Nigel bruce
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The Basil Rathbone Biography Project
| What is the Biography Project? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Biography Project is an ongoing compilation of material and information related to Basil Rathbone for the use of a biographer. The Project is spearheaded by a committee of three dedicated Rathbone fans. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Why are you doing this? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A biography needs to be written, and there are bits and pieces of information (both published and unpublished) all over the place that need to be organized. A biographer will naturally read In and Out of Character by Basil Rathbone, and Michael Druxman's book Basil Rathbone: His Life and His Films. But think of all the actors with whom Basil worked. If each of them has written an autobiography which includes a brief mention of Basil, that's a lot of research that the biographer must do. We want to make that job a little easier. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| How can I help? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Send us information or copies of material that you have. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What kind of material are you looking for? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Anything and e
Basil Rathbone was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1892, but three years later his family was forced to flee the country because his father was accused by the Boers of being a British spy at a time when Dutch-British conflicts were leading to the Boer War. The Rathbones escaped to England, where Basil and his two younger siblings, Beatrice and John, were raised. Their mother, Anna Barbara (George), was a violinist, who was born in Grahamstown, South Africa, of British parents, and their father, Edgar Philip Rathbone, was a mining engineer born in Liverpool. From 1906 to 1910 Rathbone attended Repton School, where he was more interested in sports--especially fencing, at which he excelled--than studies, but where he also discovered his interest in the theater. After graduation he planned to pursue acting as a profession, but his father disapproved and suggested that his son try working in business for a year, hoping he would forget about acting. Rathbone accepted his father's suggestion and worked as a clerk for an insurance company--for exactly one year. Then he contac
Basil Rathbone: |
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