'Peter O'Toole' captures what was unique about the enduring star
Peter O鈥橳oole might not have been as charming as Cary Grant, as convincing at projecting nobility as Jimmy Stewart, or as proficient on horseback as John Wayne, but he shared with those screen legends an even more important quality: star power.
To be sure, O鈥橳oole鈥檚 acting abilities did not exactly go unnoticed: After all, O鈥橳oole 鈥� born in 1932 in Leeds, England 鈥� was singled out for eight Oscar nominations for Best Actor between 1963 and 2007 (in addition to receiving an Honorary Oscar in 2003).
Yet it was arguably O鈥橳oole鈥檚 persona 鈥� more than his chops as an actor per se 鈥� which left the biggest impression on audiences. Whether cast in roles swashbuckling (as the globe-trotting hero in 1962鈥檚 鈥淟awrence of Arabia鈥�) or studious (as the courtly teacher to Chinese Emperor Pu Yi in 1987鈥檚 鈥淭he Last Emperor鈥�), O鈥橳oole frequently came across as variants of the same man: svelte, dashing, somewhat impetuous.
The point is nicely expressed in a passage in Peter O鈥橳oole: The Definitive Biography, an accurately 鈥� if self-aggrandizingly 鈥� titled book by Robert Sellers. Discussing the rationale behind casting the actor in 鈥淭he Last Emperor,鈥� producer Jeremy Thomas itemizes the salient aspects of O鈥橳oole鈥檚 fa莽ade: 鈥淗e was the symbol of Western style, in a top hat and tails, and very statuesque with a great clarity of speech.鈥�
Sellers himself is keenly aware of the ways in which O鈥橳oole鈥檚 鈥渢heatrical performance style鈥� set him apart from the rough-hewn, realistic approaches favored by such actors as Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, and Al Pacino 鈥� all of whom came into their own in the decade after O鈥橳oole鈥檚 initial triumphs in the 1960s (when he starred in 鈥淟awrence of Arabia鈥� and 鈥淭he Lion in Winter鈥� [1968]).
鈥淥鈥橳oole never had much truck with 鈥榞ibberish spouting鈥� Method actors,鈥� Sellers writes. 鈥淗e knew nothing of the Stanislavski school, nor did he wish to know anything about it, that kind of introspective style of acting he felt did not fit in with what he believed to be the actor鈥檚 main job 鈥� the telling of a story.鈥�
Perhaps the source of O鈥橳oole鈥檚 emphasis on the externals of acting can be found in his youth, which is deftly sketched by Sellers. Most notable is the mark left on the actor by his father, Patrick, a flamboyant bookmaker from Ireland. 鈥淥ne can almost trace O鈥橳oole鈥檚 love of performing and theatricality from those days watching his bookmaker dad, dressed all dandy on a stool shouting the odds,鈥� Sellers writes. 鈥淭he stool was his stage, the racetrack his theatre, the punters his audience.鈥� And while O鈥橳oole nursed unhappy memories of the Roman Catholic Church in which he was raised and schooled, his stint as an altar boy seemed to provide further encouragement for his subsequent career. 鈥淚 loved every second of it,鈥� O鈥橳oole is quoted as saying of Catholic liturgy. 鈥淭he mass was my first performance, it鈥檚 as simple as that.鈥�
Sellers thoroughly documents O鈥橳oole鈥檚 peak professional years 鈥� those that saw the release of 鈥淟awrence of Arabia鈥� and 鈥淭he Lion in Winter鈥� and others 鈥� but the author underestimates several major films made after O鈥橳oole鈥檚 marketability began to diminish. O鈥橳oole won his fifth Oscar nomination for his virtuosic performance in the deliciously acrid satire 鈥淭he Ruling Class鈥� (1972), but Sellers is too milquetoast in his assessment when he writes that it has achieved status as a a mere 鈥渕inor classic.鈥� Similarly, a producer of the bewitching comedy of early television 鈥淢y Favorite Year鈥� (1982) 鈥� which led to O鈥橳oole鈥檚 seventh Oscar nomination 鈥� damns his own film with faint praise when he describes it as a 鈥渟emi-classic.鈥� Both films deserve to be regarded as full-fledged classics.
Of course, many of the films O鈥橳oole made in the late 1980s and 1990s were beneath his station. Happily, however, Sellers recognizes that O鈥橳oole brought authority to even the silliest projects.聽 鈥淗is name and presence could still add gravitas to any production,鈥� Sellers writes, and a fine case study is made of the two-bit science-fiction film 鈥淧hantoms鈥� (1998): O鈥橳oole is described as being genuinely respectful of the screenplay by Dean Koontz and acing a long monologue shot during a snowfall. And although 鈥淪upergirl鈥� (1984) is blithely dismissed in a single line, the actor鈥檚 function in that film is roughly equivalent to that of Marlon Brando in 鈥淪uperman鈥� (1978) 鈥� he is there to supply a certain stateliness to a pop-culture product, and he does so with panache.
Near the end of the book, a blow-by-blow account of the making of O鈥橳oole鈥檚 last film of note, 鈥淰enus鈥� (2006), is offered. Relying on diary jottings by director Roger Michell, Sellers describes how O鈥橳oole was wooed into signing onto the film; how his eccentric behavior and infirm condition nearly derailed it; and how the strength of his work brought about his eighth Oscar nomination, just six years before his death at age 81. 鈥淰enus鈥� was a high note for O鈥橳oole to end on 鈥� and the story of its making is the perfect note with which to conclude this fine biography of an actor whose star power never dimmed.
Freelance journalist Peter Tonguette writes a classical music column for The Columbus Dispatch. He has also written for The Wall Street Journal, The Weekly Standard, and National Review.
