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Interesting. I had always assumed this went back to James Earl Jones, who first performed the role in 1964, but I see now it seems to have started with Paul Robeson in 1930:
Well, as the article acknowledges, only in the US. The black American actor Ira Aldridge had played Othello throughout Europe, starting in London, in the 19th century.
(His performance is one of the ten singled out in the current major British Library exhibition Shakespeare in Ten Acts. The same section of the exhibition covers Robeson, including a striking letter written by Olivier in the early Sixties declining to support a UK campaign for him to be issued with a US passport so that he could come over and play Othello in the West End; Larry admits that this is because he rather fancies a go at the role himself.)
The Olivier Othello remains rather controversial, as he definitely went for a stereotypical appearance and voice–no Northern Africa in it; very sub-Saharan. I believe it was Pauline Kael’s review of the movie made of the play that dwelled on his “rolling buttocks” (or at least that’s what’s stuck in my memory, wish though I might to dislodge it).
The movie is well worth a viewing, with young Maggie Smith very dewy, and the reliable Frank Finley assaying Iago.
There’s an old BBC version of As You Like It on Youtube, with a VERY young Helen Mirren.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0fehH_LX_Q
Much more recently, they did an African version of Julius Caesar, of which there are some clips also on Youtube. In fact, there’s an awful lot of Shakespeare on Youtube alone.
I quite enjoyed the Branagh movie of Love’s Labours Lost, but I have no idea if that’s widely available.
PS: as for Judi Dench in her youth, try Youtube for her Sally Bowles (a pirate video that would have been frowned on at the time, but is now precious), and one of her earliest TV roles in “Talking To A Stranger”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2bqujq1Qxs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhfxQLt-L5s
You might also try Audio-books.
Or a graphic Novel–
The Twelfth Night is my favorite. 
I’d take "rather controversial” as a bit of a given in this context. (That’s really rather why his attempt to block Robeson in the early Sixties, on those particular grounds, is inadvertantly funny.)
Google isn’t throwing up anything useful, but isn’t the usual story that Olivier claimed (dodgily) to have based his accent on that of a particular Jamaician London bus driver?
Having seen the film version fairly recently, it’s surely only of interest as a record of what the stage production had been like. It’s not my observation, but Maggie Smith seems to spend the entire runtime worrying that Olivier’s make-up is going to smear against her white gowns. While the late Frank Finley, doing the naturalistic Iago against them both, completely walks away with it.
I was looking for something else on the Internet today, and by accident came across some photos of her when she was young.
My God, she was hot then too (and still is)!!! :o
DAMN, you owe me a fresh box of Screen Wipes. :rolleyes:
I’ll add one more recommendation for The Hollow Crown. Tom Hiddleston’s Henry was excellent and almost made me forget how much I dislike the character of Falstaff. But Ben Whishaw’s Richard II was AMAZING.
Richard II is the one everyone talks about. I don’t really love the play, but this version gets so much buzz I’m going to have to see it.
You know, that does sound familiar. There was a somewhat passive-aggressive bio of Olivier by a woman who had worked for him, published some years ago, that I have around the place somewhere; it’s possible that she’s the source. I’ll come up with the name and post it when time permits.
For a laugh, check out the episode of MST3K with Maximilian Schell’s 1960 German TV version of “Hamlet” (dubbed back into proper Shakespeare). I think it’s still available on Hulu Plus, but if not, it should be on YouTube.
The first cycle of The Hollow Crown (Richard II, Henry IV, Part I and Henry IV, Part II and Henry V) was good - can’t wait for the next one (Henry VI, Part I, Henry VI, Part II, Henry VI, Part III and Richard III) to air. I’m a Richard III nut.
The Henry VI plays are pretty dire though. They are the reason everyone hates the history plays.
But again, Richard II, so maybe.
I haven’t found my copy (and I hope I do as it’s out of print), but the book I was thinking of was published in 1969: Cry God for Larry (you can see what she did, there!), by Virginia Fairweather. Don’t know if she mentions the bus conductor story.