R.I.P. Peter O’Toole (1932-2013)

Few actors were ever so hypnotic, charming, handsome and even snide as Peter O’Toole. One of the most respected thespians of the 20th century, the star of Lawrence of ArabiaThe Lion in WinterGoodbye, Mr. Chips and Ratatouille passed away on December 14th, 2013 after a lengthy illness. Cinema will never be the same, since the odds are damn good that we will never have another one like him.

Peter O’Toole’s incredible career spanned over 50 years, earning the actor eight Oscar nominations and worldwide acclaim for his talents. He never won that golden man, although he was honored with an honorary Academy Award in 2003 in recognition for the fascinating and iconic characters he brought to life over the past five decades. It was an honor that Peter O’Toole initially turned down, because “I am still in the game and might win the bugger outright.” His theory was proven valid, although ultimately wrong: he was nominated again for Best Actor in 2007, just four years later, for his performance in Roger Michell’s drama Venus.

That snark was characteristic of O’Toole, a member of a cabal of hard-drinking, no-nonsense actors who emerged from the 1960s as a charismatic and disarming movement that popularized sexy and shady cinematic heroes. OToole’s abilities were proven time and again, even in performances like his acclaimed turn as King Henry II in Becket, which he reportedly gave while rather consistently drunk. 

Peter O’Toole’s career was defined by rich and complicated leading roles, playing iconic British figures like King Henry II twice (in Becket and The Lion in Winter, Oscar-nominated each time) and T.E. Lawrence in David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia, one of the great cinematic accomplishments of the 1960s. But although he would give one incredible performance after another in respectable fare like The Stunt Man and My Favorite Year, he was a hard-working actor who didn’t turn down roles in lower-brow motion pictures like SupergirlKing Ralph and Phantoms. And because he was a consummate professional, he was – if nothing else – typically the best part of each and every one of those smaller films.

To locate a classic performance by Peter O’Toole one need only glance at his IMDb page and pick one film out more-or-less at random, but we here at CraveOnline wanted to single out a few of the roles that we will certainly never forget. These are the free-association films, the ones our minds will turn to whenever we think of the great Peter O’Toole, and we will definitely think of him often, and with admiration.

 


William Bibbiani is the editor of CraveOnline’s Film Channel and co-host of The B-Movies Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.

TRENDING

X