Peter O'Toole passed away today at age 81. I am sure that most people will be talking about his Academy Award nominated performance in
Lawrence of Arabia , his triumphs as Hamlet on the British stage before he was discovered, or his final Academy Award nomination for
Venus![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_v8cIBAoG4eEimrZGYMFCGIC9y75mrSo_SZPeVaamGDjQHwbbGFUc7g_MN0NfN_g4X7eb5IGk9j0qB7nbf49PmmbJ_-ymJ5sipgb-GTf29bfVu-daOsqxqSsuwQUxUEuWyaTKHc06oXMQL0z1srbLs=s0-d)
. However, those aren't the things that made me adore him as an actor and spending the rest of my life excited when I saw his name associated with a project. No, I discovered Peter O'Toole through one of my favorite movies,
High Spirits![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_uNK00o8smjdotwWU39-QqXT5b9A84kvxAAXlfLGWLRcmtw-eMnYfUR4cwhxao9QXWvJEvG6VF4xhuS971L7r7dXjSWwNnmgCnO6I2pZmNXvZVjYsnvglO6IccZkQ5YBxGOV2L0Li4CA6S8g7x33Wg=s0-d)
.
You know the moment I said the title of that movie you paused, remembered it fondly and smiled, or maybe even chuckled just a little bit. The story of the drunken family failure Peter Plunkett trying to save his ancestral castle by creating fake ghosts and high jinx in-sue when the actual ghosts decide to give him more than he bargained for. It's amazing, it's cheesy and it's fun. That was how I first discovered Peter O'Toole and that is always the character I will first think of whenever his name comes up and it is always a fond memory that makes me smile. I was 9 when that movie came out, so that will always be with me as part of my childhood.
You grow up and discover that he was also in
Caligula![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_sYHtJTiX0uxBfhiSFMrz1d1uPiRxQ1MbTVVz3Z8jrnuhkg4zXkGUwn_BQFx6XSK9Hku1bahvl7Hh-EAlyHPMBrlgYXfGVDrt3UiOMNkakqk7Vvk3qevmGTHgsJvqDCP-gXUFmZuPSZ84ktN-Hzt8g=s0-d)
with Malcolm McDowell who is one of my favorite actors. He was the Pope in the television show
The Tudors![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_ucy-yy7z7Rl2KwqXDk0GW5b3BVEHUt-6EzIFpG_7U-E9ME0wgGhOIH8HYRRs9dyOLsXB-aiZwY_XuEBh-aEFO3luz37s7gDkBf0tD7x9INr9v3EKHq2FFtSm64g9aGCe5bRiBIStMgUtL3jpK1O4Y=s0-d)
which was an amazing series, but I have to say that I loved him as the voice of Anton Ego in
Ratatouille![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vLi5zwftu5QMciwXcomAI8DTsoBqMqBfmzYUTvGWZNcuVi25GZ1H1VkWjJSEM2MJXBAX1nGev22Q3ZVF11uJCsycxO2mBZNdXSuaetZ1zRPum3b406-knfiHtw-_fq4dSp3QJx8OYqp3LZ-IO93kE=s0-d)
. The hardened food critic whose heart was soften by a cooking rat and a boy who finds his confidence. I bring up these particular roles to show the insane amount of versatility that he had as an actor. If you look at his
IMDB page there is never really a gap in his resume, he was constantly working and bringing his art and flair to all of his projects. I am saddened by this loss, but I am grateful for the years of entertainment and joy that he brought into my life as an artist.
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