Personal Info
Birth date
1925-09-08 (99 Years)
Day of death
1980-07-24
Gender
Male
Known for
Acting
Place of birth
Southsea, Hampshire, England, UK
Also known as
A. Queen
彼得·塞勒斯
پیتر سلرز
Richard Henry Sellers
Peter Sellers
Biography
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE, known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, for playing three different characters in Dr. Strangelove, as Clare Quilty in Lolita, and as the man-child and TV-addicted Chance the gardener in his penultimate film, Being There. Leading actress Bette Davis once remarked of him, "He isn't an actor—he's a chameleon." Sellers rose to fame on the BBC Radio comedy series The Goon Show. His ability to speak in different accents (e.g., French, Indian, American, German, as well as British regional accents), along with his talent to portray a range of characters to comic effect, contributed to his success as a radio personality and screen actor and earned him national and international nominations and awards. Many of his characters became ingrained in public perception of his work. Sellers' private life was characterized by turmoil and crises, and included emotional problems and substance abuse. Sellers was married four times, and had three children from the first two marriages. An enigmatic figure, he often claimed to have no identity outside the roles that he played, but he left his own portrait since, "he obsessively filmed his homes, his family, people he knew, anything that took his fancy right to the end of his life—intimate film that remained undiscovered until long after his death in 1980." The director Peter Hall has said: "Peter had the ability to identify completely with another person, and think his way physically, mentally and emotionally into their skin. Where does that come from? I have no idea. Is it a curse? Often. I think it's not enough though in this business to have talent. You have to have talent to handle the talent. And that I think Peter did not have."
Filmography
It Takes a Thief
7
Overview:
Convicted cat burglar Alexander Mundy gets an offer he can't refuse from the United States government: If he puts his formidable thieving skills to work for them, he'll be released from prison. Alexander's dad, Alister, sometimes comes out of retirement as a thief to help his son on special jobs.The Mike Douglas Show
5.375
Overview:
The Mike Douglas Show is an American daytime television talk show hosted by Mike Douglas that originally aired only in the Cleveland area during much of its first two years on the air. It then went into syndication in 1963 and remained on television until 1982. It was distributed by Westinghouse Broadcasting and for much of its run, originated from studios of two of the company's TV stations in Cleveland and Philadelphia.Sykes
6.4
Overview:
Classic sitcom starring Eric Sykes and Hattie Jacques as brother and sister twins who have to tackle the trials and tribulations of suburban life.The Beatles: Get Back
8.4
Overview:
The three-part documentary series, compiled from over 60 hours of unseen footage, captures the warmth, camaraderie, and creative genius that defined the legacy of music's most iconic foursome. The series also includes – for the first time in its entirety – The Beatles' final performance at London's Savile Row.The Telegoons
4.5
Overview:
The Telegoons is a comedy puppet show, adapted from the highly successful BBC radio comedy show of the 1950s.Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
6.5
Overview:
An American sketch comedy television program hosted by comedians Dan Rowan and Dick Martin.The Muppet Show
8.04
Overview:
Go behind the curtains as Kermit the Frog and his muppet friends struggle to put on a weekly variety show.The Dean Martin Show
7.316
Overview:
The Dean Martin Show, also known as The Dean Martin Variety Show, is a TV variety-comedy series that ran from 1965 to 1974 for 264 episodes. It was broadcast by NBC and hosted by entertainer Dean Martin. The theme song to the series was his 1964 hit "Everybody Loves Somebody."Casino Royale
5.243
Overview:
Sir 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.Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
8.1
Overview:
After the insane General Jack D. Ripper initiates a nuclear strike on the Soviet Union, a war room full of politicians, generals and a Russian diplomat all frantically try to stop it.ABC Stage 67
6.2
Overview:
ABC Stage 67 is the umbrella title for a series of 26 weekly shows that included dramas, variety shows, documentaries, and original musicals. It premiered on American Broadcasting Company on September 14, 1966 with Murray Schisgal's The Love Song of Barney Kempinksi, directed by Stanley Prager and starring Alan Arkin as a man enjoying the sights and sounds of New York City in his last remaining hours of bachelorhood. Arkin was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance By An Actor in a Leading Role in a Drama and the program was nominated as Outstanding Dramatic Program. Future programs included appearances by Petula Clark, Bobby Darin, Sir Laurence Olivier, Albert Finney, Peter Sellers, David Frost, and Jack Paar. ABC's effort to bring culture to the masses was a noble but unsuccessful experiment. Scheduled first against I Spy on Wednesdays and then The Dean Martin Show on Thursdays, the show consistently received low ratings. Its last production, an adaptation of Jean Cocteau's one-woman play The Human Voice starring Ingrid Bergman, aired on May 4, 1967. "Stage 67" was not actually a part of the primary ABC facilities in Los Angeles. It was produced at the old Monogram Studios backlot that was later sold to KCET.The Pink Panther
6.844
Overview:
The trademark of The Phantom, a renowned jewel thief, is a glove left at the scene of the crime. Inspector Clouseau, an expert on The Phantom's exploits, feels sure that he knows where The Phantom will strike next and leaves Paris for the Tyrolean Alps, where the famous Lugashi jewel 'The Pink Panther' is going to be. However, he does not know who The Phantom really is, or for that matter who anyone else really is...Lolita
7.3
Overview:
Humbert Humbert is a middle-aged British novelist who is both appalled by and attracted to the vulgarity of American culture. When he comes to stay at the boarding house run by Charlotte Haze, he soon becomes obsessed with Lolita, the woman's teenaged daughter.A Shot in the Dark
7.2
Overview:
Inspector Jacques Clouseau, smitten with the accused maid Maria Gambrelli, unwittingly turns a straightforward murder investigation into a comedic series of mishaps, testing the patience of his irritable boss Charles Dreyfus as casualties mount.Murder by Death
7.2
Overview:
Lionel Twain invites the world's five greatest detectives to a 'dinner and murder'. Included are a blind butler, a deaf-mute maid, screams, spinning rooms, secret passages, false identities and more plot turns and twists than are decently allowed.Revenge of the Pink Panther
6.4
Overview:
Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau is dead. At least that is what the world—and Charles Dreyfus—believe when a dead body is discovered in Clouseau's car after being shot off the road. Naturally, Clouseau knows differently and, taking advantage of not being alive, sets out to discover why an attempt was made on his life.The Return of the Pink Panther
6.8
Overview:
The famous Pink Panther jewel has once again been stolen and Inspector Clouseau is called in to catch the thief. The Inspector is convinced that 'The Phantom' has returned and utilises all of his resources – himself and his Asian manservant – to reveal the identity of 'The Phantom'.The Pink Panther Strikes Again
6.9
Overview:
Charles Dreyfus, who has finally cracked over inspector Clouseau's antics, escapes from a mental institution and launches an elaborate plan to get rid of Clouseau once and for all.The Magic Christian
5.733
Overview:
Sir Guy Grand, the richest man in the world, adopts a homeless man, Youngman. Together, they set out to prove that anyone--and anything--can be bought.The Smallest Show on Earth
6.625
Overview:
Jean and Bill are a married couple trying to scrape a living. Out of the blue they receive a telegram informing them Bill's long-lost uncle has died and left them his business—a cinema in the town of Sloughborough. Unfortunately they can't sell it for the fortune they hoped as they discover it is falling down and almost worthless.Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
6.2
Overview:
An all-star cast highlights this vibrant musical adaptation of Lewis Carroll's immortal tale. One day, plucky young Alice follows a white rabbit down a hole and discovers a world of bizarre characters.The Wrong Arm of the Law
6.5
Overview:
The crooks in London know how it works. No one carries guns and no one resists the police. Then a new gang appears that go one better. They dress as police and steal from the crooks. This upsets the natural order of the police/criminal relationship and the police and the crooks join forces to catch the IPOs (Impersonating Police Officers), including an armoured car robbery in which the police must help the gangs to set a trap.The Ladykillers
7.3
Overview:
Five oddball criminals planning a bank robbery rent rooms on a cul-de-sac from an octogenarian widow under the pretext that they are classical musicians.Being There
7.613
Overview:
A simple-minded gardener named Chance has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television.The Party
7.281
Overview:
Hrundi V. Bakshi, an accident-prone actor from India, is accidentally put on the guest list for an upcoming party at the home of a Hollywood film producer. Unfortunately, from the moment he arrives, one thing after another goes wrong with compounding effect.Koyaanisqatsi
7.874
Overview:
Takes us to locations all around the US and shows us the heavy toll that modern technology is having on humans and the earth. The visual tone poem contains neither dialogue nor a vocalized narration: its tone is set by the juxtaposition of images and the exceptional music by Philip Glass.Acting
2025Love Left the Masquerade: Peter Medak's Cinema of Pretenders as Archive
2025Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2023Peter Sellers: Genius at Work as Self (archive footage)
2021The Beatles: Get Back (1 Episode) as Self
2021Directed By Blake Edwards as Self
2020Peter Sellers: A State of Comic Ecstasy as Self (Archival Footage)
2018The Ghost of Peter Sellers as Himself (Archive)
2014Spike Milligan: Love, Light and Peace as Himself (archive footage)
2013The 9th Wonder of the World: The Making of 'Gorgo' as The Villain Antony (archive footage)
2007Hitler: The Comedy Years as Dr. Strangelove / Fred Kite (archive footage) (uncredited)
2005The Beatles: Get Back...Winter of Discontent as Self (archive footage)
2004Best Sellers or: Peter Sellers and 'Dr. Strangelove' as Self (archive footage)
2003The Peter Sellers Story - As He Filmed It as Himself
2001The Paranormal Peter Sellers as Self (Archive footage)
1996Spike as Himself
1995The Peter Sellers Story as Himself
1992Funny Business (6 Episodes) as (archive footage)
1992Sellers' Best as Self (archive footage)
1990The Very Best of Peter Sellers as Unknown
1985Muppet Video: Rowlf's Rhapsodies with the Muppets as Self
1985Muppet Treasures as Self
1983Koyaanisqatsi as Self - On TV (archive footage) (uncredited)
1982Trail of the Pink Panther as Chief Insp. Jacques Clouseau (archive footage)
1981Eric Sykes: One of the Great Troupers as Self (archive material)
1980The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu as Fu Manchu / Nayland Smith
1979Being There as Chance
1979The Prisoner of Zenda as Rudolf IV/Rudolf V/Sidney Frewin
1978Mickey's 50 as Self
1978Rire et sourire : Le Splendid (1 Episode) as Extrait du film « La Malédiction de la Panthère rose », 1978
1978Revenge of the Pink Panther as Chief Inspector Clouseau
1978Kingdom Of Gifts as The Slightly Larcenous Mayor
1977To See Such Fun as Unknown
1976The Pink Panther Strikes Again as Chief Inspector Clouseau
1976The Muppet Show (1 Episode) as Self - Special Guest Star
1976Murder by Death as Sidney Wang
1975The Return of the Pink Panther as Inspector Clouseau
1975Julie: My Favourite Things as Various
1975A Salute to Sir Lew Grade as Self
1975The Great McGonagall as Queen Victoria
1974Flip Wilson... Of Course as Self
1974Soft Beds, Hard Battles as Général Latour / Major Robinson / Herr Schroeder / Adolf Hitler / The President / Prince Kyoto
1973The Optimists of Nine Elms as Sam
1973The Big Screen as Self
1973The Blockhouse as Rouquet
1973Ghost in the Noonday Sun as Dick Scratcher
1972Alice's Adventures in Wonderland as The March Hare
1972Sykes (2 Episodes) as Tommy Grando
1972Where Does It Hurt? as Dr. Albert T. Hopfnegal
1972The Last Goon Show of All as Self
1971V.I.P. Schaukel (1 Episode) as Self
1970Wilton's: The Handsomest Hall in Town as G.W. Ross
1970There's a Girl in My Soup as Robert Danvers
1970Hoffman as Mr. Hoffman
1970Simon Simon as Man with Two Cars
1970A Day at the Beach as Salesman
1969Will the Real Mr Sellers.....? as Unknown
1969The Magic Christian as Sir Guy Grand KG, KC, CBE
1969One Pair of Eyes - No, But Seriously as Unknown
1969This Is Tom Jones (1 Episode) as Self
1968I Love You, Alice B. Toklas! as Harold
1968The Party as Hrundi V. Bakshi
1968Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (3 Episodes) as Self
1968It Takes a Thief (1 Episode) as Man in Harbor Records Office
1967Woman Times Seven as Jean
1967Casino Royale as Evelyn Tremble
1967The Bobo as Juan Bautista
1966Alice in Wonderland as King of Hearts
1966El Rey en Londres as Unknown
1966ABC Stage 67 (1 Episode) as Self
1966After the Fox as Aldo Vanucci / Federico Fabrizi
1966The Wrong Box as Doctor Pratt
1965Birds, Bees and Storks as Narrator (voice)
1965The Music of Lennon & McCartney as Unknown
1965The Dean Martin Show (1 Episode) as Unknown
1965What's New Pussycat? as Dr. Fritz Fassbender
1964Carol for Another Christmas as Imperial Me
1964I Say I Say I Say as Unknown
1964A Shot in the Dark as Jacques Clouseau
1964The World of Henry Orient as Henry Orient
1964Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb as Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake / President Merkin Muffley / Dr. Strangelove
1963The Pink Panther as Insp. Jacques Clouseau
1963The Telegoons (26 Episodes) as Unknown
1963Heavens Above! as The Rev. John Smallwood
1963The Wrong Arm of the Law as Pearly Gates
1962Trial and Error as Wilfred Morgenhall
1962Lolita as Clare Quilty
1962Waltz of the Toreadors as Gen. Leo Fitzjohn
1962The Road to Hong Kong as Indian Neurologist (uncredited)
1962Only Two Can Play as John Lewis
1961The Mike Douglas Show (1 Episode) as Self (archive footage)
1961Mr. Topaze as Auguste Topaze
1960Two-Way Stretch as Dodger Lane
1960The Millionairess as Dr. Kabir
1960Never Let Go as Lionel Meadows
1960The Battle of the Sexes as Mr. Martin
1959The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film as Unknown
1959I'm All Right Jack as Fred Kite
1959The Mouse That Roared as Grand Duchess Gloriana XII / Prime Minister Count Rupert Mountjoy / Tully Bascombe
1959Carlton-Browne of the F.O. as Prime Minister Amphibulos
1958Tom Thumb as Antony
1958Up the Creek as CPO Doherty
1957Insomnia is Good for You as Unknown
1957The Naked Truth as Sonny MacGregor
1957The Smallest Show on Earth as Percy Quill
1957Yes, It's The Cathode-Ray Tube Show! (6 Episodes) as Unknown
1957Dearth of a Salesman as Hector Dimwittie
1956Son of Fred (8 Episodes) as Unknown
1956A Show Called Fred (5 Episodes) as Unknown
1956The Man Who Never Was as Winston Churchill (voice)
1956The Idiot Weekly, Price 2d (2 Episodes) as Unknown
1956The Case of the Mukkinese Battle-Horn as Assorted
1955The Ladykillers as Harry, alias 'Mr. Robinson'
1955John and Julie as Police Constable Diamond
1954Orders Are Orders as Pvt. Goffin
1954And So To Bentley (6 Episodes) as Unknown
1953Our Girl Friday as Voice of Parrot
1953Beat the Devil as Billy Dannreuther (voice) (uncredited)
1953The Super Secret Service as Sir Walter Smood / Reuben J. Crouch
1952Down Among the Z Men as Major Bloodnok
1951Let's Go Crazy as Multiple Roles
1951Penny Points to Paradise as The Major / Arnold Fringe
1951The Slappiest Days of Our Lives as (archive footage)
1951A Burlesque on the Opera Carmen as Voice narrator
1950The Black Rose as Lu Chung (voice)
Crew
1969The Magic Christian ... Additional Writing
1964The Caretaker ... Thanks
1956The Case of the Mukkinese Battle-Horn ... Additional Writing
Directing
1964I Say I Say I Say ... Director
1961Mr. Topaze ... Director
1959The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film ... Director
Editing
1959The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film ... Editor
Production
1959The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film ... Producer