gĭnˈəs, 1914–2000, English actor, b. London. After his stage debut in 1934, Guinness performed with John Gielgud's company and at the Old Vic. He was an actor of enormous versatility and range on stage and in film. One of his earliest and most acclaimed stage performances was his modern-dress Hamlet (1938). Guinness's gifts for mimicry and characterization delighted audiences in such film comedies as Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) in which he performed 10 roles; The Lavender Hill Mob (1951); The Ladykillers (1955); and The Horse's Mouth (1958). Among the many dramatic films in which he appeared are The Prisoner (1955); The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), for which he won an Academy Award; Tunes of Glory (1960); and Star Wars (1977). On television he won acclaim for his portrayal of George Smiley, John le Carré's counterintelligence agent, in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (1979) and Smiley's People (1982).

See his autobiography, Blessings in Disguise (1985), and memoirs, My Name Escapes Me (1997) and A Positively Final Appearance (1999); studies by J. R. Taylor (1984) and R. Tanitch (1989).

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright© 2004, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products N.V. All rights reserved.

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