- Born
- Died
- Birth nameEric Harold Portman
- With his clipped delivery, aristocratic if somewhat ominous manner and suave, urbane demeanour, Eric Portman was so good at playing German and/or Nazi officers that many believed he actually was German, or at least Austrian. The fact is that he was British to the core, having been born, raised and educated in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. He began his acting career on the stage in 1923, specialising in works by William Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw. His film debut came in the Tod Slaughter melodrama Maria Marten, or the Murder in the Red Barn (1935) as, oddly enough, a Gypsy.
Portman became a favourite of renowned filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, leading to a role he is probably best remembered for - the determined Nazi commander of a German U-boat sunk off the coast of Canada in 49th Parallel (1941), who tries to lead his crew across Canada in order to get to the safety of the US, which was at the time not involved in the war. His versatility was obvious in a film he made the next year, One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1942) as an RAF officer who finds himself stranded in Nazi-occupied Holland.
Portman kept busy over the next 25 years in a variety of roles, as villain and hero, in both thrillers and dramas. After making Deadfall (1968) he retired, apart from a few television projects over the next year or so. He died in 1969 of heart problems.- IMDb Mini Biography By: frankfob2@yahoo.com - Eric was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England where his father was a wool merchant. Eric starred in school Christmas plays then later got to know someone in a Shakespeare touring company, which led to a job in Manchester as a dresser and a secretary to the leading actor. At 20 he played Romeo which he later played again at the Old Vic. Pre war he played Byron in 'Diplomacy' followed by titles such as 'The Hypocrite' and 'The Intruder' with Edith Evans and Fay Compton. His stage successes were transferred to such films as 'The 49th Parallel,' 'Millions Like Us' and 'A Canterbury Tale.'- IMDb Mini Biography By: Tonyman 5
- In 1942, he was voted one of the top 10 money making film stars in Britain.
- A noted Shakespearean actor, Portman's stage career dated back to 1924.
- Bryan Forbes believed Portman's chronic alcoholism greatly undermined his career.
- Worked for a time as shop assistant in Leeds and in his spare time was a member of the Halifax Opera Society.
- The Portman and Pickles Public House in Halifax, West Yorkshire is named after Portman and another great talent from the town, Wilfred Pickles.
- Acting is like masturbation--one either does it or one doesn't, but one never talks about it.
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