Alan Furlan (13 April 1920 – 14 May 1997) was an Italian-American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

Biography

Born Aleardo Furlan in Farla, in the North

Friuli Friuli ( fur, Friûl, sl, Furlanija, german: Friaul) is an area of Northeast Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity containing 1,000,000 Friulians. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli Venezia Giulia ...

region of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, Furlan acted in films in Europe and the United States, on

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 ...

and in commercials. On Broadway he appeared in productions such as ''Holiday for Lovers'' (1957), ''The Best House in Naples'' (1956), ''Idiot's Delight'' (1951) and ''Romeo and Juliet'' (1951) starring

Olivia de Havilland Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British-American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her time. ...

. In the late 1940s, he performed in Chicago area

summer stock In American theater, summer-stock theater is a theater that presents stage productions only in the summer. The name combines the season with the tradition of staging shows by a resident company, reusing stock scenery and costumes. Summer stock the ...

theaters with actors such as

Richard Kiley Richard Paul Kiley (March 31, 1922 – March 5, 1999) was an American stage, film and television actor and singer. He is best known for his distinguished theatrical career in which he twice won the Tony Award for Best Actor In A Musical. Kiley ...

. Furlan played the role of Giancarlo in the Italian film '' Donatella'' (1956) which was selected for competition at the

Berlin Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

. He appeared in numerous live broadcast

anthology drama An anthology series is a radio programming, radio, television program, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, Season (televis ...

television series with lead roles in episodes of Police Call, one of the top grossing television series released in 1955, as well as a supporting role in the

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 M ...

production (1957) of the melodramatic comedic Broadway play ''The Great Sebastians'', starring

Alfred Lunt Alfred David Lunt (August 12, 1892 – August 3, 1977) was an American actor and director, best known for his long stage partnership with his wife, Lynn Fontanne, from the 1920s to 1960, co-starring in Broadway theatre, Broadway and West End thea ...

and

Lynn Fontanne Lynn Fontanne (; 6 December 1887 – 30 July 1983) was an English actress. After early success in supporting roles in the West End, she met the American actor Alfred Lunt, whom she married in 1922 and with whom she co-starred in Broadway and We ...

and the

Armstrong Circle Theatre ''Armstrong Circle Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, ...

episode ''The Sound of Violence: The Jukebox Racket'' (1959). He toured with

Mae West Mae West (born Mary Jane West; August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American stage and film actress, playwright, screenwriter, singer, and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned over seven decades. She was known for her breezy ...

as her Latin lover in ''Come On Up, Ring Twice'' and performed in the TV version of the ''Moon and Sixpence'' with

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...

(1959). Furlan later became the mentor of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

's Sunset Playhouse where he remained

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the ...

for 28 years.

Personal life

He was married to Mary Lake and they had a daughter Nicola Lea.

Filmography

* ''The Sinner'' (1959), ''La peccatrice del deserto'' (original title Italy); a.k.a. ''Desert Desperados'' (USA title) *

, (1959) ''The Sound of Violence: The Jukebox Racket'' *

, ''The Great Sebastians'' (1957) *''Defend My Love'' (1956), a.k.a. ''Difendo il mio amore'' (original title Italy) *''

War and Peace ''War and Peace'' (russian: Война и мир, translit=Voyna i mir; pre-reform Russian: ; ) is a literary work by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy that mixes fictional narrative with chapters on history and philosophy. It was first published ...

'' (1956) *''I tre moschettieri'' (1956, TV series); a.k.a. ''The Three Musketeers'' (USA title) *'' Donatella'' (1956) *'' Police Call'' (1955) *''

La tua donna ''La tua donna'' (i.e. "Your Woman") is a 1954 Italian melodrama film co-written and directed by Giovanni Paolucci and starring Patricia Neal, Massimo Girotti and Lea Padovani."La tua donna (Your Woman)". ''Films in Review''. Vol. 34. National Boa ...

'' (1954) *''

Orient Express The ''Orient Express'' was a long-distance passenger train service created in 1883 by the Belgian company ''Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits'' (CIWL) that operated until 2009. The train traveled the length of continental Europe and int ...

'' (1953); episode '' His Son'' (a.k.a. '' His Boy'')

Broadway stage work

*''Holiday for Lovers'' (1957) *'' The Best House in Naples'' (1956) *'' Idiot's Delight'' (1951) *''Romeo and Juliet'' (1951)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Furlan, Alan 1920 births 1997 deaths American male film actors Italian male film actors Italian emigrants to the United States 20th-century American male actors 20th-century Italian male actors