 Richard Burton (I) (qv), who had played the role of King Arthur on  Broadway in the original 1960 production, was offered the role in  the film. Burton had had a huge success with Lerner & Lowes show,  winning a 1961 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical, but he turned  the film down. Burton subsequently played King Arthur in the 1980s  Broadway revival of "Camelot".