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Richard St. John Harris was born October 1, 1930, in Limerick, Ireland to a farming family. Growing up, he attended the Crescent School (now Crescent College Comprehensive) followed by the Sacred Heart Jesuit College. Richard originally wanted to be a rugby player for Ireland and came close to that goal as a member of the Garryowen club. Richard left school to work in the family flour mill, Mount Kenneth, where he studied different types of grain, bookkeeping, and administration. In his late teens, he contracted tuberculosis, which eventually ended his rugby career. This was also the time in Richard's life where he discovered his love for acting. While in Dublin with friends to see the Ireland-Scotland rugby international, Richard intended to finish the evening picking up girls at a dance-hall. However, a poster for a production of Henry IV starring Michael MacLiammoir, a star of Irish theatre, caught his attention. Richard attended the play and caught the acting bug. After working with the local College theatre players, he left for London in 1955 to attend the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Upon graduation, Richard went to Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop. He made his stage debut in 1956 with The Quare Fellow while picking up film work when available. His film debut came with Alive and Kicking in 1958.
Richard married Elizabeth Rees on February 9, 1957, with whom he had three children, Damian, Jamie, and Jared. They divorced in 1969. In the same year, he received his first Oscar nomination for his role in This Sporting Life. Richard followed this with a balanced career of roles on stage, in blockbusters, and art films. After his leading role in Camelot, Richard found himself pursuing a music career. With his friend and songwriter, Jimmy Webb, Richard produced two albums, A Tramp Shining and The Yard Went on Forever. By 1970, the music hits stopped coming, and Richard returned to acting. Unfortunately, the 1970's were not a successful time for Richard, with mostly unremarkable films. During this time he married Ann Turkel on June 7, 1974, who was twenty-five years his junior. They divorced in 1982. It was during this time that Richard began drinking heavily, and in 1978 suffered a near-fatal overdose of cocaine.
The 1980's marked the beginning of Richard's career comeback as well as the end of his drinking. He replaced Richard Burton for his last eight weeks of Camelot on Broadway. He stayed with the show for five years, starring, directing, and buying out the producers. He continued to work on stage and was a guest professor at Scranton University. Richard's film career was revived with his role in The Field which earned him his second Oscar nomination. Originally offered a minor role, Richard convinced the director that he deserved the lead. In August, 2002, Richard entered London's University College Hospital for chemotherapy treatment for Hodgkin's Disease. He passed away on October 25, 2002, at the age of 72.
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