Michael Gambon

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BIRTHDAY

October 19, 1940

Dublin, Ireland

RECENT CREDITS

Fantastic Mr. Fox (FILM) Nov. 13, 2009

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Pri... (FILM) Jul. 15, 2009

Brideshead Revisited (FILM) Jul. 25, 2008

Harry Potter and the Order of the P... (FILM) Jul. 11, 2007

The Alps (FILM) Mar. 9, 2007

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BIOGRAPHY

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One of Britain's most revered stage performers, Michael Gambon was described by the late Sir Ralph Richardson as "The Great Gambon." The fierce-looking Irish actor joined Britain's National Theatre in 1963 after being personally selected by Sir Laurence Olivier. He quickly worked his way up to leading parts and became particularly well known for his work in a number of Alan Ayckbourn plays. Gambon's career received a major boost in 1980, when he took the title role in John Dexter's production of The Life of Galileo; he subsequently became a regular player with both the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company. The actor received particular acclaim for his work in A View from the Bridge, for which he won all of the major drama awards in 1987, and Volpone, for which he won the 1995 Evening Standard Award. Gambon made his Broadway debut in 1997 in New York's Royal Theatre production of David Hare's Skylight.

While he was busy racking up an impressive number of plays, Gambon also found time to nurture a film career. Although he made his screen debut in a 1965 adaptation of Othello, the actor appeared only sporadically in films until the late '80s, when he began earning recognition for his work in such films as Peter Greenaway's The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1989), which cast him as the sadistic titular thief. He went on to do starring work in a number of diverse films, including A Man of No Importance (1994), The Browning Version (1994), Dancing at Lughnasa (1998), and Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow (1999).

Extremely busy during the millennial turnover, Gambon once again caught the attention of audiences in Robert Altman's much-praised comedy Gosford Park before taking over the late Richard Harris's role as Albus Dumbledore in 2004's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, subsequently portraying the character for the remainder of the films. Gambon, who became a familiar face to PBS devotees via his title role in Dennis Potter's quirky TV serial The Singing Detective (1986-1987), was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1992.

~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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Headlines

Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter in Warner Bros. Pictures' 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'

Mr. Potter, Meet Mr. Oscar?

Jun. 26, 2009

I had the privilege to see Warner Bros. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and I was blown away like a Quidditch player on a supercharged broomstick.

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Summer 2009: Death Pool!

Posted: Apr. 23, 2009

Box Office Analysis, Aug. 17: "Freddy vs. Jason" Murders B.O.

Posted: Aug. 17, 2003

News Roundup, Feb. 21: Theaters Sued Over Commercials

Posted: Feb. 21, 2003

News Roundup: Feb. 26

Posted: Feb. 26, 2002

Box Office Analysis: Jan. 13

Posted: Jan. 13, 2002

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