| Born with anomalies of the spine which caused Welles pain throughout his life |
| First stage appearance, a walk-on bit in the Chicago Opera's production of "Samson and Delilah" at age five; then played "Madame Butterfly"'s child "Trouble" |
| Moved back to Europe |
| Moved to Chicago as a child |
| Parents separated when Welles was six; traveled after divorce |
| Regularly seen in TV commercials for Paul Masson wines in 1980s |
| Rejected by draft board (due to asthma and flat feet); during remaining war years had various radio shows and worked as a journalist, often praising his friend, President Roosevelt |
| Returned to USA for starring role on Broadway in own production of "King Lear"; hired first as actor, then director, of Charlton Heston screen vehicle "Touch of Evil" |
| Returned to USA in 1970s |
| Self-imposed exile in Europe; had trouble with back taxes |
| Signed by RKO; given carte blanche; originally planned several other films, including an adaptation of "Heart of Darkness," before settling on the less ambitious "Citizen Kane" |
1927 | Became ward of Chicago doctor, Maurice Bernstein, at age 12 (date approximate) |
1931 | Began tour of Ireland |
1931 | First leading stage role at Dublin's Gate Theater in "Jew Suss" |
1932 | Returned to USA |
1934 | Broadway acting debut (as Tybalt) in "Romeo and Juliet" |
1934 | Co-directed and acted in short film, "The Hearts of Age" |
1934 | Radio acting debut |
1936 | First major stage success as director, "Macbeth" (for Federal Theater Project, Harlem); featured an all-black cast which later went to Broadway and toured the country; often referred to as the "voodoo Macbeth" due to the Haitian setting and African-influenced witchcraft theme |
1937 | During one Broadway season, helmed four major successes for the Mercury Theatre, beginning with a modern-dress "Julius Caesar"; generally hailed as one of the great stage talents of the day |
1937 | Formed Mercury Theater with John Houseman |
1938 | First short film as solo director, "Too Much Johnson" (also co-producer; writer); was to be incorporated into play of same name which never made it to Broadway; sole extant print allegedly lost in fire in 1970 |
1938 | Made national headlines with CBS radio broadcast (for "Mercury Theatre of the Air") of H.G. Wells' "The War of the Worlds" (the night of October 30) |
1940 | Was voice-over narrator of RKO's "Swiss Family Robinson" |
1941 | Feature film directing, producing, acting and co-writing (with Herman Mankiewicz) debut, "Citizen Kane" |
1942 | Just before completion of shooting of second film, "The Magnificent Ambersons," was sent by RKO (through a Nelson Rockefeller-run government office) as cultural ambassador to South America to keep positive relations with USA; shot footage for omnibus film "It's All True"; due to wartime flying restrictions unable to directly supervise editing of "Ambersons" from Brazil; film subsequently taken out of his hands and edited by Robert Wise with new footage added; after new ownership at RKO, Welles' contract ended |
1943 | With romantic leading role as Rochester in "Jane Eyre" began acting in films directed by others |
1946 | Directed and starred in (for producer Sam Spiegel/Sam S Eagle) only commercially successful directorial effort, "The Stranger" |
1953 | TV acting debut in Peter Brook's "King Lear" |
1954 | Hosted BBC series, "The Orson Welles Sketchbook" (date approximate) |
1955 | Wrote and starred in the stage play "Moby Dick--Rehearsed"; performed in London |
1993 | Reconstruction of substantial parts of "It's All True" publicly premiered at New York Film Festival |
1998 | Restored version of "Touch of Evil" using Welles' 17-page memo as guideline premiered |
