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Robert Newton

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Actor

The Resume

    (June 1, 1905-March 25, 1956)
    Born in Shaftesbury, Dorset, England, United Kingdom
    Portrayed Long John Silver in the films ‘Treasure Island’ (1950) and ‘Long John Silver’ (1954) and the TV series ‘The Adventures of Long John Silver’ (1956)
    Also appeared in the films ‘Fire Over England’ (1937), ‘Jamaica Inn’ (1939), ‘Gaslight’ (1940), ‘Major Barbara’ (1941), ‘Henry V’ (1944), ‘Oliver Twist’ (1948), Tom Brown’s Schooldays’ (1951), ‘Blackbeard the Pirate’ (1952), ‘The Beachcomber’ (1954) and ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ (1956)
    Appeared on Broadway in ‘Private Lives’ (1930-31)
    Appeared on the London stage in ‘Bitter Sweet’ (1929), ‘The Secret Woman’ (1932), ‘Hamlet’ (1939) and ‘Gaslight’ (1950)

Why he might be annoying:

    He was married four times, divorced three.
    He fled the set of the film ‘Svengali’ to make ‘Long John Silver’ in Australia, and was sued for $375,000 by the producers of ‘Svengali,’ who had to replace him with Donald Wolift.
    He was declared bankrupt with debts of £47,000, mostly unpaid taxes (1954).
    Ignoring his doctor’s advice that one more binge could prove fatal, he fell off the wagon after completing ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ and died of a heart attack at age 50.
    Fellow heavy drinkers Oliver Reed and Keith Moon considered him a role model.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He started in the theater as a stagehand and scenery painter.
    During World War II, he served in the Royal Navy on a minesweeper escorting convoys to Russia.
    For the role of Long John Silver, he exaggerated his actual Cornish accent, creating the popular image of a pirate accent.
    He is the patron saint of International Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19).

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 87.50% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 80 Votes: 51.25% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 114 Votes: 55.26% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 11 Votes: 45.45% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 5 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 59 Votes: 79.66% Annoying