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John Gielgud was a theatre director, stage actor and film actor, born on April 14, 1904 in South Kensington, United Kingdom. John Gielgud died on May 21, 2000 at the age of 96. Recorded honors include Laurence Olivier Awards, Praemium Imperiale (1994), Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor (1982) and 5 more.
My Take
What gets me about John Gielgud is the sheer endurance of it all: eight decades on stage, named alongside Olivier and Richardson as one of the three pillars of British theatre. That is not luck, it is craft sustained across a lifetime. I admire that he never let film fame dilute his roots as a stage actor, and his famed crystalline voice remains, to me, the gold standard for spoken Shakespeare. Winning an Oscar at 78, a Tony, a knighthood and the Order of Merit feels almost incidental next to the artistry. Gielgud quietly raised the bar for everyone who followed.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- John Gielgud
- Name (Japanese)
- ジョン・ギールグッド
- Reading
- じょん・ぎーるぐっど
- Born
- April 14, 1904 – May 21, 2000
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Aries / Dragon
- Origin
- South Kensington, United Kingdom
- Occupation
- theatre director / stage actor / film actor / television actor / film director
2. Background
Awards & achievements
- Laurence Olivier Awards
- 1994 Praemium Imperiale
- 1982 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
- 1961 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play
- Grammy Award for Best Audio Book, Narration & Storytelling Recording
- Order of Merit
- Companion of Honour
- Knight Bachelor
3. Links
4. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-17
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was John Gielgud born?
Born April 14, 1904.
When did John Gielgud die?
Died May 21, 2000, aged 96.
Where was John Gielgud from?
John Gielgud was from South Kensington, United Kingdom.
What did John Gielgud do?
John Gielgud worked as theatre director, stage actor, film actor, television actor, film director.
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