Brother of Sheila Helpmann
Has a theatre named after him in Mount Gambier; Sir Robert Helpman Theatre.
He added the extra 'n' to his stage name to avoid there being 13 letters in it.
He was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1964 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to ballet.
He was awarded the Order of the Knight of the North Star in Sweden in 1975.
He was awarded the Scroll of Honour in Norway in 1950.
He was made a KBE (Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1968 Queen's New Years Honours List for his services to dance.
Many people talked about Robert Helpmann with kindness, saying that he respected the crew and children very much. He refused anybody to talk down to a crew member, and was known to get angry with people who did so.
On his "This is Your Life" (in Australia) the guest of honour was Michael Powell who came on with a pair of "Red Shoes".
The Australian Entertainment Industry Association's annual awards are named The Helpmann Awards in Helpmann's honour.
Was nearly killed during the production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang when the carriage that he was driving spun out of control and turned over. Thanks to his dancer's reflexes, he was able to leap off of the moving wheel and land safely on his feet.
Was the person who showed American actress Katharine Hepburn her first Lyrebirds during a working tour of Australia, when they co-starred in Shakespearian plays.