Sir Dirk Bogarde was an English actor, novelist and screenwriter. Initially a matinée idol in films such as Doctor in the House (1954) for the Rank Organisation, he later acted in art house films, evolving from "heartthrob to icon of edginess".
The year 1959 in film involved some significant events, with Ben-Hur winning a record 11 Academy Awards.
Anna Maria Pierangeli, known internationally by the stage name Pier Angeli, was an Italian actress, model and singer. She won the Nastro d'Argento for Best Actress for her debut role in the 1950 film Tomorrow Is Too Late, and subsequently won a Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress for her performance in the American film Teresa (1951).
Cecil Yekuthial Linder was a Polish-born Canadian film and television actor. He was Jewish and managed to escape Poland before the Holocaust. In the 1950s and 1960s, he worked extensively in the United Kingdom, often playing Canadian and American characters in various films and television programmes.
Sir William Stanley Baker was a Welsh actor and film producer. Known for his rugged appearance and intense, grounded screen persona, he was one of the top British male film stars of the late 1950s, and later a producer.
John Gregson, born as Harold Thomas Gregson, was an English actor of stage, television and film, with 40 credited film roles. He was best known for his crime drama and comedy roles.
Sheila Beryl Grant Sim, Baroness Attenborough was an English film and theatre actress. She was also the wife of the actor, director and peer Richard Attenborough.
The Angry Silence is a 1960 black-and-white British drama film directed by Guy Green and starring Richard Attenborough, Pier Angeli, Michael Craig and Bernard Lee.
Michael Francis Gregson, known professionally as Michael Craig, is a British actor and screenwriter, known for his work in theatre, film and television both in the United Kingdom and in Australia.
Sea of Sand is a 1958 British war film starring Richard Attenborough, John Gregson and Michael Craig. The film, which was directed by Guy Green, is about a patrol of the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) during the North African Campaign in the Second World War. It was shot on location in the Kingdom of Libya.
Éva Márta Szőke Ivanovics, known professionally as Eva Bartok, was a Hungarian-British actress. She began acting in films in 1950, and her last credited appearance was in 1966. She acted in more than 40 American, British, German, Hungarian, French, and Israeli films. She is best known for appearances in Blood and Black Lace, The Crimson Pirate, Operation Amsterdam, and Ten Thousand Bedrooms.
Harry Guy Stockwell was an American actor who appeared in nearly 30 movies and 250 television series episodes.
Whistle Down the Wind is a 1961 British crime drama film directed by Bryan Forbes, adapted by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall from the 1958 novel of the same name by Mary Hayley Bell. The film stars her daughter Hayley Mills, who was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best British Actress for this film.
The Devil's Disciple is a 1959 British-American film adaptation of the 1897 George Bernard Shaw play The Devil's Disciple. The Anglo-American film was directed by Guy Hamilton, who replaced Alexander Mackendrick, and starred Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas and Laurence Olivier. Mary Grant designed the film's costumes.
Jet Storm is a 1959 British thriller film directed and co-written by Cy Endfield. Richard Attenborough stars with Stanley Baker, Hermione Baddeley and Diane Cilento. The film is a precursor to the later aviation disaster film genre such as Airport (1970).
Venetian Bird is a 1952 British thriller film starring Richard Todd, Eva Bartok and John Gregson, and directed by Ralph Thomas. The screenplay was adapted by Victor Canning from his own 1950 novel of the same title. It was shot at Pinewood Studios and on location in Venice. The film's sets were designed by the art director George Provis. It was released in America by United Artists where it was titled The Assassin.
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, was an English actor, film director, and producer.
To Dorothy, a Son is a 1950 comedy play by the British writer Roger MacDougall. The plot revolves around a complex inheritance in which the American ex-wife of a man tries to prevent his current pregnant wife giving birth before a certain day, in order that she can claim the money.
Allied Film Makers was a shortlived British production company, formed in November 1959, which produced several films. Producer Sydney Box came up with the idea of forming a consortium of film-makers that would distribute the films they made. Box had to drop out of the company owing to illness, but four partnerships agreed to join: Basil Dearden and Michael Relph; Jack Hawkins; Richard Attenborough and Bryan Forbes; and Hawkins's brother. Guy Green later joined the Forbes-Attenborough group. Each group put up £5,000 and the Rank Organisation guaranteed distribution.
