It's hard to know where to begin in celebrating the life and career of Richard Attenborough but it is no hyperbole to suggest that he was indelibly weaved into the weft and warp of the British film industry. An actor of star quality, a director of international distinction and a tireless producer giving birth to some landmark movies.
Coming up ... some viewing suggestions from You Tube in an attempt to convey something of the talented and the amazing modesty of this enormous talent. First,RA talking about one of his best performances on '10 Rillington Place':
Surprisingly enough, RA only turned to film direction in his late 40s when he debuted on his confident and impressive rendering of Joan Littlewood's 'Theatre Workshop' production of 'Oh What a Lovely War'. I say surprising because subsequently he rarely put a foot wrong behind the camera. It was as if he had always been a director:
This next example is to illustrate RA's talent as a 'tireless producer' though actually Joseph E. Levine was the film's real producer, but what I'm pointing is the kind of person who has an idea of creating a war movie that will depict events as they really are, and then back that idea up with a logistically authentic realisation the likes of which had not been seen since the war itself, including the greatest gathering of DC3s that peacetime had known:
One of my favourite RA films pretty well spring-boarded the Hollywood career of Anthony Hopkins, in my opinion. The marvellous guignol chiller, 'Magic'. Producer once again Joseph E.Levine. Scareeee!
Oh and, who knows where on earth he got the time, but he was inclined to help out with the odd bit of committee work. Much of it without renumeration. Now, let's see, where do we start:
Actors Charitable Trust. Chairman 1956–88, President 1988–2014
Equity. Council Member 1949–73
Royal Theatrical Fund Board of Directors. Vice President 1985–2014
Muscular Dystrophy Campaign. Vice President 1962–71, President 1971–2004, Life President 2004–2014
Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund. Council Member 1962–2003, Vice Patron 2003–2014
King George V Fund for Actors. Committee Member 1962–73, Trustee 1973–2014
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Member of Council 1963–73, Chairman 1973–2003, President 2003–2014
Combined Theatrical Charities Appeals Council. Chairman 1964–88, President 1988–2014
Royal Society of Arts. Life Fellow 1965
Chelsea Football Club. Vice President 1966, Director 1969–82, Life Vice President 1993–2008, Life President 2008–2014
Cinematograph Films Council Member 1967–73
Gardner Centre for the Arts, University of Sussex. Patron 1969–90, President 1990–2014
National Film and Television School. Governor 1970–81, President 1977–2014
University of Sussex. Pro Chancellor 1970–98, Chancellor 1998–2008
BAFTA. Vice President 1971–94, Chairman of David Lean BAFTA Foundation Trustees 1972–2002, President 2002–2014
Capital Radio. Chairman 1972–92, Life President 1992–2014
The Little Theatre, Leicester. Patron 1973–92, Honorary Life President 1992–2014
The Young Vic Theatre Company. Director 1974–84
"Help a London Child". Founder & Life Patron 1998–2014
Tate Gallery. Trustee 1976–82 & 1994–96
Waterford Kamhlaba School, Swaziland. Chairman UK Trustees 1976–2004, Member Governing Council 1987–, President 2004–2014
Duke of York's Theatre. Chairman 1979–92
Channel Four Television Corporation. Deputy Chairman 1980–86, Chairman 1986–92
Board of Governors of the British Film Institute. Chairman 1981–92
Goldcrest Films & Television. Chairman 1982–87
Kingsley Hall Community Centre. (Mahatma Gandhi lodged there in 1931) Patron 1982–2014
Committee of Enquiry into the Arts and Disabled People: Reporting on access and inclusion. Chairman 1983–85
The Gandhi Foundation. President 1983–2014
Brighton Festival. President 1984–85
British Film Year. President 1984–86
British Screen Advisory Council. Chairman 1987–96, Honorary President 1996–2014
UNICEF. Goodwill Ambassador 1987–2014
European Script Fund. Chairman 1988–96, Honorary President 1996–2014
Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, London. Patron (with Lady Attenborough) 1988–2014
Arts For Health. President 1989–2014
European Film Academy. Co-founder (with Ingmar Bergman, Federico Fellini and Claude Chabrol) 1989
Richard Attenborough Centre for Disability and the Arts, University of Leicester. Patron 1990–2014
Foundation for Sport and the Arts. Trustee 1991–2003, President 2003–2014
Chicken Shed Theatre Company. Honorary Patron 1992–2014
One World Action. Patron 1992–2014
Satyajit Ray Foundation. Patron 1995–2014
Oxford University, Cameron Mackintosh Visiting Professor of Contemporary Theatre. 1996
Sussex Centre for German-Jewish Studies. Patron 1996–2014
United World Colleges. Member of the International Board 1996–2000, International Patron 2000–2014
Amnesty International. Patron 1997–2014
Mousetrap Theatre Projects. Trustee 1997–2014
The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. Trustee 1998
UK Film Council. Government Advisor 1999–2014
Sir John Gielgud Charitable Trust. Trustee 2001–2014
Themba HIV/AIDS Project in South Africa. Patron 2002–2014
Unicorn Theatre. Patron 2002–2014
Mandela Statue Fund. Chairman 2003–2007
St Edward's Oxford North Wall Arts Centre. Patron and Steering Committee Member 2005–2014
CLIC Sargent. Ambassador 2006–2014
Greater London Fund for the Blind. Vice President 2006–2014
The Richard Attenborough Regional Film Critics Award. Patron 2007–2014 [47]
And finally ... a wonderfully open man sharing even his greatest heartache.
Rest in peace, Dickie, and thank you for all that you contributed to world of the cinema.
Coming up ... some viewing suggestions from You Tube in an attempt to convey something of the talented and the amazing modesty of this enormous talent. First,RA talking about one of his best performances on '10 Rillington Place':
Surprisingly enough, RA only turned to film direction in his late 40s when he debuted on his confident and impressive rendering of Joan Littlewood's 'Theatre Workshop' production of 'Oh What a Lovely War'. I say surprising because subsequently he rarely put a foot wrong behind the camera. It was as if he had always been a director:
This next example is to illustrate RA's talent as a 'tireless producer' though actually Joseph E. Levine was the film's real producer, but what I'm pointing is the kind of person who has an idea of creating a war movie that will depict events as they really are, and then back that idea up with a logistically authentic realisation the likes of which had not been seen since the war itself, including the greatest gathering of DC3s that peacetime had known:
One of my favourite RA films pretty well spring-boarded the Hollywood career of Anthony Hopkins, in my opinion. The marvellous guignol chiller, 'Magic'. Producer once again Joseph E.Levine. Scareeee!
Oh and, who knows where on earth he got the time, but he was inclined to help out with the odd bit of committee work. Much of it without renumeration. Now, let's see, where do we start:
Actors Charitable Trust. Chairman 1956–88, President 1988–2014
Equity. Council Member 1949–73
Royal Theatrical Fund Board of Directors. Vice President 1985–2014
Muscular Dystrophy Campaign. Vice President 1962–71, President 1971–2004, Life President 2004–2014
Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund. Council Member 1962–2003, Vice Patron 2003–2014
King George V Fund for Actors. Committee Member 1962–73, Trustee 1973–2014
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Member of Council 1963–73, Chairman 1973–2003, President 2003–2014
Combined Theatrical Charities Appeals Council. Chairman 1964–88, President 1988–2014
Royal Society of Arts. Life Fellow 1965
Chelsea Football Club. Vice President 1966, Director 1969–82, Life Vice President 1993–2008, Life President 2008–2014
Cinematograph Films Council Member 1967–73
Gardner Centre for the Arts, University of Sussex. Patron 1969–90, President 1990–2014
National Film and Television School. Governor 1970–81, President 1977–2014
University of Sussex. Pro Chancellor 1970–98, Chancellor 1998–2008
BAFTA. Vice President 1971–94, Chairman of David Lean BAFTA Foundation Trustees 1972–2002, President 2002–2014
Capital Radio. Chairman 1972–92, Life President 1992–2014
The Little Theatre, Leicester. Patron 1973–92, Honorary Life President 1992–2014
The Young Vic Theatre Company. Director 1974–84
"Help a London Child". Founder & Life Patron 1998–2014
Tate Gallery. Trustee 1976–82 & 1994–96
Waterford Kamhlaba School, Swaziland. Chairman UK Trustees 1976–2004, Member Governing Council 1987–, President 2004–2014
Duke of York's Theatre. Chairman 1979–92
Channel Four Television Corporation. Deputy Chairman 1980–86, Chairman 1986–92
Board of Governors of the British Film Institute. Chairman 1981–92
Goldcrest Films & Television. Chairman 1982–87
Kingsley Hall Community Centre. (Mahatma Gandhi lodged there in 1931) Patron 1982–2014
Committee of Enquiry into the Arts and Disabled People: Reporting on access and inclusion. Chairman 1983–85
The Gandhi Foundation. President 1983–2014
Brighton Festival. President 1984–85
British Film Year. President 1984–86
British Screen Advisory Council. Chairman 1987–96, Honorary President 1996–2014
UNICEF. Goodwill Ambassador 1987–2014
European Script Fund. Chairman 1988–96, Honorary President 1996–2014
Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, London. Patron (with Lady Attenborough) 1988–2014
Arts For Health. President 1989–2014
European Film Academy. Co-founder (with Ingmar Bergman, Federico Fellini and Claude Chabrol) 1989
Richard Attenborough Centre for Disability and the Arts, University of Leicester. Patron 1990–2014
Foundation for Sport and the Arts. Trustee 1991–2003, President 2003–2014
Chicken Shed Theatre Company. Honorary Patron 1992–2014
One World Action. Patron 1992–2014
Satyajit Ray Foundation. Patron 1995–2014
Oxford University, Cameron Mackintosh Visiting Professor of Contemporary Theatre. 1996
Sussex Centre for German-Jewish Studies. Patron 1996–2014
United World Colleges. Member of the International Board 1996–2000, International Patron 2000–2014
Amnesty International. Patron 1997–2014
Mousetrap Theatre Projects. Trustee 1997–2014
The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. Trustee 1998
UK Film Council. Government Advisor 1999–2014
Sir John Gielgud Charitable Trust. Trustee 2001–2014
Themba HIV/AIDS Project in South Africa. Patron 2002–2014
Unicorn Theatre. Patron 2002–2014
Mandela Statue Fund. Chairman 2003–2007
St Edward's Oxford North Wall Arts Centre. Patron and Steering Committee Member 2005–2014
CLIC Sargent. Ambassador 2006–2014
Greater London Fund for the Blind. Vice President 2006–2014
The Richard Attenborough Regional Film Critics Award. Patron 2007–2014 [47]
And finally ... a wonderfully open man sharing even his greatest heartache.
Rest in peace, Dickie, and thank you for all that you contributed to world of the cinema.
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