Graham Stark

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Graham William Stark (born January 20, 1922 in Wallasey , England , † October 29, 2013 in London ) was a British comedian , actor , writer and director .

Live and act

Stark was born the youngest of three sons of a ship purser . On the initiative of his mother, he came into contact with show business at an early age. He attended elementary school in Wallasey, where he appeared in plays. The director of the Liverpool Playhouse, William Armstrong, noticed him and gave him a brief appearance as Macduff's young son in Macbeth . Stark began to take dance lessons. He made his debut at the age of 13 as a pantomime in Ali Baba and the 40 Robbers at the Lyceum Theater . Soon after, he moved to London with his mother. In 1939 he first appeared in a film - as a page in the war thriller The Spy in Black - without appearing in the credits. He later studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art .

During World War II, Stark volunteered for the Royal Air Force . Since he was color blind, he did not take part in the operations, but instead entertained the troops in Africa, Myanmar , Italy and Germany as a member of the Ralph Readers Gang Shows . During a performance in Abingdon he met Tony Hancock and soon after Peter Sellers know. After the war, Stark was part of the Midland Theater Company in Kidderminster for four years . In 1951 he appeared at the Edinburgh Festival in The Citizen as a nobleman .

In the 1950s, Stark began his career as a speaker on various radio comedy shows on the BBC . Here he made his debut in Educating Archie . He has appeared regularly on the Goon Show , Happy Holiday and Ray's a Laugh . He also appeared on various television comedy shows, such as The Idiot Weekly , A Show Called Fred and Benny Hill , until he got his own sketch show on the BBC in 1964 . The Graham Stark Show was not a success despite the participation of the author Johnny Speight .

Stark was close friends with Peter Sellers, including being the best man at his four weddings. He played most of his larger film roles alongside Sellers. He appeared several times in the film series The Pink Panther , beginning in 1964 with A Shot in the Dark . While Sellers played Inspector Clouseau , Stark acted his assistant Hercule Lajoy in two episodes and Dr. Auguste Balls and once an unnamed hotel employee. The Pink Panther appearances were among Stark's best known.

In total, Stark appeared in more than 100 films, albeit mostly in smaller roles. Among other things, he was seen as a cashier in Casino Royale , as a bus driver Humphrey in The seducer can be seen beautiful and as a waiter in Victor / Victoria . He last stood in front of the camera in 1998 as the old king in the adventure film The Incredible Adventures of Marco Polo . Stark also directed two films, the 1970 short Simon Simon and the following year the comedy The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins .

Stark often photographed film colleagues and friends. His photographs have been exhibited internationally. In 2003 he published the autobiography Stark Naked .

Stark died in London at the age of 91 after having had a stroke shortly before. He left behind his wife, actress Audrey Nicholson , with whom he had been married since 1959, a daughter and two sons.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Coveney: Graham Stark obituary. In: The Guardian , October 31, 2013, accessed November 13, 2013.
  2. ↑ Graham Stark In: The Telegraph , October 31, 2013, accessed November 13, 2013.
  3. ↑ Graham Stark, Pink Panther actor, dies aged 91 bbc.co.uk, accessed November 13, 2013.
personal data
SURNAME Strong, Graham
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Stark, Graham William (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British comedian, actor, writer and director
DATE OF BIRTH January 20, 1922
PLACE OF BIRTH Wallasey , England
DATE OF DEATH October 29, 2013
Place of death London