ACTOR · BORN 1922 · DIED 1992
Denholm Elliott
- Born
- 31 May 1922
- Died
- 6 October 1992
- Known for
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), A Room with a View (1986), Maurice (1987), Noises Off... (1992)
14 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
Denholm Elliott (31 May 1922 – 6 October 1992) was an actor best known for Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, A Room with a View and Maurice.
14 Interesting Facts About Denholm Elliott
Interesting Facts (8)
- #001
Bisexual and with many partners over the years, Denholm Elliott tested HIV positive in 1987 and was diagnosed with AIDS in 1988, working until a year before his death in 1992. Some sources claimed after his death that he had contracted the virus through a blood transfusion, but two years later his widow, Susan, documented their open marriage and his bisexuality in her book "Denholm Elliott: Quest for Love."
Denholm Elliott: a sceneImage: Wikimedia Commons · PBS, Public domain - #002
Denholm Elliott went to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) but was asked to leave after one term; as he recalled, "They wrote to my mother and said: 'Much as we love the little man, he is wasting your money and our time. Take him away!'"
- #003
Denholm Elliott went to Malvern College, a private school in Worcestershire, England.
- #004
Denholm Elliott was an RAF officer in the Second World War and later played one in A Bridge Too Far (1977).
- #005
According to British actor John Nettleton in "Remembering Ronnie Barker," Elliott's confidence was "seriously damaged" when, after he'd spent weeks perfecting a Southern accent to play Kilroy, an all-American Southern boy, in the 1957 British stage production of Tennessee Williams's "Camino Real," Williams complimented him on his choice to play Kilroy as an Australian, a remark Elliott never forgot.
- #006
Denholm Elliott had two children, Jennifer Elliott and Mark Elliott; Jennifer became addicted to heroin and hanged herself in 2003.
- #007
In 1971, Denholm Elliott and Joss Ackland shared the first gay kiss seen on the West End stage, in John Mortimer's play "Bermondsey."
- #008
In 1975, Britain's "TV Times" wrote that "since the death of Dennis Price he has cornered the market in upper-class drunks and con men. But Price's villains were sweet, Elliott's are joyless."
Behind the Scenes (2)
- #009
He served in the Royal Air Force during World War II. His plane was shot down over Germany in 1942, and he spent the rest of the war in the Stalag 8B prisoner-of-war camp in Silesia.
- #010
His father was Myles Layman Elliott and his mother was Nina Mitchell.
Characters & Cast (1)
- #011
Denholm Elliott appeared in two very different versions of Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous Sherlock Holmes novel, "The Hound of the Baskervilles," just five years apart: the widely panned Peter Cook-Dudley Moore parody The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978), as Stapleton, and the more serious The Hound of the Baskervilles (1983) with Ian Richardson and Donald Churchill, as Dr. Mortimer.
Career & Awards (1)
- #012
In the 1980s, Denholm Elliott was a BAFTA favorite and the only actor to win Best Supporting Actor three years running; in 1982, for instance, he was nominated for Marcus Brody, who appears only at the start and end of Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), while Paul Freeman, Ronald Lacey and John Rhys-Davies, with far bigger roles, were overlooked. When Elliott won for Defence of the Realm (1985), its star, Gabriel Byrne, who wasn't nominated, joked, "never act with children, dogs or Denholm Elliott."
Life & Family (2)
- #013
Rather than bring back Marcus Brody for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008), Steven Spielberg and writer David Koepp created a new character, Charles Stanforth, played by Jim Broadbent, and Brody's death is acknowledged with a portrait in the corridor outside Indy's classroom, a statue in the university courtyard and a malt shop called "Brody's."
- #014
Denholm Elliott lost the top of his right thumb in a lawnmower accident as a child.
Continue through the archive
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
Information from external sources is independently selected, consolidated and edited by Arka Evren. Sources are listed for verification and further reading. Encyclopedia text is used under its licence (CC BY-SA). How we work