George Richard Beymer is an American actor, director, screenwriter and producer. In 1962 he was awarded the Golden Globe for Best Debut in West Side Story.
The creative biography of George Richard began in the 1950s of the last century. He first appeared on screen in the musical drama Termini Station in 1953 under the name Dick Beymer. Eight years later, he played one of his best roles in the famous musical "West Side Story" with Natalie Wood. The story of modern Romeo and Juliet won the hearts of viewers all over the world.
Over the years, Beymer has starred in more than sixty television and film projects, including The Diary of Anne Frank, The Longest Day, Twin Peaks, The X-Files, Moonlight Detective Agency.
Biography facts
George Richard was born in the United States in the winter of 1938. Almost nothing is known about his personal life and childhood.
In the late 1940s, the whole family moved to Hollywood, where the boy went to study at North Hollywood High School. Even in his school years, he was fascinated by creativity, and the young man went to conquer the cinema. The young man began a serious career in the 1950s.
Film career
Beymer made his big screen debut in 1953. He played in the musical melodrama directed by Vittorio De Sica "Termini Station". In those years, Richard adopted the pseudonym Dick, so in the credits of the films he is presented as Dick Beymer.
The plot of the tape unfolded in Italy, where a young American woman came to visit her relatives. There she meets a man and falls in love with him. The fleeting romance was to end in Rome. But when the time of departure comes, the girl realizes that she is not sure that she wants to part with her friend.
The film was screened at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for a major award, as well as an Oscar nomination for Best Costume Design. Jennifer Jones and Montgomery Clift starred in the film.
The debut of the young performer also did not go unnoticed, although in the film he played only a small role. Richard began to receive new invitations from directors and producers.
In the same year, he landed a role in the comedy series Make Room for Daddy. The film was released on screens for several years and was nominated for an Emmy award five times. In 1955 he was named the best TV series of the year.
Another significant work awaited Beimer in the TV series "Theater 90", which was released in screens in 1956. The project was dedicated to the best Broadway theater productions and was nominated for various film awards for several years, receiving a Golden Globe in 1957 and an Emmy in 1960.
In the following years, Beymer played roles in the TV series Zane Gray's Theater, Helicopters and Johnny Tremaine.
In 1959, Richard played one of the main characters in the drama The Diary of Anne Frank. This is an adaptation of the diary of a Jewish girl Anna, who survived the horrors of the war against fascism. The Frank family, fleeing persecution, hid for two years in the attic of a house in Austria. In her diary, the girl describes the trials and hardships that people had to face in order to survive in terrible conditions.
The film received three Academy Awards and five more nominations for this award. He was also awarded the Golden Globe and nominated for the main awards of the Cannes and Moscow film festivals.
In 1960, the artist took part in the filming of the musical "It's High Time", getting one of the central roles. Bing Crosby played the main role in the film.
A year later, Richard played one of his most striking roles in the musical "West Side Story". Ten actors applied for the main character. Richard went through a difficult casting and was eventually approved for the role of Tony.
The picture was based on Shakespeare's play "Romeo and Juliet". Actors R. Beymer, N. Wood and R. Moreno instantly became widely known and became real stars of cinema.
The musical was enthusiastically received by the audience and film critics, earning ten Oscars. It is currently ranked second on the American Film Institute's list of the best musical films of all time.
In 1962, the actor starred in the war drama The Longest Day. The film tells the story of World War II and the famous D-Day, when an Allied force of 5,000 ships crossed the English Channel and began to land on the Normandy coast in the summer of 1944.
The dramatic work won two Oscars and three more nominations for this award, as well as a Golden Globe for cinematography and a nomination for Best Film.
This was followed by filming in the series: "Bob Hope Presents", "Theater of the creators of suspense", "Agents of ANKL".
Further shooting in new projects, Richard decided to interrupt by volunteering to the south of the country in Mississippi to take part in the struggle for the civil rights of black voters. During this period, he directed his first documentary based on his experiences "A Regular Bouquet: Mississippi Summer", receiving several awards for it.
Beymer reappeared on the screens in the 1970s, starting to appear in numerous television projects. He played roles in the series: "Dallas", "Moonlight Detective Agency", "Murder, She Wrote", "Twin Peaks" (1990-1991), "The X-Files", "Flipper", "Revenge without Limit", " Twin Peaks "(2017).
Personal life
Beymer has never married. In his youth, he met with actress Alicia Darr, then with Tuzdy Weld.
In 1961, on the set of West Side Story, he met Sharon Tate. Young people met for about a year and even announced their engagement, but never got married. After living together for another year, Sharon and Richard broke up. The reason for the breakup is unknown.
In 1969, he began dating actress Lana Wood, but it never came to a wedding. Since then, Richard has remained a bachelor.
The actor has been fond of painting and music for many years. He has composed musical compositions for several films.
In 2007 he published his first book, Impostor: Or Whatever Happened to Richard Beymer?
Since 1974 he has been working as a filmmaker and has been making mostly documentaries and avant-garde films, for which he has repeatedly received prestigious awards.
Since 2010, he lives in Iowa and prefers to spend time alone. He is a vegetarian and enjoys oriental philosophy and meditation.
