Paul Rogers (22 March 1917 – 6 October 2013) was an English actor of film, stage and television. He was the first winner of the BAFTA TV Award Best Actor in 1955 and won a

Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actors for quality leading roles in a Broadway p ...

for ''

The Homecoming ''The Homecoming'' is a two-act play written in 1964 by Harold Pinter and first published in 1965. Its premières in London (1965) and New York (1967) were both directed by Sir Peter Hall. The original Broadway production won the 1967 Tony A ...

'' in 1967.

Early life and career

Paul Rogers was born in

Plympton Plympton is a suburb of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England. It is in origin an ancient stannary town. It was an important trading centre for locally mined tin, and a seaport before the River Plym silted up and trade moved down river to Plym ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

, and attended

Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its 2011 population of 24,029 was estimated to reach 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the So ...

Grammar School. He later trained at the

Michael Chekhov Mikhail Aleksandrovich Chekhov (russian: Михаил Александрович Чехов; 29 August 1891 – 30 September 1955), known as Michael Chekhov, was an American actor, director, author and theatre practitioner. He was a nephew ...

Theatre Studio at

Dartington Hall Dartington Hall in Dartington, near Totnes, Devon, England, is an historic house and country estate of dating from medieval times. The group of late 14th century buildings are Grade I listed; described in Pevsner's Buildings of England as "on ...

. From 1940 to 1946 he served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, before returning to acting at the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a f ...

. He went on to appear in many West End and

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

productions, and won the Tony for Best Actor for his role in Harold Pinter's play ''

'' in 1967. He played the role of Sir in the first Broadway production of

Ronald Harwood Sir Ronald Harwood ( né Horwitz; 9 November 1934 – 8 September 2020) was a South African-born British author, playwright, and screenwriter, best known for his plays for the British stage as well as the screenplays for ''The Dresser'' (for w ...

's play ''

The Dresser ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

''.

Later career

Rogers was a long-serving member of the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

. His most notable performances with the Company included

Nick Bottom Nick Bottom is a character in Shakespeare's ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' who provides comic relief throughout the play. A weaver by trade, he is famously known for getting his head transformed into that of a donkey by the elusive Puck. Bott ...

in ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

'' and

Sir John Falstaff Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays ''Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', wh ...

in ''Henry IV'' parts 1 and 2. His film appearances include '' Beau Brummel'' (1954), '' Our Man in Havana'' (1959), ''

The Trials of Oscar Wilde ''The Trials of Oscar Wilde'', also known as ''The Man with the Green Carnation'' and ''The Green Carnation'', is a 1960 British drama film based on the libel and subsequent criminal cases involving Oscar Wilde and the Marquess of Queensberry. ...

'' (1960), '' Billy Budd'' (1962), '' The Third Secret'' (1964), ''

The Shoes of the Fisherman The Shoes of the Fisherman may refer to: * ''The Shoes of the Fisherman'' (novel), a 1963 novel by the writer Morris West * ''The Shoes of the Fisherman'' (film), a 1968 film based on the novel {{disambiguation ...

'' (1968), ''

'' (1968), '' Three Into Two Won't Go'' (1969), ''

The Looking Glass War ''The Looking Glass War'' is a 1965 spy novel by John le Carré. Written in response to the positive public reaction to his previous novel, ''The Spy Who Came in from the Cold'', the book explores the unglamorous nature of espionage and the da ...

'' (1970), ''

'' (1973) and ''

Oscar and Lucinda ''Oscar and Lucinda'' is a novel by Australian author Peter Carey which won the 1988 Booker Prize and the 1989 Miles Franklin Award. It was shortlisted for The Best of the Booker. Plot introduction It tells the story of Oscar Hopkins, th ...

'' (1997). He also appeared frequently on television, in productions such as ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...

'' on ''

Producers' Showcase ''Producers' Showcase'' is an American anthology television series that was telecast live during the 1950s in compatible color by NBC. With top talent, the 90-minute episodes, covering a wide variety of genres, aired under the title every fourth ...

and Public Eye.''

Personal life

Paul Rogers was married to Muriel Jocelyn Maire Wynne, by whom he had two children. His second marriage was to Rosalind Boxall, by whom he also had two children. He and Rosalind remained married until her death in 2004. He died in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 2013, aged 96.

Selected filmography

* ''

Murder in the Cathedral ''Murder in the Cathedral'' is a verse drama by T. S. Eliot, first performed in 1935, that portrays the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral during the reign of Henry II in 1170. Eliot drew heavily on the writin ...

'' (1951) * '' The Beachcomber'' (1954) - Rev. Owen Jones * '' Beau Brummel'' (1954) - William Pitt * ''

Svengali Svengali () is a character in the novel ''Trilby'' which was first published in 1894 by George du Maurier. Svengali is a man who seduces, dominates and exploits Trilby, a young half-Irish girl, and makes her into a famous singer. Definition ...

'' (1954) - Taffy * '' Our Man in Havana'' (1959) - Hubert Carter * ''

'' (1960) - Frank Harris * ''

A Circle of Deception ''Circle of Deception'' is a 1960 CinemaScope British war film directed by Jack Lee and starring Bradford Dillman, Suzy Parker and Harry Andrews. Plot A Canadian officer is sent on a secret and dangerous mission during World War II. His sup ...

'' (1960) - Maj. William Spence * ''

No Love for Johnnie ''No Love for Johnnie'' is a 1961 British drama film in CinemaScope directed by Ralph Thomas. It was based on the 1959 book of the same title by the Labour Member of Parliament Wilfred Fienburgh, and stars Peter Finch. It depicts the disill ...

'' (1961) - Sydney Johnson * '' The Mark'' (1961) - Roy Milne * ''

The Pot Carriers ''The Pot Carriers'' is a 1962 British comedy-drama film directed by Peter Graham Scott and produced by Gordon Scott for ABPC. It stars Ronald Fraser, Paul Massie, Carole Lesley and Dennis Price. The film is largely set in Wandsworth pris ...

'' (1962) - Governor * ''

Life for Ruth ''Life for Ruth'' is a 1962 British drama film produced by Michael Relph directed by Basil Dearden and starring Michael Craig, Patrick McGoohan and Janet Munro. It was released in the US as Walk in the Shadow. Plot John Harris finds himself o ...

'' (1962) - Counsel Hart Jacobs * ''

The Wild and the Willing ''The Wild and the Willing'' is a 1962 British romantic drama film, directed by Ralph Thomas and starring Virginia Maskell, Paul Rogers, and Samantha Eggar. It is the film debuts of Ian McShane, John Hurt, and Samantha Eggar. It depicts a grou ...

'' (1962) - Prof. George Chown * '' Billy Budd'' (1962) - Philip Seymour - First Lieutenant * ''

Stolen Hours ''Stolen Hours'' is a 1963 British-American drama film directed by Daniel Petrie and starring Susan Hayward as a socialite with a brain tumor who falls in love with her surgeon's colleague. The film also stars Michael Craig, Edward Judd and Dia ...

'' (1963) - Dr. Eric McKenzie * '' The Third Secret'' (1964) - Dr. Milton Gillen * ''

He Who Rides a Tiger ''He Who Rides a Tiger'' is a 1965 British crime drama directed by Charles Crichton, and starring Tom Bell and Judi Dench. Background The film was based on the real-life cat-burglar Peter Scott Sir Peter Markham Scott, (14 September 190 ...

'' (1965) - Supt. Taylor * '' Decline and Fall... of a Birdwatcher'' (1968) - Chief Warder * ''

'' (1968) - Augustinian * ''

'' (1968) - Bottom * '' Three Into Two Won't Go'' (1969) - Jack Roberts * ''

'' (1970) - Haldane * '' The Reckoning'' (1970) - John Hazlitt * '' I Want What I Want'' (1972) - Mr. Waites * ''

'' (1973) - Max * ''

Lost in the Stars ''Lost in the Stars'' is a musical with book and lyrics by Maxwell Anderson and music by Kurt Weill, based on the novel ''Cry, the Beloved Country'' (1948) by Alan Paton. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1949; it was the composer's last work ...

'' (1974) - James Jarvis * ''

The Abdication ''The Abdication'' is a 1974 British historical drama film directed by Anthony Harvey and starring Peter Finch and Liv Ullmann. The film's score was composed by Nino Rota. It tells a fictionalized version of the rumored love affair between Chr ...

'' (1974) - Altieri * ''

Mister Quilp ''Mister Quilp'' is a 1975 British musical film directed by Michael Tuchner and starring Anthony Newley, David Hemmings and Jill Bennett. It is based on the 1841 novel ''The Old Curiosity Shop'' by Charles Dickens, under which name it was als ...

'' (1975) - Single Gent / Henry Trent * '' Nothing Lasts Forever'' (1984) - Hugo * ''

'' (1997) - Gambling Steward (final film role)

References

External links

*
Notice of Paul Rogers' death

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Paul (actor) 1917 births 2013 deaths Best Actor BAFTA Award (television) winners English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors People from Plympton Royal Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century English male actors Royal Shakespeare Company members English male Shakespearean actors Tony Award winners Male actors from Devon