Kenneth Halliwell 

Kenneth Halliwell
Born Kenneth Leith Halliwell
June 23, 1926(1926-06-23)
Died August 9, 1967 (aged 41)
Islington, London, England

Kenneth Halliwell (23 June 1926 – 9 August 1967) was a British actor and writer. He was the mentor, partner and eventual murderer of playwright Joe Orton.

Contents

Childhood

Halliwell was raised in a somewhat split household. In general, he was ignored by his father and pampered by his mother. His mother's death, which occurred when he was a young boy (she was stung by a wasp), was a great negative turning point in his life. Halliwell was a classics scholar at Wirral Grammar School, where he gained his Higher School Certificates in 1943.1 Becoming liable for military service in 1944, aged 18, he registered as a conscientious objector, and was exempted conditional upon going down the pits as a coal miner.2 After discharge in 1946, he acted for a time in Scotland and then returned home to act in Birkenhead. His father committed suicide in 1949 (head in a gas oven), whereupon Halliwell moved to London to study drama at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), having inherited the family fortune.1

Early years

It was at RADA in 1951 that he met Joe Orton, the man who was to make Halliwell's name almost as recognisable as his own.3 Both men were struggling actors without great talent who became struggling writers. However, their common interests led to a lengthy relationship. Halliwell, in the early years, seems to have been something of a tutor to Orton, who had had a rather cursory education, and helped to mold the writing style that would later be called "Ortonesque".45 The two men collaborated on several novels, including The Boy Hairdresser, which were not published until after their deaths.6

In 1962, along with Orton, Halliwell was sent to Ford prison in Sussex for six months for the theft and defacement of library books. Orton's emerging success as a writer, following their release from prison, put a distance between the two men that Halliwell found difficult to handle.7 Towards the end of his life, Halliwell was on regular courses of anti-depressants.8

Murder

On 9 August 1967, Halliwell killed Orton with nine hammer blows to the head and then overdosed on Nembutal sleeping pills. Despite the violence of the murder, it was Halliwell who died first.9 The bodies of the two men were discovered late the following morning, when a chauffeur arrived at the door of their Noel Road flat in Islington to collect Orton for a meeting with The Beatles regarding a screenplay he had written for them.10

Halliwell's suicide note referred to the contents of Orton's diary as an explanation for his actions:

"If you read his diary, all will be explained. KH PS: Especially the latter part."10

This is presumed to be a reference to Orton's description of his promiscuity; the diary contains numerous incidents of cottaging in public lavatories and other sexual relationships.

In popular culture

In Prick Up Your Ears, the 1987 film based on Orton's life, Halliwell was portrayed by Alfred Molina.

In Fantabulosa!, the 2006 biopic about Kenneth Williams, he was portrayed by Ewan Bailey.

British experimental music group Coil recorded three tracks titled "The Halliwell Hammers" for their 1995 album Worship The Glitch. The two primary members of Coil, John Balance and Peter Christopherson, were romantic partners through most of the band's existence, and much of their work was inspired by or dedicated to gay icons and personalities of the past.

Works

References

  1. ^ a b Orton, Joe; Lahr, John (1996). The Orton Diaries. Da Capo Press, 24. ISBN 0-306-80733-5. 
  2. ^ Lahr, John (1980). Prick Up Your Ears: The Biography of Joe Orton. Penguin, 109. ISBN 0-140-10067-9. 
  3. ^ Morley, Sheridan (2006). Theatre's Strangest Acts: Extraordinary But True Tales from the History of Theatre. Robson, 133. ISBN 1-861-05674-5. 
  4. ^ Orton, Joe; Lahr, John (1990). The Complete Plays: The Ruffian on the Stair, Entertaining Mr. Sloan, the Good and Faithful Servant, Loot, the Erpingham Camp, Funeral Games, What the Butler Saw. Grove Press, 13, 14. ISBN 0-802-13215-4. 
  5. ^ Shepard, Simon (1989). Because We're Queers: The Life and Crimes of Kenneth Halliwell and Joe Orton. GMP, 88. ISBN 0-854-49090-6. 
  6. ^ Griffin, Gabriele (2002). Who's who in Lesbian and Gay Writing. Routledge, 149. ISBN 0-415-15984-9. 
  7. ^ Gale, Steven H. (1996). Encyclopedia of British Humorists: Geoffrey Chaucer to John Cleese. Taylor & Francis, 803. ISBN 0-824-05990-5. 
  8. ^ Lahr, John (2000). Prick Up Your Ears: The Biography of Joe Orton. University of California Press, 33. ISBN 0-520-22666-6. 
  9. ^ Orton, Joe; Lahr, John (1996). The Orton Diaries. Da Capo Press, 266. ISBN 0-306-80733-5. 
  10. ^ a b Coppa, Francesca (2002). Joe Orton: A Casebook. Routledge, 2. ISBN 0-815-33627-6. 

External links

Persondata
NAME Halliwell, Kenneth
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Halliwell, Kenneth Leith
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actor, writer
DATE OF BIRTH 23 June 1926
PLACE OF BIRTH
DATE OF DEATH 9 August 1967
PLACE OF DEATH Islington, London, England