Lancaster, Burt (Burton Stephen) (1913–1994)
US film actor. A star from his first film, The Killers (1946), he proved adept both at action roles and more complex character parts as in From Here to Eternity (1953), Elmer Gantry (1960; Academy Award), The Leopard/Il Gattopardo (1963), The Swimmer (1968), and Atlantic City (1980).
A former circus acrobat, Lancaster was spotted by a Hollywood agent in his first Broadway acting role in 1945. After his successful screen debut and several further underworld films, he switched to swashbuckling in The Flame and the Arrow (1950) and The Crimson Pirate (1952), taking pride in performing his own stunts. In a different vein, he took on the role of a down-at-heel ex-alcoholic in Come Back Little Sheba (1952). He continued to alternate heroic roles with offbeat characterizations like the odious gossip columnist of Sweet Smell of Success (1957).
| In 1948 he became one of the first Hollywood stars to form his own production company, Hecht-Hill-Lancaster. |
