Having a Guinness with Sir Alec Quiz

Answer: He didn't know

"...well, I'm not entirely sure where my father came from. I was an illegitimate child, you see, and my father's name is not on my birth certificate. In fact, Guinness isn't even my real last name, it is 'de Cuffe'! My mother's last name was Cuffe, and she stylized it with a 'de' to make it look good, while Guinness was my middle name. Cheers!"

Alec Guinness was born Alec Guinness de Cuffe in London in 1914. He never knew for sure who his real father was, but believed him to be Andrew Geddes, a Scottish banker who gave money towards Alec's education and was always introduced as 'Uncle Andrew'.

Answer: Libel!

"..."Libel!" was my first play. I was given the role of a walk on and then was upgraded to an understudy. You see, I was still a drama student at that time, but, it was my first break, and I made the best of it. It was an amazing experience as we started at King's Theatre, Hammersmith, and then we moved to the historic West End's Playhouse in Westminster. What a pair of great venues to start off in."

Sir Alec Guinness started in theatre and remained an actor for his entire life. Even as a young actor, people were able to see the potential of someone who would become a great master of nuance and facial expressions.

Answer: John Gielgud

"...John Gielgud. He taught me a lot, including how it was to be a part of a troupe and how to take direction. We put on "Richard II", "The School for Scandal", "The Three Sisters", and "The Merchant of Venice". A production of "Hamlet" in 1938 was well-liked in the United States as well as in the United Kingdom. I also got to work with a lot of talented blokes, people who would later become some of my closest friends."

Sir Alec Guinness was successful in his time in Gielgud's company, as well as in other productions. He was quite busy in the late '30s and grew very much as an actor.

Answer: Royal Navy

"...the Royal Navy. The Volunteer Reserve, to be exact. I was a seaman at first, thought it would be a great way to participate and do my part for the war effort, but, soon enough, I was seeing action and was commissioned as a sublieutenant. By 1943 I was a lieutenant and had command. A landing craft, but still, a worthy vessel. I participated in Operation Husky when the Allies were invading Italy."
"Crikey! You must have been in some hairy stuff"
"Nah, it wasn't all bad. After all, the powers that be let me have time off in the middle of the war to act in "Flare Path", a play about the RAF, and I got to go to New York to do it."

Sir Alec Guinness later served in the eastern Mediterranean Sea for the latter part of the war and helped out the Yugoslav partisans by supplying them with arms and provisions, as well as spies, to aid their efforts.

Answer: Matthew

"...Matthew."
Sir Alec beamed proudly as he took a sip of his brew.
"You see, my wife Merula Salaman was an actress and playwright in her own right, and it was only natural for Matthew to want to follow in our footsteps. He did rather well for himself, and, concentrated primarily on the theatre side of acting. However, he also had a few small roles in some films."

Alec Guinness' son Matthew had three children of his own, Sally, Samuel and Bethany. Alec Guinness' great grandson, Nesta Guinness-Walker, is a professional footballer who started his English football league career with AFC Wimbledon in 2019.

Answer: Great Expectations

"..."Great Expectations". I had been seen in 1939 when we did adapted the book on stage by David Lean, and he liked it so much that he asked me to reprise my role for the screen. In fact, I was the one who had originally adapted the book for stage and a lot of my notes were used for the film. It was a start to a great collaboration that I had with Lean. I think it was six great films we did together... though we didn't always see eye-to-eye."

Sir Alec Guinness had an uncredited role as an extra in 1934, but, his first true movie role was playing an adult Herbert Pocket in David Lean's 1946 "Great Expectations". They would work again together in "Oliver Twist", "The Bridge on the River Kwai", "Lawrence of Arabia", "Doctor Zhivago", and "A Passage to India".

Answer: The Lavender Hill Mob

"..."The Lavender Hill Mob". Indeed, I didn't win, but, nobody really expected that comedy to be as great as it was. Stanley Holloway and I really pulled off amazing performances and I lost to the late great Gary Cooper for an incredible performance as Marshal Will Kane in the western "High Noon"."
"My apologies," I hastily interrupted.
"It's nothing. Any role I got was an opportunity for me to really shine, and I made sure to give 100% effort in every film I was in."

Sir Alec Guinness was first awarded the National Board of Review Award for Best Actor for his roles in the movie "Kind Hearts and Coronets". He is, after all, killed nine times in that movie.

Answer: The Bridge on the River Kwai

"..."The Bridge on the River Kwai" which we filmed in 1952. The funny thing about the movie was that the writers were Americans that had to go to England to work because they had been blackballed by their own people! They didn't receive any of the credit until many years later."
"And how about you, what did you win the Academy Award for?" I probed.
"My role was an interesting one. I had the role of a senior officer of British POWs, Lieutenant Colonel Nicholson. We had been forced into labour to build part of the famous Burma Railroad and the trials that Nicholson goes through are in his head mostly. It was a difficult role, but very rewarding."

If you're looking for a WWII film that depicts the madness of the Pacific theatre, "The Bridge on the River Kwai" is surely a great choice. It won seven Academy Awards and was widely acclaimed as an amazing movie.

Answer: Companion of Honour

"...Companion of Honour. There are only at most 65 at any given time. Nevertheless, the Companion of the British Empire honour that I got in 1955 outranks this one, however, it was still an amazing achievement. I was also awarded an honourary doctorate from Cambridge University in 1991, if you're counting."
I assured Sir Alec that I wasn't.
"In any case, I'm not strutting, but other people make a big deal of these awards. All I ever wanted to do was act, so, I'm glad I had the opportunity."

Answer: Obi-Wan Kenobi

"...Obi-Wan Kenobi?"
"People remember this role above all others as it was brought to a mainstream audience of hundreds of millions and you did it so well." I reminded him.
"Yes, I did, didn't I... but I wish I would be remembered for another of my roles as much as this one. I hated the dialogue and the role was rather flat compared to other roles I had on stage and in film. Oh well... Leo, I thank you for the drinks, but I must be off."

Sir Alec Guinness gathered his things, put on his overcoat, turned to look at me one last time, and winked. Then he stepped out into the cold night air that was already beginning to mist ever so slightly.

As I finished the last drops of my Guinness, I remembered the role in "Star Wars" from my youth and the ease with which I loved the character of Obi-Wan as he mentored Luke Skywalker on his journey to become a Jedi. Mostly as a force ghost, I mused ironically.

I paid the bill and stepped out knowing that this had been an opportunity that I would never forget. A Guinness with Sir Alec, an icon of film and stage. What an evening!