A Czechoslovakian citizen, born in Germany, who went on to become a
British subject
Best remembered for his role as the cynical analyst of schizophrenic
ventriloquist Michael Redgrave in the classic thriller Dead of Night (1945).
Played most of the Shakespearean leading roles and notable for his
portrayal of Shylock in "The Merchant of Venice." His Othello has been
deemed one of the most definitive--alongside Paul Robeson and Laurence Olivier,
despite the fact that he spoke the lines with a thick Czechoslovakian
accent.
Ironically fled Nazism in 1930s Germany only to be stereotyped as
fearless, imposing-eyed Kommandants in British war pictures; later
played doctors, kings and cabinet ministers as well.
Married with two young sons at the time of his death.
It is said that those who talk so much on the stage shouldn't talk too much in private. No artist should talk at all, he should let his work speak for him.