Peter Sellers

Birthday:

09/08/1925

Place of birth:

Southsea, Hampshire, England, UK:

Biography:

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." Description above from the Wikipedia article Peter Sellers, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.



Credits

Peter Sellers: Genius at Work (2023)
Self (archive footage)
Kubrick by Kubrick (2020)
Self (archive footage)
Peter Sellers: A State of Comic Ecstasy (2020)
Self (Archival Footage)
The Ghost of Peter Sellers (2018)
Himself (Archive)
Spike Milligan: Love, Light and Peace (2014)
Himself (archive footage)
The 9th Wonder of the World: The Making of 'Gorgo' (2013)
The Villain Antony (archive footage)
The World of Peter Sellers (2009)
Hitler: The Comedy Years (2007)
Self
Best Sellers or: Peter Sellers and 'Dr. Strangelove' (2004)
Self (archive footage)
The Peter Sellers Story - As He Filmed It (2003)
Himself
The Paranormal Peter Sellers (2001)
Self (Archive footage)
Spike (1996)
Himself
The Peter Sellers Story (1995)
Himself
Sellers' Best (1992)
Self (archive footage)
The Very Best of Peter Sellers (1990)
Muppet Video: Rowlf's Rhapsodies with the Muppets (1985)
Self
Muppet Treasures (1985)
Self
Trail of the Pink Panther (1982)
Chief Insp. Jacques Clouseau (archive footage)
Eric Sykes: One of the Great Troupers (1981)
Self (archive material)
The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu (1980)
Fu Manchu / Nayland Smith
Being There (1979)
Chance
The Prisoner of Zenda (1979)
Rudolf IV/Rudolf V/Sidney Frewin
Mickey's 50 (1978)
Self
Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978)
Chief Inspector Clouseau
Kingdom Of Gifts (1978)
The Slightly Larcenous Mayor
To See Such Fun (1977)
The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)
Chief Inspector Clouseau
Murder by Death (1976)
Sidney Wang
The Return of the Pink Panther (1975)
Inspector Clouseau
Julie: My Favourite Things (1975)
Various
The Great McGonagall (1975)
Queen Victoria
Soft Beds, Hard Battles (1974)
Général Latour / Major Robinson / Herr Schroeder / Adolf Hitler / The President / Prince Kyoto
The Optimists of Nine Elms (1973)
Sam
The Big Screen (1973)
Self
The Blockhouse (1973)
Rouquet
Ghost in the Noonday Sun (1973)
Dick Scratcher
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1972)
The March Hare
Where Does It Hurt? (1972)
Dr. Albert T. Hopfnegal
The Last Goon Show of All (1972)
Wilton's: The Handsomest Hall in Town (1970)
G.W. Ross
There's a Girl in My Soup (1970)
Robert Danvers
Hoffman (1970)
Mr. Hoffman
Simon Simon (1970)
Man with two cars
Let It Be (1970)
Self (scenes deleted)
A Day at the Beach (1970)
Salesman
Will the Real Mr. Sellers... (1969)
Subject Of Portrait
The Magic Christian (1969)
Sir Guy Grand KG, KC, CBE
One Pair of Eyes - No, But Seriously (1969)
The Beatles: Get Back...Winter of Discontent (1969)
Self (archive footage)
I Love You, Alice B. Toklas! (1968)
Harold
The Party (1968)
Hrundi V. Bakshi
Woman Times Seven (1967)
Jean
Casino Royale (1967)
Evelyn Tremble
The Bobo (1967)
Juan Bautista
Alice in Wonderland (1966)
King of Hearts
El Rey en Londres (1966)
After the Fox (1966)
Aldo Vanucci / Federico Fabrizi
The Wrong Box (1966)
Doctor Pratt
Birds, Bees and Storks (1965)
Narrator (voice)
The Music of Lennon & McCartney (1965)
What's New Pussycat? (1965)
Dr. Fritz Fassbender
Carol for Another Christmas (1964)
Imperial Me
I Say I Say I Say (1964)
A Shot in the Dark (1964)
Jacques Clouseau
The World of Henry Orient (1964)
Henry Orient
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake / President Merkin Muffley / Dr. Strangelove
The Pink Panther (1963)
Insp. Jacques Clouseau
Heavens Above! (1963)
The Rev. John Smallwood
The Wrong Arm of the Law (1963)
Pearly Gates
Trial and Error (1962)
Wilfred Morgenhall
Lolita (1962)
Clare Quilty
Waltz of the Toreadors (1962)
Gen. Leo Fitzjohn
The Road to Hong Kong (1962)
Indian Neurologist (uncredited)
Only Two Can Play (1962)
John Lewis
Mr. Topaze (1961)
Auguste Topaze
Two Way Stretch (1960)
Dodger Lane
The Millionairess (1960)
Dr. Kabir
Never Let Go (1960)
Lionel Meadows
The Battle of the Sexes (1960)
Mr. Martin
The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film (1959)
I'm All Right Jack (1959)
Fred Kite
The Mouse That Roared (1959)
Grand Duchess Gloriana XII / Prime Minister Count Rupert Mountjoy / Tully Bascombe
Carlton-Browne of the F.O. (1959)
Prime Minister Amphibulos
Tom Thumb (1958)
Antony
Up the Creek (1958)
CPO Doherty
Insomnia is Good for You (1957)
The Naked Truth (1957)
Sonny MacGregor
The Smallest Show on Earth (1957)
Percy Quill
Dearth of a Salesman (1957)
Hector Dimwittie
The Man Who Never Was (1956)
Winston Churchill (voice)
The Case of the Mukkinese Battle-Horn (1956)
Assorted
The Ladykillers (1955)
Harry, alias 'Mr. Robinson'
John and Julie (1955)
Police Constable Diamond
Orders Are Orders (1954)
Pvt. Goffin
Our Girl Friday (1953)
Voice of Parrot
Beat the Devil (1953)
Billy Dannreuther (voice) (uncredited)
Down Among the Z Men (1952)
Major Bloodnok
Let's Go Crazy (1951)
Multiple Roles
Penny Points to Paradise (1951)
The Major / Arnold Fringe
The Slappiest Days of Our Lives (1951)
(archive footage)
A Burlesque on the Opera Carmen (1951)
Voice narrator
The Black Rose (1950)
Lu Chung (voice)