Orson Welles
Born
May 6, 1915
Died
October 10, 1985 (70 years old)
Known For
Directing
Place of Birth
Kenosha, Wisconsin, USA
George Orson Welles, best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, 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 influential early work—despite his notoriously contentious relationship with Hollywood. His distinctive directorial style featured layered, nonlinear narrative forms, innovative uses of lighting such as chiaroscuro, unique camera angles, sound techniques borrowed from radio, deep focus shots, and long takes. Welles's long career in film is noted for his struggle for artistic control in the face of pressure from studios. Many of his films were heavily edited and others left unreleased. He has been praised as a major creative force and as "the ultimate auteur."
After directing a number of high-profile theatrical productions in his early twenties, including an innovative adaptation of Macbeth and The Cradle Will Rock, Welles 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 performed for the radio drama anthology series Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was reported to have caused widespread panic when listeners thought that an invasion by extraterrestrial beings was occurring. Although these reports of panic were mostly false and overstated, they rocketed Welles to instant notoriety.
Citizen Kane (1941), his first film with RKO, in which he starred in the role of Charles Foster Kane, is often considered the greatest film ever made. Several of his other films, including The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), The Lady from Shanghai (1947), 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 two separate British Film Institute polls among directors and critics, and a wide survey of critical consensus, best-of lists, and historical retrospectives calls him the most acclaimed director of all time. Andrew Sarris in his influential book of film criticism The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929–1968 included him in the "pantheon" of the 14 greatest film directors who had worked in the United States. Well known for his baritone voice, Welles was also an extremely well regarded actor and was voted number 16 in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars list of the greatest American film actors of all time. He was also a celebrated Shakespearean stage actor and an accomplished magician, starring in troop variety shows in the war years.
Known For
Othelo The Great
Ele Mesmo (Imagem de Arquivo)
2024
The Battle of Grovers Mill
Radio Host (voice) (archival footage)
2024
Jim Henson Idea Man
Self (archive footage)
2024
From Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight
Falstaff
2023
It's Pretty, but is it Art?
Self (voiceover)
2023
Looking Back Before You Leap
General Zaroff (voice)
2023
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
Self (archive footage)
2022
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
Self (archive footage)
2022
American: An Odyssey to 1947
Self (archive footage)
2022
The Lost Print: The Making of Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons
Himself (Archive footage)
2022
The Welles Raft
Himself (Archive Footage)
2022
Tall Tales: The Ireland of Orson Welles
Self
2021
Parkinson at 50
Self (archive footage)
2021
Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2021
Hopper/Welles
Self
2020
Emergency: Donald Trump’s "Touch of Evil"
(archive footage)
2019
The Other Side of the Wind
Journalist (uncredited)
2018
They'll Love Me When I'm Dead
Self (archive footage)
2018
The Eyes of Orson Welles
Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
2018
Jeanne Moreau: Free Spirit
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2018
The Magic History of Cinema
2017
This Is Orson Welles
Self
2015
Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles
Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
2014
Alfonso Sansone: Producer by Chance
Self (archive footage)
2014
Too Much Johnson
Keystone Kop
2013
Jodorowsky's Dune
Self (archive footage)
2013
The Shadow Knows
Self (archive footage)
2012
Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen
(archive footage)
2012
Shut Up Little Man! An Audio Misadventure
Himself
2011
Orson Welles: The Paris Interview
Himself
2010
Lucifer et moi
(archive footage 1982)
2009
The Deep
Russ Brewer
2007
Edge of Outside
Self (archive footage)
2006
Filmmakers vs. Tycoons
Self (archive footage)
2005
The Other Side of Welles
Self (archive footage)
2005
The Well
2005
The Hitch Hiker
Ronald Adams
2004
Rita
(archive footage)
2003
The Dominici Affair by Orson Welles
Self (archive footage)
2003
Lost in La Mancha
Self (archive footage)
2002
A Huey P. Newton Story
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2001
The Paranormal Peter Sellers
Self (Archive footage)
2001
NASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 3
Narrator
2001
Orson Welles in the Land of Don Quixote
Self (Archive footage)
2000
Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces
Self (archive footage)
2000
Moby Dick
Captain Ahab / Starbuck / Ishmael (archive footage)
2000
According to Occam's Razor
1999
The Best of the Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
Self - Roaster (archive footage)
1998
It's All Brazil
Self (archive footage)
1997
Celebração - 100 Anos do Cinema Nacional
Self
1997
The Battle Over Citizen Kane
Self (archive footage)
1996
Orson Welles: The One-Man Band
Self (archive footage)
1995
La Classe américaine
Self (archive footage)
1993
It's All True
Self
1993
Rosabella - La storia italiana di Orson Welles
1993
Working with Orson Welles
Himself (Archive Footage)
1993
Don Quixote
Self
1992
With Orson Welles: Stories from a Life in Film
Self (archive footage)
1990
Welles' Language
Self (archive footage)
1990
Rita Hayworth: Dancing Into the Dream
Self (archive footage)
1990
On the tracks of a filmmaker
Orson Welles
1988
Someone to Love
Danny's Friend
1987
The Transformers: The Movie
Unicron (voice)
1986
The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years
Self (archive footage)
1986
The Dreamers
Marcus Kleek
1985
Orson Welles' Magic Show
Self
1985
The Road to Bresson
Self
1984
The Last Sailors: The Final Days of Working Sail
Narrator
1984
Where Is Parsifal?
Klingsor
1984
The Spirit of Charles Lindbergh
himself
1984
The Witching
Mr. Cato
1983
Orson Welles at the Cinémathèque Française
Himself
1983
Notre Dame de la Croisette
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1983
Hot Money
Sheriff Paisley
1983
Slapstick of Another Kind
Aliens' Father (voice)
1982
Butterfly
Judge Rauch
1982
Magic with the Stars
Host
1982
The Quest for Fire Adventure
Narrator
1982
Enchanted Journey
Pippo
1981
History of the World: Part I
Narrator
1981
Filming 'The Trial'
Self
1981
The Man Who Saw Tomorrow
Presenter / Narrator (voice)
1981
The Secret of Nikola Tesla
J.P. Morgan
1980
A Step Away
English Narrator
1980
The Greenstone
Narrator (voice)
1980
The Muppet Movie
Lew Lord
1979
The Orson Welles Show
Self
1979
The Greatest Adventure--The Story of Man's Voyage to the Moon
Narrator
1979
Filming Othello
Host
1978
The Biggest Battle
Narratore
1978
The Late Great Planet Earth
Self
1978
Mysterious Castles of Clay
Narrator
1978
Tut: The Boy King
Himself - Host
1978
It Happened One Christmas
Henry F. Potter
1977
The Force Beyond
Himself (archive footage)
1977
Hot Tomorrows
Parklawn Mortuary (voice)
1977
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Narrator
1977
From Fiber to Fabric: Wool's a Natural
Narrator
1977
Voyage of the Damned
José Estedes
1976
Bugs Bunny Superstar
Narrator (voice)
1975
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Self (archive footage)
1975
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
Narrator / Nag / Chuchundra (voice)
1975
Who's Out There?
Host
1975
The Challenge... A Tribute to Modern Art
Narrator
1974
And Then There Were None
Voice on Tape
1974
Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1974
F for Fake
Self
1973
The Battle of Sutjeska
Winston Churchill
1973
The Cave: a parable told by Orson Welles
Narrator
1973
The Cave
Narrator
1973
Treasure Island
Long John Silver
1972
Necromancy
Mr. Cato
1972
Get to Know Your Rabbit
Mr. Delasandro
1972
Future Shock
Narrator
1972
London
Winston Churchill / George Bernard Shaw
1971
Ten Days' Wonder
Théo Van Horn
1971
A Safe Place
The Magician
1971
Directed by John Ford
Narrator (voice)
1971
Sentinels of Silence
1971
Malpertuis
Cassavius
1971
Flame of Persia
Narrator
1971
Freedom River
Narrator
1971
An Evening with Orson Welles: The Golden Honeymoon
1970
Is It Always Right to Be Right?
Narrator
1970
Waterloo
Louis XVIII
1970
Catch-22
Brigadier General Dreedle
1970
Start the Revolution Without Me
The Narrator
1970
The Kremlin Letter
Bresnavitch
1970
Upon This Rock
Michelangelo (voice)
1970
A Horse Called Nijinsky
Narrator
1970
Soft Self-Portrait of Salvador Dali
Narrator (voice)
1969
The Merchant of Venice
Shylock
1969
Twelve Plus One
Markan
1969
The Battle of Neretva
Četnik
1969
The Southern Star
Plankett
1969
The Fight for Rome II - The Betrayal
Justinian
1969
Tepepa
Colonel Cascorro
1969
To Build a Fire
Narrator (voice)
1969
The Fight for Rome
Justinian
1968
House of Cards
Leschenhaut
1968
Around the World of Mike Todd
Self - Narrator
1968
The Immortal Story
Charles Clay
1968
Portrait: Orson Welles
Self
1968
Oedipus the King
Tiresias
1968
Vienna
Himself
1968
I'll Never Forget What's'isname
Jonathan Lute
1967
Casino Royale
Le Chiffre
1967
The Sailor from Gibraltar
Louis de Mozambique
1967
Ten Days That Shook the World
Narrator
1967
A Man for All Seasons
Cardinal Wolsey
1966
Is Paris Burning?
Konsul Nordling
1966
Orson Welles in Spain
Himself
1966
Chimes at Midnight
Falstaff
1965
Miss Goodall and the Wild Chimpanzees
Self - Narrator (voice)
1965
Marco the Magnificent
Akerman, Marco's Teacher
1965
A King's Story
Narrator
1965
The Finest Hours
Narrator (voice)
1964
The V.I.P.s
Max Buda
1963
Ro.Go.Pa.G.
The 'Director' (segment "La ricotta")
1963
The Trial
Albert Hastler
1962
Lafayette
Benjamin Franklin
1962
The Tartars
Burundai
1961
Crack in the Mirror
Hagolin / Lamerciere
1960
David and Goliath
King Saul
1960
High Journey
Narrator
1959
Ferry to Hong Kong
Captain Hart
1959
Compulsion
Jonathan Wilk
1959
The Roots of Heaven
Cy Sedgewick
1958
The Fountain of Youth
the narrator
1958
The Vikings
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1958
The Long, Hot Summer
Will Varner
1958
Touch of Evil
Police Captain Hank Quinlan
1958
Man in the Shadow
Virgil Renchler
1957
Moby Dick
Father Mapple
1956
Mr. Arkadin
Gregory Arkadin
1955
Napoleon
Sir Hudson Lowe
1955
Three Cases of Murder
Lord Mountdrago ("Lord Mountdrago" segment)
1955
Trouble in the Glen
Sanin Cejador y Mengues
1954
Royal Affairs in Versailles
Benjamin Franklin
1954
King Lear
King Lear
1953
Man, Beast and Virtue
Captain Perella, the Beast
1953
Return to Glennascaul
Narrator
1953
Trent's Last Case
Sigsbee Manderson
1952
Othello
Othello
1951
Disorder
Self
1950
The Black Rose
Bayan
1950
Prince of Foxes
Cesare Borgia
1949
The Third Man
Harry Lime
1949
Black Magic
Joseph Balsamo aka Count Cagliostro
1949
Macbeth
Macbeth
1948
The Lady from Shanghai
Michael O'Hara
1947
Duel in the Sun
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1946
Battle for Survival
Narrator
1946
The Stranger
Prof. Charles Rankin
1946
Tomorrow Is Forever
John Andrew MacDonald
1946
Follow the Boys
Orson Welles (uncredited)
1944
Jane Eyre
Edward Rochester
1943
Show-Business at War
Self
1943
Journey into Fear
Colonel Haki
1943
The Magnificent Ambersons
Narrator (voice)
1942
Citizen Kane
Charles Foster Kane
1941
Swiss Family Robinson
Opening Narrator
1940
The Spanish Earth
Narrator (voice)
1937
The Hearts of Age
Death
1934
Something Else
4'33
(Archive footage)
2025
Human Nature in Eleven Parts
Narrator "The Scorpion and the Frog" (archive footage)
2025
The Scorpion and the Frog
Narrator (archive footage)
2025
Aliens Uncovered: Close Encounters
Self
2024
The Real Charlie Chaplin
2021
The Blinding of Isaac Woodard
Self (archive footage)
2021
Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind
Self (archive footage)
2020
The Great Buster: A Celebration
Self (archive footage)
2018
Embers & Dust
Professor Richard Pierson / Self (voice) (archive sound)
2016
Talking Pictures
Self (archive footage) · (1 episode)
2013
Magic Mirror Maze
2012
Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff
Genghis Khan / Bayan (archive footage)
2010
Lost in "The Thinking"
Self (archive footage)
2005
Orson Welles Talks With Roger Hill
(Self)
2005
The UFO Conspiracy
Self (archive audio)
2004
Heart of the Festival
2002
Hi-Fi
1999
Who Is Henry Jaglom?
Self (archive footage)
1997
Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio
Self - Professor in War of the Worlds Broadcast (archive sound)
1991
American Experience
Self (archive footage) · (1 episode)
1988
It's Not All True
Himself (archive footage)
1986
Almonds and Raisins
Narrator
1985
Scene of the Crime
(4 episodes)
1985
Moonlighting
Orson Welles · (1 episode)
1985
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast: Michael Landon
1984
In Our Hands
Himself
1984
The Psychic Connection
Narrator
1983
King Penguin: Stranded Beyond the Falklands
Self - Narrator
1983
Wagner e Venezia
Richard Wagner (voice)
1982
Natalie - A Tribute to a Very Special Lady
Self
1982
The Orson Welles Story
Self
1982
Baryshnikov in Hollywood
Self - Narrator
1982
Genocide
Narrator (voice)
1982
Night of 100 Stars
Self
1982
Doug Henning's World of Magic
Self - Special Guest
1982
Let Poland Be Poland
Self
1982
A Gift of Harvest
Narrator
1981
Brasil
Self (archive footage)
1981
Search for the Titanic
Himself (host)
1981
The New Deal for Artists
Narrator (voice)
1981
Tales of the Klondike
Narrator · (7 episodes)
1981
Magnum, P.I.
Robin Masters (voice) · (6 episodes)
1980
Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park
Narrator
1980
Shōgun
Narrator · (5 episodes)
1980
The New Media Bible: Book of Genesis
Narrator
1979
Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
Self
1979
To Try Again... and Succeed
Narrator (voice)
1979
The Double McGuffin
Narrator
1979
A Woman Called Moses
Narrator (voice) · (2 episodes)
1978
The Magic of David Copperfield
(2 episodes)
1978
Caesar's Guide to Gaming with Orson Welles
Himself
1978
The Lions of Capitalism: Some Call It Greed
Narrator
1977
NBC: The First Fifty Years
Self / Narrator
1976
Doug Henning's World of Magic
Self · (1 episode)
1975
Orson Welles - Das vermarktete Genie
Self
1975
Magnificent Monsters of the Deep
Narrator
1975
A Legend a Lifetime: Citizen Welles
1974
Dinah!
Self · (4 episodes)
1974
Power and Corruption
Himself
1973
Kelly Country
Narrator
1973
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
Self · (2 episodes)
1973
Orson Welles' Great Mysteries
Self - Host · (26 episodes)
1973
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
Self · (1 episode)
1973
The Man Who Came to Dinner
Sheridan Whiteside
1972
Jeanne Moreau : Vive le cinéma !
Self
1972
The Silent Years
(1 episode)
1971
V.I.P. Schaukel
Self · (1 episode)
1971
Night Gallery
Narrator · (1 episode)
1970
The Enemy Before Us
Narrator
1970
One Man Band
(2 episodes)
1968
The Name of the Game
Narrator · (1 episode)
1968
The Dick Cavett Show
Self - Guest · (4 episodes)
1968
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Self · (1 episode)
1968
Beggars Would Ride
Narrator
1967
Omnibus
Self - Presenter · (1 episode)
1967
Disorder Is 20 Years Old
Self
1967
Americans on Everest
Narrator- Self
1965
National Geographic Specials
Narrator · (1 episode)
1965
Profile No. 6: Orson Welles
1965
In the Land of Don Quixote
Himself · (9 episodes)
1964
Hollywood and the Stars
Self (archive footage) · (1 episode)
1963
River of the Ocean
Narrator (English)
1962
The Merv Griffin Show
Self · (1 episode)
1962
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self · (16 episodes)
1962
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self - Guest Host · (4 episodes)
1962
Tempo
(1 episode)
1961
King of Kings
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1961
Survival
Narrator · (1 episode)
1961
The Battle of Austerlitz
Robert Fulton
1960
An Arabian Night
Storyteller
1960
Lords of the Forest
Narrator (voice)
1958
Orson Welles at Large: Portrait of Gina
Self - Host
1958
Colgate Theatre
(1 episode)
1958
South Seas Adventure
Narrator
1958
Out of Darkness
Self - Narrator
1956
The Steve Allen Show
Self · (2 episodes)
1956
Cinépanorama
Self · (1 episode)
1956
The Land of the Basques
Himself
1955
Around the World with Orson Welles
Host: Orson Welles · (7 episodes)
1955
Around the World with Orson Welles
Self (Host) · (1 episode)
1955
Ford Star Jubilee
Oscar Jaffe · (1 episode)
1955
Moby Dick Rehearsed
An Actor Manager /Father Mapple /Ahab
1955
Orson Welles' Sketch Book
Self - Host
1955
Voyage of the Brigantine Yankee
Narrator
Orson Welles' Sketch Book
Himself - Host · (7 episodes)
1955
Reflets de Cannes
Self · (1 episode)
1954
Omnibus
King Lear · (1 episode)
1952
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Sheridan Whiteside · (1 episode)
1951
I Love Lucy
Orson Welles · (1 episode)
1951
What's My Line?
Self - Panelist · (1 episode)
1950
The Ed Sullivan Show
Self · (3 episodes)
1948
Mexico City, Old and New
Narrator
1945
Know Your Ally: Britain
Narrator/Bob (helpful taxi passenger)
1944
Twelfth Night
Narrator
1933