Peter Sellers

This article is about the British actor. For the American director, see Peter Sellars.

Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers in 1973
Born	Richard Henry Sellers
Nationality	British
Occupation	Actor/Comedian
Years active	1948–1980
Spouse(s)	Anne Howe (1951-1961; divorced) 2 children Britt Ekland (1964-1968; divorced) 1 child Miranda Quarry (1970-1974; divorced) Lynne Frederick (1977-1980; his death)

Richard Henry Sellers, CBE (8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980), commonly known as Peter Sellers, was an English comedian and actor best known for his roles in Dr. Strangelove, as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, as Clare Quilty in the original 1962 screen version of Lolita, and as the guileless man-child Chance in his penultimate film, Being There.

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), along with his talent to portray a range of characters to comedic 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's private life was characterized by turmoil and crises, and included emotional problems and substance abuse. Sellers was married four times, with three children from two of the marriages.

Life and career

Early life

Peter Sellers's birthplace on the corner of Castle Road and Southsea terrace, in Southsea. The blue plaques read "Peter Sellers, Actor and Comedian was born here"

Sellers was born in Southsea, Portsmouth to a family of entertainers. His parents nicknamed him Peter at an early age, after his elder stillborn brother. He attended the North London Roman Catholic school, St. Aloysius College, although his father, Yorkshire-born Bill Sellers (1900–1962), was Protestant and his mother, Agnes Doreen 'Peg' née Marks (1892–1967), was Jewish. His maternal grandmother, Benvenida Welcome Mendoza (1855–1932), was of Portuguese-Jewish descent; her grandfather, Mordecai Mendoza (1774–1851), was a first cousin of English prizefighter Daniel Mendoza (1764–1836). Sellers was also a cousin of Talksport radio presenter Mike Mendoza.

Accompanying his family on the variety show circuit, Sellers learned stagecraft which proved valuable later. He performed at five at the burlesque Windmill Theatre in the drama Splash Me!, which featured his mother. He was a versatile artist, excelling at dancing, drumming well enough to tour with jazz bands (his drumming is shown in a clip of The Steve Allen Show in 1964), and playing ukulele and banjo. In Parkinson, Sellers claimed his father had taught George Formby to play ukulele. Sellers played ukulele on the "New York Girls" track for Steeleye Span's 1975 album Commoner's Crown.

World War II

During World War II, Sellers was an airman in the Royal Air Force, rising to corporal, though he had been restricted to ground staff due to poor eyesight. His tour included India and Burma, although the duration of his stay in Asia is unknown and its length may have been exaggerated by Sellers himself. He also served in Germany and France after the war.

As a distraction from the life of a non-commissioned officer, Sellers joined the Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA), allowing him to hone his drumming and comedy. He occasionally impersonated his superiors, and his portrayal of RAF officer Lionel Mandrake in the film Dr. Strangelove may have been modelled on them. He bluffed his way into the Officers' Mess using mimicry and the occasional false moustache, although as he told Michael Parkinson in the 1972 interview, occasionally older officers would suspect him. The voice of Goon Show character Major Dennis Bloodnok came from this period.

The Goon Show

Main article: The Goon Show

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, star of the radio show Much Binding in the Marsh, to get Speer to speak to him.

As a result, Sellers was given an audition, which led to his work on Ray's a Laugh with comedian Ted Ray. His principal radio work was on The Goon Show with Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and (originally) Michael Bentine. Sellers followed this with television work.

Records

In the late 1950s, Sellers released two comedy records produced by George Martin: The Best of Sellers and Songs for Swinging Sellers. The Best of Sellers album cover (first released in 10" format in 1958 and his debut LP) pictured him polishing a Rolls Royce motor car. The most popular tracks on this album were "Balham, Gateway to the South" (a parody travelogue) and "Suddenly It's Folksong" where a group of people end up smashing up a pub after a row over someone playing a bum note. The Songs for Swinging Sellers album, released in 1959, contained material written by Frank Muir and Dennis Norden and featured Sellers performing "Puttin on the Style" (a parody of the skiffle movement's performer Lonnie Donegan). He also appeared with guest Irene Handl on the track "Shadows on the Grass" where he plays the part of a Frenchman befriending a lady in the park. Musical direction was by Ron Goodwin.

In 1979 he released a third gatefold album entitled Sellers' Market (the cover shows him standing next to a trader reading the Wall Street Times whereas Sellers is standing similarly reading the Finchley Press) which included comic singing and a feature called the "All England George Formby Finals" where he parodies the late George Formby and his ukelele playing. Also featured was the Complete Guide to Accents of the British Isles. The album was not as popular as his first two in 1958 and 1959 although is still sought after by collectors. All three albums exploited Sellers's ability to use his flexible voice to enormous comedic effect.

Film career

Playing as Sonny MacGregor an impersonator of sorts in the Sonny MacGregor Show in The Naked Truth (1957)

Sellers's film success arrived with British comedies, including The Ladykillers, I'm All Right Jack and The Mouse That Roared. He began receiving international attention for his portrayal of an Indian doctor in The Millionairess with Sophia Loren. The film inspired the George Martin-produced novelty hit single Goodness Gracious Me and its follow-up Bangers and Mash, both featuring Sellers and Loren. He starred in Stanley Kubrick's Lolita as Clare Quilty, opposite James Mason as Humbert Humbert. In portraying Quilty, Sellers is remarked to have given Lolita its vitality. He had a cameo in The Road to Hong Kong, the seventh and last in the "Road" series, starring Bing Crosby and Bob Hope.

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 Texas accent, but screen writer Terry Southern made a recording of his own 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. For his performance in all three roles, Sellers was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor, but lost to Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady.

Peter Sellers as Chief Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies, his most famous character.

Sellers was cast as the bumbling Chief Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies. 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, containing unused footage of Sellers, was released in 1982, after his death. 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.

Director Billy Wilder hired Sellers to co-star with Dean Martin for the ribald 1964 comedy Kiss Me, Stupid, but six weeks into filming, Sellers suffered a heart attack. Wilder replaced him with Ray Walston.

Sellers was a versatile actor, switching from broad comedy, as in The Party, in which he portrayed a bumbling Indian actor Hrundi Bakshi (almost an Indian version of Inspector Clouseau), to more intense performances as in Lolita.

Sellers appeared in an episode of the American television series It Takes a Thief in 1969. By the early 1970s Sellers faced a downturn, and was dubbed "box office poison". But after the successful return of the Clouseau role in new Pink Panther movies, he produced and starred in a film, Being There (1979). Based on the Jerzy Kosinski novel he cherished, Being There earned Sellers his best reviews since the 1960s, a second Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe award. Sellers never won an Oscar but won the BAFTA for I'm All Right Jack.

Sellers appeared on The Muppet Show television series in 1977. He chose not to appear as himself, instead appearing in a variety of costumes and accents. When Kermit the Frog told Sellers he could relax and be "himself," Sellers (while wearing a Viking helmet, a girdle and one boxing glove, claiming to have attempted to dress as Queen Victoria), replied, "There is no me. I do not exist. There used to be a me, but I had it surgically removed."

Personal and professional struggles

Sellers had a difficult 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 and The Party. The two sometimes stopped speaking to each other during filming.

Sellers's personality was described by others as difficult and demanding. His behaviour caused physical and emotional hurt to others, notably his first three wives and his children. As portrayed in the film The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, he told his seven-year-old son Michael that he thought that his mother, Anne Howe, was having an affair, around the time that the couple divorced. Sellers is known to have assaulted Britt Ekland, prompted by unsubstantiated jealousy. On occasion however, Sellers blamed himself for his failed marriages. In a 1974 Parkinson interview, he admitted that "I'm not easy to live with". He explained that the divorce from Howe had been due to a romance with "someone I worked with", suggesting that it had been Sophia Loren, as indicated by Sellers playfully humming their mutual single hit "Goodness Gracious Me", when asked by Parkinson about the purported affair. In an interview on Canadian television, in 1958, he was asked: "You have played so many very different characters: who is the real Peter Sellers?" he paused, tears came visibly to his eyes, he lowered and shook his head and said, "I ... don't really know."

His work with Orson Welles on Casino Royale deteriorated as Sellers became jealous of Welles's casual relationship with Princess Margaret. The relationship between the two actors created problems during filming, as Sellers refused to share the set with Welles, who himself was no stranger to strident behaviour. Sellers could be cruel and disrespectful, as demonstrated by his treatment of actress Jo Van Fleet on the set of I Love You, Alice B. Toklas. On one occasion, Van Fleet had declined an invitation to his house, soon followed by a misunderstanding between the two actors during filming. This prompted Sellers to launch a tirade against Van Fleet in front of actors and crew.

Sellers was reticent about discussing his private life. He was invited to appear on Michael Parkinson's eponymous chat show in 1974, but agreed under the condition that he could appear in character. Sellers appeared dressed as a member of the Gestapo, impersonating the Kenneth Mars character in The Producers. After a few lines in keeping with his assumed character, he stepped out of the role and settled down for what is considered one of Parkinson's most memorable interviews.

It has been suggested that Sellers suffered depression spurred by deep-seated anxieties of artistic and personal failure. Some behaviour may have been exacerbated by substance abuse, for Sellers regularly smoked cannabis, drank large amounts of alcohol, and used other recreational drugs. It is believed that his drug use, especially amyl nitrites, contributed to heart attacks in 1964 (see below). Sellers became aware that his frail psyche affected his career and life, but rather than seek professional counselling he opted for periodic consultations with astrologer Maurice Woodruff, who seemed to have held considerable sway over his later career.

Relationships with other celebrities

Sellers had casual friendships with two Beatles, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. Harrison told occasional Sellers stories in interviews, and Starr appeared with him in the anarchic movie The Magic Christian, based on Terry Southern's novel and whose theme song was Badfinger's "Come and Get It", written by Paul McCartney. Starr also gave Sellers a rough mix of songs from the Beatles' White Album; the tape was auctioned and bootlegged after his death. Sellers recorded a cover version of "A Hard Day's Night", in the style of Laurence Olivier's interpretation of Richard III, as well as various versions of "She Loves You", including as Dr. Strangelove, a cockney, and an Irish dentist.

File:Playboy April 1964.jpg

Sellers was the first male to appear on the cover of Playboy magazine.

Sellers's friendships included actor and director Roman Polanski, who shared his passion for fast cars. Sellers was a friend of Princess Margaret and had a close relationship with Sophia Loren, which may or may not have been consummated. Sellers was the first man on the cover of Playboy — he appeared on the April 1964 cover with Karen Lynn.

He was a Freemason and belonged to Chelsea Lodge No 3098, a lodge whose membership is made up of celebrities and performers, through which means he socialised with a number of other actors and comedians.

Relationships with the Royal Family

In her autobiography True Britt, Britt Ekland goes into detail about Sellers' close relationship with the Royal Family. "I was completely unaware of his (Sellers) connection with the British monarchy. One afternoon before we married he had disappeared saying that he had to do something 'important'. I was to learn he had spent afternoon tea with the Queen Mother at Clarence House.

Ekland goes on to portray Sellers as a rather subservient figure to the Royals, who admired his work but, according to Ekland regarded him as somewhat of a court jester. "Sellers ... would go to great lengths to gain favour with the Royals, being permanently available as the eternal court jester whenever their whims were so inclined ... He reciprocated beyond measure. If Tony just happened to remark that he liked a new camera, or a new set of lens that Sellers had bought - then my husband would just give it to him ... in another flash of generosity Sellers also gave the Royals a 'Riva' speedboat."

Obsession with automobiles

Sellers had a lifelong obsession with cars (referring to himself as an "auto-erotic" ), briefly parodied in a fleeting cameo in the short film Simon Simon, directed by friend Graham Stark. His love for cars was also referenced in The Goon Show episode "The Space Age," where Harry Secombe introduces Sellers by saying, "Good heavens, it's Peter Sellers, who has just broken his own record of keeping a car for more than a month." In "The Last Goon Show of All", announcer Andrew Timothy cued him with "Mr. Sellers will now sell a gross of his cars and take up a dramatic voice."

Marriages

Sellers and Britt Ekland 1964.

Sellers was married four times:

• Anne Howe (1951–1961). They had two children, Michael and Sarah.
• Swedish actress Britt Ekland (1964–1968). They had a daughter, Victoria Sellers. The couple appeared in three films together: Carol For Another Christmas (1964), After the Fox (1966) and The Bobo (1967).
• Australian model Miranda Quarry (now the Countess of Stockton) (1970–1974).
• English actress Lynne Frederick (1977–1980), who was briefly married to Sir David Frost shortly after Sellers's death.

Again, Spike Milligan wrote this into his scripts, referring in one 1972 radio show to "The Peter Sellers Discarded Wives Memorial". At the time, Sellers was married to Quarry.

Death

In 1964, at age 38, Sellers suffered a series of heart attacks (13 in a few days), which permanently damaged his heart. Sellers chose to consult with psychic healers rather than seek Western medical treatment, and his heart condition continued to deteriorate over the next 16 years. In 1977, he suffered a second major heart attack, resulting in him being fitted with a pacemaker to regulate his heartbeat. Once again, Sellers refused to slow down nor did he follow doctor's orders and consider open heart surgery, which could have considerably extended his life.

A reunion dinner was scheduled in London with his Goon Show partners, Spike Milligan and Harry Secombe, for 25 July 1980. But on 22 July, Sellers collapsed from a massive heart attack in his Dorchester Hotel room and fell into a coma. He died in a London hospital just after midnight on 24 July 1980, aged 54. He was survived by his fourth wife, Lynne Frederick, and three children: Michael, Sarah and Victoria. At the time of his death, he was scheduled to undergo heart surgery in Los Angeles on 30 July.

Although Sellers was reportedly in the process of excluding Frederick from his will a week before he died, she inherited almost his entire estate worth an estimated £4.5 million while his children received £800 each. When Frederick died in 1994 (aged 39), her mother Iris inherited everything, including all of the income and royalties from Sellers's work. When Iris dies the whole estate will go to Cassie, the daughter Lynne had with her third husband, Barry Unger. Sellers's only son, Michael, died of a heart attack at 52 during surgery on 24 July 2006 (26 years to the day after his father's death). Michael was survived by his second wife, Alison, whom he married in 1986, and their two children.

In his will, Sellers requested that the Glenn Miller song "In the Mood" be played at his funeral. The request is considered his last touch of humour, as he hated the piece. His body was cremated and he was interred at Golders Green Crematorium in London. After her death in 1994, the ashes of his widow Lynne were co-interred with his.

Legacy

The film Trail of the Pink Panther, made by Blake Edwards using unused footage of Sellers from The Pink Panther Strikes Again, is dedicated to Sellers's memory. The title reads "To Peter ... The one and only Inspector Clouseau."

In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian, Sellers was voted 14 in the list of the top 20 greatest comedians by fellow comedians and comedy insiders.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1950	The Black Rose	Alfonso Bedoya	Voice (uncredited)
1951	Penny Points to Paradise	The Major/Arnold Fringe
	Let's Go Crazy	Groucho/Giuseppe/Cedric /Izzy/Gozzunk/Crystal Jollibottom
1952	Down Among the Z Men	Major Bloodnok
1953	Our Girl Friday	Parrot	Voice (uncredited)
1954	Orders are Orders	Private Griffin
1955	John and Julie	Police Constable Diamond
	The Ladykillers	Mr. Robinson
1956	The Case of the Mukkinese Battle-Horn	Narrator/Supt. Quilt /Asst. Commissioner Sir Jervis Fruit/Henry Crun
	The Man Who Never Was	Winston Churchill	Voice only
1957	Insomnia Is Good for You	Hector Dimwiddle	Short film
	The Smallest Show on Earth	Leslie Quill
	The Naked Truth	Sonny McGregor
1958	Up the Creek	CPO Doherty
	tom thumb	Antony
1959	Carlton-Browne of the F.O.	Prime Minister Amphibulos
	The Mouse That Roared	Grand Duchess Gloriana XII / Prime Minister Count Rupert Mountjoy / Tully Bascombe	Three roles.
	I'm All Right Jack	Fred Kite	BAFTA Award for Best British Actor
	The Battle of the Sexes	Mr. Martin
1960	The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film	Photographer	Short San Francisco International Film Festival Award for Best Fiction Short Nominated — Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film
	Never Let Go	Lionel Meadows
	The Millionairess	Dr. Ahmed el Kabir
	Two Way Stretch	Dodger Lane
1961	Mr. Topaze	Auguste Topaze
1962	Only Two Can Play	John Lewis	Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best British Actor
	Waltz of the Toreadors	General Leo Fitzjohn	San Sebastián International Film Festival Award for Best Actor
	The Road to Hong Kong	Indian Neurologist	uncredited
	Lolita	Clare Quilty	Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
	Trial and Error	Wilfred Morgenhall
1963	The Wrong Arm of the Law	Pearly Gates
	Heavens Above!	The Reverend John Smallwood
	The Pink Panther	Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau	First in the Pink Panther series Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best British Actor Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1964	Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb	Group Captain Lionel Mandrake / President Merkin Muffley / Dr. Strangelove	Three roles Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best British Actor
	The World of Henry Orient	Henry Orient
	A Shot in the Dark	Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau	Sequel to the Pink Panther
1965	Birds, Bees and Storks	Narrator	Voice
	What's New Pussycat	Doctor Fritz Fassbender
1966	The Wrong Box	Doctor Pratt
	After the Fox	Aldo Vanucci
1967	Casino Royale	Evelyn Tremble
	Woman Times Seven	Jean
	The Bobo	Juan Bautista
1968	The Party	Hrundi V. Bakshi
	I Love You, Alice B. Toklas!	Harold
1969	The Magic Christian	Sir Guy Grand KG, KC, CBE
1970	A Day at the Beach	Salesman
	Hoffman	Benjamin Hoffman
	Simon Simon	Man with two cars
	There's a Girl in My Soup	Robert Danvers
1972	Where Does It Hurt?	Dr. Albert T. Hopfnagel
	Alice's Adventures in Wonderland	The March Hare
1973	Ghost in the Noonday Sun	Dick Scratcher
	The Blockhouse	Rouquet
	The Optimists	Sam
1974	Soft Beds, Hard Battles	Général Latour / Major Robinson / Herr Schroeder / Adolf Hitler / The President / Prince Kyoto	Played six roles.
	The Great McGonagall	Queen Victoria
1975	The Return of the Pink Panther	Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau	Third film by Sellers in the Pink Panther series Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actor Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1976	Murder by Death	Sidney Wang
	The Pink Panther Strikes Again	Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau	Fourth film by Sellers in the Pink Panther series Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1978	The Muppet Show	Various characters throughout show, including an Inspector Clouseau-like character for the introduction, a gypsy named Boris, Queen Victoria in a very odd costume (but declares he couldn't remember what she looked like), a masseur known as Doctor De Ericlever, and a temperance preacher.	Episode 43 originally aired February 27, 1978 in New York, and February 24, 1978 in Los Angeles
	Kingdom of Gifts	Larcenous Mayor	Voice only
	Revenge of the Pink Panther	Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau	Fifth film by Sellers in the Pink Panther series
1979	The Prisoner of Zenda	Rudolf IV / Rudolf V / Syd Frewin	Played three roles.
	Being There	Chance	Fotogramas de Plata for Best Foreign Performance Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy London Film Critics Circle Special Award National Board of Review Award for Best Actor Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best British Actor
1980	The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu	Dennis Nayland Smith / Dr. Fu 'Fred' Manchu	Last film. Played two roles.
1982	Trail of the Pink Panther	Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau	Footage of Sellers used.

Comedy singles

Sellers released several comedy singles, many of them produced by George Martin and released on the Parlophone record label. These include the following hits:

• "Any Old Iron" (1957) UK # 17
• "Goodness Gracious Me" (1960) with Sophia Loren UK # 4
• "Bangers and Mash" (1961), a follow-up also featuring Sophia Loren UK # 22
• "A Hard Day's Night" (1965) UK # 14. This consisted of him speaking the lyrics using the stereotypical voice of an actor playing Shakespeare's Richard III. He also performed the song in costume on television. The recording was re-issued in 1993 and reached Number 52 in the UK Top 75 Singles chart.

He covered several other Beatles hits, including "Help!" and "She Loves You". Sellers also recorded a parody version of "Unchained Melody", which long went unreleased.

When asked in 1960 what he thought the music business would be like in ten years time, Sellers retorted -

Ten years older !

NME - November 1960

Albums

Peter Sellers made several albums, mostly of comedy pieces using his talent for voices.

Discography:

• The Best of Sellers (1959) UK # 3
• Songs For Swinging Sellers (1959) UK # 3
• Peter & Sophia (1960) UK # 5 with Sophia Loren
• Fool Britannia (1963) UK # 10 with Anthony Newley and Joan Collins.
• How To Win An Election (1964) UK # 20 with Harry Secombe and Spike Milligan (Note: unlike The Last Goon Show Of All this release was not credited to The Goons.)
• He's Innocent of Watergate (1974) with Spike Milligan

Further reading

• Lewis, Roger (1995). The Life and Death of Peter Sellers. London: Arrow Books. ISBN 0-09-974700-6. 1108 pages. Published in the U.S. via Applause Books Roger Lewis's biography of Sellers is very comprehensive, and includes a very comprehensive index.
• Mr Strangelove;A Biography of Peter Sellers, a book by Ed Sikov
• P.S. I Love You by Michael Sellers 1981
• A Hard Act to Follow Michael Sellers (with Gary Morecambe, 1996).
• Sellers on Sellers Michael Sellers (2000, co-written with Gary Morecambe)

See also

• The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), HBO/BBC movie with Geoffrey Rush in the title role.

External links

• Peter Sellers at IMDb
• Peter Sellers at the TCM Movie Database
• Peter Sellers at the BFI's Screenonline
• John Atrobus recalls his memorable Christmas with Peter Sellers Daily Mail Dec. 27, 2009.
• Peter Sellers at Find a Grave