes of short stories, the novel Pomp and Circumstance, and a three-volume autobiography. Coward's stage and film acting and directing career spanned six decades, during which he starred in many of his own works. At the outbreak of World War II, Coward volunteered for war work, running the British propaganda office in Paris. He also worked with the Secret Service, seeking to use his influence to persuade the American public and government to help Britain. Coward won an Academy Honorary Award in 1943 for his naval film drama, In Which We Serve, and was knighted in 1969. In the 1950s he achieved fresh success as a cabaret performer, performing his own songs, such as "Mad Dogs and Englishmen", "London Pride" and "I Went to a Marvellous Party". His plays and songs achieved new popularity in the 1960s and 1970s, and his work and style continue to influence popular culture. Coward did not publicly acknowledge his homosexuality, but it was discussed candidly after his death by biographers including Graham Payn, his long-time partner, and in Coward's diaries and letters, published posthumously. The former Albery Theatre (originally the New Theatre) in London was renamed the Noël Coward Theatre in his honour in 2006. Description above from the Wikipedia article Noël Coward, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.


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Born:
Dec 16, 1899 In Teddington, Middlesex, England, UK
Movie/TV Credits:
18
First Appeared:
In the movie Hearts of the World 1918-03-11
Latest Project:
Movie Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker 1991-10-28
Known For
Poster of The Italian Job
Poster of Boom!
Poster of The Astonished Heart
Poster of Le Journal de la Résistance
Filmography
Movie Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker actor 'Bunny Lake Is Missing' (archive footage) (uncredited) 1991-10-28
Movie The Italian Job Mr. Bridger 1969-06-02
Movie Boom! The Witch of Capri 1968-05-26
Movie Bunny Lake Is Missing Horatio Wilson 1965-10-03
Movie Paris When It Sizzles Alexander Meyerheim 1964-03-16
Movie Our Man in Havana Hawthorne 1960-01-27
Movie Surprise Package King Pavel II 1960-09-29
Movie Blithe Spirit Charles Condomine 1956-01-14
Movie Around the World in Eighty Days Roland Hesketh-Baggott 1956-10-17
Movie The Astonished Heart Dr. Christian Faber 1950-03-17
Series The Ed Sullivan Show Unknown 1948-06-20
Movie Le Journal de la Résistance Himself - Narrator (English version) 1945-01-01
Movie Blithe Spirit Narrator (uncredited) 1945-04-05
Movie Brief Encounter Train Station Announcer (uncredited) 1945-11-24
Movie In Which We Serve Captain E. V. Kinross R.N. / Captain 'D' 1942-09-17
Movie Men Are Not Gods Passer-by (uncredited) 1936-11-26
Movie The Scoundrel Anthony Mallare 1935-04-30
Movie Hearts of the World The Man with the Wheelbarrow / A Villager in the Streets 1918-03-11