Legendary actor Richard Burton is scheduled to receive a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame almost 30 years after his passing, according to a Feb. 15 report from The Independent. Burton’s star will be right next to that of the late Elizabeth Taylor, the Oscar-winning actress he married twice.
The Welsh actor will receive the star on March 1, which is also St. David’s Day. The ceremony will be part of a celebration to commemorate the 50th anniversary of “Cleopatra,” the first movie in which Burton and Taylor shared the screen for the first time.
The couple’s first marriage lasted between 1964 and 1974. Shortly after their split, the two remarried in 1975, but that only lasted until the following summer.
Following “Cleopatra,” Burton and Taylor would appear in 10 future films together. One of those was “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolff?,” for which Taylor won her second Academy Award.
Dylan Jones-Evans is a business academic professor and leader of the Western Mail, Wales’ national newspaper. The professor said that he is sure “all the people of Wales will be thrilled that he is receiving this accolade on the most special day for the Welsh nation, St David's Day.”
“This public recognition for Richard Burton's body of work will not only help raise the profile of Wales internationally, but will also help to raise funds to provide scholarships in the legendary actor's name to support young Welsh talent at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama,” he said.
It was announced earlier this week that a BBC film is currently in the works about Burton and Taylor’s relationship during the 1983 stage production, “Private Lives,” which happened one year before Burton’s death. Dominic West will play Burton, and Helena Bonham-Carter will play Taylor.
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