Anthony Newley

Anthony Newley
Newley in 1967
Born
Anthony Newley[1]

(1931-09-24)24 September 1931
Homerton, London, England
Died14 April 1999(1999-04-14) (aged 67)
Jensen Beach, Florida, U.S.
Resting placeForest Hills Memorial Park and Mausoleum
Alma materItalia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts
Occupations
  • Actor
  • singer
  • songwriter
  • filmmaker
Years active1947–1999
Spouses
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(m. 1956; div. 1963)​
​
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(m. 1963; div. 1970)​
Dareth Rich
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(m. 1971; div. 1989)​
PartnerGina Fratini
Children5, including Tara and Alexander

Anthony Newley (24 September 1931 – 14 April 1999)[2] was an English actor, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker. A "latter-day British Al Jolson", he achieved widespread success in song, and on stage and screen.[3] "One of Broadway's greatest leading men", from 1959 to 1962 he scored a dozen entries on the UK Top 40 chart, including two number one hits.[4] Newley won the 1963 Grammy Award for Song of the Year for "What Kind of Fool Am I?", sung by Sammy Davis Jr.,[5] and wrote "Feeling Good", which became a signature hit for Nina Simone. His songs have been sung by a wide variety of singers including Fiona Apple, Tony Bennett, Barbra Streisand, Michael Bublé and Mariah Carey.

With songwriting partner Leslie Bricusse, Newley was nominated for an Academy Award for the film score of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971), featuring "Pure Imagination", which has been recorded by dozens of singers.[6] He collaborated with John Barry on the title song for the James Bond film Goldfinger (1964), sung by Shirley Bassey. An "icon of the early 1960s", his TV series The Strange World of Gurney Slade "continues to have a cult following due to its advanced postmodern premise that [he] is trapped inside a television programme."[5][7]

Described by The Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums as "among the most innovative UK acts of the early rock years before moving into musicals and cabaret",[8] Newley was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1989.[9]

  1. ^ "FamilySearch.org". FamilySearch. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  2. ^ Talevski, Nick (2006). Knocking on Heaven's Door: Rock Obituaries. Omnibus Press. p. 462. ISBN 1-84609-091-1.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ ""Willie Wonka" score won Oscar and "Candy Man" a hit for Sammy Davis. Jr". Songwriters Hall of Fame. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Anthony Newley". Music Theatre International. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  6. ^ "Pure Imagination by Gene Wilder". Second Hand Songs. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  7. ^ Barker, Dennis (16 April 1999). "Anthony Newley obituary: Lost icon on parade". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  8. ^ David Roberts, ed. (2006). British Hit Singles and Albums. Guinness World Records Limited. p. 393. ISBN 978-1904994107.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Indie was invoked but never defined (see the help page).