Peter O'Toole

**Peter Seamus O'Toole** (2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) was a British stage and movie actor. He was known for his stage plays that were mostly based on those written by William Shakespeare.

O'Toole was born on 2 August 1932 in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England.

O'Toole's career lasted almost 60 years. He became famous for his role as T. E. Lawrence in _Lawrence of Arabia_ (1962). He received his first Academy Award nomination for that role. He received seven more Academy Award nominations – for _Becket_ (1964), _The Lion in Winter_ (1968), _Goodbye, Mr. Chips_ (1969), _The Ruling Class_ (1972), _The Stunt Man_ (1980), _My Favorite Year_ (1982), and _Venus_ (2006). O'Toole holds the record for the most Academy Award nominations by an actor without a win.

O'Toole won four Golden Globes, a BAFTA Award, and an Emmy Award. He also received an honorary Academy Award in 2003.

O'Toole died on 14 December 2013 in London, England from stomach cancer. He was 81 years old.

## Early life

O'Toole was born on 2 August 1932 in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. His mother was Constance Jane Eliot (née Ferguson), a Scottish nurse. His father was Patrick Joseph O'Toole, an Irish footballer. O'Toole studied to become an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from 1952 until 1954.

## Career

O'Toole's career began in 1954 on stage. His movie career began in 1960 in the movie _Kidnapped_ as Robin MacGregor. His became famous when he played T. E. Lawrence in _Lawrence of Arabia_. He became one of the most famous actors during the 1960s and 1970s. In 1972 O'Toole played both Miguel de Cervantes and Don Quixote in _Man of La Mancha_.

In 1980, he received good reviews for playing the director in the behind-the-scenes movie _The Stunt Man_. He received mixed reviews as John Tanner in _Man and Superman_ and as Henry Higgins in _Pygmalion_. He won a Laurence Olivier Award for his performance in _Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell_ (1989).

O'Toole played King Priam in the 2004 movie _Troy_. His last worldwide movie role was as food critic Anton Ego in the 2007 Disney-Pixar movie _Ratatouille_. On 10 July 2012 O'Toole released a statement that he would be retiring.

## Awards

He was offered a knighthood but rejected it in objection to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's policies.

O'Toole was nominated for eight Academy Awards. He holds the record of having the most nominations for an Academy Award without winning. He won four Golden Globes, a BAFTA Award, and an Emmy Award. In 2003 O'Toole received an honorary Academy Award.

## Personal life

O'Toole was married to Siân Phillips from 1959 until they divorced in 1979. O'Toole had three children; two daughters with Phillips (Kate and Patricia) and a son by his girlfriend Karen Brown (Lorcan Patrick O'Toole). O'Toole lived in London, England. He was lifelong friends with Irish actor Richard Harris until Harris' death in 2002.

## Illness and death

O'Toole recovered from stomach cancer in the 1970s. He also had stomach cancer for the last eighteen months of his life. He died of the disease in the Wellington Hospital in London, aged 81. President of Ireland Michael D. Higgins lead a tribute to O'Toole. Higgins called O'Toole "a friend".

### Funeral

O'Toole's funeral was held on 20 December 2013 at his London home. Rock star Sting and ex-wife Siân attended his funeral. His remains were later cremated. O'Toole's remains ware being planned to be taken back to his birthplace of Connemara, Ireland. His daughter Kate said, "We're bringing him home. It's what he would have wanted." At the mean time, O'Toole's ashes are kept in a safe in the Irish presidential mansion.

## Other websites

- "Peter O'Toole as Casanova"
- Richard Harris, Peter O'Toole & Munster Rugby
- University of Bristol Theatre Collection, University of Bristol
- The Making of _Lawrence of Arabia_ , Digitised

## Infobox (person)

- **image**: Peter O'Toole -- LOA trailer.jpg
- **image upright**: .9
- **caption**: O'Toole as T. E. Lawrence in _Lawrence of Arabia (movie), Lawrence of Arabia_ (1962)
- **birth name**: Peter Seamus O'Toole
- **birth place**: Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
- **death place**: St. John's Wood, London, England
- **death cause**: Stomach cancer
- **years active**: 1954–2012
- **children**: 3