Yul Brynner

Born Yuliy Borisovich Brynner, his mother Marusya Blagоvidova was the daughter of a Russian doctor and his father, Boris Brynner was an engineer and inventor.
Yul was named after his paternal grandfather, Jules Brynner.
After his father abandoned the family, his mother took Yul and his sister, Vera Bryner to China, where they attended a school run by the YMCA. They relocated again in 1934, this time to Paris.
He made an immediate impact upon launching his film career in 1956, appearing not only in the film version of The King and I that year, but also in major roles in,
"The Ten Commandments" opposite Charlton Heston and Anastasia opposite Ingrid Bergman.
However, he found his perfect role in The King And I.
The Academy Award-winning success that might have become a trap for a lesser star became the ongoing glory of his career, from the peak of his stardom to his untimely death.
He later appeared in such films as the Biblical epic Solomon and Sheba (1959), as Solomon, The Magnificent Seven (1960), and Westworld (1973).
He also co-starred with Marlon Brando in Morituri; Katharine Hepburn in The Madwoman of Chaillot and William Shatner in a film version of The Brothers Karamazov.
He starred with Barbara Bouchet in Death Rage, 1976. His final feature film appearance was in the sequel to Westworld, titled Futureworld with Peter Fonda and Blythe Danner, in 1976.
In 1977, Brynner embarked upon a stage revival of The King and I, and though he was dogged by tales of his outrageous temperament and seemingly petty demands during the tour, audiences loved the show.
Brynner was married four times, the first three ending in divorce.
He had three children and adopted two others. His fourth wife, Kathy Lee, was a dancer in The King and I shows. They married in 1983.
He developed lung cancer in the mid-1980s, he left a powerful public service announcement denouncing smoking as the cause, for broadcast after his death.
The cancer and its complications, after a long illness, ended his life.
Brynner was cremated and his ashes buried in a remote part of France, on the grounds of the Abbey of Saint-Michel de Bois Aubry, a short distance outside the village of Luzé.
He remains one of the most fascinating, unusual and beloved stars of his time.