Robert Morley

Robert Morley (May 26, 1908 - June 3, 1992) was a British actor who, often in supporting roles, was time and again cast as the archetypal English gentleman representing the Establishment. In his Movie Encyclopedia, film critic Leonard Maltin describes Morley as "recognizable by his ungainly bulk, bushy eyebrows, thick lips, and double chin, […] particularly effective when cast as a pompous windbag".

Born Robert Adolph Wilton Morley in Semley, Wiltshire, England, he attended RADA and made his West End stage debut in 1929 and his Broadway debut in 1938 but was soon won over to the big screen. A versatile actor who, especially in his younger years, played roles as divergent as those of Louis XVI (Marie Antoinette, 1938), Oscar Wilde (1960) and a missionary in The African Queen (1951), Morley personified the conservative Brit in many comedy and caper films. Renowned for excelling at repartee and generally being an eloquent conversationalist, Morley gained the epitheton of being a "wit".

His son, Sheridan Morley, is a well-known critic.

Select filmography

• Little Dorrit (1988) (Lord Decimus Barnacle)
• Alice in Wonderland (1985) (TV) (King of Hearts)
• The Old Men at the Zoo (1982) (TV mini-series) (Lord Godmanchester)
• The Human Factor (1980) (Dr Percival)
• Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe (aka Too Many Chefs) (1978) (Max)
• Great Expectations (1974) (TV) (Uncle Pumblechook)
• Theatre of Blood (1973) (Meredith Merridew)
• Cromwell (1970) (The Earl of Manchester)
• Hot Millions (1968) (Caesar Smith)
• The Alphabet Murders (aka The ABC Murders) (1965) (Captain Arthur Hastings)
• Life at the Top (1965) (Tiffield)
• The Loved One (1965) (Sir Ambrose Ambercrombie)
• Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965) (Lord Rawnsley)
• Topkapi (1964) (Cedric Page)
• Of Human Bondage (1964) (Dr. Jacobs)
• Murder at the Gallop (1963) (Hector Enderby) (opposite Margaret Rutherford)
• Oscar Wilde (1960) (Oscar Wilde)
• The Battle of the Sexes (1959) (Robert MacPherson)
• The Doctor's Dilemma (1959) (Sir Ralph Bloomfield-Bonington)
• Beau Brummell (1954) (King George III)
• Beat the Devil (1953) (Crook #1)
• The African Queen (1951) (Reverend Samuel Sayer)
• The Young Mr. Pitt (1942) (Charles James Fox)
• Major Barbara (1941) (Andrew Undershaft)
• Marie Antoinette (1938) (King Louis XVI)