Edmund Anthony Cutlar Purdom (19 December 1924 – 1 January 2009) was an English actor, voice artist, and director. 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. By taking over important roles exited by Mario Lanza and Marlon Brando, Purdom was known by the mid-1950s as "The Replacement Star". Between the 1970s and 90s, he was a regular in European genre cinema, working with directors like Juan Piquer Simón, Joe D'Amato, Sergio Martino, Ruggero Deodato.
Known For
Titanic
(1953)
Second Officer Lightoller (uncredited)
The Diary of Anne Frank
(1959)
British Radio Announcer (voice) (uncredited)
Julius Caesar
(1953)
Strato
Nefertiti, Queen of the Nile
(1961)
Tumos
The Scarlet and the Black
(1983)
Ator, the Fighting Eagle
(1982)
Griba
The Egyptian
(1954)
Sinuhe
Blackie the Pirate
(1971)
The Viceroy
Absurd
(1981)
Father
The Yellow Rolls-Royce
(1964)
Fane
Pieces
(1982)
The Dean
Full Filmography
Acting
Titanic
(1953)
Second Officer Lightoller (uncredited)
Julius Caesar
(1953)
Strato
Athena
(1954)
Adam Calhorn Shaw
The Student Prince
(1954)
Prince Karl Franz
The Egyptian
(1954)
Sinuhe
The King's Thief
(1955)
Michael Dermott
The Prodigal
(1955)
Micah
Strange Intruder
(1956)
Paul Quentin
Ambush in Tangier
(1957)
John Milwood
Herod the Great
(1959)
Erode
The Diary of Anne Frank
(1959)
British Radio Announcer (voice) (uncredited)
Moment of Danger
(1960)
Peter Carran
Das große Wunschkonzert
(1960)
Harry Mell
The Cossacks
(1960)
Shamil, the Sheik
The Night They Killed Rasputin
(1960)
Rasputin
The Loves of Salammbo
(1960)
Narr Havas
Fury of the Pagans
(1960)
Toryok
White Slave Ship
(1961)
Dr. Bradley
Suleiman the Conqueror
(1961)
Ibrahim Pascià
The Last of the Vikings
(1961)
King Sveno
Nefertiti, Queen of the Nile
(1961)
Tumos
Lafayette
(1962)
Silas Deane
The Yellow Rolls-Royce
(1964)
Fane
The Comedy Man
(1964)
Julian Baxter
The Beauty Jungle
(1964)
Rex Carrick
The Last Ride to Santa Cruz
(1964)
Sheriff Kelly
Assault on Fort Texan
(1965)
Major 'Sugar' Patterson
Texas Jim
(1965)
Tom Jameson / Jim James
The Man Who Laughs
(1966)
Cesare Borgia
Chrysanthemums for a Bunch of Swine
(1968)
Padre
Gun Shy Piluk
(1968)
Piluk
Sweden: Heaven and Hell
(1968)
Narrator (English version)
Excuse Me, Do You Like Sex?
(1968)
Narrator of English version
The Queer ... The Erotic
(1969)
Narrator (voice)
Wages of Sin
(1969)
Narrator
Naked England
(1969)
Narrator (English version)
Naked and Violent
(1970)
Narrator (voice): English version
Thomas
(1970)
Marcus
Witchcraft '70
(1970)
Narrator (voice) (English version)
Blackie the Pirate
(1971)
The Viceroy
The Fifth Cord
(1971)
Edouard Vermont
The Devil's Lover
(1972)
Gunther
Karzan, Jungle Lord
(1972)
Lord Carter (voice) (uncredited)
The Big Family
(1973)
Giovanni Lutture
The Sinister Eyes of Dr. Orloff
(1973)
Inspector Crosby
From the Archives of the Criminal Police
(1973)
Teddy Webbs
Fifteen Year Old Captain
(1974)
Admiral Marlowe
The Suspects
(1974)
Le journaliste américain
Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks
(1974)
Prefect Ewing
The Night Child
(1975)
Doctor
Rulers of the City
(1976)
Luigi Cherico
Povero Cristo
(1976)
Man in Tuxedo
Big Pot
(1976)
Professor Vanderberg
The New Godfathers
(1979)
Secret Service Chief
Lo scoiattolo
(1979)
Robert Sincap
Concorde Affair
(1979)
Danker
L'altra donna
(1980)
Phillip
Sophia Loren: Her Own Story
(1980)
Vittorio de Sica
Deep Thoughts
(1980)
The Pianist
Absurd
(1981)
Father
Invaders of the Lost Gold
(1982)
Rex Larson
Pieces
(1982)
The Dean
Ator, the Fighting Eagle
(1982)
Griba
The Scarlet and the Black
(1983)
Champagne in paradiso
(1983)
Paola's Father
Amok
(1983)
Jaarsveld
2019: After the Fall of New York
(1983)
President of the Pan American Confederacy
Don't Open Till Christmas
(1984)
Inspector Harris
The Making of a Horror Film
(1984)
Self
Killer vs Killers
(1985)
His Excelency
The Assisi Underground
(1985)
Cardinal Della Costa
Who Is Afraid Of Dracula?
(1985)
Count Vlad
Don Bosco
(1988)
Urbano Rattazzi
The Rift
(1990)
CEO Steensland
A Bear Called Arthur
(1992)
7 Signs of Christ's Return
(1997)
Host
Knights of the Quest
(2001)
Ugo di Clarendon
Directing