Rex Clive Richards (4 February 1934 – 6 March 1989) was a Welsh international

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player. He gained his only cap against France at Cardiff on 24 March 1956,

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

winning 5–3. He played for

Cross Keys RFC Cross Keys RFC () is a rugby union club located in the Wales, Welsh village of Crosskeys. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union, and is a feeder club for the Dragons (rugby union), Dragons regional team. History The club achieved first ...

until 1955 before heading to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

to try to make his fortune as an actor. He had a number of roles, including the King of Wongo in '' Wild Women of Wongo'' in 1958. In 2008, the film was given a special screening in

Cross Keys Cross Keys or Crosskeys may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Crosskeys, Wales ** Crosskeys railway station ** Crosskeys College, a campus of Coleg Gwent * The Cross Keys (disambiguation), several pubs in the United Kingdom * Cross Keys Inn, a ...

, where Richards had spent his playing career; it was the first time the film had been shown in the town. Richards narrowly missed out on at least one role that would have made him internationally famous. He auditioned to play

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, a feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer. Creat ...

and out of 1,000 people he got down to the final two, just missing out to

Gordon Scott Gordon Scott (born Gordon Merrill Werschkul; August 3, 1926 – April 30, 2007) was an American film and television actor known for his portrayal of the fictional character Tarzan in five films (and one compilation of three made-as- ...

.The incredible story of Wales' Tarzan
Walesonline.co.uk 9 August 2009 His nephew Julian Richards is a film director.

References

External links

* 1934 births 1989 deaths 20th-century Welsh male actors Cross Keys RFC players Monmouthshire County RFC players Rugby union players from Newport, Wales Rugby union props Wales international rugby union players Welsh male film actors Welsh rugby union players {{Wales-actor-stub