Edmund Anthony Cutlar Purdom (19 December 1924 – 1 January 2009) was a British actor. He worked first on stage in Britain, performing various works by Shakespeare, then later in America on Broadway, until making his way to Hollywood, and eventually spent the remainder of his life appearing in Italian cinema. He is perhaps best known for his starring role in 1954's historical epic The Egyptian.

Early life

Purdom was born in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England and educated at St. Augustine's Abbey School, Ramsgate, Kent, then by the Jesuits at St. Ignatius Grammar School and Welwyn Garden City Grammar School. He began his acting career in 1946 by joining the Northampton Repertory Company, appearing in productions which included Romeo and Juliet and Molière's The Imaginary Invalid. Followed by two years of military service where he joined the Army Pool of Artists. He then joined the Royal Shakespeare Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon.

Career

In 1951–52, Purdom appeared in small roles with the Laurence Olivier/Vivien Leigh company on Broadway in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra and Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra when his good looks brought him to the attention of Hollywood. 20th Century Fox tested him for a role in My Cousin Rachel and MGM offered him a small role in Rhapsody which he turned down to work at Warner Bros. But Warners lost interest in him.