Peter Sellers
Acting
Born 1925-09-08
Died 1980-07-24
Southsea, Hampshire, England, UK
136 credits
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Richard Henry Sellers, CBE (September 8, 1925 – July 24, 1980), known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, for playing three different characters in Dr. Strangelove, as Clare Quilty in Lolita, and as the man-child and TV-addicted Chance the gardener in his penultimate film, Being There. Leading actress Bette Davis once remarked of him, "He isn't an actor—he's a chameleon." Sellers rose to fame on the BBC Radio comedy series The Goon Show. His ability to speak in different accents (e.g., French, Indian, American, German, as well as British regional accents), along with his talent to portray a range of characters to comic effect, contributed to his success as a radio personality and screen actor and earned him national and international nominations and awards. Many of his characters became ingrained in public perception of his work. Sellers' private life was characterized by turmoil and crises, and included emotional problems and substance abuse. Sellers was married four times, and had three children from the first two marriages.
An enigmatic figure, he often claimed to have no identity outside the roles that he played, but he left his own portrait since, "he obsessively filmed his homes, his family, people he knew, anything that took his fancy right to the end of his life—intimate film that remained undiscovered until long after his death in 1980." The director Peter Hall has said: "Peter had the ability to identify completely with another person, and think his way physically, mentally and emotionally into their skin. Where does that come from? I have no idea. Is it a curse? Often. I think it's not enough though in this business to have talent. You have to have talent to handle the talent. And that I think Peter did not have."
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Filmography
— top 60 of 136
Acting
56 credits
The World of Hammer
The Mike Douglas Show
Film '72
The Muppet Show
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
It Takes a Thief
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
Sykes
Lolita
Casino Royale
The Pink Panther
V.I.P. Schaukel
John Candy: I Like Me
ABC Stage 67
The Return of the Pink Panther
The Beatles: Get Back
A Shot in the Dark
The Pink Panther Strikes Again
Being There
The Ladykillers
The Party
Murder by Death
Theatre Night
Revenge of the Pink Panther
Trail of the Pink Panther
Koyaanisqatsi
What's New Pussycat?
Tempo
The Mouse That Roared
Beat the Devil
This Is Tom Jones
Tom Thumb
Woman Times Seven
Muppet Treasures
The Wrong Box
Kubrick by Kubrick
The Magic Christian
The Man Who Never Was
I'm All Right Jack
I Love You, Alice B. Toklas!
Mickey's 50
There's a Girl in My Soup
The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Funny Business
The Wrong Arm of the Law
The Road to Hong Kong
The Millionairess
After the Fox
Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story
The Prisoner of Zenda
The World of Henry Orient
Rire et sourire : Le Splendid
Two-Way Stretch
The Battle of the Sexes
Soft Beds, Hard Battles
Other credits
4 credits
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