Noel Harrison was born on January 29th 1934 in London, England. The son of the noted actor Sir Rex Harrison, as a teenager he joined the Ipswich repertory theatre group, and taught himself guitar. His main interest though was sport, and most of his spare time was spent skiing in Switzerland - at an early age he was a member of the British ski team, becoming its first giant-slalom champion in 1953.
He went on to represent Great Britain at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo, Norway, and at the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. Harrison undertook National Service and, after leaving the army in the 1950s, toyed with the idea of becoming a journalist, but instead, concentrated on his guitar. His early break came when he took a regular part in the BBC Television programme, "Tonight", as part of a team who sang the day's news in a calypso style.
When he was aged 20, he started playing professionally, around the tables in a Greek restaurant in London. He also made a living playing in bars and nightclubs all over Europe. He left for the United States in 1965, working as a nightclub entertainer. Thanks to his managers, Harrison recorded the song "A Young Girl", written by Charles Aznavour, and this reached the pop charts.
From 1966 to 1967, Harrison appeared as 'Mark Slate' in "The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.", as the co-star of Stefanie Powers ('April Dancer'). As Mark Slate, Harrison also appeared as that character in "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", in one third-season episode titled "The Galatea Affair". Two years later, he recorded "The Windmills of Your Mind", the theme tune from the film "The Thomas Crown Affair", and this won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1968.
It was also a Top 10 hit in the UK Singles Chart. Having secured a recording contract through this, Harrison released three albums, and toured with 'The Beach Boys' and 'Sonny & Cher'. He moved to Canada in 1972, but returned to Great Britain in the 1990s. He continued to sing, appearing at the Glastonbury Festival in 2011. Noel Harrison died of a heart attack on October 19th 2013, aged 79. He leaves a wife, Lori, plus three daughters and two sons.
6 Comments (since 23 Oct 2013)
rest_in_peace
Noel Harrison was born on January 29th 1934 in London, England. The son of the noted actor Sir Rex Harrison, as a teenager he joined the Ipswich repertory theatre group, and taught himself guitar. His main interest though was sport, and most of his spare time was spent skiing in Switzerland - at an early age he was a member of the British ski team, becoming its first giant-slalom champion in 1953.
rest_in_peace
He went on to represent Great Britain at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo, Norway, and at the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. Harrison undertook National Service and, after leaving the army in the 1950s, toyed with the idea of becoming a journalist, but instead, concentrated on his guitar. His early break came when he took a regular part in the BBC Television programme, "Tonight", as part of a team who sang the day's news in a calypso style.
rest_in_peace
When he was aged 20, he started playing professionally, around the tables in a Greek restaurant in London. He also made a living playing in bars and nightclubs all over Europe. He left for the United States in 1965, working as a nightclub entertainer. Thanks to his managers, Harrison recorded the song "A Young Girl", written by Charles Aznavour, and this reached the pop charts.
rest_in_peace
From 1966 to 1967, Harrison appeared as 'Mark Slate' in "The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.", as the co-star of Stefanie Powers ('April Dancer'). As Mark Slate, Harrison also appeared as that character in "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", in one third-season episode titled "The Galatea Affair". Two years later, he recorded "The Windmills of Your Mind", the theme tune from the film "The Thomas Crown Affair", and this won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1968.
rest_in_peace
It was also a Top 10 hit in the UK Singles Chart. Having secured a recording contract through this, Harrison released three albums, and toured with 'The Beach Boys' and 'Sonny & Cher'. He moved to Canada in 1972, but returned to Great Britain in the 1990s. He continued to sing, appearing at the Glastonbury Festival in 2011. Noel Harrison died of a heart attack on October 19th 2013, aged 79. He leaves a wife, Lori, plus three daughters and two sons.
rest_in_peace
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/oct/22/noel-harrison