Richard Attenborough 1923-2014

Actor-director Richard Attenborough during filming of the 1978 thriller, "Magic."

The star of countless entertainments, from stirring war dramas like "In Which We Serve" and "The Great Escape" to pop dynamos like "Jurassic Park," Attenborough was also a noted director of historical epics, such as "Gandhi," for which he won two Academy Awards.

Attenborough died in England on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2014, at the age of 90.

"In Which We Serve"

Attenborough's first film role was in Noel Coward and David Lean's acclaimed WWII drama, "In Which We Serve" (1942), about the men of a British destroyer sunk during the Battle of Crete.

"In Which We Serve"

Richard Attenborough in Noel Coward and David Lean's "In Which We Serve" (1942).

"Brighton Rock"

Richard Attenborough was a sensation as the psychopathic criminal "Pinkie Brown" in the stage version of Graham Greene's "Brighton Rock." He repeated the role in the 1947 film version (left), directed by John Boulting.

"Jet Storm"

Richard Attenborough in "Jet Storm" (1959), a thriller about airborne terrorism.

"The Great Escape"

In the white-knuckle 1963 wartime drama, "The Great Escape," Richard Attenborough played "Big X," one of a rush of Allied prisoners digging their way out of a German POW camp. Also starring were Charles Bronson (left), Steve McQueen, James Garner and Donald Pleasance.

"Seance on a Wet Afternoon"

In Bryan Forbes' "Seance on a Wet Afternoon" (1964), Richard Attenborough played the husband of a would-be psychic (Kim Stanley) who engages in child kidnapping to help prove his wife's ability to "find" the missing girl.

"The Flight of the Phoenix"

A plane's passengers and crew, stranded in the Sahara Desert, struggle to rebuild their craft as their only means of escape in the 1965 drama, "The Flight of the Phoenix." Starring with Richard Attenborough were James Stewart, Hardy Kruger, Peter FInch, Ernest Borgnine and George Kennedy.

"The Sand Pebbles"

Richard Attenborough re-teamed with his "Great Escape" costar Steve McQueen in the 1966 period drama, "The Sand Pebbles," set in the 1920s on a U.S. gunboat in China caught in rising tensions between East and West.

"Oh! What a Lovely War"

Richard Attenborough's first film as a director was the 1969 adaptation of Joan Littlewood's anti-war stage musical, "OH! What a Lovely War." The film's all-star cast included John Mills, Dirk Bogarde, John Gielgud, Kenneth More, Jean Pierre Cassal, Jack Hawkins, Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith, Ralph Richardson, and Michael and Vanessa Redgrave.

"Ten Rillington Place"

In "Ten Rillington Place" (1971), based on a true story, Richard Attenborough starred as the serial killer John Christie.

"Young Winston"

Richard Attenborough's second film as a director was the 1972 drama "Young Winston," starring Simon Ward as the young Winston Churchill.

"Ten Little Indians"

Richard Attenborough was one member of an all-star cast about to drop like flies in the 1974 film version of Agatha Christie's murder mystery, "And Then There Were None."

"A Bridge Too Far"

Operation Market Garden - the Allied assault on a series of Nazi-held bridges in the Netherlands - was recreated in the 1977 WWII epic, "A Bridge Too Far," directed by Richard Attenborough.

"Magic"

Richard Attenborough directed the 1978 thriller "Magic," starring Anthony Hopkins as an unstable ventriloquist who tries to rekindle romance with an old flame (Ann Margret), while using his dummy as an instrument of death. Written by William Goldman.

"Gandhi"

Richard Attenborough's biographical epic "Gandhi" (1982) starred Ben Kingsley in the sweeping story of the activist's life, from his early years as a lawyer in South Africa, to leading India's independence movement against the British Crown.

"Gandhi"

"Gandhi" won eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Attenborough, and Best Actor of Ben Kingsley.

"A Chorus Line"

Director Richard Attenborough and actor Michael Douglas are pictured on the set of the 1985 film, "A Chorus Line."

"Cry Freedom"

Denzel Washington earned an Oscar nomination for his performance as anti-Apartheid activist Steve Biko in Richard Attenborough's 1987 film, "Cry Freedom."

"Shadowlands"

Richard Attenborough directed the affecting drama "Shadowlands" (1993), about the romance of British novelist C.S. Lewis (Anthony Hopkins) and American poet Joy Davidman (Debra Winger).

"Chaplin"

Richard Attenborough directed Robert Downey Jr. to an Oscar nomination for his performance in the 1992 biopic, 'Chaplin."

"Chaplin"

Director Richard Attenborough on the set of "Chaplin," with Robert Downey Jr.

"Miracle on 34th Street"

Richard Attenborough played Kris Kringle in the 1994 remake of the Christmas classic, "Miracle on 34th Street."

"Jurassic Park"

Richard Attenborough played an exuberant theme park owner who, through the scientific magic of "dino DNA," created a futuristic playground housing all manner of reconstituted dinosaurs, in the Steven Spielberg hit, "Jurassic Park" (1993).

"In Love and War"

Richard Attenborough directed Chris O'Donnell and Sandra Bullock in the 1996 film version of Ernest Hemingway's romantic drama set during World War I, "In Love and War."

"Elizabeth"

Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth and Richard Attenborough as William Cecil in the 1998 historical drama, "Elizabeth," directed by Shekhar Kapur.

"Closing the Ring"

Shirley MacLaine starred in Richard Attenborough's last film as a director, "Closing the Ring" (2007), a period drama set in both WWII and in an Ireland beset by revolutionary terrorism.

"Closing the Ring"

Director Richard Attenborough is pictured on the set of "Closing the Ring with star Mischa Barton.

"In Love and War"

Actor-director Richard Attenborough died on Sunday, August 24, 2014.

By CBS News.com senior producer David Morgan