Chamberlain, Richard 1934–

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Chamberlain, Richard 1934–

PERSONAL

Full name, George Richard Chamberlain; born March 31, 1934, in Beverly Hills, CA; son of Charles (a sales representative) and Elsa Chamberlain; longtime companion of Martin Rabbett (an actor, director, and producer). Education: Pomona College, B.A., 1956; studied voice at Los Angeles Conservatory of Music, 1958; studied acting with Jeff Corey and in England.

Addresses:

Agent—(voice work) Cunningham/Escott/Slevin & Doherty Talent Agency, 10635 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 140, Los Angeles, CA 90025.

Career:

Actor, director, and producer. CHAM Enterprises (production company), founder and executive producer; Company of Angels (theatre company), Los Angeles, founding member. Also watercolor artist, with work exhibited in Hawaii. Hawaii Public Television Fund, honorary chair of advisory board. Military service: U.S. Army, 1956-58, served in Korea; became sergeant.

Member:

Actors' Equity Association, Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

Awards, Honors:

Golden Apple Award, 1962, and Golden Apple Award nomination, 1963, both most cooperative actor, Hollywood Women's Press Club; Photoplay Awards, most popular male star, annually, 1962-64, Golden Globe Award, best male television star, 1963, and winner of TV Guide poll, favorite male performer, 1963, all for Dr. Kildare; Los Angeles Theatre Critics Award, 1973, for Cyrano de Bergerac; Emmy Award nomination, outstanding actor in a special dramatic or comedy program, 1975, for The Count of Monte Cristo; Drama Desk Award nomination, outstanding actor in a play, 1977, for The Night of the Iguana; Australian Film Institute Award nomination, best actor in a lead role, 1978, and Clavell de Plata Award, best actor, Catalonian International Film Festival, 1982, both for The Last Wave; Drama Desk Award nomination, outstanding actor in a play, 1979, for Fathers and Sons; Golden Globe Award nomination, best actor in a television drama, 1980, for Centennial; Golden Apple Award, male star of the year, 1980; British TV Times Award, best actor, Emmy Award nomination, best actor in a limited series or special, 1981, and Golden Globe Award, best actor in a television drama series, 1981, all for Shogun; People's Choice Award, US Magazine Reader's Poll Award, best actor in a dramatic series or miniseries, Emmy Award nomination, best actor in a limited series or special, 1983, and Golden Globe Award, best actor in a television miniseries or movie, 1984, all for The Thorn Birds; Aftonbladet Television Prize, best male foreign television personality, 1985; Emmy Award nomination, 1985, and Golden Globe Award nomination, 1986, both best actor in a television miniseries or movie, for Wallenberg: A Hero's Story; Golden Globe Award nomination, best actor in a television miniseries or movie, 1989, for The Bourne Identity; received star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, 2000; honorary doctorate from Pomona College.

CREDITS

Television Appearances; Series:

Dr. James Kildare, Dr. Kildare, NBC, 1961-66.

Dr. Daniel Kulani, Island Son, CBS, 1989.

Television Appearances; Miniseries:

Ralph Touchett, The Portrait of a Lady, BBC, 1968.

Alexander McKeag, Centennial, NBC, 1978.

Pilot-Major John Blackthorne, Shogun (also known as James Clavell's "Shogun"), NBC, 1980.

Father Ralph de Bricassart, The Thorn Birds, ABC, 1983.

Raoul Wallenberg, Wallenberg (also known as Wallenberg: A Hero's Story), NBC, 1985.

John Charles Fremont, Dream West, CBS, 1986.

Narrator, The Astronomers, PBS, 1991.

Archbishop Ralph de Bricassart, The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years, ABC, 1996.

Bernard Lafferty, Too Rich: The Secret Life of Doris Duke, CBS, 1999.

Narrator, Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire, PBS, 2004.

(In archive footage) Retrosexual: The 80's, VH1, 2004.

Governor Charles Eden, Blackbeard, Hallmark Channel, 2006.

Television Appearances; Movies:

King Edward VIII, Duke of Windsor, The Woman I Love, 1973.

F. Scott Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald and "The Last of the Belles," 1974.

Edmond Dantes, The Count of Monte Cristo (also known as Il Conte di Montecristo), 1975.

Philippe, King Louis XIV, The Man in the Iron Mask, 1976.

Anton Chekhov and other roles, The Good Doctor, 1978.

Dr. Frederick Cook, Cook and Peary: The Race to the Pole, 1983.

The Miracle, 1985.

Giovanni Casanova, Casanova (also known as Il veneziano, vita e amori di Giacomo Casanova), 1987.

Jason Bourne, The Bourne Identity, ABC, 1988.

Ross Colburn, Aftermath: A Test of Love (also known as The Other Side of Murder), CBS, 1991.

Harry Powell, Night of the Hunter, ABC, 1991.

Captain John Crouch, Ordeal in the Arctic, ABC, 1993.

Andrew McCracken, The Lost Daughter (also known as Die verlorene tochter), 1997.

Dane Corvin, All the Winters that Have Been, CBS, 1997.

Televison Appearances; Specials:

Bob Hope Thanksgiving Special, 1964.

Title role, "Hamlet," Hallmark Hall of Fame (also known as Hallmark Television Playhouse), NBC, 1970.

Narrator, The Little Mermaid, CBS, 1973.

Thomas Mendip, The Lady's Not for Burning, PBS, 1974.

Inside "The Swarm," 1978.

Bobby, "Company," Musical Comedy Tonight, PBS, 1979.

Perry Como's Christmas in the Holy Land (also known as Christmas in the Holy Land), ABC, 1980.

The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts, CBS, 1981.

The Night of 100 Stars, ABC, 1982.

The American Film Institute Salute to Billy Wilder, ABC, 1986.

Host, An All-Star Salute to Ford's Theatre, CBS. 1986.

A Star-Spangled Celebration, ABC, 1987.

CBS All-American Thanksgiving Day Parade, CBS, 1989.

CBS Premiere Preview Spectacular, CBS, 1989.

Narrator, Greed, Guns and Wildlife, TBS, 1989.

(Uncredited) Guest of honor, Rebildfest, 1990.

A User's Guide to Planet Earth: The American Environment Test, ABC, 1991.

MGM: When the Lion Roars, TNT, 1992.

Host and narrator, Portrait of Japan, TBS, 1992.

Host, Great Television Moments: What We Watched, ABC, 1993.

Host, Hawaii: Paradise in Peril, TBS, 1993.

ABC's 50th Anniversary Celebration, ABC, 2003.

TV Guide Close Up: From Comedy Club to Primetime, 2004.

Television Appearances; Episodic:

Clay Pine, "Road Hog," Alfred Hitchcock Presents, CBS, 1959.

Pete, "The Bobsy Twins," Gunsmoke (also known as Gun Law and Marshal Dillon), CBS, 1960.

Alec, "Operation Fortuna," Mr. Lucky, CBS, 1960.

Dale Wellington, "Target of Hate," Bourbon Street Beat, ABC, 1960.

Larry Carter, "The Watcher," Thriller (also known as Boris Karloff's "Thriller"), NBC, 1960.

"Stain of Justice," Whispering Smith, 1961.

Jerry Kirk, "The Edge of Doubt," The Deputy, 1961.

Dr. James Kildare, "Four Feet in the Morning," The Eleventh Hour, 1963.

The Andy Williams Show, 1965.

The Carol Burnett Show (also known as Carol Burnett and Friends), CBS, 1967.

Everett/Jack Clay, "The Face on the Bar Room Floor," Touched by an Angel, CBS, 2000.

Maggie Wick, "The Curse of the Mummy," The Drew Carey Show, ABC, 2002.

Maggie Wick, "Look Mom, One Hand!," The Drew Carey Show, ABC, 2002.

Clyde, "Steams like Old Times," Will & Grace, NBC, 2005.

Himself, "Medics," After They Were Famous, ITV, 2005.

James Whittaker Wright III, Hustle (also known as Hu$tle), BBC, 2006.

Arthur Stiles, "Blu Mondae," Nip/Tuck, FX Channel, 2006.

Television Guest Appearances; Episodic:

Mystery guest, What's My Line?, CBS, 1962.

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (also known as The Best of Carson), NBC, 1964, 1965, 1970, 1990.

The Merv Griffin Show, CBS, 1970.

The Dick Cavett Show, ABC, 1970.

Dinah! (also known as Dinah! & Friends), 1976.

Entertainment Tonight (also known as Entertainment This Week, E.T., ET Weekend, and This Week in Entertainment), syndicated, 1981.

"Wetten dass …? aus Emden," Wetten, dass …?, 1995.

Caiga quien caiga, 1997.

So Graham Norton, Channel 4, 2000.

The Late Late Show, CBS, 2006.

Gylne tider, 2006.

Television Appearances; Awards Presentations:

Presenter, The 34th Annual Academy Awards, ABC, 1962.

Presenter, The 37th Annual Academy Awards, ABC, 1965.

Presenter, The 44th Annual Academy Awards, NBC, 1972.

Cohost, The 35th Annual Tony Awards, 1981.

The 39th Annual Golden Globe Awards, CBS, 1982.

The 41st Annual Tony Awards, CBS, 1987.

The 42nd Annual Tony Awards, CBS, 1988.

Presenter, The 50th Annual Golden Globe Awards, TBS, 1993.

The 53rd Annual Tony Awards, CBS, 1999.

Presenter, The 10th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, TNT, 2004.

Television Appearances; Other:

Title role, Paradise Kid (pilot), 1960.

Title role, The Christmas Messenger, 1975.

Television Work; Series:

Executive producer, Island Son, CBS, 1989.

Film Appearances:

(Film debut) Dean Christopher, The Secret of Purple Reef, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1960.

Lieutenant Porter, A Thunder of Drums, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1961.

David Mitchell, Twilight of Honor (also known as The Charge Is Murder), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1963.

Carl Brown, Joy in the Morning, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1965.

David Danner, Petulia, Warner Bros., 1968.

Roderick, The Madwoman of Chaillot, Warner Bros., 1969.

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, The Music Lovers (also known as Ken Russell's Film on Tchaikovsky and the Music Lovers), United Artists, 1971.

Octavius Caesar, Julius Caesar, American International Pictures, 1971.

Lord Byron, Lady Caroline Lamb (also known as Peccato d'amore), United Artists, 1972.

The Films of Robert Bolt, 1972.

Aramis, The Three Musketeers (also known as The Three Musketeers: The Queen's Diamonds and Los tres mosqueteros), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1974.

Roger Simmons, son-in-law, The Towering Inferno, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1974.

Aramis, The Four Musketeers (also known as The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge, The Four Musketeers: The Revenge of Milady, The Return of the Three Musketeers, The Revenge of Milady, and Los cuatro mosqueteros), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1975.

Narrator, The Little Mermaid (also known as Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid," and Andersen dowa ningyo hime), 1975.

Prince Edward, The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of Cinderella (also known as The Slipper and the Rose), Universal, 1977.

Dr. Hubbard, The Swarm, Warner Bros., 1978.

David Burton, The Last Wave, World Northal, 1979.

Nat Bridger, Murder by Phone (also known as Bells, The Calling, and Hell's Bells), New World, 1982.

Alan Quartermain, King Solomon's Mines, Cannon, 1985.

Alan Quartermain, Alan Quartermain and the Lost City of Gold, Cannon, 1987.

Aramis, The Return of the Musketeers (also known as El regreso de los mosqueteros and Le retour des mousquetaires), Universal, 1989.

Jonathan Griffith, Bird of Prey, Astra Cinema, 1996.

Thaddeus MacKenzie, A River Made to Drown In, Showcase Entertainment, 1997.

Huddlestone, The Pavilion, 1999.

Denis O'Leary, Strength and Honor, Maron Pictures, 2006.

I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, Universal, 2007.

Stage Appearances:

Jeff Claypool, Breakfast at Tiffany's (musical), Majestic Theatre, New York City, 1966.

The Philadelphia Story, Florida, 1966.

Title role, Hamlet, Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Birmingham, England, 1969.

Thomas Mendip, The Lady's Not for Burning, Chichester Festival Theatre, Chichester, England, 1972.

Title role, Cyrano de Bergerac, Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles, 1973.

The Fantasticks (musical), Arlington Park, IL, 1973.

Reverend T. Lawrence Shannon, The Night of the Iguana, Ahmanson Theatre, 1975, then Circle in the Square, New York City, 1976-77.

Sergius, Arms and the Man, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Williamstown, MA, 1980.

Wild Bill Hickock, Fathers and Sons, New York Shakespeare Festival, Public Theatre, New York City, then Other Stage, Los Angeles, 1981.

The Night of 100 Stars, Radio City Music Hall, 1982.

Charles, Blithe Spirit, Neil Simon Theatre, New York City, 1987.

Henry Higgins, My Fair Lady (musical), Virginia Theatre, New York City, 1993-94.

Captain Georg Von Trapp, The Sound of Music (musical), Martin Beck Theatre, New York City, 1999.

Alan Perry, The Shadow of Greatness, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Stockbridge, MA, 2000.

The Stillborn Lover, Main Stage, Berkshire Theatre Festival, 2003.

Title role, Scrooge (musical), Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Chicago, IL, 2004.

Also appeared in Born Every Minute, New York City.

Major Tours:

Title role, Richard II, U.S. cities, 1971-72.

Henry Higgins, My Fair Lady (musical), U.S. cities, 1994, then European cities, 1995-96.

Captain Georg Von Trapp, The Sound of Music (musical), U.S. cities, 1999-2000.

Also toured U.S. cities in Private Lives and West Side Story.

Stage Director:

The Shadow Box, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Williamstown, MA, 1978.

RECORDINGS

Videos:

Narrator, River Song: A Natural History of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, 1987.

Narrator, Greed and Wildlife: Poaching in America, National Audubon Video, 1989.

The Thorn Birds: Old Friends New Stories, Warner Bros., 2003.

Scoundrels, Scallywags, and Scurvy Knaves, Echo Bridge Home Entertainment, 2006.

The Uncommon Making of Petulia, Warner Home Video, 2006.

Albums:

Released two albums. Singles released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer include "Theme from Dr. Kildare (Three Stars Will Shine Tonight)," 1962; "Love Me Tender," 1962; "All I Have to Do Is Dream/Hi-Lilli, Hi-Lo," 1963; and "Blue Guitar," 1963.