Sir Richard Burton on alcohol

Рет қаралды 61,140

Gart Williams

2 жыл бұрын

Пікірлер: 147

@sheilacabrera3986 Жыл бұрын

Leave it to Richard Burton to turn the answer to a question into a beautifully delivered poetic soliloquy.

@anthonyjordan2922 Жыл бұрын

He speaks of the horrors of alcoholism in such an intelligent and eloquent manner.

@johntechwriter Жыл бұрын

Some actors are renown for their ability to interpret a brilliant script, but tongued tied when they must summon up their own words. Burton’s acting talent was accompanied by a keen intellect.

@fastmail55 2 жыл бұрын

It rakes a 'big man' to admit his failings and frailties. All things considered, I've long felt he was a class act. Rest in peace Sir.

@PhilipCBooth Жыл бұрын

As long as he enjoyed his life, I hope he did.

@jenenahansson5892 10 ай бұрын

He is a big, classy man. Sorry he had to go to alcohol for splice.

@23Kosminski Ай бұрын

Absolutely stunning. So well put. The irony of alcoholism is that you never believe you’re, strangely, “important” enough to be an alcoholic. A rich and successful man like Burton, a Welshman with a poet’s heart, how hard it must’ve been to admit the things he shares here.

@user-jn1ot1db5p 4 ай бұрын

He never stammers, stutters. He is a sentence ahead of the words that come out of his mouth .. the man is a legend

@scott6828 8 ай бұрын

Men like this don't exist anymore....he's asked a question and responds with a Shakespearian delivery. Incredible.

@edge1289 10 ай бұрын

Powerful, no one could have articulated that message better!

@borisbadenov651 Жыл бұрын

His readings of Dylan Thomas' poetry will Never be equaled.

@SilvertortoisePiano Жыл бұрын

Thank you for the reminder :)

@SilvertortoisePiano Жыл бұрын

Also john gielgud reading Shakespeare

@VDH1953 9 ай бұрын

@@SilvertortoisePiano Even better: Burton reading Shakespeare.

@peterjonas4971 Жыл бұрын

Staggering and very typical of an alcoholic to claim he isn't quite sure if he's an alcoholic. God bless him. I quit almost two years ago. It was the best decision of my life.

@kateboulton8789 8 ай бұрын

Well done Sir, may you have the strength to remain upon your new path.

@jaybowden2658 8 ай бұрын

He clearly did not wish to considered one in that time as it would have been greatly stigmatising, especially back then - but he still more or less admitted to being such without wanting to say that

@peterjonas4971 8 ай бұрын

@@jaybowden2658 He never really admitted it enough to quit and get help, poor soul. Great actor, suffering man.

@jaybowden2658 8 ай бұрын

@@peterjonas4971 it wasn’t the best time to seek help back then - and addictions often cause problems that only what they’re addicted to can alleviate

@CopiousDoinksLLC 5 ай бұрын

Supposedly there was a point where Burton was drinking three bottles of vodka a day. How do you a) even physically achieve such a thing without going into a coma? b) manage to convince yourself you're not an alcoholic after that?

@petyrkowalski9887 8 ай бұрын

Richard Burton handled this beautifully. I have a very close relative who is a horrendous alcoholic and he matches Richards description perfectly.

@stevengiarc4743 Жыл бұрын

Richard Burton would be the ideal spokesperson for humanity.

@Cazi1111 11 күн бұрын

Wise Wise Words RIP Richard Burton, ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

@DrCrabfingers Жыл бұрын

Argh...something in my eye again. Man...those are the words of someone who knows, who has been there, and has overcome. God bless Dick Cavett...for knowing when to speak and when not to! To allow a guest to offload.....Cavett was the best of the best in my opinion....he had no ego, just let his guests speak...that is a real gift! He allowed Richard Burton to show himself...his true self..without any interruption....Dick Cavett's interviews are the best going....

@TheRealist2022 Жыл бұрын

@stephenswingler7959 I picked up on that, too. Cavett let Mr Burton speak and speak and speak...in what was approaching a soliloquy. I think it was for two reasons. the first was because he realised, that this was absorbing and fascinating...exactly what a talk show should be. He also, I feel, remained quiet out of respect for a magnificent human being. Flawed, yes...but a magnificent human being, nonetheless.

@pena.3302 Жыл бұрын

@@TheRealist2022Can not believe, your very eloquent,+Truthful'/Insightful Comment.!+No Thumbs up 0?/But I, appreciate it,+.Sure hope Many others do too.Thanks'+..Always Kp Making Comments.:-)

@kennethwayne6857 Жыл бұрын

So true.

@Pihasanddunes1 Жыл бұрын

I love Richard Burton's impish grin at 0:05. I get the impression he respected Dick Cavett to a degree he likely didn't all of Hollywood's interviewers. Burton's honesty and frankness is almost shocking in a modern world of curated profiles and constant self awareness of image. Always get the feeling I'm listening to the real thing.

@debrasmith2142 Жыл бұрын

one day at a time is so true - what a wonderful actor giving a frank insight into the challenges he faced. Sadly missed

@cristinabumbac151 10 ай бұрын

Alcoholic or not Richard Burton was a great actor and he proved it even in this monolog!

@tryarunm 7 ай бұрын

He wasn't acting here. He was from the heart knowing that many people watching the show were in the same dark pit that had been in, and that his words might give them some tiny bit of encouragement to keep the drink at bay for at least that one day more.

@anneserkin1964 11 ай бұрын

AA was started by two alcoholics who told horror stories to each other all night and what life they could have if they didn't drink. So one night of not drinking and reminding each other why they wanted to stay sober lead to another and another. And a society for accountability was born. It doesn't work for everyone but when it does . I thank Richard for being so honest back in a time when addiction was not spoken of nor the idea that it could happen to otherwise good successful people. He made a difference just as Yul Brenner did with lung cancer and smoking. All this long before stars told us what they had for breakfast. You were not to talk of your personal problems at the time.

@jonkline709 Жыл бұрын

I’m 8.5 sober I can’t say I’ve beaten it. Your always fighting!! So true you know you can’t have that one drink!

@vancouveruzbekistan5350 Жыл бұрын

There are MANY former alcoholics who can now enjoy a few drinks without problem... this is IMPOSSIBLE in the world as Burton clearly describes. In the world one permanently remains an alcoholic constantly fighting an evil master. CHRIST and His HOLY SPIRIT FREE one from all slavery & bondage such as alcoholism. This is the wonderful news!!!

@jhull5870 Жыл бұрын

To the question of being an alcoholic, Burton reply's; " I'm not quite sure I am one." Then He goes on to state," I can't say I've beaten it." Denial is so common with alcoholism.

@jaybowden2658 8 ай бұрын

Why wouldn’t it be when it is so stigmatised ? Despite the great irony that it’s made such a big part of British culture - which of course, he was a part of

@tonyclifton265 Жыл бұрын

it's why he was so perfect in the role of disheveled alcoholic MI6 officer alec leamus in "the spy who came in from the cold" (1965), a brilliant film

@polreamonn Жыл бұрын

"As diseases go, you got the best one" - Norm Macdonald.

@Esteban69129 Жыл бұрын

RIP Norm

@Eire_Go_Deo Жыл бұрын

As a big fan of both Burton and Norm, I would pay a hell of a lot of money to hear Burton reading Norm’s blue card jokes from the podcast.

@HAPPYTHELEAF 11 ай бұрын

Norm hadn't a clue so...

@MikeFowlerguitars 10 ай бұрын

That's got to be one of the most honest interviews I've ever seen, especially from such a legend who was so notoriously private.

@carpballet Жыл бұрын

And then as the years go by, turn into decades, one lazy hot afternoon out of nowhere you can taste the gin and tonic, literally, and you know it really never ends. One day at a time

@vancouveruzbekistan5350 Жыл бұрын

@carpballet Жыл бұрын

@@vancouveruzbekistan5350 “Christ” Just another crutch

@mikehinton9079 Жыл бұрын

He led the life a thousand people could not compare

@dghdavies Жыл бұрын

"Stare out of a window for two yurs" A very welsh pronunciation of years.

@SuperBC10 10 ай бұрын

His voice, as great as it was, was always an act. A good act at that. His real accent was proper South Wales valleys. Sometimes, it used to slip through. Like then. I’ve herd im drop is haitches a few times too butt

@paulwolf2789 Жыл бұрын

Brilliant man celt of course

@bernardwalker1874 Жыл бұрын

The guy took simply saying he's a drunk and turned it into a Shakespearian aside.

@tj3688 Жыл бұрын

I'm the same age as he was when he died and I feel like I'm just getting started on the fun side of life.

@RaoulFel Ай бұрын

He was knocking back 3 bottles of hard alcohol a day and still wasn’t sure if he was an alcoholic 😂 The good old days. Nonetheless a beautifully honest description of the horrible struggle so many go through, often silently.

@brendacampbell3229 11 ай бұрын

I didn’t ‘fight’ it I surrendered. I lost the power of choice. 31 years. Happy joyous and free.

@alexcarratu5554 23 күн бұрын

1:33: "Uh, alcoholism 🍸 is a dreadful disease", well put, Mr Burton, well put, Sir 👏. Even now, it's sad so many people don't see alcoholism as a disease. Mr Burton was decades ahead of his time with his comment.

@colincarrington2120 8 ай бұрын

yes a true class act he was born about 5 miles from me in the next vally fab speaker gob bless richard burton xx colin carrington neath south wales

@alysaad07 Жыл бұрын

They don't make men like this anymore!

@mikehinton9079 Жыл бұрын

Brilliant man

@wc6220 7 ай бұрын

Think he was the greatest british actor of the 20th century. And he was welsh.. 👍👍👍👍

@daleandrews3552 Жыл бұрын

I read somewhere that Burton would have been in the league of Sir Lawrence Olivier, the legendary actor - supposedly the best the world's ever seen - had it not been for his drinking. Burton's drinking was no secret, he and his wife Liz Taylor shared the same disease. They were both what been termed "functioning alcoholics". This coming from an alcoholic who's been reformed now for about 10 years.

@VDH1953 9 ай бұрын

You probably read that, as I did, in Burton's obituaries.

@edgaraquino2324 2 жыл бұрын

Good video, thanks... a superb actor...but I believe he was never knighted...

@kennethwayne6857 Жыл бұрын

Should have been.

@charlyfarquar8134 Жыл бұрын

Can hear his welsh accent at times, poor man, rip.

@jimcunningham9975 17 күн бұрын

The world of addiction is like being against the ropes

@dasbernmeister7001 7 ай бұрын

Amazing man ❤

@crispybits3765 9 ай бұрын

Powerful stuff.

@TheRealist2022 Жыл бұрын

Every genius has a flaw...

@ruprecht8520 Жыл бұрын

Great video, the summary should include when. All we get is the day it was posted which is unhelpful.

@bromleysimon7414 Жыл бұрын

August 4, 1980 according to the Internet Movie Database, which includes television credits when actors appear as "self."

@mordechaijones4669 Жыл бұрын

That's called research.

@kennethwayne6857 Жыл бұрын

@@bromleysimon7414 The same month I saw him onstage. I shall never forget.

@WILLIAM1690WALES 8 ай бұрын

Richard Burton was not knighted. He did receive the CBE, which is technically the one below knighthood his namesake was Sir Richard Burton, but Richards original surname was actually Jenkins.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

@trevormoses5061 Жыл бұрын

Mr Burton should have been a Sir but he unfortunately wasn't.

@GartWilliamsColorado Жыл бұрын

He is in my book, and that's all that matters.

@craigjasper2502 Жыл бұрын

Sheer boredom or fiscal restaraint is no laughing matter.

@coreycox2345 Жыл бұрын

THere are so many other possible traumas too, Craig Jasper.

@deepseed1 Жыл бұрын

It's quite notable that he mentioned alcoholism as a "disease,." Even now, the classification that it is indeed a disease is controversial.

@justinbennett2852 Жыл бұрын

It's definitely not a disease... ridiculous classification. It's an addiction. Addictions aren't diseases.

@daleandrews3552 Жыл бұрын

@@justinbennett2852 Thanks for the clarification, doctor.

@JL-gf3yc 2 ай бұрын

Can’t believe some were laughing

@carolball5764 Ай бұрын

Exactly my thoughts.. I think that’s why he said it’s no laughing matter..There’s some right ignoramuses out there..

@johnkoch7386 Жыл бұрын

wow honesty

@nandadulalbakshi3121 Жыл бұрын

Down to earth. The moon star

@modali034 10 ай бұрын

Richar Harris, Peter Otoole, and Richard Burton were regular drinking buddies back in their day. they enjoyed it without drama. these men knew how to drink

@wandakadoch6157 Жыл бұрын

LIT A CANDLE FOR YOUR BIRTHSDAY LAST NIGHT WHICH IS TODAY HOPE YOU ARE WITH THE LORD AND AT LAST BE COMPLETELY AT PEACE AND BE TOTALLY HAPPY THIS PLACE IS NOT REALLY OUR HOME WE ARE JUST PASSING BY GOD BLESS YOU MR BURTON MISS YOU AND GOD BLESS YOUR WIFE WHO TRIED TO HELP YOU

@markmcsweeney8061 Жыл бұрын

1980.

@thomascarey6915 10 ай бұрын

I wish whoever posted this video would dub out the audience laughter. He is speaking profoundly, and nothing he says warrants laughter.

@garyspence2128 9 ай бұрын

No no. Don't dare censor it. That nervous laughter is fully part of the whole syndrome. Both for the drinker, and for those around him. Don't make it into a lecture, or an after school special. Burton was so up front and honest about his experience, that it silenced that reaction instantly. No censorship necessary...

@coldsamon 9 ай бұрын

@@garyspence2128couldn't agree more. Alcoholic here.

@Vouvraysec 10 ай бұрын

Just don't call him "Sir." Unlike his elder contemporaries (Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson), Richard Burton was never knighted. He was a "Commander" of the British Empire or C.B.E.

@Johnnycam1 8 ай бұрын

Eloquently put but I fear inaccurate. The obsession can be removed and every day does not have to be a metaphorical boxing match. Some of us left the ring many years ago and scarcely, if at all, feel tempted to re-enter the ring.

@michaelmarron8441 Жыл бұрын

An Alcoholic "I'm not quite sure that I am one" - you are, or were

@freddula3159 10 ай бұрын

Not a laughing matter agree

@LeroyKinkade 8 ай бұрын

Alcohol Loves me, and that's ok.

@anthonycremer4650 7 ай бұрын

Well he was Richard Burton CBE --- may well have got the K but didn't while he was alive .

@eamonnmulhern2332 11 ай бұрын

Those giggling laughs at the very start were made by alcoholics who could relate.

@carolball5764 Ай бұрын

You think so?

@michaelrigby6899 10 ай бұрын

If only he had avoided alcohol: lost far too early.

@jacobwells810 3 ай бұрын

I'm sick

@sweetea7035 Жыл бұрын

Why was the audience laughing???

@TahoeJones 2 жыл бұрын

It's not a disease. You can't decide to stop a disease.

@songsforthedeck1116 2 жыл бұрын

You can choose to quit, sure, but the desire doesn't go away. That's the disease. While you are taking a break from the habit, it's out in the parking lot doing pushups. I'm glad you are sober and don't struggle. Other people do. Is it a disease? Potato/potahto.

@cathall7210 Жыл бұрын

It is a disease and it's often terminal if you don't get (and keep getting) treatment. x

@benstevinson764 Жыл бұрын

Alcoholism is a Disease it effects brain 🧠 chemistry and causes Addiction

@scaramonga Жыл бұрын

It is a disease Sir, a disease of the 'mind', same with any habit, smoking, gambling, drugs, etc., as it's the 'pleasure' of doing so that is the 'kick', and the awfulness that is, if you don't :)

@charlyfarquar8134 Жыл бұрын

The disease is addiction

@ADAMSIXTIES Жыл бұрын

"50 million Americans who are alcoholics". I think that's way overestimating. The current statistic is 14 million have a drinking problem, 8 million alcoholics. But if he meant 50 million drink too much that's probably true.

@benjaminperez7328 Жыл бұрын

He said 15, not 50.

@stuplant6693 Жыл бұрын

He said 15 million

@DrCrabfingers Жыл бұрын

Well, now it is Opiates that curse the American people.....same problem, different drug. And here was a man identifying with those people and sending them love and pity.

@JohnWick-pm5yq 11 ай бұрын

Ye and the auld audience laughing in the back ground, sure half them r alcoholics 2 but they didn't no it, sure its a serious game i call it, cause im one, and its a death game, im the last one, everyone is dead 2023

@mordechaijones4669 Жыл бұрын

How many people choose to have cancer. Liver or kidney disease, etc ? Alcoholism is not a disease. It's a choice.

@xlkarma8446 Жыл бұрын

Wrong

@kateboulton8789 11 ай бұрын

No it's not a choice. Most people who drink don't end up as alcoholics, most people who have the odd flutter on the dogs or the horses don't end up as hardened gamblers. There is something in the psyche of all addicts which make them prone to going that step too far. It is not a life choice.

@scotoftheanarchic.7903 8 ай бұрын

You're so wrong, no one plans to drink or take drugs till it controls and destroys their whole life. There's a massive majority masking trauma.