Start blogging by creating a new post. You can edit or delete me by clicking under the comments. You can also customize your sidebar by dragging in elements from the top bar.
5 Comments
|
A Peter to remember,,,
Sellers was born in Southsea, Portsmouth, England to a family of entertainers. His parents nicknamed him Peter at an early age, after his elder stillborn brother. He attended a Roman Catholic school, St. Aloysius College, although his father was Protestant and his mother was Jewish. He was a descendant of English prizefighter Daniel Mendoza, who was of Portuguese-Jewish descent. Sellers is also a cousin of Talksport radio presenter Mike Mendoza. Michael Parkinson interviews Peter Sellers 1974
During World War II, Sellers was an airman in the Royal Air Force, rising to corporal, though he had been relegated to ground staff due to poor eyesight. His tour included India and Burma, although the duration of his stay in Asia is unknown, and he may have exaggerated its length. He also served in Germany and France after the war. Michael Parkinson interviews Peter Sellers
After his discharge and return to England in 1948, Sellers supported himself with stand-up routines in variety theatres whose impresarios needed to legitimise their business. Sellers telephoned BBC radio producer Roy Speer, pretending to be Kenneth Horne, a member of the radio show, Much Binding in the Marsh,to get Speer to speak to him. Sellers was eventually cast on The Goon Show with Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Michael Bentine. Sellers followed this with television work. Michael Parkinson interviews Peter Sellers
A breakthrough came with Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb in which he portrayed three characters: U.S. President Merkin Muffley, Dr. Strangelove and Group Captain Lionel Mandrake of the RAF. Muffley and Strangelove appeared in the same room throughout the film. Sellers was also cast in the role of Major T. J. 'King' Kong. Initially, Sellers struggled with the character's Southern accent, but a crewmember made a recording of a Texan accent,which Sellers apparently mastered after repeated listenings . However, during a scene in a plane designed for the set, Sellers fell 15 feet and broke his leg, preventing additional cockpit scenes and forcing Kubrick to replace Sellers with Slim Pickens. Michael Parkinson interviews Peter Sellers
Sellers is most famous for his performance as the bumbling Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies, a role that Peter Ustinov had declined. This character gave Sellers a worldwide audience, beginning with The Pink Panther and its sequel, A Shot in the Dark, in which he featured more prominently. He returned to the character for three more sequels from 1975 to 1978. The Trail of the Pink Panther was released after his death in 1982, containing unused footage of Sellers. His widow, Lynne Frederick, successfully sued the film's producers for unauthorized use. Sellers had prepared to star as Chief Inspector Clouseau in another Pink Panther film; he died before the start of this project, Romance of the Pink Panther. Michael Parkinson interviews Peter Sellers
Barclays Bank approached Sellers to be on the team for advertisements. Barclays asked Sellers to play Harry Hodges, a Cockney wheeler-dealer ready to make a penny wherever possible. When it came to shooting, Sellers said Harry Hodges was no longer the plan and decided to go under the guise of Monty Casino. Casino’s character resembled Hodges and if not for the change of name and cultural background could have gone unnoticed. Now the new Jewish Monty Casino was ready to make or break the Barclays campaign. Sellers died approximately two weeks later and so did Monty Casino. Barclays felt that without Sellers, it should go back to the original plan and it hired Peter Cook to play Harry Hodges. Monty Casino had little airtime and was the last role Peter Sellers played. The Pink Panther Strikes Again - Cato vs. Closeau
Sellers had a troubled personal life. He often clashed with actors and directors, including a strained relationship with friend and director Blake Edwards, with whom he worked on the Pink Panther series among other films. The two sometimes stopped speaking to each other during filming. Their personal and professional relationship was disrupted by Sellers's demeanour, highlighted in the semi-biographical HBO/BBC film The Life and Death of Peter Sellers. Does your dog bite?
Inspector Clouseau Dentist
ArchivesCategories |