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Ben Kingsley

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Biography

Recent Role:
Himself on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
Gender:
Male
Born:
12-31-1943
Birthplace:
Snaiton, North Yorkshire, England
Birth Name:
Krishna Bhanji
AKA:
Sir Ben Kingsley

By origin half-Indian and half-European, Ben was born and brought up in the north of England. His father, Dr Rahimtulla Harji Bhanji, who was born in Kenya of Indian descent, was educated in England, while Ben's mother, Anna, was an English actress and fashion model of Russian and Jewish origins. Ben's Indian grandfather came from a plantation-owning family in Gujarat, northern India (which was also Ghandi's home state) and went on to become a leading dealer in spices on the island of Zanzibar.Ben grew up in Salford and was educated at Manchester Grammar School, where he first began to… More shine as an actor. After school he began to plan an acting career and anglicized his name to gain access to a wider variety of roles. At the age of twenty-one, Ben was turned down for a place at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, London, but was taken on by a touring group called 'The Children's Theatre'. In 1967, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company. Ben's early movie parts, in Fear Is the Key (1972) and Hard Labour (1973), made a low-key impression, and he carried on working mainly in the theatre until he played the lead role in Gandhi (1982), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Since Gandhi, he has had dozens of good screen roles.Knighted in 2001, Sir Ben married Alexandra Christmann in September, 2003, and now lives in Oxfordshire, England. He has four children from his two previous marriages, to actress Angela Morant and to Alison Sutcliffe, a theatre director. One of Ben's three sons, Edmund Kingsley, graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 2003. Ben's son Ferdinand (born 1988) is also an actor and has been performing with The Playbox Theatre Company in Warwick since the age of four. Ferdinand is also hoping to go to RADA. Ben's other children are called Thomas and Jasmine.


GOLDEN GLOBE WINS AND NOMINATIONS:

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama:

Gandhi (1982) (win)
House of Sand and Fog (2003) (nomination)

Best Performance by an Actor In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture:

Bugsy (1991) (nomination)
Sexy Beast (2001) (nomination)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television:

Anne Frank (2001) (nomination)
Mrs. Harris (2006) (nomination)

EMMY NOMINATIONS: (no wins)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR A MOVIE:

Joseph (1995)

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR A MOVIE:

Murderers Among Us: The Simon Wiesenthal Story (1989)
Anne Frank (2001)

ACADEMY AWARD WINS AND NOMINATIONS:

Best Actor:

Gandhi (1982) (win)
House of Sand and Fog (nomination)

Best Supporting Actor:

Bugsy (1991) (nomination)
Sexy Beast (2001) (nomination)

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  •  
    9 Superb
    empty hide show

    One great actor that does not get the attention that he should. He is one awesome actor, and I think that he is one of the best. He acts so well. I love him in Schindler's List, he was the perfect actor to play his character, and a lot of other unnoticed works that are actually pretty good, like "House of Sand and Fog" was very good. I like Ben Kingsley's style a lot.

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    NoOneIsAlone Added Feb 24, 2007 All my reviews
  •  
    10 Perfect
    The epitome of the transformational actor. hide show

    Sir Ben Kingsley is the epitome of the transformational actor. There are few actors who successfully transform into a real and distinct human being with each role they take on. Ben Kingsley is almost unrecognizable (as himself) if we look at his work in Sexy Beast. Compare that to his roles in Ghandi or Schindler's List where his portrayals are totally distinct in their own rights. So many actors market and sell their own personalities making careers out of their celebrity image, where Ben Kingsley has made a career out of his ability to transform using his compassionate imagination. What an Extraordinary creative genius of our time!

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    Orsoblonde Added Jul 18, 2006 All my reviews
 

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