
Acting
Peter O'Toole
Born 1932-08-02 · Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
Peter Seamus O'Toole (August 2, 1932 – December 14, 2013) was a British-Irish actor. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and began working in the theatre, gaining recognition as a Shakespearean actor at the Bristol Old Vic and with the English Stage Company. In 1959 he made his West End debut in The Long and the Short and the Tall, and played the title role in Hamlet in the National Theatre's first production in 1963. Excelling on the London stage, O'Toole was known for his "hellraiser" lifestyle off it. Making his film debut in 1959, O'Toole achieved international recognition playing T. E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia (1962) for which he received his first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. He was nominated for this award another seven times – for playing King Henry II in both Becket (1964) and The Lion in Winter (1968), Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969), The Ruling Class (1972), The Stunt Man (1980), My Favorite Year (1982), and Venus (2006) – and holds the record for the most Oscar nominations for acting without a win (tied with Glenn Close). In 2002, he was awarded the Academy Honorary Award for his career achievements. O'Toole was the recipient of four Golden Globe Awards, one BAFTA Award for Best British Actor and one Primetime Emmy Award. Other performances include What's New Pussycat? (1965), How to Steal a Million (1966), Supergirl (1984), and minor roles in The Last Emperor (1987) and Troy (2004). He also voiced Anton Ego, the restaurant critic in Pixar's Ratatouille (2007).
Acting credits
7.8In one of Paris's finest restaurants, Remy, a determined young rat, dreams of becoming a renowned French chef. Torn between his family's wishes and his true calling, Remy and his pal Linguini set in motion a hilarious chain of events that turns the City of Lights upside down.
Ratatouille
2007
7.2In year 1250 B.C. during the late Bronze age, two emerging nations begin to clash. Paris, the Trojan prince, convinces Helen, Queen of Sparta, to leave her husband Menelaus, and sail with him back to Troy. After Menelaus finds out that his wife was taken by the Trojans, he asks his brother Agamemnon to help him get her back. Agamemnon sees this as an opportunity for power. They set off with 1,000 ships holding 50,000 Greeks to Troy.
Troy
2004
5.3Sir James Bond is called back out of retirement to stop SMERSH. In order to trick SMERSH, James thinks up the ultimate plan - that every agent will be named 'James Bond'. One of the Bonds, whose real name is Evelyn Tremble is sent to take on Le Chiffre in a game of baccarat, but all the Bonds get more than they can handle.
Casino Royale
1967
8.0During World War I, English officer Thomas Edward 'T.E.' Lawrence sets out to unite and lead the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes to fight the Turks.
Lawrence of Arabia
1962
6.0After the death of the paranoid emperor Tiberius, Caligula, his heir, seizes power and plunges the empire into a bloody spiral of madness and depravity.
Caligula
1979
7.3In a countryside town bordering on a magical land, a young man makes a promise to his beloved that he'll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm. His journey takes him into a world beyond his wildest dreams and reveals his true identity.
Stardust
2007
7.6A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his exploitation by the invading Japanese, and finally to his obscure existence as just another peasant worker in the People's Republic.
The Last Emperor
1987
5.4After losing a powerful orb, Kara, Superman's cousin, comes to Earth to retrieve it and instead finds herself up against a wicked witch.
Supergirl
1984
7.3Covering only the first 22 chapters of the Book of Genesis, vignettes include: Adam and Eve frolicking in the Garden of Eden until their indulgence in the forbidden fruit sees them driven out; Cain murdering his brother Abel; Noah building an ark to preserve the animals of the world from the coming flood; and Abraham making a covenant with God.
The Bible: In the Beginning...
1966
5.6In the peaceful Colorado town of Snowfield, something evil has wiped out the community. And now, it's up to a group of people to stop it, or at least get out of Snowfield alive.
Phantoms
1998
6.8A German intelligence officer investigates a prostitute's killing in Warsaw during World War II. He lands on three major Nazi generals as suspects, two of whom are also involved in a plot to kill Adolf Hitler.
The Night of the Generals
1967
6.4A family in financial crisis is forced to sell Lassie, their beloved dog. Hundreds of miles away from her true family, Lassie escapes and sets out on a journey home.
Lassie
2005
6.5After several attempts to approach film star Cesar Valentin, writer Brian Smith takes matters into his own hands, shooting the actor in front of hundreds of fans, only to be killed himself in the ensuing chaos. Achieving instant notoriety, Smith transcends with Valentin to a luxury hotel in the afterlife, a strange new world beyond the veil of mortality inhabited exclusively by dead celebrities.
Wings of Fame
1990
7.5A woman must steal a statue from a Paris museum to help conceal her father's art forgeries.
How to Steal a Million
1966
7.4Christmas 1183, Angevin Empire: King Henry II plans to announce his successor to the throne. Jockeying for the crown, though, is complex. Henry has three sons and wants his boy Prince John to take over. Henry's wife, Queen Eleanor, believes their son Prince Richard should be king. As family and various schemers gather for the holiday, each tries to make the indecisive king choose their option.
The Lion in Winter
1968
5.4As the only relative in line to ascend the Royal throne, a down-on-his-luck American slob must learn the ways of the English.
King Ralph
1991
6.7In Biblical times, a girl disguises her Jewish origins when the Persian king comes looking for a new bride among his subjects.
One Night with the King
2006
6.6A fugitive stumbles onto a movie set just when they need a new stunt man, takes the job as a way to hide out and falls for the leading lady while facing off with his manipulative director.
The Stunt Man
1980
5.8When a hotelier attempts to fill the chronic vacancies at his castle by launching an advertising campaign that falsely portrays the property as haunted, two actual ghosts show up and end up falling for two guests.
High Spirits
1988
6.4When the Earl of Gurney dies in a cross-dressing accident, his schizophrenic son, Jack, inherits the Gurney estate. Jack is not the average nobleman; he sings and dances across the estate and thinks he is Jesus reincarnated. Believing that Jack is mentally unfit to own the estate, the Gurney family plots to steal Jack's inheritance. As their outrageous schemes fail, the family strives to cure Jack of his bizarre behavior, with disastrous results.
The Ruling Class
1972
6.8After being discredited as a coward, a 19th century seaman lives for only one purpose: to redeem himself. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment in 2000.
Lord Jim
1965
7.2Thomas Becket, Henry II's longtime advisor, finds his friendship with the debauched king corroding when he is unwillingly appointed as Archbishop of Canterbury in an attempt to gain absolute loyalty from the Church.
Becket
1964
6.3During the 1930s in England, a group of young socialites dominate the national gossip with extravagant and outlandish antics. Among the group is the aspiring novelist Adam Fenwick-Symes, who is attempting to raise enough money to marry fellow member Nina Blount. However, after customs officials confiscate his first manuscript, Fenwick-Symes must recover from the financial setback and figure out new ways to earn money for a wedding.
Bright Young Things
2003
6.8An Eskimo who has had little contact with white men goes to a trading post where he accidentally kills a missionary and finds himself being pursued by the police.
The Savage Innocents
1960
Behind the camera
6.6A group of close friends spend their time drinking and partying. When the American fiancé one of them shows up, the clique protects her by hiding her from him. He slowly becomes deeper involved with the wild bunch while the party rages on. This once controversial British movie was filmed in 1962 but not released until three years later.
The Party's Over
1965
7.0Legend has it that if the famous Barbary Apes leave the Rock of Gibraltar, it's a sign that the British will lose control of it. During World War II, a British officer is put in charge of the apes. When he detects that the animals' morale is slipping, he hatches a plan to go behind the German lines to "kidnap" a new ape for his charges to lift their spirits before the Germans find out about their condition and use it as propaganda.
Operation Snatch
1962
8.0Peter O'Toole stars as the complex, funny, charming, and hard-drinking Jeffrey Bernard in this live performance at the Old Vic Theatre in London.
Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell
1999
8.0Peter O'Toole stars as the complex, funny, charming, and hard-drinking Jeffrey Bernard in this live performance at the Old Vic Theatre in London.
Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell
1999