Albert Finney (9 May 1936 – 7 February 2019) was an English actor. He attended theRoyal Academy of Dramatic Art and worked in the theatre before attaining fame for movie acting during the early 1960s, debuting withThe Entertainer (1960), directed byTony Richardson, who had previously directed him in theatre. He maintained a successful career in theatre, film and television.
While at RADA, Finney made an early television appearance playing Mr Hardcastle inOliver Goldsmith'sShe Stoops to Conquer. The BBC filmed and broadcast the RADA students' performances at theVanbrugh Theatre in London on Friday 6 January 1956. Other members of the cast includedRoy Kinnear andRichard Briers.[2][3] Finney graduated from RADA and became a member of theRoyal Shakespeare Company. He was offered a contract by theRank Organisation, but refused it to perform for theBirmingham Rep.[4] He was in a production ofThe Miser for Birmingham Rep, which was filmed for the BBC in 1956. Also for the BBC he appeared inThe Claverdon Road Job (1957) andView Friendship and Marriage (1958).
Finney's first film appearance was inTony Richardson'sThe Entertainer (1960), with Laurence Olivier. Finney andAlan Bates played Olivier's sons. He made his film breakthrough in the same year with his portrayal of a disillusionedfactory worker inKarel Reisz's film version ofAlan Sillitoe'sSaturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960), produced by Richardson. The film was a success, being the third most popular movie in Britain that year. It earned more than half a million pounds.[7] Finney then didBilly Liar (1960) on stage and for British television.[8] Finney had been chosen to playT. E. Lawrence inDavid Lean's production ofLawrence of Arabia after a successful and elaborate screen-test that took four days to shoot. However, Finney baulked at signing a multi-year contract for producerSam Spiegel and chose to decline the role.[9]
Finney created the title role inLuther, the 1961 play byJohn Osborne depicting the life ofMartin Luther. He performed the role with theEnglish Stage Company in London, Nottingham, Paris and New York.[10] The originalWest End run at thePhoenix ended in March 1962, after 239 performances there, when Finney had to quit the cast to fulfil a contractual obligation with a film company.[11]
Finney starred in theAcademy Award-winning 1963 filmTom Jones, directed by Richardson and written by Osborne. Due to the success ofTom Jones, British exhibitors voted Finney the ninth most popular film actor in 1963.[12] Finney received 10% of the film's earnings, which made him over $1 million.[13]
Finney in 1966.
Finney followed this with a small part in ensemble war filmThe Victors (1963), which was a box-office failure. He then made his Broadway debut inLuther in 1963. When that run ended he decided to take a year off and sail around the world. "People told me to cash in on my success while I was hot," he later said. "I'd been acting for about eight years and had only had one vacation ... Captain Cook had been a hero of mine when I was a kid, and I thought it would be exciting to go to some of the places in the Pacific where he'd been."[4] The success ofTom Jones enabled Finney to produce his next film,Night Must Fall, in 1964, which he also featured in and which was directed by Reisz. A remake ofthe classic 1937 film of the same title, the film was a failure and Finney's performance received poor reviews.[14]
Finney then madeGumshoe (1971), the first feature film directed byStephen Frears, for Memorial. Memorial continued to produce films in which Finney did not appear:Spring and Port Wine (1970), with James Mason;Loving Memory (1971), an early directorial effort fromTony Scott;Bleak Moments (1971), the first feature fromMike Leigh;O Lucky Man! (1973) for Anderson; andLaw and Disorder (1974); filmed in Hollywood. In 1972, Finney returned to stage after a six-year absence withAlpha Beta, which he later filmed on television withRachel Roberts.[16] Memorial Productions stopped producing and Finney emphasized acting. "It was OK at first," he later said, "but in the end it was sitting in an office, pitching ideas to Hollywood and waiting for the phone to ring."[20]
He announced he intended to direct the film,The Girl in Melanie Klein, for Memorial, but it was not made.[23]
Finney decided to take time off from features and focus on stage acting, doing classics at the National Theatre in London. "I felt that it needed commitment," he later said. "When you're making movies all the time, you stop breathing. You literally don't breathe in the same way that you do when you're playing the classics. When you have to deliver those long, complex speeches on stage, you can't heave your shoulders after every sentence. The set of muscles required for that kind of acting need to be trained. I really wanted to try and do justice to my own potential in the parts. I didn't want to be a movie actor just dropping in, doing Hamlet and taking off again. I wanted to feel part of the company."[4]
Finney had not played a major role in a feature film in six years, and started to think about resuming work with cinema. The last two successful films he had made wereScrooge andOrient Express in which he was heavily disguised. "Most Americans probably think I weigh 300 pounds, have black hair and talk with a French accent like Hercule Poirot," said Finney. "So I thought they should have a look at me while I was still almost a juvenile and kind of cute."[4] Finney decided to make six movies in succession "so that I could relax and get back into it again. In order to feel really assured and comfortable in front of a camera, you've got to do it for a while."[4] The first three were thrillers:Loophole (1981), withSusannah York;Wolfen (1981), directed byMichael Wadleigh; andLooker (1981), written and directed byMichael Crichton.[25] He received excellent reviews for his performance in the dramaShoot the Moon (1982).[26] Finney said the role "required personal acting; I had to dig into myself. When you have to expose yourself and use your own vulnerability, you can get a little near the edge."[4]
Less well received was his performance as Daddy Warbucks in theHollywood film version ofAnnie (1982), which was directed byJohn Huston. Finney said doing this movie afterShoot The Moon was "marvelous. I use a completely different side of myself as Warbucks.Annie is show biz; it's open, simple and direct. It needs bold, primary colors. I don't have to reveal the inner workings of the character, and that's a relief."[4]
He also played the title role of the television seriesMy Uncle Silas, based on the short stories byH. E. Bates, about a roguish but lovable poacher-cum-farm labourer looking after his great-nephew. The show played for two series broadcast in 2001 and 2003.[40] Finney had a major role inBig Fish (2003) directed byTim Burton, and did another cameo for Soderbergh inOcean's Twelve (2004). He sang inTim Burton'sCorpse Bride (2005)[41] and the film ofAspects of Love (2005).
In 1957, Finney married actressJane Wenham; they had a son,[28] Simon Finney, who works in the movie industry as a camera operator. They divorced in 1961.[45] In 1970, Finney married French actressAnouk Aimée, a union that lasted eight years. In 2006, he married Penelope Delmage, atravel agent. They remained together until Finney's death.[28][45]
In May 2011, Finney disclosed that he had been receiving treatment forkidney cancer.[46] According to a 2012 interview, he had been diagnosed with the disease five years earlier and had surgery, followed by six rounds ofchemotherapy.[47]
Finney won twoScreen Actors Guild Awards, for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role, forErin Brockovich, and as a member of the acting ensemble in the filmTraffic. He was also nominated forThe Gathering Storm, for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries, but did not win.[103][98]
^ab"Albert Finney".The Guardian. 15 March 1972. p. 10.
^Zolotow, Sam (12 December 1967). "Albert Finney to Appear Here In 'Joe Egg,' a London Success: Simon Sells "Plaza Suite" Don't Drink" Will Move".The New York Times. p. 57.
^News of the Screen: ' Sugarland' Team For 'Clearwater' 5 Adaptations Set In Theater Series Finney to Direct Comedy on Lunacy By A. H. Weiler. New York Times 12 May 1974: 49.
^Whither Albert Finney?: From Manchester to Motown Records Christon, Lawrence. Los Angeles Times 18 July 1977: f1.
^Albert Finney stages a film comeback, Blume, Mary. Los Angeles Times 19 October 1980: p67.
