Leonard Whiting
Encyclopedia
Leonard Whiting is a British
actor who starred as Romeo in the 1968 Zeffirelli
film version of Romeo and Juliet
opposite Olivia Hussey
's Juliet, a role which earned him the Golden Globe Award for New Star Of The Year - Actor
.
area of London
, England
, the only son of Arthur Leonard Whiting and Peggy Joyce O'Sullivan. He has English
, Irish
and some Romani/Gypsy ancestry.http://members.tripod.com/~lenpage/LW95.htm Whiting attended the St. Richard of Chichester School, Camden Town
, leaving just a week or two before beginning work on Romeo and Juliet
(1968).
's Oliver!
which constantly needed replacements for its child performers. Whiting played the Artful Dodger in the long-running London musical for 18 months, and for 13 months appeared at Laurence Olivier
's National Theatre
in the production of Congreve's "Love for Love" opposite Olivier, which toured Moscow
and Berlin
.
Director Franco Zeffirelli
described his discovery, made from 300 youngsters who auditioned during more than three months: "He has a magnificent face, gentle melancholy, sweet, the kind of idealistic young man Romeo ought to be."
In the mid-1970s, his voice caught the attention of Abbey Road and The Dark Side of the Moon
engineer Alan Parsons
, who was in the process of recording what was to be the first album by The Alan Parsons Project
, Tales of Mystery and Imagination
. Whiting performed lead vocals on the song "The Raven
".
Whiting now lives in the Haverstock
area of London.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actor who starred as Romeo in the 1968 Zeffirelli
Franco Zeffirelli
Franco Zeffirelli KBE is an Italian director and producer of films and television. He is also a director and designer of operas and a former senator for the Italian center-right Forza Italia party....
film version of Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet (1968 film)
Romeo and Juliet is a 1968 British-Italian cinematic adaptation of the William Shakespeare play of the same name.The film was directed and co-written by Franco Zeffirelli, and stars Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey. It won Academy Awards for Best Cinematography and Best Costume Design; it was also...
opposite Olivia Hussey
Olivia Hussey
Olivia Hussey is an Argentinian actress who became famous for her role as Juliet in Franco Zeffirelli's Academy Award-winning 1968 film version of Romeo and Juliet. For this role she won the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actress as well as the David di Donatello for best actress...
's Juliet, a role which earned him the Golden Globe Award for New Star Of The Year - Actor
Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actor
The Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor originated in 1948. Between 1954 and 1965, multiple winners were announced. The category was discontinued following the 1983 ceremonies.-Winners:*1948: Richard Widmark*1950: Richard Todd, Gene Nelson...
.
Early life
Whiting was born in the Wood GreenWood Green
Wood Green is a district in north London, England, located in the London Borough of Haringey. It is situated north of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of the metropolitan centres in Greater London.-History:...
area of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, the only son of Arthur Leonard Whiting and Peggy Joyce O'Sullivan. He has English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and some Romani/Gypsy ancestry.http://members.tripod.com/~lenpage/LW95.htm Whiting attended the St. Richard of Chichester School, Camden Town
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
, leaving just a week or two before beginning work on Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet (1968 film)
Romeo and Juliet is a 1968 British-Italian cinematic adaptation of the William Shakespeare play of the same name.The film was directed and co-written by Franco Zeffirelli, and stars Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey. It won Academy Awards for Best Cinematography and Best Costume Design; it was also...
(1968).
Career
Whiting was spotted by an agent at a recording studio at the age of 12. After hearing him sing, the agent suggested he try out for Lionel BartLionel Bart
Lionel Bart was a writer and composer of British pop music and musicals, best known for creating the book, music and lyrics for Oliver!-Early life:...
's Oliver!
Oliver!
Oliver! is a British musical, with script, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens....
which constantly needed replacements for its child performers. Whiting played the Artful Dodger in the long-running London musical for 18 months, and for 13 months appeared at Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
's National Theatre
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
in the production of Congreve's "Love for Love" opposite Olivier, which toured Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
and Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
.
Director Franco Zeffirelli
Franco Zeffirelli
Franco Zeffirelli KBE is an Italian director and producer of films and television. He is also a director and designer of operas and a former senator for the Italian center-right Forza Italia party....
described his discovery, made from 300 youngsters who auditioned during more than three months: "He has a magnificent face, gentle melancholy, sweet, the kind of idealistic young man Romeo ought to be."
In the mid-1970s, his voice caught the attention of Abbey Road and The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in March 1973. It built on ideas explored in the band's earlier recordings and live shows, but lacks the extended instrumental excursions that characterised their work following the departure...
engineer Alan Parsons
Alan Parsons
Alan Parsons is a British audio engineer, musician, and record producer. He was involved with the production of several significant albums, including The Beatles' Abbey Road and Let It Be, as well as Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon for which Pink Floyd credit him as an important contributor...
, who was in the process of recording what was to be the first album by The Alan Parsons Project
The Alan Parsons Project
The Alan Parsons Project was a British progressive rock band, active between 1975 and 1990, consisting of singer Eric Woolfson and keyboardist Alan Parsons surrounded by a varying number of session musicians....
, Tales of Mystery and Imagination
Tales of Mystery and Imagination
Tales of Mystery and Imagination is the debut album by the progressive rock group The Alan Parsons Project, released in 1976. The album's avant-garde soundscapes kept it from being a blockbuster, but the interesting lyrical and musical themes — retellings of horror stories and poetry by...
. Whiting performed lead vocals on the song "The Raven
The Raven (song)
"The Raven" is a 1976 song by the Alan Parsons Project from their album Tales of Mystery and Imagination. The song is based on the Edgar Allan Poe poem of the same name. It is well-known as being one of the first rock songs to use a vocoder, developed by EMI, to distort vocals. It is also one of...
".
Whiting now lives in the Haverstock
Haverstock
Haverstock is an area and electoral ward in the London Borough of Camden. It is centred around Haverstock Hill and Chalk Farm, with Gospel Oak to the north; Kentish Town to the east; Camden Town to the south, and Swiss Cottage to the west....
area of London.
Filmography
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Other notes |
| 1968 | Romeo and Juliet Romeo and Juliet (1968 film) Romeo and Juliet is a 1968 British-Italian cinematic adaptation of the William Shakespeare play of the same name.The film was directed and co-written by Franco Zeffirelli, and stars Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey. It won Academy Awards for Best Cinematography and Best Costume Design; it was also... |
Romeo Montague Romeo Montague Romeo is one of the fictional protagonists in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Romeo is the son of old Montague and his wife, who secretly loves and marries Juliet, a member of the rival House of Capulet... |
|
| 1969 | Infanzia, vocazione e prime esperienze di Giacomo Casanova, veneziano | Giacomo Casanova Giacomo Casanova Giacomo Girolamo Casanova de Seingalt was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, Histoire de ma vie , is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century... |
|
| The Royal Hunt of the Sun The Royal Hunt of the Sun (film) The Royal Hunt of the Sun is a 1969 British-American film based on the Peter Shaffer play of the same name. With a small rag-tag band of soldiers, Franciso Pizarro enters the Inca Empire and captures its leader, Atahualpa... |
Young Martin | ||
| 1970 | Say Hello to Yesterday Say Hello to Yesterday Say Hello to Yesterday is a 1970 British drama film directed by the Canadian born Alvin Rakoff, on whose original story the film is based. Starring Jean Simmons and Leonard Whiting, it is ' a fast moving account of ten hours in the life of a suburban housewife' and was made at Twickenham Studios... |
Boy | |
| 1972 | À la guerre comme à la guerre | Franz Keller | |
| 1974 | Rachel's Man | Jacob | |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1966 | The Wonderful World of Disney | Jimmy the Dip | Episode: The Legend of Young Dick Turpin (1) Episode: The Legend of Young Dick Turpin (2) |
| 1973 | Frankenstein: The True Story Frankenstein: The True Story Frankenstein: The True Story is a 1973 American made-for-television horror film loosely based on the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. It was directed by Jack Smight, and the screenplay was co-written by novelist Christopher Isherwood.... |
Victor Frankenstein Victor Frankenstein Victor Frankenstein was born in Napoli, is a Swiss fictional character and the protagonist of the 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, written by Mary Shelley... |
NBC NBC The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago... TV-Movie Television movie A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to... |
| 1990 | The Dreamstone The Dreamstone The Dreamstone is a British animated television series that ran for 4 series of 13 episodes each between 1990 and 1995. The original concept and artwork were created by Michael Jupp. The series was animated by the FilmFair animation studio as a Central production for ITV... |
Urpgor | Voice Role |