Two hundred and fifty

[sovay]

Richard Attenborough.

I think I must have seen him first in The Great Escape (1963); it was one of the movies in the background of my childhood to which I added actors' names as I learned them. Jurassic Park (1993) was the first time anyone told me his name and The Flight of the Phoenix (1965) was when I started paying attention. I still haven't seen Brighton Rock (1947) or 10 Rillington Place (1971), although I know they're famous; I haven't seen In Which We Serve (1942) in so long that I can remember the stoker's arc perfectly well, but nothing about Attenborough in the part. (To be fair, I have the same problem with John Mills.) When I think about him, mostly he looks like Roger Bartlett and Lew Moran—I've seen them the most times. I don't think of him as looking like anyone behind the camera of Oh! What a Lovely War (1969) or Gandhi (1982). I'm missing a lot.

Ninety is a reasonable age. Links to the past break all the time, even if it's past that never existed off the screen. The pictures are there.

Comments

[desperance.livejournal.com]

It's not generally known, but the Attenboroughs had family money from Hodder & Stoughton, who were my first publishers in the UK (and stuck with me for ten years, bless them...). I did once meet the third Attenborough, John, who used to work for the family firm before he was tempted away by some fast-car company - Alfa Romeo, perhaps...?

[gwynnega]

Attenborough is absolutely terrifying in 10 Rillington Place.