George Richard Chamberlain (born March 31, 1934) is an American stage and screen actor and singer, who became a teen idol in the title role of the television show Dr. Kildare (1961-1966). He subsequently appeared in several TV mini-series, such as Shogun (1980) and The Thorn Birds (1983), and was the first actor to play Jason Bourne (in the 1988 film The Bourne Identity). Chamberlain has also performed classical stage roles and worked in musical theatre.
Chamberlain gained widespread fame as the young intern, Dr. Kildare, in the NBC/MGM television series of the same name, co-starring with Raymond Massey. Dr. Kildare ended in 1966, after which Chamberlain began performing on the theatre circuit. In 1966, he was cast opposite Mary Tyler Moore in the ill-fated Broadway musical Breakfast at Tiffany's, which, after an out-of-town tryout period, closed after only four previews. Decades later he returned to Broadway in revivals of My Fair Lady and The Sound of Music.
At the end of the 1960s, Chamberlain spent a period of time in England where he starred opposite Katharine Hepburn in the film The Madwoman of Chaillot. While in England, he became the first American to play the role of Hamlet since John Barrymore in 1925. He reprised the role for television in 1970 for the Hallmark Hall of Fame.
In the 1970s, Chamberlain enjoyed success as a leading man in films: Lady Caroline Lamb (playing Lord Byron, 1973), The Three Musketeers (1973), The Towering Inferno (in a villainous turn as a dishonest engineer, 1974), and The Count of Monte Cristo (1975). In The Slipper and the Rose (1976), a musical version of the Cinderella story, and once again got to display his talent as a singer.
Chamberlain later appeared in several popular television mini-series (earning him a nickname of "King of the Mini-series") including Centennial (1978-79), Shogun (1980), and The Thorn Birds (1983) as Father Ralph de Bricassart and in the 1980s, he appeared as leading man in King Solomon's Mines (1985) opposite newcomer Sharon Stone, and also played Jason Bourne/David Webb in the television film version The Bourne Identity.
Since the 1990s, Chamberlain has appeared mainly in television movies, on stage, and as a guest star on such series as ABC's The Drew Carey Show and Will & Grace. He starred as Henry Higgins in the 1993-1994 Broadway revival of My Fair Lady and as King Arthur in the national tour of Monty Python's Spamalot. In 2012, Chamberlain appeared on stage at the Pasadena Playhouse as Dr. Sloper in the play, The Heiress.
Richard is also an accomplished artist and his amazing art can be seen on his art website (www.richard-chamberlain.com)
RICHARD CHAMBERLAIN LUNCHEON
Pictured below are some of HMP/PPB's officers and Board of Directors members who attended the November 15 celebrity luncheon. Seated, left to right: Bill DeFoi, President "Shotgun Tom" Kelly, Honoree Richard Chamberlain with his HMP Hall of Fame Award, Randy West and Executive Vice President Ron Alexenburg. Standing, left to right: Carson Schreiber, Past President Chuck Street, Lois Travalena, Roberta Kent and Senior Vice President Bianca Pino. (Roxanne Schorbach photo)
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