Editing Christopher Plummer (section)

=== 1948–1964: Early roles and theatre debut ===
[[File:Christopher Plummer.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Photograph by [[Carl Van Vechten]], 1959]]
Plummer made his professional acting debut in 1948 with Ottawa's Stage Society after which he performed roles as an apprentice artist with the Montreal Repertory Theatre alongside fellow apprenticing actor [[William Shatner]].<ref name="CTE"/> In 1952, he starred in a number of productions at the Bermudiana Theatre in the [[Hamilton, Bermuda|City of Hamilton]], in the [[British Overseas Territories|British colony]] of [[Bermuda]] where he was seen and recruited by an American producer, although he was reluctant to leave Bermuda.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.royalgazette.com/general/news/article/20210206/star-christopher-plummers-bermuda-theatre-days/ |title='' Star Christopher Plummer's Bermuda theatre days'', by Gareth Finighan. The Royal Gazette, City of Hamilton, Pembroke, Bermuda. 6 February, 2021 |date=February 6, 2021 |access-date=February 8, 2021 |archive-date=February 6, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206132038/https://www.royalgazette.com/general/news/article/20210206/star-christopher-plummers-bermuda-theatre-days/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Edward Everett Horton]] hired Plummer to appear as Gerard in the 1953 road show production of [[André Roussin]]'s ''Nina'',<ref name="claiborne">{{cite web|title=''Dolores Claiborne'' Movie Notes: Christopher Plummer (Inspector John Mackey)|url=http://www.lonestar-movie.com/dolores/txtdolores012.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020711123841/http://www.lonestar-movie.com/dolores/txtdolores012.html|archive-date=July 11, 2002|access-date=February 3, 2012|website=|publisher=[[Castle Rock Entertainment]]}}</ref> a role originated on Broadway by [[David Niven]] in 1951.<ref name="nina">{{cite web| title=Nina| url=http://ibdb.com/production.php?id=1980| work=Internet Broadway Database| access-date=February 3, 2012| archive-date=November 9, 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121109164312/http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=1980| url-status=live}}</ref> Plummer made his [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] debut in January 1953 in the Diana Morgan play ''The Starcross Story'', a show that closed on opening night after a plagiarism lawsuit shut down the production.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Theatre: New Play in Manhattan, Jan. 25, 1954|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=January 25, 1954}}</ref> Plummer acted opposite [[Mary Astor]] and [[Margaret Bannerman]].

His next Broadway appearance, ''Home is the Hero'', lasted 30 performances from September to October 1954. He appeared in support of Broadway legend [[Katharine Cornell]] and film legend [[Tyrone Power]] in ''[[The Dark Is Light Enough]]'', which lasted 69 performances from February to April 1955. The play toured several cities, with Plummer serving as Power's understudy.<ref>{{harvnb|Plummer|2008|pp=150–152}}</ref> Later that same year, he appeared in his first Broadway hit, opposite [[Julie Harris (actress)|Julie Harris]] (who won a Tony Award) in [[Jean Anouilh]]'s ''[[The Lark (play)|The Lark]]''. After this success, he appeared in ''[[Night of the Auk]]'', which was not a success, He appeared as Jason opposite Dame [[Judith Anderson]] in [[Robinson Jeffers]]' adaptation of ''[[Medea (play)|Medea]]'' at the Theatre Sara Bernhardt in Paris in 1955. The [[American National Theatre and Academy]] production, directed by [[Guthrie McClintic]], was part of Le Festival International. Also in 1955, he played Mark Antony in ''[[Julius Caesar (play)|Julius Caesar]]'' and Ferdinand in ''[[The Tempest]]'' at the [[American Shakespeare Festival]] (Stratford, Connecticut). He returned to the American Shakespeare Festival in 1981 to play the title role in ''[[Henry V (play)|Henry V]]''.<ref name="the-sound-of-music-guide1"/>

Plummer made his Canadian television debut in the February 1953 [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] production of ''[[Othello]]'', starring [[Lorne Greene]] as the Moor.<ref name="othello">{{cite web| title=''Othello''| url=http://bufvc.ac.uk/shakespeare/index.php/title/AV37320| publisher=British Universities Film & Video Council| access-date=July 25, 2012| archive-date=May 25, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525143933/http://bufvc.ac.uk/shakespeare/index.php/title/AV37320| url-status=live}}</ref> His American television debut was also in 1953 on a ''[[Studio One (American TV series)|Studio One]]'' episode entitled "The Gathering Night", as an artist who finds success just as his eyesight begins to fail him. He also appeared throughout the 1950s on both dramatic showcase programs like ''[[The Alcoa Hour]]'', ''[[General Electric Theater]]'', ''[[Kraft Television Theatre]]'', and ''[[Omnibus (U.S. TV series)|Omnibus]]'' and episodic series. In 1956, he appeared with [[Jason Robards]] and [[Constance Ford]] in an episode entitled "A Thief There Was" of [[CBS]]'s [[anthology series]] ''Appointment with Adventure''.<ref>{{cite web |title=APPOINTMENT WITH ADVENTURE: A THIEF THERE WAS (TV) |url=https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item/?q=about&p=84&item=T:15255 |website=The Paley Center |access-date=February 7, 2021 |archive-date=April 1, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401022742/https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item/?q=about&p=84&item=T%3A15255 |url-status=live }}</ref> Plummer made his debut at the [[Stratford Shakespeare Festival]] in 1956, playing the title role in ''[[Henry V (play)|Henry V]]'', which subsequently was performed that year at the [[Edinburgh Festival]]. He played the title role in ''[[Hamlet]]'' and Sir Andrew Aguecheek in ''[[Twelfth Night]]'' at Stratford in 1957. The following year, he played Leontes in ''[[The Winter's Tale]]'', Bardolph in ''[[Henry IV, Part 1]]'', and Benedick in ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]''.<ref name="the-sound-of-music-guide1"/> In 1959, Plummer appeared in [[Elia Kazan]]'s successful Broadway production of [[Archibald MacLeish]]'s [[Pulitzer Prize]]-winning play ''[[J.B. (play)|J.B.]]''; Plummer was nominated for his first Tony for [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play|Best Actor in Play]]. (''J.B.'' also won Tonys for [[Tony Award for Best Play|Best Play]] and for Kazan's direction.)<ref name="the-sound-of-music-guide1"/>

He appeared in the live television drama ''[[Little Moon of Alban (Hallmark Hall of Fame)|Little Moon of Alban]]'' with [[Julie Harris (actress)|Julie Harris]], for which he received his first [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie|Emmy Award]] nomination.<ref name=":4">{{cite web |title=Christopher Plummer |url=https://www.emmys.com/bios/christopher-plummer |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213082902/https://www.emmys.com/bios/christopher-plummer |archive-date=February 13, 2021 |access-date=February 5, 2021 |website=[[emmys.com]] |publisher=[[Academy of Television Arts & Sciences]]}}</ref> He also appeared with Harris in the 1958 television adaptation of ''[[Johnny Belinda (play)#Adaptations|Johnny Belinda]]''<ref>{{Cite web|title=Johnny Belinda (1958) – Overview|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/468335/johnny-belinda/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170929155051/https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/468335/johnny-belinda/|archive-date=September 29, 2017|access-date=February 7, 2021|website=TCM. Turner Classic Movies}}</ref> and played [[Torvald Helmer]] to Harris' [[Nora Helmer|Nora]] in [[A Doll's House (1959 film)|a 1959 television version]] of [[Henrik Ibsen]]'s ''[[A Doll's House]]''.<ref name="Tomatoes"/> Plummer starred in the television adaptations of [[Philip Barry]]'s ''[[The Philadelphia Story (play)|The Philadelphia Story]]'' (1959),<ref name="BFI">{{Cite web|title=Christopher Plummer|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba1a186bf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117010508/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba1a186bf|archive-date=January 17, 2021|access-date=February 7, 2021|website=BFI. British Film Institute|language=en}}</ref> [[George Bernard Shaw]]'s ''[[Captain Brassbound's Conversion]]'' (1960), [[Jean Anouilh]]'s ''[[Time Remembered]]'' (playing the role of Prince Albert originated by [[Richard Burton]] on Broadway),<ref name="time">{{cite web| title=Time Remembered| url=http://ibdb.com/production.php?id=2656| work=Internet Broadway Database| access-date=July 25, 2012| archive-date=October 23, 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023192506/http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=2656| url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Edmond Rostand]]'s ''[[Cyrano de Bergerac (play)|Cyrano de Bergerac]]'' (1962).<ref>{{cite web |title=Cyrano de Bergerac |url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/461260/cyrano-de-bergerac/#overview |website=TCM |access-date=February 7, 2021 |archive-date=April 1, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401022805/https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/461260/cyrano-de-bergerac/#overview |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1964, his performance of the [[Hamlet|Gloomy Dane]] in the [[BBC]] production ''[[Hamlet|Hamlet at Elsinore]]'' garnered him his second [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie|Emmy]] nomination.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hamlet at Elsinore: 'To be, or not to be...' |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/hamlet/past_productions/1964_to_be.shtml |website=[[BBC]] |access-date=February 6, 2021 |archive-date=November 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161112132752/http://www.bbc.co.uk/hamlet/past_productions/1964_to_be.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref> He played Hamlet in ''[[Hamlet at Elsinore]]'', produced by Danish and British BBC TV (1964), taped at [[Elsinore Castle]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Hamlet at Elsinore |url=https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/anniversaries/april/hamlet-at-elsinore |website=[[BBC]] |access-date=February 6, 2021 |archive-date=February 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207190451/https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/anniversaries/april/hamlet-at-elsinore |url-status=live }}</ref>

In April 1961, he appeared as Benedick in ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'' with the [[Royal Shakespeare Company]] at the [[Shakespeare Memorial Theatre]] in [[Stratford-upon-Avon]], England. He also appeared with the RSC in May 1961 in the lead role of ''[[Richard III (play)|Richard III]]''. He made his London debut on June 11, 1961, playing King Henry II in [[Jean Anouilh]]'s ''[[Becket]]'' with the RSC at the Aldwych Theatre, directed by [[Peter Hall (director)|Peter Hall]]. The production later transferred to the Globe for a December 1961 to April 1962 run.<ref name="the-sound-of-music-guide1"/> For his performance, Plummer won the [[Evening Standard Award]] for Best Actor.<ref name="nine">{{cite web| title=''9'' Cast and Crew: Christopher Plummer| url=http://focusfeatures.com/9/castncrew?member=christopher_plummer| work=Focus Features| access-date=July 25, 2012| archive-date=June 4, 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120604145347/http://focusfeatures.com/9/castncrew?member=christopher_plummer| url-status=live}}</ref> At the Stratford Festival, he played Philip the Bastard in ''[[King John (play)|King John]]'' and Mercutio in ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]''. In 1962, he played the title roles in both ''[[Cyrano de Bergerac (play)|Cyrano de Bergerac]]'' and ''[[Macbeth]]'', returning in 1967 to play Mark Antony in ''[[Antony and Cleopatra]]''.<ref name="the-sound-of-music-guide1">{{cite web| title=Actor Christopher Plummer On Stage| url=http://www.the-sound-of-music-guide.com/actor-christopher-plummer.html| publisher=The Sound of Music Guide| access-date=July 25, 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110909071146/http://www.the-sound-of-music-guide.com/actor-christopher-plummer.html| archive-date=September 9, 2011| url-status=dead| df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://archives.stratfordfestival.ca/AIS/Details/people/8943 | title = Christopher Plummer acting credits | website = Stratford Festival Archives | access-date = June 3, 2019 | archive-date = April 6, 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190406003440/https://archives.stratfordfestival.ca/AIS/Details/people/8943 | url-status = live }}</ref> Plummer appeared less frequently on Broadway in the 1960s as he moved from New York to London. 

He appeared in the title role in a 1963 production of [[Bertolt Brecht]]'s ''[[The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui]]'',<ref name="the-sound-of-music-guide1"/> which did not succeed, but he had a great success in [[Peter Shaffer]]'s ''[[The Royal Hunt of the Sun]]'', playing conquistador [[Francisco Pizarro]] to [[David Carradine]]'s [[Atahuallpa]]. Both performances were "stunning", as Plummer did wonders "of extraordinary beauty and deep pain" in playing his complex character.<ref>Caldwell Titcomb (1965). [https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1965/11/9/the-royal-hunt-of-the-sun/ "The Royal Hunt of the Sun."]{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126055306/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1965/11/9/the-royal-hunt-of-the-sun/ |date=January 26, 2021 }} The Harvard Crimson. November 9, 1965. Retrieved August 12, 2019.</ref> Plummer's film career began in 1958 when [[Sidney Lumet]] cast him as a young writer in ''[[Stage Struck (1958 film)|Stage Struck]]''.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2512&dat=19650622&id=XNpIAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ZgENAAAAIBAJ&pg=912,6301612 Scheuer, Steven H. "TV Key Mailbag," ''The Morning Record'' (Meriden, CT), Tuesday, June 22, 1965.] Retrieved February 24, 2023.</ref> That same year, Plummer played the lead in [[Nicholas Ray]]'s film ''[[Wind Across the Everglades]]''.<ref name="Tomatoes">{{Cite web|title=Christopher Plummer|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/christopher_plummer|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207005454/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/christopher_plummer|archive-date=February 7, 2021|access-date=February 7, 2021|website=Rotten Tomatoes|language=en}}</ref> In 1963, he was the subject of a short [[National Film Board of Canada]] documentary, ''30 Minutes, Mister Plummer'', directed by [[Anne Claire Poirier]].<ref name="poirier">{{Cite AV media| title=30 Minutes, Mister Plummer| url=http://nfb.ca/film/30_minutes_mister_plummer| people=Anne Claire Poirier, director| website=[[National Film Board of Canada]]| access-date=July 23, 2012}}</ref> Plummer returned to film playing the Roman emperor [[Commodus]] in [[Anthony Mann]]'s epic ''[[The Fall of the Roman Empire (film)|The Fall of the Roman Empire]]'' (1964).<ref name="Tomatoes"/>