O'Toole, Peter

O'Toole, Peter

(Peter Seamus O'Toole), 1932–2013, British actor, b. Connemara, Ireland, grad. Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, London (1955). A classical stage actor, he appeared (1955–58) with the Bristol Old Vic, debuted in London in 1956, and played a variety of Shakespearean roles with the Royal Shakespeare Company. Tall, handsome, and charismatic, he made his screen debut in The Savage Innocents (1959) and catapulted to stardom with his portrayal of T. E. LawrenceLawrence, T. E.
(Thomas Edward Lawrence), 1888–1935, British adventurer, soldier, and scholar, known as Lawrence of Arabia. While a student at Oxford he went on a walking tour of Syria and in 1911 joined a British Museum archaeological expedition in Mesopotamia.
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 in David LeanLean, Sir David,
1908–91, English film director, producer, and scriptwriter, b. Croyden, England. He entered the film industry in the 1920s, and had become one of Britain's most accomplished film editors before turning to directing with In Which We Serve
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's desert epic Lawrence of Arabia (1962). He was a major star of the 1960s and early 70s, winning praise for performances in motion pictures ranging from historical drama to high comedy. Among his outstanding films are Becket (1964), Lord Jim (1965), The Lion in Winter (1968), The Ruling Class (1972), The Stunt Man (1980), My Favorite Year (1982), The Last Emperor (1987), Fairytale—A True Story (1997), and Venus (2003). He also appeared in a number of television dramas.

Bibliography

See his autobiography (2 vol., 1993–97); biographies by M. Freedland (1982) and N. Wapshott (1983).