George Orson Welles May 6, 1915-October 10, 1985

Parents: Richard Welles 1873-1930 and Beatrice Ives 1882-1924

Wives and Partners:

1. Virginia Nicholson
2. Rita Hayworth
3. Paola Mori
4. Oja Kodar (partner)

Children:

1. Christopher, son with Virginia Nicholson
2. Rebecca, daughter with Rita Hayworth
3. Beatrice b. 1955, daughter with Paola

George Orson Welles, known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, writer, actor, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio. Noted for his innovative dramatic productions as well as his distinctive voice and personality, Welles is widely acknowledged as one of the most accomplished dramatic artists of the twentieth century, especially for his significant and impressive early work and despite his notoriously contentious relationship with Hollywood. His long career in film is noted for his struggle for artistic control in the face of pressure from studios, which resulted in many of his films being severely edited and others left unreleased. He has thus been praised as a major creative force and as "the ultimate auteur."

Welles first found national and international fame as the director and narrator of a 1938 radio adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds which, performed in the style of a news broadcast, caused widespread panic when listeners thought that an extraterrestrial invasion was occurring and being reported by newscasters. Citizen Kane (1941), his first film with RKO in which he starred in the iconic role of Charles Foster Kane, is often considered the greatest film ever made. Several of his other films, especially The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), Touch of Evil (1958), Chimes at Midnight (1965), and F for Fake (1974), are also widely considered to be masterpieces. In 2002 he was voted the greatest film director of all time in the British Film Institute's poll of Top Ten Directors.Welles, who was also an extremely well regarded actor, was voted number 16 in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars list of the greatest film actors of all time. He was also celebrated as a Shakespearean stage actor and was known for his distinctive baritone voice.

Welles was also an accomplished magician, starring in troop variety shows in the war years.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orson_Welles

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000080/bio