José Ferrer was a Puerto Rican-American actor, director, and producer whose illustrious career spanned over six decades. Ferrer was the first Hispanic actor to win an Academy Award and the first actor to receive the National Medal of Arts in 1985.
José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón was born on January 8, 1912, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He was the son of Rafael Ferrer, a local attorney and writer, and María Providencia Cintrón, of Yabucoa. His family moved to New York in 1914 when Ferrer was just two years old. He attended the prestigious Swiss boarding school Institut Le Rosey and later graduated from Princeton University in 1933 with a degree in architecture. Despite his initial interest in architecture, Ferrer’s passion for the performing arts led him to pursue a career in acting.
Ferrer made his Broadway debut in 1935 in the comedy play “A Slight Case of Murder.” His major success came with his performance in the play “Brother Rat” (1936-1938). Ferrer went on to star in hugely successful plays like Mamba’s Daughters (1939), Key Largo (1939–40), and Charley’s Aunt (1940–41). Ferrer’s portrayal of Iago in a Broadway production of “Othello” (1943-1944) alongside Paul Robeson was a significant milestone in his career.
I am more important than my problems.
José Ferrer
Ferrer made his debut on Broadway as a director with Vickie (1942) and maintained a prolific acting and directing career on Broadway, winning a second Best Actor Tony for “The Shrike” and Best Director for “The Shrike,” “The Fourposter,” and “Stalag 17.”
Some of his other Broadway plays include Let’s Face It! (1938), Oh, Captain! (1958), Edwin Booth (1958), Uno (1959), The Andersonville Trial (1959–60), The Girl Who Came to Supper (1963–64), Man of La Mancha (1965), and many more.
He achieved prominence for his portrayal of Cyrano in the play “Cyrano de Bergerac,” which earned him the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play in 1947. He reprised the role in a 1950 film version and made history by winning an Academy Award for Best Actor, making him the first Hispanic actor and the first Puerto Rican-born to win an Academy Award.
Ferrer made his film debut in the epic Joan of Arc (1948) as the weak-willed Dauphin opposite Ingrid Bergman as Joan. Ferrer’s performance earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. This achievement was a precursor to his groundbreaking success in cinema.
One of his most memorable performances came in Vincent Minelli’s “Moulin Rouge (1952),” where Ferrer portrayed the physically deformed French artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, earning immense critical acclaim. Burdened by loneliness, frustration, and depression, he blossomed when he began visiting the famed Parisian nightclub, Moulin Rouge. It was here, in the garish glare of lights and the dazzling swirls of the dancers, that Henri had found his footing.
Ferrer remained active in films and theatre until the late 80s. His other notable film roles include Charles VII in Joan of Arc (1948), defence attorney Barney Greenwald in The Caine Mutiny (1954), Alfred Dreyfus in I Accuse! (1958), the Turkish Bey in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Herod Antipas in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), Siegfried Rieber in Ship of Fools (1965), and Emperor Shaddam IV in Dune (1984).
His directorial talent shone through in movies like the noir drama “The Shrike” (1955) opposite June Allyson, based on Joseph Kramm’s play of the same name, “The Great Man (1956),” “The High Cost of Loving (1958),” and the historical drama “I Accuse!” (1958), where he also starred as Alfred Dreyfus.
Ferrer married five times, first with Uta Hagen (1938–1948), followed by Phyllis Hill (1948–1953). He married Rosemary Clooney in 1953; they divorced in 1961, then remarried after a couple of years in 1964, and divorced again in 1967. He finally married Stella Magee in 1977 and remained with her until his death in 1992.
He had six children: Leticia with Uta Hagen, and Miguel, Maria, Gabriel, and Rafael with Rosemary Clooney.
Ferrer was the father of actor Miguel Ferrer, the brother of Rafael Ferrer, the grandfather of actress Tessa Ferrer, and the uncle of actor George Clooney.
Ferrer died in Coral Gables, Florida, on January 26, 1992, 18 days after his 80th birthday.
