Anthony Newley: Anthony Newley. Actor: Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?. Anthony Newley was born in Hackney, London, England, to Frances Grace Newley and George Kirby, a shipping clerk. He was attracted to acting, after seeing an ad for a child actor in a Fleet Street window. He attended the Italia Conti Stage School from the age of 14 and, two years later, played the Artful Dodger...