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Richard Henry Sellers (September 8, 1925 –
July 24, 1980), better known as Peter Sellers, was
a United Kingdom|British comedian, talented comic
actor, and performer on The Goon Show (a
long-running BBC radio show, 1951-1960). Sellers
was born in Southsea, Hampshire, England, to a
family of entertainers.

Probably following his family in the variety
circuit, Sellers learnt this popular yet difficult
art and the immediate instinct of the "gag". He
was an incredibly versatile artist: an excellent
dancer, a skillful player of the ukulele and
banjo, and a drummer good enough to tour with
several jazz bands. He is known to have performed
at the Windmill Theatre.

During World War II, Sellers was an airman in the
Royal Air Force, rising to corporal by the end of
the war. During his leisure periods, he did
impersonations of his superiors. This helped
Sellers in his later film Dr. Strangelove.

His success was quite slow in coming. He phoned up
a television producer pretending to be Kenneth
Horne, who was currently in the show Much Binding
in the Marsh, in order to get them to speak to
him. Success came as one of the goons on the radio
programme The Goon Show with fellow comedians
Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Michael Bentine
and was followed by early television work.

Sellers' first film successes were in British
comedy films, including The Ladykillers (1955),
I'm All Right Jack (1959) and The Mouse That
Roared (1959); however, he is most famous for his
role as the bungling Inspector Clouseau in the
Pink Panther movies, which gave him a worldwide
audience.  The movie The Trail of the Pink Panther
was released posthumously in 1982, containing
previously unused footage of Sellers. Sellers'
widow Lynne Frederick later successfully sued the
film's producers. 

Sellers was launched internationally with the hit
"The Millionairess". In Stanley Kubrick's Dr.
Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and
Love the Bomb he notably played the triple role
consisting of President Merkin Muffley of the
United States, Dr. Strangelove, and Group Captain
Lionel Mandrake of the Royal Air Force|RAF (the
first two appearing in the same room throughout
the film). He was remarkably versatile, switching
easily from brilliant themes as in The Party, to
more intense performances as in Lolita (1962
movie)|Lolita (from Vladimir Nabokov's notorious
novel).  Sellers' career slumped in the early
1970s but after reviving the Clouseau character he
was able to produce his cherished project Being
There in 1979_in_film|1979, winning his best
reviews since the 1960s, as well as his second
Academy Award nomination.

Commonly considered a master actor, sometimes
described as an "obsessive perfectionist", Sellers
found in Blake Edwards a devoted director who
could delicately underline and follow his comic
rhythms; Edwards defined Sellers as a "mercurial
clown" who could turn comedy into drama, and
vice-versa, in an instant. 

He was nominated twice for an Academy Award, but
was unsuccessful on both occasions although he won
a British Academy Award (BAFTA) for I'm All Right
Jack. With Sophia Loren Sellers recorded the top
10 UK single "Goodness Gracious Me".

Sellers was married four times, his first to
actress Anne Howe ended after she claimed he was
having an affair with Sophia Loren though Loren
has maintained that Sellers had become obsessed
with her but it was not reciprocated. His second
marriage was to the Sweden|Swedish actor|actress
Britt Ekland.  In 1970 he married Miranda Quarry.
His wife at the time of his death was Lynne
Frederick, who later married Sir David Frost
(broadcaster)|David Frost. Sellers was also a
close friend of Princess Margaret.

Another interesting trait was his love for cars;
he was believed to have owned and sold a few tens
of different cars by the late sixties. This was
briefly parodied in a fleeting cameo in the short
film Simon Simon, directed by his colleague Graham
Stark. 

Sellers died at age 54 of a myocardial
infarction|heart attack on July 24, 1980, in
London, England, having already suffered a
near-fatal heart attack in 1964 at the age of 38.
At the time of his death, he was due to undergo
heart surgery. He was cremated. His premature
death was perhaps hastened by his belief in
"alternative medicine", including psychic surgery.
In his will Sellers explicitly requested that
Glenn Miller's song "In The Mood" be played for
his funeral. The request is considered his last
touch of humour; his friends knew he deeply hated
the song.

Roger Lewis wrote about the "madness" and bizarre
behavior of Sellers in his biography, The Life and
Death of Peter Sellers (Applause Books, 1997).
Lewis' biography was adapted for the HBO movie,
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), with
Geoffrey Rush in the title role.

In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian,
Sellers was voted amongst the top 20 greatest
comedy acts ever by fellow comedians and comedy
insiders.

==Films==

* The Black Rose (1950 in film|1950). 
* London Entertains (1951 in film|1951). 
* Let's Go Crazy (1951). 
* Burlesque of Carmen (1951). 
* Penny Points to Paradise (1951). 
* Down Among the Z Men (1952 in film|1952). 
* Beat the Devil (Humphrey Bogart's voice) (1953
in film|1953). 
* The Super Secret Service (1953). 
* Our Girl Friday aka The Adventures of Sadie
(1954 in film|1954). 
* Malaga (voice of 14 characters) (1954). 
* Orders are Orders (1954). 
* John and Julie (1955 in film|1955). 
* The Man Who Never Was (1956 in film|1956). 
* The Ladykillers (1956). 
* The Case of the Mukkineese Battlehorn (1956). 
* The Smallest Show on Earth (1957 in film|1957). 
* Cold Comfort (1957). 
* Insomnia Is Good For You (1957). 
* Dearth of a Salesman (1957). 
* The Naked Truth aka Your Past Is Showing (1958
in film|1958). 
* Tom Thumb (1958). 
* Up the Creek (1958). 
* Carlton-Browne of the F.O. aka Man in a Cocked
Hat (1959 in film|1959). 
* The Mouse That Roared (1959). 
* I'm All Right Jack (1959).
* The Running, Jumping and Standing Still Film
(1960). 
* The Battle of the Sexes (1960). 
* Two-Way Stretch (1960). 
* Never Let Go (1960). 
* The Millionairess (1960). 
* Climb Up the Wall (1960). 
* Mr. Topaze aka I Like Money (1961). 
* Only Two Can Play (1962). 
* The Road to Hong Kong (1962). 
* Waltz of the Toreadors (1962). 
* Lolita (1962 movie)|Lolita (1962). 
* Trial and Error (movie)|Trial and Error aka The
Dock Brief (1962). 
* The Wrong Arm of the Law (1963). 
* Heavens Above! (1963). 
* Light of Day (1963) 
* The Pink Panther (1963 film)|The Pink Panther
(1963). 
* Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop
Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964 - first
Academy_award|Oscar nomination). 
* The World of Henry Orient (1964). 
* A Shot in the Dark (1964, sequel to The Pink
Panther). 
* Carol For Another Christmas (1964). 
* Birds, Bees and Storks (1964). 
* Whats New Pussycat|What's New Pussycat? (1965). 
* The Wrong Box (1965). 
* After the Fox (1966). 
* Casino Royale (1967). 
* The Bobo (1967). 
* Woman Times Seven (1967). 
* The Party aka Hollywood Party (1968). 
* I Love You, Alice B. Toklas (1968). 
* The Magic Christian (1970). 
* Hoffman (movie)|Hoffman (1970). 
* A Day at the Beach (1970). 
* Simon, Simon (1970). 
* There's a Girl in My Soup (1971). 
* Where Does It Hurt|Where Does It Hurt? (1972). 
* Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1972). 
* The Blockhouse (1973). 
* Soft Beds, Hard Battles aka Undercovers Heroes
(1973). 
* The Optimists of Nine Elms (1974). 
* Ghost In The Noonday Sun (1974). 
* The Great McGonagall (1975), in which he plays
Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria. 
* The Return of the Pink Panther (1975). 
* Murder by Death (1976). 
* The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976). 
* The Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978). 
* The Prisoner of Zenda (1979). 
* Being There (1979), second nomination for an
Academy Award for Best Actor. 
* The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu (1980). 
* The Great Pram Race (1980). 
* Trail of the Pink Panther - posthumously (1982).
In some of above titles, Sellers appears only by
his voice

==Music==
Sellers released several comedy singles and
albums, many of them produced by George Martin.
These include:
* Any Old Iron (1957)
* Bangers and Mash (1961)
* A Hard Day's Night (1965) (1993) (He covered
several other Beatles hits, including Help and She
Loves You.
* Goodness Gracious Me (1960) with Sophia Loren

	Web Quotableonline.com Frasescelebres.org Greatbookscollection.org

Richard Henry Sellers (September 8, 1925 –
July 24, 1980), better known as Peter Sellers, was
a United Kingdom|British comedian, talented comic
actor, and performer on The Goon Show (a
long-running BBC radio show, 1951-1960). Sellers
was born in Southsea, Hampshire, England, to a
family of entertainers. He attended a Catholic
school, although his family was Jewish.

Probably following his family in the variety
circuit, Sellers learnt this popular yet difficult
art and the immediate instinct of the "gag". He
was an incredibly versatile artist: an excellent
dancer, a skillful player of the ukulele and
banjo, and a drummer good enough to tour with
several jazz bands. He is known to have performed
at the Windmill Theatre.

During World War II, Sellers was an airman in the
Royal Air Force, rising to corporal by the end of
the war. During his leisure periods, he did
impersonations of his superiors. This helped
Sellers in his later film Dr. Strangelove.

His success was quite slow in coming. He phoned up
a television producer pretending to be Kenneth
Horne, who was currently in the show Much Binding
in the Marsh, in order to get them to speak to
him. Success came as one of the goons on the radio
programme The Goon Show with fellow comedians
Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Michael Bentine
and was followed by early television work.

Sellers' first film successes were in British
comedy films, including The Ladykillers (1955),
I'm All Right Jack (1959) and The Mouse That
Roared (1959); however, he is most famous for his
role as the bungling Inspector Clouseau in the
Pink Panther movies, which gave him a worldwide
audience.  The movie The Trail of the Pink Panther
was released posthumously in 1982, containing
previously unused footage of Sellers. Sellers'
widow Lynne Frederick later successfully sued the
film's producers. 

Sellers was the first male to appear on the cover
of Playboy, he appeared on the April 1964 cover
with Karen Lynn.

Sellers was launched internationally with the hit
"The Millionairess". In Stanley Kubrick's Dr.
Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and
Love the Bomb he notably played the triple role
consisting of U.S. President Merkin Muffley, Dr.
Strangelove, and Group Captain Lionel Mandrake of
the Royal Air Force|RAF (the first two appearing
in the same room throughout the film). He was
remarkably versatile, switching easily from broad
comedy as in The Party, to more intense
performances as in Lolita (1962 movie)|Lolita
(from Vladimir Nabokov's notorious novel).
Sellers' career slumped in the early 1970s but
after reviving the Clouseau character he was able
to produce his cherished project Being There in
1979_in_film|1979, winning his best reviews since
the 1960s, as well as his second Academy Award
nomination.

Commonly considered a master actor, sometimes
described as an "obsessive perfectionist", Sellers
found in Blake Edwards a devoted director who
could delicately underline and follow his comic
rhythms; Edwards defined Sellers as a "mercurial
clown" who could turn comedy into drama, and
vice-versa, in an instant. He could also be cruel,
as he demonstrated in his treatment of actress Jo
Van Fleet on the set of I Love You, Alice B.
Toklas, when she made a slight faux pas and
offended him.

He was nominated twice for an Academy Award, but
was unsuccessful on both occasions although he won
a British Academy Award (BAFTA) for I'm All Right
Jack. With Sophia Loren Sellers also recorded the
top 10 UK single "Goodness Gracious Me".

Sellers was married four times, his first to
actress Anne Howe ended after she claimed he was
having an affair with Sophia Loren though Loren
has maintained that Sellers had become obsessed
with her but it was not reciprocated. His second
marriage was to the Sweden|Swedish actor|actress
Britt Ekland.  In 1970 he married Miranda Quarry.
His wife at the time of his death was Lynne
Frederick, who later married Sir David Frost
(broadcaster)|David Frost. Sellers was also a
close friend of Princess Margaret.

Another interesting trait was his love for cars;
he was believed to have owned and sold a few tens
of different cars by the late sixties. This was
briefly parodied in a fleeting cameo in the short
film Simon Simon, directed by his friend Graham
Stark. 

Sellers died at age 54 of a myocardial
infarction|heart attack on July 24, 1980, in
London, England, having already suffered a
near-fatal heart attack in 1964 at the age of 38.
At the time of his death, he was due to undergo
heart surgery. He was cremated. His premature
death was perhaps hastened by his belief in
"alternative medicine", including psychic surgery.
In his will Sellers explicitly requested that
Glenn Miller's song "In The Mood" be played for
his funeral. The request is considered his last
touch of humour; his friends knew he deeply hated
the song.


Roger Lewis wrote about the "madness" and bizarre
behavior of Sellers in his biography, The Life and
Death of Peter Sellers (Applause Books, 1997).
Lewis' biography was adapted for the HBO movie,
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), with
Geoffrey Rush in the title role.

In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian,
Sellers was voted amongst the top 20 greatest
comedy acts ever by fellow comedians and comedy
insiders.

==Films==

* The Black Rose (1950 in film|1950)
* London Entertains (1951 in film|1951)
* Let's Go Crazy (1951)
* Burlesque of Carmen (1951)
* Penny Points to Paradise (1951)
* Down Among the Z Men (1952 in film|1952)
* Beat the Devil (Humphrey Bogart's voice) (1953
in film|1953)
* The Super Secret Service (1953)
* Our Girl Friday aka The Adventures of Sadie
(1954 in film|1954)
* Malaga (voice of 14 characters) (1954)
* Orders are Orders (1954)
* John and Julie (1955 in film|1955)
* The Man Who Never Was (1956 in film|1956) (voice
of Winston Churchill, uncredited)
* The Ladykillers (1956)
* The Case of the Mukkineese Battlehorn (1956)
* The Smallest Show on Earth (1957 in film|1957)
* Cold Comfort (1957)
* Insomnia Is Good For You (1957)
* Dearth of a Salesman (1957)
* The Naked Truth (film)|The Naked Truth aka Your
Past Is Showing (1957)
* Tom Thumb (1958 in film|1958)
* Up the Creek (1958)
* Carlton-Browne of the F.O. aka Man in a Cocked
Hat (1959 in film|1959)
* The Mouse That Roared (1959)
* I'm All Right Jack (1959)
* The Running, Jumping and Standing Still Film
(1960)
* The Battle of the Sexes (1960)
* Two-Way Stretch (1960)
* Never Let Go (1960)
* The Millionairess (1960)
* Climb Up the Wall (1960)
* Mr. Topaze aka I Like Money (1961)
* Only Two Can Play (1962)
* The Road to Hong Kong (1962)
* Waltz of the Toreadors (1962)
* Lolita (1962 movie)|Lolita (1962)
* Trial and Error (movie)|Trial and Error aka The
Dock Brief (1962)
* The Wrong Arm of the Law (1963)
* Heavens Above! (1963)
* Light of Day (1963)
* The Pink Panther (1963 film)|The Pink Panther
(1963)
* Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop
Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964 - first
Academy_award|Oscar nomination)
* The World of Henry Orient (1964)
* A Shot in the Dark (1964, sequel to The Pink
Panther)
* Carol for Another Christmas (1964)
* Birds, Bees and Storks (1964)
* Whats New Pussycat|What's New Pussycat? (1965)
* The Wrong Box (1965)
* After the Fox (1966)
* Casino Royale (1967)
* The Bobo (1967)
* Woman Times Seven (1967)
* The Party aka Hollywood Party (1968)
* I Love You, Alice B. Toklas (1968)
* The Magic Christian (1970)
* Hoffman (movie)|Hoffman (1970)
* A Day at the Beach (1970)
* Simon, Simon (1970)
* There's a Girl in My Soup (1971)
* Where Does It Hurt|Where Does It Hurt? (1972)
* Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1972)
* The Blockhouse (1973)
* Soft Beds, Hard Battles aka Undercovers Heroes
(1973)
* The Optimists of Nine Elms (1974)
* Ghost In The Noonday Sun (1974)
* The Great McGonagall (1975), in which he plays
Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria
* The Return of the Pink Panther (1975)
* Murder by Death (1976)
* The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)
* The Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978)
* The Prisoner of Zenda (1979)
* Being There (1979), second nomination for an
Academy Award for Best Actor
* The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu (1980)
* The Great Pram Race (1980)
* Trail of the Pink Panther - posthumously (1982)
In some of above titles, Sellers appears only by
his voice.

==Music==
Sellers released several comedy singles and
albums, many of them produced by George Martin.
These include:
* Any Old Iron (1957)
* Bangers and Mash (1961)
* A Hard Day's Night (1965) (1993) (He covered
several other Beatles hits, including Help and She
Loves You.
* Goodness Gracious Me (1960) with Sophia Loren

==External links==
* imdb name|id=0000634|name=Peter Sellers
* http://inspectorclouseau.com  Inspector Clouseau
Site
* http://www.petersellers.com  Peter Sellers Site
* http://www.petersellers.org.uk/ The Peter
Sellers Tribute Site A new Peter Sellers site
brought to you by the same person who brought to
other people that Spike Milligan Tribute Site,
http://www.spikemilligan.co.uk
* http://www.smas.me.uk/ The Spike Milligan
Appreciation Society