Micheál MacLiammóir
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Micheál MacLíammóir (born Alfred Willmore) (October 25, 1899 – March 6, 1978) was an Irish actor and dramatist. MacLíammóir was born to a Protestant family living in the Kensal Green neighborhood of London.
As Alfred Willmore he was one of the leading child actors on the English stage, in the company of Noel Coward. In the 1920s he travelled all over Europe, eventually settling in Dublin where he met his partner and lover, Hilton Edwards. Willmore was captivated by Irish culture: he learnt the Irish language and changed his name to an Irish version. He co-founded the Gate Theatre in Dublin in 1928 with Edwards. He narrated 1963's Tom Jones (movie), and played Iago in Orson Welles's film version of Othello. His Iago is unusual in that MacLíammóir was about fifty (and looked older) when he played the role, while most Iagos are about thirty-five or so. This may have been because of Welles' intended interpretation - he wanted Iago played as an older homosexual consumed by jealousy for the younger Othello. MacLíammóir went on to produce Welles' ghost-story Return to Glennascaul, filmed during a break in filming of Othello.
In 1971, he played an elocution teacher in Curtis Harrington's What's the Matter with Helen?.
MacLíammóir wrote and performed a one-man show, The Importance of Being Oscar, based on the life and work of Oscar Wilde. It was later filmed by the BBC with MacLíammóir reprising the role.
MacLíammóir claimed when talking to Irish playwright, Mary Manning, to have had a homosexual relationship with General Eoin O'Duffy, former Garda Siochana Commissioner and head of the quasi-fascist Blueshirts in Ireland, during the 1930s. The claim was revealed publicly by RTÉ in a documentary, The Odd Couple, broadcast in 1999. However, MacLíammóir's claims have not been substantiated by any evidence.
MacLíammóir is the subject of the 1990 play "The Importance of Being Micheál" (also published as a book) by John Keyes.
See also
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