AKA John Kingsley Orton

Born: 1-Jan-1933
Birthplace: Leicester, Leicestershire, England
Died: 9-Aug-1967
Location of death: London, England
Cause of death: Murder

Gender: Male
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Gay
Occupation: Playwright

Nationality: England
Executive summary: Prick Up Your Ears

Met boyfriend Kenneth Halliwell at RADA in 1951; soon they moved in together with Orton writing the occasional play. In 1962 the two were charged with altering library books in an unsavory and pornographic manner, serving six months in jail. Halliwell ended up bashing Orton's brains in with a hammer before committing suicide via barbiturate overdose in 1967. Their story is told in the book Prick Up Your Ears, later made into a film.

Boyfriend: Kenneth Halliwell (b. 1926, d. suicide 1967)
Sister: Leonie Orton-Bartnett

    High School: Clark's College (1945-47)
    University: Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (1950-)

    Vandalism 1962
    Risk Factors: Marijuana

Is the subject of books:
Prick Up Your Ears, 1978, BY: John Lahr
Joe Orton, 1984, BY: Maurice Charney
Joe Orton, 1995, BY: Susan Rusinko

Wrote plays:
The Ruffian on the Stair (1964)
Entertaining Mr. Sloane (1964)
The Good and Faithful Servant (1964)
Loot (1965)
Funeral Games (1966)
The Erpingham Camp (1967)
What the Butler Saw (1969)

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