ORSON WELLES
BIOGRAPHY
•
Born George Orson Welles on
May 6, 1915 in Kenosha,
Wisconsin
•
He was the second of his
parents two children; the oldest
was Richard Ives Welles Jr.
•
He was raised as a Roman
Catholic but didn’t consider
himself as religious
•
Rough childhood; parents split
at the age of four; mother died
a few days after his ninth
birthday and his father died
when he was 15
•
He was a multimedia man; he
was a writer, producer, and a
director
HONEY I’M HOME!
• Orson Welles was married a total
of three times and had 3 children
with each wife. His first wife was
Virginia Nicolson; second,
Dolores del Rio; and third, Rita
Hayworth. His only known son is
named Michael-Lindsay Hogg,
who is also a film director.
Orson divorced twice due to a
number of current affairs. This
caused the split between him
and last wife, italian actress
Paola Mori, but they never
divorced. For the last 19 years of
his life, Welles spent his life with
Croatian actress, Oja Kodar.
EARLY LIFE
•
Attended Todd School for Boys in
Woodstock, Illinois where he
excelled in his studies
•
Awarded a scholarship to Harvard
University but denied it
•
At the age of 16, he decided he
would take a quick tour of Dublin,
Ireland where he came across
their Gate Theatre. He admired
the atmosphere of the theatre and
immediately saw his self in one of
their leading plays. His visit
marked the start of his career in
the film making industry.
EMERGING TALENT
• Welles auditioned for Jew Suss
and critics were impressed by
his performance which won him
a leading role in the play. He
quickly became a favorite of the
company which led him into
playing the roles of Cldaius and
the Ghost in Hamlet. Soon his
performance onstage began to
fall off and he decided to return
to Illinois. At the end his career
at the Gate Theatre, he acted in
a number of five plays
including Jew Suss, Hamlet,
Death Takes a Holiday, The
Dead Ride Fast and Czar Paul.
EARLY CAREER
• He returned to Todd School for
Boys to work on a writing project
called Everybody’s Shakespeare
which was an adaptation for the
school’s Shakespeare productions.
His work attracted film producer,
John Houseman, and they
eventually collaborated to create
The Mercury Theatre which was an
adaptation from the radio series The
Mercury Theatre on Air (radio
drama). Together they produced
The Shoemaker’s Holiday (1938),
The Green Goddess (1939), and
Native Son (1941). What made these
plays strikingly unique was that the
cast was African-American which
wasn’t popular in the early 1900’s
due to the racism in America.
FIRST SUCCESS
• Citizen Kane
• Release date: 1941
• Plot: Tells the story of a lonely,
wealthy media proprietor
(played by Orson Welles
himself) who lives in this vast
estate. Suddenly, he dies in his
sleep while holding a snow
globe. News on the death
spread around quick; the focus
of the story is then shifted to
newsreel reporter Jerry
Thompson, who carries out a
mission to learn more about
Kane’s private life.
http://youtu.be/YXIr1P9Fm5A
CITIZEN KANE
(CONTINUED)
• Citizen Kane was Welles’ biggest success; it received
critical praise for its remarkable performances, cinematic,
and narrative technique
• One of Welles’ controversial films because it appeared to
poke fun at the life of William Randolph Hearst
• Box Office earnings: $800,000
SECOND SUCCESS
• The Magnificent Ambersons
• Release date: 1942
• Plot: The Magnificent
Ambersons sets in the early
1900’s with a upper class,
Indianapolis family. Told
through the eyes of Major
Amberson, Major witnesses
how his grandson, George
Amberson, has to struggle
to support his familly in the
midst of financial debt.
http://youtu.be/L10d2rH2i10
THIRD SUCCESS
• Journey into Fear
• Release date: 1943
• Plot: Based on the Eric
Ambler novel of the same
name, Journey into Fear
tells the story of a U.S
Navy engineer who learns
that Nazi’s are out to
capture and kill him .
http://youtu.be/9PpwtkCqTBc
FOURTH SUCCESS
• The Lady from Shanghai
• Release date: 1947
• Plot: Tells the story of Michael O’Hara
(Orson Welles), who rescues this
beautiful woman named Elsa (Rita
Hayworth) from being attacked by
Hooligans. As he escorts Elsa home,
he reveals to her that he is a skilled
seaman and he learns that her
husband, Arthur Bannister, is a
criminal defense attorney. Despite his
doubts about Elsa’s character, he
agrees to work as a seaman on
Bannister’s yacht where he finds
himself in the middle of a murder plot.
http://youtu.be/LvhoeL3Vv-c
FIFTH SUCCESS
• Touch of Evil
• Release date: 1958
• Plot: Starring, Psycho actress
Janet Leigh, Touch of Evil tells
the story of Miguel Vargas, a
drug enforcement offcicial, and
his wife who travel along the
U.S-Mexico border when they
witness an exploding vehicle.
Miguel realizes the threat of a
bomb exploding on American
soil and takes interest in
further investigation.
http://youtu.be/V-Oqn2hMp1M
STYLE/TONE
• Mainly a film noir director, Welles also directed drama and
crime films
• Most of the films were centered on the rise and fall of the
characters
• He is known for his use of low camera angles, tracking
shots, deep focus, and crane shots
AND THE WINNER IS…
• 1942: Won Oscar for
Best Writing and Best
Director in Citizen Kane
• Won BAFTA (British
Academy of Film and
Televison Arts) for best
foreign actor in Chimes
at Midnight
• Won Golden Globe
Awarded for Best Motion
picture Actor in a
supporting Role in
Butterfly (1982).
• Won Fantasporto Award
for Best Film in Othello
A SAD FAREWELLES
• Throughout Orson’s
life, he struggled
with diabetes and he
was also under
treatment from heart
ailment. On October
10, 1985, Welles was
on his way home
from an interview to
work on a new film
script. A couple
hours later he was
found hunched over
on his typewriter
when he was
announced dead.
QUOTES
• “I’m not very fond of movies. I don’t go to them much”
• “I hate television. I hate it as much as peanuts. But I can’t
stop eating peanuts”
• “I don’t pray because I don’t want to bore God”
• “A good artist should be isolated. If he isn’t, something is
wrong”
FUN FACTS
• Welles once ate 18 hot dogs in one while sitting at famous
hot dog stand, Pinks
• He was born on the same date Babe Ruth hit his very first
home run
• Had a passion for painting
• Played the voice of Unicron on Transformers: The Movie