Trivia

Entered Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida in September 1950. Also on campus during his first year were Fred Rogers (of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood (1968)) who graduated in 1951 and John Reardon, class of 1952. In 1953 he was offered a leading role in the movie The Actress (1953). Almost immediately after returning to his studies he left to replace John Kerr in "Tea and Sympathy" on Broadway. He never completed his degree but was given an honorary degree by the college some 20 years later.

Had agreed to voice the dentist on Los Simpson (1989) episode "Last Exit to Springfield" but died before work began. The role then went to Hank Azaria.

Was a huge admirer of Orson Welles, and was even planning on writing a book about him, but aborted the project in fear of upsetting his idol. Welles later said that he would have loved the idea.

During 1990, he got a blood sample taken due to a palsy on the side of his face. The National Enquirer illegally had Tony's blood sample tested for the AIDS virus, and found out that it was positive. Later that year, the National Enquirer wrote a story about his battle with AIDS, but the ironic thing was that he only found out that he was HIV positive from this article. He suspected that he probably was, but he never checked for it before the article was written.

In 1984, he was arrested at London's Heathrow Airport for possession of eight grams of marijuana and three spots of LSD. In 1989, he was arrested again at the Angel Hotel in Cardiff for illegally importing 1.3 grams of marijuana.

Didn't have sex with a woman until he was 39 years old. He lost his virginity - as People magazine worded it - to Victoria Principal in 1971.

On September 11, 2001, his widow and mother of his two sons, Berry Berenson was one of the 58 victims on AA-11 out of Boston that terrorists crashed.

Before playing his best remembered role as Norman Bates in Psicosis (1960), Perkins had been an innocuous, rather generic younger leading man, co-starring with the likes of Sophia Loren and Jane Fonda. After the release of Psycho, Perkins found romantic leading roles hard to come by, and eventually came to resent the impact his most famous film had on his career.

Was cremated and the superscription on his urn reads "Don't Fence Me In".

His performance as Norman Bates in Psicosis (1960) is ranked #4 on Premiere magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.

Was nominated twice for Broadway's Tony Award: in 1958, as Best Actor (Dramatic) for "Look Homeward, Angel", and in 1960, as Best Actor (Musical) for "Greenwillow".

Charles Winecoff's book "Anthony Perkins: Split Image" (Alyson Books, first published in 1996; 2006 10th Anniversary Revised Edition) illuminated Perkins' early life, his homosexuality, his later drug use and life with his family. Some contributors to the biography were Janet Leigh, Hilton A. Green, Jeff Fahey, John Gavin and Joseph Stefano, plus an impressive number of Perkins' friends and relatives. However, his wife, Berry Berenson, did not participate. According to the book, Perkins contracted the AIDS virus around the time of Psicosis III (1986) and kept the illness secret for six years until his death so he could keep working and not worry his friends and his two sons. The only person who knew he was sick was his wife Berry. Anthony officially found out that he was HIV positive when the tabloid National Enquirer wrote a story about it in 1990. Author Winecoff amended his book with a chapter about the death of Berry Perkins nine years after the death of her husband, as a passenger on board the ill-fated American Airlines Flight 11 on September 11, 2001.

Had a Top 30 Billboard hit in 1957 with the single "Moonlight Swim".

Second son, Elvis Perkins, was named after singer Elvis Presley, of whom Anthony was a fan.

He was awarded 2 Stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Pictures at 6821 Hollywood Boulevard; and for Television at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.

According to Tab Hunter's autobiography, Perkins and Hunter were in a relationship in the mid to late 1950s. He was also linked with Grover Dale, Alan Helms, Patrick Loiseau and Christopher Makos (per each of them), as well as many unconfirmed paramours reportedly including Erik Bruhn, Timmy Everett, Rudolf Nureyev, Teno Pollick and Stephen Sondheim. Perkins and Dale shared an apartment for six years.

Auditioned for the role of the Phantom in the original Los Angeles production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's "The Phantom of the Opera". He lost the role to Robert Guillaume.

Both he and Dallas Buyers Club founder Ron Woodroof died of AIDS on September 12, 1992.

Despite popular belief, Anthony Perkins never boycotted the film Bates Motel (1987). At a 1988 horror convention, Perkins stated that he had no involvement in the film and that he watched it when it originally aired. He called the film: "just terrible".

Became an ordained minister and performed the marriage of director Ken Russell to his second wife, Vivian Jolly, in 1983.

Was into psychoanalysis and was treated by Dr. Mildren Newman in New York starting in the early 1950s and continuing into the late 1970s.

Was portrayed by James D'Arcy in Hitchcock, el maestro del suspenso (2012).

Anthony Perkins campaigned at a rally for Governor Michael Dukakis in UCLA's Pauley Pavilion, the night before the U.S. presidential election of 1988 (November 7, 1988).

Attended prestigious Buckingham Browne and Nichols School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Other alumni include Los Soprano (1999) actress Ari Graynor, jazz musician Nate Peterson and Broadway star Lizzie Rose.

Along with Vera Miles and Virginia Gregg, he is one of only three actors to appear in both Psicosis (1960) and Psicosis 2a parte (1983).

He had deep roots in Colonial America, particularly Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hampshire. His ancestry included English, with smaller amounts of Irish, German, and Dutch.

Brother-in-law of Marisa Berenson.

Played an implied gay character in three films: Trampa-22 (1970), Play It As It Lays (1972) and Mahogany (1975).

In 1950, Rollins College expelled most of its homosexual students in a group expulsion. Perkins was excluded from the list of expulsions, despite his sexuality being known to everyone. Perkins happened to be a favorite student of the college's theater professor, and he could not be expelled without his patron's approval.

Grandfather of actors James Perkins and Beatrix Perkins.

In 1961, Perkins bought himself out of his Paramount contract and settled in France. He spend the next several years working primarily in European films. He continued to be paired with the most popular female leads available at that time, including Ingrid Bergman, Melina Mercouri, and Sophia Loren.

Shares his birthday with director Andrei Tarkovsky.

In a 1958 cover story, Newsweek hailed Perkins as "possibly the most gifted dramatic actor in this country under 30.".

Perkins released three pop music albums and several singles in 1957 and 1958 on Epic and RCA Victor under the name Tony Perkins. His single "Moon-Light Swim" was a moderate hit in the United States, peaking at number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1957. His 1958 single "The Prettiest Girl in School" flopped in the United States, but became a popular hit in Australia.

Perkins was offered a role in the comedy film "Some Like It Hot" (1959), which would require him to dress up in drag. Paramount, balked at the idea of having their "heartthrob" wear drag for an entire film and forbade Perkins from accepting the role. Tony Curtis was cast in the role intended for Perkins.

Perkins and Fred Astaire co-starred in the apocalyptic science fiction film "On the Beach" (1959), in what was Astaire's first dramatic role. Since Astaire was very nervous, Perkins helped Astaire prepare for his serious scenes and served as his acting coach for the duration of the film.

Perkins and Audrey Hepburn portrayed the loving couple in the jungle adventure film "Green Mansions" (1959). The film flopped, but Perkins genuinely enjoyed working with Hepburn. He felt personally fond of her.

Perkins and Jane Fonda co-starred in the film "Tall Story" (1960), in what was Fonda's film debut. Fonda recalled that Perkins offered her some great acting tips, and she mentioned that Perkins was the only acting teacher who taught her how to play before the camera when acting.

He has appeared in one film that has been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: Psicosis (1960).

In 1956, Perkins arrived in Los Angeles to join the cast of the upcoming American Civil War-themed film "Friendly Persuasion". He did not have a car or a driving license at the time, and the studio did not provide transportation for him. Every day, he hitchhiked from his hotel to the film's set. This habit provided some publicity for Perkins in the gossip magazines.

Perkins' early film roles cast Gary Cooper and Jack Palance as the fathers of the characters which he portrayed. Perkins bonded with Cooper and reportedly viewed him as an actual father figure. He did not enjoy working with Palance, and the feeling was mutual.

In 1957, Perkins and Henry Fonda were jointly working on the Western film "The Tin Star". Every day, Perkins and Fonda took the hours-long drive out to the film set in the same car. They became closely acquainted and shared stories of their private lives to pass the time during the long drive.

Perkins and Shirley MacLaine co-starred in the comedy film "The Matchmaker" (1958), and worked for the same number of days in the film. Perkins was given a salary of 75,000 dollars for the film, and MacLaine was given 25,000 dollars. Perkins protested on MacLaine's behalf about unfair treatment, but the studio simply ignored his protests.

Perkins and Ava Gardner co-starred in the apocalyptic science fiction film "On the Beach" (1959). Perkins mentioned in later years that Gardner flirted with him in real life and offered to sleep with him. Having no previous experience with female lovers, Perkins cautiously declined.

In 1976, Perkins hosted television's Saturday Night Live in its first season. He performed a sketch featuring Norman Bates as a teacher of his own School for Motel Management.

By the early 1970s, Perkins shifted from nearly always playing the lead actor in a film to appearing primarily in supporting roles. The change in part reflected his age. In his late 30s, Perkins was not suitable for typical romantic roles of the time.

In 1984, Perkins and Rod Steiger co-starred in the British thriller miniseries "The Glory Boys". It depicted two terrorists plotting the assassination of a nuclear scientist. Perkins intensely disliked Steiger and his self-important attitude, and Steiger thought that Perkins' dependence on chemicals made him both pitiful and unreliable. They were at loggerheads for the duration of the series.

In 1978, Perkins co-starred with Mary Tyler Moore in the television film "First, You Cry". It depicts a career woman who survives her first struggle with breast cancer, but then sees her career and marriage falling apart due to the effects of her psychological trauma on her interactions with others. In 1979, Saturday Night Live parodied the film in the sketch "First He Cries", where a husband mourns that his wife no longer has sexy breasts following a mastectomy. The perceived insensitivity of the parody resulted in viewers protesting against the comedy show and sending 300 letters of complaint.

In 1960, Perkins was starring in the Broadway musical "Greenwillow", written by Frank Loesser. Loesser personally disliked Perkins, and wrote Perkins' main solo "Never Will I Marry" with the idea that it would be one of the musical's least memorable segments. Instead, it became one of Perkins' most popular singing performances and was highly praised in the press. The song later received popular renditions by Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, and Linda Ronstadt.

In 1985, Perkins was offered the part of the main villain in the Western comedy film "Lust in the Dust". It was a parody of "Duel in the Sun" (1946), without the sadomasochistic elements of the original film. The role would require Perkins to co-star with Tab Hunter, an ex-lover with whom Perkins had had no interactions for about two decades. Perkins turned down the offer. After a brief conversation between Perkins and Hunter over the merits of the role, the two men never met again.