John Rhys-Davies Birthday: May 5, 1944 Birth Place: Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK Height: 6' 1"
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Biography
Acclaimed Welsh actor John Rhys-Davies graduated from the University of East Anglia and is probably best known to film audiences for his roles in the blockbuster hits Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). He has also had leading roles in Victor/Victoria (1982), The Living Daylights (1987) and King Solomon's Mines (1985).Rhys-Davies, who was raised in England, Africa and Wales, credits his early exposure to classic literature for his decision to pursue acting and writing. he later refined his craft at London's renowned Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. His television credits include James Clavell's _"Shogun" (1980) (mini)_ and "Noble House" (1988) (mini), "Great Expectations" (1989) (mini), _"War and Remembrance" (1989) (mini)_ and "Archaeology" (1991).An avid collector of vintage automobiles, Rhys-Davies has a host of theater roles to his credit, including "the Misanthrope", "Hedda Gabler" and most of Shakespeare's works. He divides his time between Los Angeles and the Isle of Man.
John Rhys-Davies spent up to 5 hours a day putting on makeup for the role of Gimli in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. It was discovered early on that he was allergic to the prosthetics, so he could only put them on and work about every third day. The first week, it burned off the skin under his eyes.
His son urged him to accept the role in "Lord of the Rings."
Keeps busy by developing a new hobby with each movie.
Lost the third knuckle of his left hand middle finger.
Ironically, he is actually taller than Lord of the Rings co-stars Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom and Ian McKellen, yet he plays the Dwarf.
According to an article in the Sunday Herald Sun (Melbourne, Australia), December 14, 2003, the actors who played the members of the Fellowship of the Ring got a tattoo as a memento of their shared experiences, except for Rhys-Davies, who sent his stunt double instead. According to the BellaOnline body art website, the double was martial artist Brett Beattie, who in fact spent more film hours performing as Gimli the Dwarf.
Two of his television movies have been followed up with similarly themed theatrical films starring Eric Bana. He played The Kingpin in The Trial of the Incredible Hulk; the film Hulk starred Bana. He played King Priam in Helen of Troy; Eric Bana played Hector in Troy.
Before getting the role of Gimli, he auditioned for the role of Denethor. Orlando Bloom, who played Legolas, auditioned for the role of Denethor's other son, Faramir. In Helen of Troy, Rhys-Davies played Priam, and in Troy, Bloom played Paris, Priam's younger son.
April 2004 - Appeared as the special Lord of the Rings guest at the Armageddon Sci-Fi and Comics Convention in Auckland, New Zealand.
September 2004 - Attended the Armaggeddon Pulp Culture Expo Convention in Wellington, New Zealand as a Lord of the Rings guest
Every film he has made with 'Kiran Shah' has been nominated for Best Picture: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002), The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003).
Is one of four "Lord of the Rings" stars to star, pre-"Rings," with Harrison Ford. He starred with Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), and Ford starred with Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) in Witness (1985), with Sean Bean (Boromir) in Patriot Games (1992), and with Miranda Otto (Eowyn) in _What Lies Beneath' (2000)_ .
Attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), London, England, and is an Associate Member.
Although a double needed to be used to make Rhys-Davies look much smaller than his shorter co-stars Viggo Mortensen and Orlando Bloom, his height was exactly the right proportions to those of his hobbit co-stars and no body doubles were used in their shots together. The hobbits are supposed to average about 3' 6" (2 feet shorter than the actors who played them) and Gimli, at just over 4 feet tall, is about 2 feet shorter than the real Rhys-Davies.
Graduated from the University of East Anglia
Played the character of "Malone" in the TV Series "The Untouchables" (1993). The character was played by Sean Connery in the movie version The Untouchables (1987). Connery and Rhys-Davies acted together in between these two projects in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989).
John Rhys-Davies
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