“I’m different,” declares Peter O’Toole’s T.E. Lawrence. Director David Lean had worked on something approaching this scale on The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), but his masterstroke with Lawrence of Arabia was to center this colossal epic about the World War I Arab revolt on a strange and fascinating performance from O’Toole, then enough of an unknown to merit the credit “And Introducing...” One stunning set piece follows another: the entrance of Sherif Ali (Omar Sharif) through a mirage, then the capture of the town of Aqaba and the attack on a Turkish train. But for all this epic splendor, Robert Bolt and Michael Wilson’s script asks searching questions about identity and loyalty, and the ultimately grim view of British intervention in Arab affairs remains all too relevant.

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In 2023, the Clark celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of the Manton Research Center building. We’re filling the calendar with a year-long series of events celebrating the building’s architecture and all the activities that happen inside, as well as the remarkable support of the Manton Foundation.

Image: Lawrence of Arabia, David Lean, 1962