Actor Paul Scofield was born in Hurstpierpoint, England on January 21, 1922. Before World War II, he trained at the Croydon Repertory Theater School and London's Mask Theater School. He was barred from service for medical reasons, so he spent the war years touring in plays, entertaining troops and acting in repertory in factory towns around the country. He married actress Joy Parker in 1943 and they had two children together. He was primarily a stage actor, but made several movies including A Delicate Balance, Henry V, Quiz Show, The Crucible and A Man for All Season, for which he won an Oscar, an Academy Award, and a BAFTA Award. He also won a Tony Award for the 1961 New York production of… A Man for All Seasons. In 2001, he was named a Companion of Honor, which is one of England's top honors and is limited to 65 living people. He died of leukemia on March 19, 2008.
C. S. (Clive Staples) Lewis, "Jack" to his intimates, was born on November 29, 1898 in Belfast, Ireland. His mother died when he was 10 years old and his lawyer father allowed Lewis and his brother Warren extensive freedom. The pair were extremely close and they took full advantage of this freedom, learning on their own and frequently enjoying games of make-believe. These early activities led to Lewis's lifelong attraction to fantasy and mythology, often reflected in his writing. He enjoyed writing about, and reading, literature of the past, publishing such works as the award-winning The Allegory of Love (1936), about the period of history known as the Middle Ages. Although at one time… Lewis considered himself an atheist, he soon became fascinated with religion. He is probably best known for his books for young adults, such as his Chronicles of Narnia series. This fantasy series, as well as such works as The Screwtape Letters (a collection of letters written by the devil), is typical of the author's interest in mixing religion and mythology, evident in both his fictional works and nonfiction articles. Lewis served with the Somerset Light Infantry in World War I; for nearly 30 years he served as Fellow and tutor of Magdalen College at Oxford University. Later, he became Professor of Medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge University. C.S. Lewis married late in life, in 1957, and his wife, writer Joy Davidman, died of cancer in 1960. He remained at Cambridge until his death on November 22, 1963.