7 Facts About Burt Lancaster

1. In 1988, Burt Lancaster was well enough to attend a Congressional hearing with old colleagues such as James Stewart and Ginger Rogers to protest against media magnate Ted Turner's plan to colorize various black-and-white films from the 1930s and 1940s.

2. In 1985, Burt Lancaster joined the fight against AIDS after his close friend, Rock Hudson, contracted the disease.

3. In 1968, Burt Lancaster actively supported the presidential candidacy of antiwar Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota, and frequently spoke on his behalf during the Democratic primaries.

4. In his career, Burt Lancaster produced twenty-three films, directed two and wrote for one.

5. Prior to working on The Swimmer, Burt Lancaster was terrified of the water because he did not know how to swim.

6. In 1966, at the age of 52, Burt Lancaster appeared nude in director Frank Perry's film The Swimmer, in what the critic Roger Ebert called "his finest performance".

7. In 1953, Burt Lancaster played one of his best-remembered roles with Deborah Kerr in From Here to Eternity.