Anthony Perkins was born on this day in 1932
Actor Anthony Perkins was born on this day in 1932. He was an actor, director, singer, and Academy Award nominee, but one role overshadowed his entire career — Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.
Perkins was nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his second on‑screen role. In 1956 he appeared in the film Friendly Persuasion, in which he played the son of leading man Gary Cooper.
He appeared in Fear Strikes Out (1957), playing baseball player Jimmy Piersall; showed off his range in the comedy The Matchmaker (1958) alongside Shirley Booth and Shirley MacLaine; and joined the star‑studded cast of On the Beach, which included Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, and Fred Astaire.
His role as Norman Bates in Hitchcock’s acclaimed thriller Psycho is recognised as one of the director’s greatest achievements. Its shower scene and soundtrack have become deeply ingrained in the cultural zeitgeist. Perkins reprised the role in several sequels.
His later films included the Disney sci‑fi caper The Black Hole and Sidney Lumet’s adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, which featured Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Sean Connery, John Gielgud, Vanessa Redgrave, Jacqueline Bisset, Michael York, and Wendy Hiller.
Perkins died at his home on 12 September 1992 from AIDS‑related pneumonia. He was 60 years old. He had been diagnosed with HIV during the filming of Psycho IV: The Beginning in 1990.
After his death it was revealed that he had exclusively had same‑sex relationships until his forties. Actor Tab Hunter, artist Christopher Makos, dancer Rudolf Nureyev, and composer Stephen Sondheim were listed among his past lovers.
In 1972 he met photographer Berinthia Berenson. They married the following year and went on to have two sons. They remained married until Perkins’ death. Berenson was killed nine years later; she was a passenger on the American Airlines flight hijacked by terrorists and crashed into the World Trade Center on September 11.
Record executive Clive Davis was also born in 1932
American record executive Clive Davis was born on this day in 1932.
From 1967 until 1973 he was the President of Columbia Records. He then went on to found and run Arista Records from 1974 until 2000. He later created another record label, J Records, and served as CEO of BMG North America. As of 2018 he has been the Chief Creative Officer at Sony Music Entertainment.
Davis is credited with signing many significant artists, including Janis Joplin, Sly and the Family Stone, Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith, Billy Joel, and Ace of Base.
His most famous signing, however, was Whitney Houston. Davis signed her to Arista Records after hearing her sing in a New York nightclub alongside her mother, gospel singer Cissy Houston. Davis guided Whitney’s career, which saw her become one of the highest‑selling artists of all time.
Davis has been married and divorced twice and has four children and many grandchildren. In 2013 he shared publicly that he is bisexual. While promoting his autobiography The Soundtrack of My Life, Davis said he hoped his coming out would lead to greater understanding and acceptance of bisexuality.
Actor, comedian, writer, and TV host Graham Norton celebrates his 63rd birthday today.
Graham Norton first began performing comedy in the early 1990s. He made a memorable appearance at the Edinburgh Comedy Festival in 1992, performing a drag act that paid homage to Mother Teresa using an array of tea towels. He later appeared in the Irish sitcom Father Ted, playing the exuberant Father Noel Furlong.
He appeared on Britain’s Channel 4 from 1998 with a succession of chat shows, including So Graham Norton and V Graham Norton. His camp and flamboyant style quickly earned him a devoted following.
In 2007 he moved to the BBC, where he launched The Graham Norton Show, which continues to attract major stars and global audiences.
Alongside his own show, Norton has hosted a wide variety of programs in the UK, including Strictly Come Dancing and several singing‑competition series aimed at finding stars for West End productions.
Since 2008 he has also been the commentator for the British broadcast of the Eurovision Song Contest, as well as a regular radio presenter on the BBC and, more recently, Virgin Radio.
He has also appeared in West End musicals, written several books, published a newspaper advice column, and released multiple volumes of his autobiography. In his spare time, he appears as a judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK.
OIP Staff, This post was first published in 2021
