Oliver Reed Trivia

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He married Josephine Burge in 1985 when she was only 21 and he was 47'�and they had been '�going out' together since she was 16 !! They remained happily married right up to his death, aged 61, on May 2nd 1999 (ambiloquy.com)

More famously still, he once asked perma-tanned British talk show host Richard Madley why he had 'orange skin'�. (bubblegun.com)

Reed became well known for his 'performances'� on chat shows. On The Merv Griffin Show in the 70s, Reed sat listening attentively whilst Griffin reeled off some anecdote about Peter O'Toole in order to illustrate the temperamental nature of English actors. After enduring the entire story, Reed sat forward and, quite politely, pointed out that O'Toole was in fact Irish, and not English (bubblegun.com)

When working in London, he was often found at The Duke of Hamilton pub in Hampstead, an area and pub he often frequented earlier in his career with Peter O'Toole and Richard Burton.
(en.wikipedia.org)

In later years, Reed could often be seen quietly drinking with his wife, Josephine Burge, at the bar of the White Horse Hotel in the High Street in Dorking, Surrey, not far from his home in Oakwoodhill (en.wikipedia.org)

His funeral was held in Churchtown, County Cork, Ireland. The song "Consider Yourself" from his classic film Oliver! was played at Oliver Reed's funeral. Reed's remains were buried in the 13th-century cemetery in the heart of Churchtown village, and his grave was seeded with Irish wildflowers. (en.wikipedia.org)

His final role was the elderly slave dealer Proximo in Gladiator The film was released after his death in 2000 with some footage filmed with a double, digitally mixed with outtake footage. The film was dedicated to him. He was posthumously nominated for a British Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in this film, and also for the Screen Actors Guild Award, along with the rest of the principal players for Best Ensemble Cast (en.wikipedia.org)

David Letterman cut to a commercial when it appeared Reed might get violent after being asked too many questions about his drinking (en.wikipedia.org)

Salary
Gladiator (2000) $1,000,000
The Curse of the Werewolf (1961) £ 90 a week (imdb.com)

He won army sprint races while serving his national service. (imdb.com)

He suffered from acute tinnitus for many years. (imdb.com)

He loved horses all his life and also enjoyed breeding and rearing them. (imdb.com)

He enjoyed playing golf and bowls. (imdb.com)

He stated in 1974 his favorite book was, The House on Pooh Corner, by A.A.Milne. (imdb.com)

In order to avoid charges of nepotism Reed deliberately avoided working for his uncle, director Sir Carol Reed, until he was already established as a star in British movies. (imdb.com)

Was heavily criticized in the late 1980s for appearing in exploitation films produced by the infamous impresario Harry Alan Towers, most of which were filmed in South Africa under the apartheid regime, and released straight to video in the US and UK. (imdb.com)

He once described his purpose in life as "shafting the girlies and downing the sherbie.". (imdb.com)

Infamously clashed with Shelley Winters on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson: Episode dated 6 July 1972" (1972). He got angry at her for constantly jokingly interrupting the stories he was trying to tell and, when Winters had to leave the show early, Reed told Johnny Carson that he thought that women belong in the kitchen. She returned and poured a cup of water over his head. He then claimed it was whiskey that she poured over him. (imdb.com)

Once reckoned that the strenuous filming of The Devils (1971) took four years off his natural life. (imdb.com)

Had a tattoo on his penis. According to Patrick Warburton, Reed showed him the tattoo the first day they worked together. (imdb.com)

Was dyslexic. (imdb.com)

Owned a villa in the south of France next door to Jack Hawkins' villa. (imdb.com)

At age 23, Reed was paid �90 per week for his first starring role in The Curse of the Werewolf (1961). But the film would not be seen in Spain for many years. It was banned because it was thought the film portrayed Spain as a backward nation. (imdb.com)

By the mid-1970s he was considered by many to be Britain's biggest movie star. He declined roles in The Sting (1973) and Jaws (1975) because he didn't want to relocate to Los Angeles. Both of these roles were taken by fellow British hellraiser Robert Shaw. However, a Hollywood executive claimed, "Reed didn't turn us down. We turned him down. We like our stars to have respect - Oliver Reed didn't respect anyone and he showed it." (imdb.com)

According to director Ken Russell, the original script for Women in Love (1969) did not include the famous nude wrestling scene because he felt it wouldn't pass the censors and would be difficult to shoot. It wasn't until Reed talked him into it by literally throwing his weight around--he wrestled Russell in his kitchen, pinned him down, and wouldn't let him up unless he agreed to shoot it. (imdb.com)

Befriended Charlton Heston while filming The Three Musketeers (1973). (imdb.com)

He starred in the first film to say "fuck", I'll Never Forget What's'isname (1967). He also starred in the first British film to be rated X just for the violent content, Sitting Target (1972). (imdb.com)

Lost weight to appear in Castaway (1986) on a diet of vodka. (imdb.com)

Father of Mark Reed, with his first wife Kate Byrne and of Sarah Reed, with his partner, the dancer Jacqueline Daryl. (imdb.com)

At the time of his death he was signed to play Albert Finney's role in "My Uncle Silas" (2000). (imdb.com)

He was severely injured and almost died during the filming of The Three Musketeers (1973) when he was stabbed in the throat during the windmill duel scene. (imdb.com)

The public house in Malta in which he died, previously known as "The Pub", was renamed "Ollie's Last Pub" in his memory. (imdb.com)

Reed died during the filming of Ridley Scott's Gladiator (2000), and it cost the company $3 million to recreate his face so he could "appear" in the scenes he still had left to shoot. (imdb.com)

Reed remains the only British film star who never had any stage work of any kind. A 1980s National Portrait Gallery show noted this, saying he was their only pure film actor. (imdb.com)

On location for The Hunting Party (1971), Reed bemoaned the necessity of faking an American accent and this, coupled with his love of Broome Hall and English pubs, was enough to cement his decision not to move to Hollywood. (imdb.com)

Described his role as Father Grandier in Ken Russell's The Devils (1971) as the best performance he ever gave. (imdb.com)

Needed 36 stitches to repair cuts on his face after a bar fight in 1963. The incident left him with a permanent scar, which he initially feared would put an end to his screen career. (imdb.com)

In 1973 Steve McQueen flew to England to meet Reed and discuss a possible film collaboration. "Reed showed me his country mansion and we got on well," recalled McQueen. "He then suggested he take me to his favorite London nightclub." The drinking, which started at Reed's home, Broome Hall, continued into the night until Reed could hardly stand. Suddenly, and with no apparent warning, he vomited over McQueen's shirt and trousers. "The staff rushed around and found me some new clothes, but they couldn't get me any shoes," said McQueen. "I had to spend the rest of the night smelling of Oliver Reed's sick." (imdb.com)

His first job (at the age of 17) was as a bouncer at a Soho nightclub. (imdb.com)

The actor he admired most was Errol Flynn. (imdb.com)

He had two brothers. David Reed became his business manager and his half-brother Simon Reed became his press agent. (imdb.com)

He never forgot his Hammer roots. After hitting the big time, he went back to pay homage to his horror beginnings to narrate the full Hammer retrospective, a reminder that his voice was the one quality the English critics admired about him. (imdb.com)

His wrestling scene with Alan Bates in Women in Love (1969) was the first time full frontal male nudity had featured in a mainstream movie. (imdb.com)

Agreed to appear in the small but vital role of casino boss Eddie Mars in The Big Sleep (1978) just because he admired the film's star Robert Mitchum so much. (imdb.com)

Michael Winner and Former snooker champion Alex Higgins, himself suffering from throat cancer, were the only celebrities to attend Reed's funeral in Ireland. (imdb.com)

In 1987 he became very ill with kidney problems, and had to give up drinking for a while. (imdb.com)

Some obituaries mentioned the similarity between Reed's death and Robert Newton's. Newton, who had played Bill Sykes in David Lean's non-musical version of Oliver Twist (1948), was a notoriously heavy drinker. He remained sober while filming Around the World in Eighty Days (1956), which was supposed to be a big comeback for him as an actor. Toward the end of filming, however, he indulged in one final drinking marathon and died from a heart attack, aged only 50. Similarly, Reed remained sober while filming Gladiator (2000) - intended as a big comeback - but died from a heart attack after allowing himself one final binge. (imdb.com)

Shared the same dentist as horror star Christopher Lee (imdb.com)

Narrowly missed out on playing superspy James Bond because of his love of alcohol and fighting. A new biography of the star uncovered a letter from Bond mastermind Albert R. Broccoli outlining how close he came to replacing Sean Connery in the role. Broccoli wrote, "With Reed we would have had a far greater problem to destroy his image and re-mold him as James Bond. We just didn't have the time or money to do that." According to Cliff Goodwin, author of the book "Evil Spirits", "Oliver was probably within a sliver of being cast as Bond." He adds, "But by 1968 his affairs were public and he was already drinking and fighting - as far away from the refined Bond image as you could get.". (imdb.com)

For a brief period in the late 1960s Reed was the highest paid actor in Europe, but by the 1980s he was reduced to starring in dire European films. (imdb.com)