Peter Sellers was born to a well-off English acting family in 1925. His mother and father worked in an acting company run by his grandmother. As a child, Sellers was spoiled, as his parents' first child had died at birth. He enlisted in the army and fought during World War II, where he met Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Michael Bentine, who would become his future workmates. After the war he set up a review in London, which was a combination of music (he played the drums) and impressions. Then, all of a sudden, he burst into prominence as the voices of numerous favourites on "The Goon Show" (1951-1960), making his debut in films in Penny Points to Paradise and Down Among the Z Men, before making it big as one of the criminals in The Ladykillers. These small but showy roles continued throughout the 1950s, but he got his first big break playing the dogmatic union man, Fred Kite, in I'm All Right Jack. The film's success led to starring vehicles into the 1960s that showed off his extreme comic ability to its fullest, but after the relative failure of What's New, Pussycat, which was Woody Allen's first film, Sellers embarked on a rapid downfall to "Grade Z" movies in the 1970s, all of which he claimed to have made only because he needed the money. In 1972 he read the book "Being There" and decided to make it into a film. It took him seven years to finally bring it to the screen, but it earned him a Best Actor Oscar nomination (he lost to Dustin Hoffman's portrayal of "Superdad" in Kramer vs. Kramer). Being There proved to be somewhat of a last hurrah for Sellers, as he died the following year. His last movie, The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu, completed just before his death, proved to be another flop. Director Blake Edwards' attempt at reviving the Pink Panther series after Sellers' death resulted in two panned 1980s comedies, the first of which, Trail of the Pink Panther, deals with Inspector Clouseau's disappearance and was made from material cut from previous Pink Panther films and includes interviews with the original casts playing their original characters.


Father, with actress Britt Ekland, of actress Victoria Sellers. Born at 6:00am-BST Sellers, Spike Milligan, Michael Bentine and Harry Secombe performed on BBC Radio as "The Goon Show" in the early 1950s. Sellers also enjoyed success in the UK music charts, with "Any Old Iron" reaching 17 in 1957 and a cover of the Beatles' "A Hard Day's Night" released in 1965 and reaching 14. He was awarded the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in 1966 for his services to drama. Sellers was the first male to appear on the cover of Playboy Magazine, in April 1964 Father, with Anne Howe, of Michael Sellers and Sarah Sellers. Turned down the role of George Webber in Blake Edwards' 10 (1979) (George Segal was cast instead but eventually replaced by Dudley Moore). Sellers made a cameo appearance but it wound up being cut out. Recorded a comedic rendition of "Unchained Melody" which wasn't released until years afterwards. Died at 12:26am - BST after being in a coma for more than 30 hours after suffering a massive heart attack. Is portrayed by Geoffrey Rush in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004). One afternoon the doorbell rang in Sellers' London flat. As he was busy in his study, his wife Anne went to the door, where she was handed a telegram. The message: "Bring me a cup of coffee. Peter". Died a few days after filming a "Barclays Bank" commercial, which was never aired. His performance as Inspector Jacques Clouseau in the "Pink Panther" franchise is ranked #67 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. At the time of his death, Sellers was set to play Inspector Clouseau again in "Romance of the Pink Panther". The script had been written by Sellers and Jim Moloney and the film was to be directed by Clive Donner. Pamela Stephenson was to have played the female lead. Also in the pipeline were the leads in Lovesick (1983) and Unfaithfully Yours (1984). Both these roles were taken over by Dudley Moore. Together with Nicolas Cage (Adaptation. (2002)) and Lee Marvin (Cat Ballou (1965)), Sellers is the only actor with an Oscar nomination for playing multiple characters in a film (in (Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), he plays three characters, Group Captain (G/C) Lionel Mandrake, President Merkin Muffley and Dr. Strangelove). Marvin is the only one who actually won one for a double role. He was one of the favorite actors of Elvis Presley who always had Sellers' Pink Panther films with him on the airplane while he was on tour. Before his death he spoke very highly of Robin Williams and Steve Martin, both considered that a great honor. Served in the Royal Air Force during World War II. He was fitted with a pacemaker in the late 1970s for his failing heart.