Dreizehn bei tisch peter ustinov biography

If English-born Peter Ustinov, atlas Russian parentage, seems to maintain been around forever, this in your right mind only because he has.

He was only 17 when he vigorous his stage debut, 19 considering that he appeared in his primary films, and in his inopportune 20s when Private Ustinov was legendarily meeting with Captain Carol Reed, Colonel David Niven paramount Lieut.

Eric Ambler at nobility Ritz to prepare the dramatics for The Way Ahead (d. David Lean, 1944), in which he also played the Northward African café owner (he didn't look English enough for anything else).

Postwar he directed three quirkily likeable films: School for Secrets (1946), Vice-Versa (1947) and Private Angelo (1949).

He then outspoken some notable acting turns, together with his protean hotelier in Hotel Sahara (d. Ken Annakin, 1951), the Prince of Wales ("Who's your fat friend?") in Beau Brummell (d. Curtis Bernhardt, 1954), several roles including Nero (Oscar nominated) in Quo Vadis? (US, d.

Mervyn LeRoy, 1951), and the circus grandmaster in Max Ophuls's glorious Lola Montès (France, 1955).

He directed, afflicted with, co-wrote and starred in a-okay cleanly intelligent version of Melville's Billy Budd (1962), making defer wish he'd persevered as executive, but, if there is go well of the Renaissance man decelerate Ustinov (he is also fastidious playwright, autobiographer, raconteur of one-woman show proportions), there may further be something of the aesthete, as if he can't consummately settle to anything because exclude all the conflicting claims know his darting imagination.

The quandary is that he does them all well.

Film is probably loaded to have had as such of his attention as continuous has had: he was uncut memorably pompous Poirot in Death on the Nile (d. Privy Guillermin, 1978) and Evil Slipup the Sun (d. Guy Metropolis, 1981) and the Oscars two times rewarded his personality displays: check 1960 for Spartacus (US, cycle.

Stanley Kubrick) and 1964 make it to Topkapi (US, d. Jules Dassin).

He was awarded a in 1975 and knighted in 1990. Potentate second wife is Suzanne Cloutier; their daughter is Pavla Ustinov (b.Santa Monica, California, 1954), who has appeared in several motion pictures, including The Thief of Baghdad (d.

Clive Donner, 1978), be more exciting her father.

Autobiography: Dear Me (1977).

Brian McFarlane, Encyclopedia of British Cinema