Arthur O'Sullivan (1912 – 17 February 1981), also known as Archie O'Sullivan, was an Irish actor who appeared on stage, screen and radio.

Radio career

The

Radio Éireann Players The Radio Éireann Players (RÉP) were a repertory company for radio in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, formed in 1947, which performed in regular drama productions for Irish broadcaster, RTÉ Radio 1, Radio Éireann. After the depredations of the Th ...

were a repertory company for radio formed in 1947 which performed in the station's regular drama productions. O'Sullivan joined in 1948, along with Laurence O'Dea and Frank O'Dwyer. After the depredations of the war-time years and the devastating fire in the

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre (), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland () is a theatre in Dublin, Ireland. First opening to the public on 27 December 1904, and moved from its original building after a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the p ...

in 1951, the Radio Éireann Players' powerful weekly performances inspired interest in drama throughout the country. Their effect has been compared to an effort at national re-invention, in the same way that the national theatre fifty years earlier had been an attempt to redefine Irish identity. The formation of a full-time theatre company for a radio station was something new - no English-speaking country (not even the BBC) possessed one, and all its members hailed from Ireland, many being native Irish speakers. Micheál Ó hAodha became the company's first producer and Roibeárd Ó Faracháin with Ria Mooney of the Abbey recruited. O'Sullivan appeared with Tom Studley, George Greene,

Éamonn Kelly Éamonn Kelly (born 1968) is an Irish hurler who played as a full-forward for the Tipperary junior hurling team. Born in Puckane, County Tipperary, Kelly first arrived on the inter-county scene at the age of seventeen when he first linked up ...

, Joe Lynch and Aidan Grennell in pieces by writers such as

Frank O'Connor Frank O'Connor (born Michael Francis O'Donovan; 17 September 1903 – 10 March 1966) was an Irish author and translator. He wrote poetry (original and translations from Irish), dramatic works, memoirs, journalistic columns and features on as ...

and

Seán Ó Faoláin Seán Proinsias Ó Faoláin (27 February 1900 – 20 April 1991) was one of the most influential figures in 20th-century Irish culture. A short-story writer of international repute, he was also a leading commentator and critic. Biography Ó ...

. Another contributor was

Brendan Behan Brendan Francis Aidan Behan (christened Francis Behan) ( ; ; 9 February 1923 – 20 March 1964) was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, playwright, and Irish Republican, an activist who wrote in both English and Irish. His widely ackno ...

, who made his debut with two plays for the radio. Between plays the players acted in radio variety programmes and read pieces on the radio as necessary. In 1961 O'Sullivan acted in ''The Weaver's Grave''. Adapted and produced by Mícheál Ó hAodha, it was written by Galway author

Seamus O'Kelly Seumas O'Kelly (1881 – 14 November 1918) was an Irish journalist, fiction writer, and playwright. Born in Loughrea, County Galway, O'Kelly was educated locally and began his career as a journalist with the Cork newspaper ''Southern Star' ...

, and won the coveted Prix Italia for Radio Drama. The players also won this award in 1964. He later appeared in Radio Éireann's "Rambling House"; a programme in which

Ceoltóirí Chualann Ceoltóirí Chualann (pronounced ) was an Irish traditional band, led by Seán Ó Riada, which included many of the founding members of The Chieftains. Ceoltóirí is the Irish word for musicians, and Cualann is the name of an area just out ...

, Seán Ó Sé, Éamon Kelly and others re-enacted, through singing, music, and story telling, the Irish Rambling Houses of old.

Stage and screen

In April 1966 O'Sullivan appeared on

RTÉ television RTÉ Television is a department of Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), Ireland's public service broadcaster. Its first channel was Telefís Éireann, which began broadcasting on 31 December 1961. Since the 1960s, RTÉ Television has added chan ...

in ''The Singer'', by P. H. Pearse, part of a series broadcast to mark the 50th Anniversary of the 1916 Insurrection. Another RTÉ series that he appeared in was ''Teems of Times'' in 1978, playing the part of Sailor Clancy. O'Sullivan was a prolific stage actor, appearing in the world premières of plays by John B. Keane and

Brian Friel Brian Patrick Friel (c. 9 January 1929 – 2 October 2015) was an Irish dramatist, short story writer and founder of the Field Day Theatre Company. He had been considered one of the greatest living English-language dramatists. (subscription requ ...

. He also took small roles in a number of significant feature films shot in Ireland, such as ''

Girl with Green Eyes ''Girl with Green Eyes'' is a 1964 British romantic drama film directed by Desmond Davis and starring Peter Finch, Rita Tushingham, Lynn Redgrave and Julian Glover. Adapted by Edna O'Brien from her novel ''The Lonely Girl'', the film tells the s ...

'' (1964), ''

Ryan's Daughter ''Ryan's Daughter'' is a 1970 British epic romantic drama film directed by David Lean and written by Robert Bolt. Loosely inspired by Gustave Flaubert's 1857 novel ''Madame Bovary'', the film stars Robert Mitchum and Sarah Miles as a married ...

'' (1970) and ''

Barry Lyndon ''Barry Lyndon'' is a 1975 epic historical drama film written, directed, and produced by Stanley Kubrick, based on the 1844 novel '' The Luck of Barry Lyndon'' by William Makepeace Thackeray. Narrated by Michael Hordern, and starring Ryan O'N ...

'' (1975). In the latter film, he played the part of the courteous

highwayman A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to foo ...

, Captain Feeny.Barry Lyndon (IMDb)
(Spelt as per film script and not as rendered by

William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray ( ; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist and illustrator. He is known for his Satire, satirical works, particularly his 1847–1848 novel ''Vanity Fair (novel), Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portra ...

in ''The memoirs of Barry Lyndon, esq., and, A little dinner at Timmin's'' (London, 1886), p. 51) Arthur O'Sullivan died at

Our Lady's Hospice Our Lady's Hospice & Care Services is a hospice and health care provider with three locations: one at Harold's Cross, Dublin and satellite facilities at Blackrock, County Dublin and Magheramore, County Wicklow in Ireland Ireland (, ; ; ...

Harolds Cross Harold's Cross () is an affluent urban village and inner suburb on the south side of Dublin, Ireland in the postal district D6W. The River Poddle runs through it, though largely in an underground culvert, and it holds a major cemetery, Mount ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, at the age of 69.

Filmography

References

External links

Arthur O'Sullivan at Irish Playography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Osullivan, Arthur 1912 births 1981 deaths Irish male stage actors Irish male film actors Irish male radio actors Irish male television actors 20th-century Irish male actors