Sir William Stanley Baker (28 February 1928 â€" 28 June 1976) 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 early 1960s, and later a prolific
producer.Born into a coal mining family in Glamorgan, Baker began his
acting career in the West End. Following national service in the Royal
Army Service Corps after the Second World War, he befriended actor
Richard Burton and began appearing in film and television roles. He is
known for his lead role in Hell Drivers and supporting role in The
Guns of Navarone, and most significantly as producer and lead actor in
the acclaimed 1964 film Zulu, in which he portrayed John Chard.Baker's
performance in the 1959 film Yesterday's Enemy was nominated for the
BAFTA Award for Best British Actor, and he was nominated for a
Primetime Emmy Award for his turn in the BBC serial How Green Was My
Valley. He was awarded a knighthood in 1976 although he died before
the investiture ceremony: a heavy smoker, he developed lung cancer and
he died in 1976.
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 early 1960s, and later a prolific
producer.Born into a coal mining family in Glamorgan, Baker began his
acting career in the West End. Following national service in the Royal
Army Service Corps after the Second World War, he befriended actor
Richard Burton and began appearing in film and television roles. He is
known for his lead role in Hell Drivers and supporting role in The
Guns of Navarone, and most significantly as producer and lead actor in
the acclaimed 1964 film Zulu, in which he portrayed John Chard.Baker's
performance in the 1959 film Yesterday's Enemy was nominated for the
BAFTA Award for Best British Actor, and he was nominated for a
Primetime Emmy Award for his turn in the BBC serial How Green Was My
Valley. He was awarded a knighthood in 1976 although he died before
the investiture ceremony: a heavy smoker, he developed lung cancer and
he died in 1976.
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