Peter Wilton Cushing was born on May 26, 1913 in Kenley, Surrey, England, t… Read Full Bio ↴Peter Wilton Cushing was born on May 26, 1913 in Kenley, Surrey, England, to Nellie Maria (King) and George Edward Cushing, a quantity surveyor. He and his older brother David were raised first in Dulwich Village, a south London suburb, and then later back in Surrey. At an early age, Cushing was attracted to acting, inspired by his favorite aunt, who was a stage actress. While at school, Cushing pursued his acting interest in acting and also drawing, a talent he put to good use later in his first job as a government surveyor's assistant in Surrey. At this time, he also dabbled in local amateur theater until moving to London to attend the Guildhall School of Music and Drama on scholarship. He then performed in repertory theater, deciding in 1939 to head for Hollywood, where he made his film debut in The Man in the Iron Mask (1939). Other Hollywood films included A Chump at Oxford (1940) with Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, Vigil in the Night (1940) and They Dare Not Love (1941). However, after a short stay, he returned to England by way of New York (making brief appearances on Broadway) and Canada. Back in his homeland, he contributed to the war effort during World War II by joining the Entertainment National Services Association.
After the war, he performed in the West End and had his big break appearing with Laurence Olivier in Hamlet (1948), in which Cushing's future partner-in-horror Christopher Lee had a bit part. Both actors also appeared in Moulin Rouge (1952) but did not meet until their later horror films. During the 1950s, Cushing became a familiar face on British television, appearing in numerous teleplays, such as 1984 (1954) and Beau Brummell (1954), until the end of the decade when he began his legendary association with Hammer Film Productions in its remakes of the 1930s Universal horror classics. His first Hammer roles included Dr. Frankenstein in The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Dr. Van Helsing in Horror of Dracula (1958), and Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959).
Cushing continued playing the roles of Drs. Frankenstein and Van Helsing, as well as taking on other horror characters, in Hammer films over the next 20 years. He also appeared in films for the other major horror producer of the time, Amicus Productions, including Dr. Terror's House of Horrors (1965) and its later horror anthologies, a couple of Dr. Who films (1965, 1966), I, Monster (1971), and others. By the mid-1970s, these companies had stopped production, but Cushing, firmly established as a horror star, continued in the genre for some time thereafter.
Perhaps his best-known appearance outside of horror films was as Grand Moff Tarkin in George Lucas' phenomenally successful science fiction film Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977). Biggles: Adventures in Time (1986) was Cushing's last film before his retirement, during which he made a few television appearances, wrote two autobiographies and pursued his hobbies of bird watching and painting. In 1989, he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in recognition of his contributions to the acting profession in Britain and worldwide. Peter Cushing died at age 81 of prostate cancer on August 11, 1994.
After the war, he performed in the West End and had his big break appearing with Laurence Olivier in Hamlet (1948), in which Cushing's future partner-in-horror Christopher Lee had a bit part. Both actors also appeared in Moulin Rouge (1952) but did not meet until their later horror films. During the 1950s, Cushing became a familiar face on British television, appearing in numerous teleplays, such as 1984 (1954) and Beau Brummell (1954), until the end of the decade when he began his legendary association with Hammer Film Productions in its remakes of the 1930s Universal horror classics. His first Hammer roles included Dr. Frankenstein in The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Dr. Van Helsing in Horror of Dracula (1958), and Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959).
Cushing continued playing the roles of Drs. Frankenstein and Van Helsing, as well as taking on other horror characters, in Hammer films over the next 20 years. He also appeared in films for the other major horror producer of the time, Amicus Productions, including Dr. Terror's House of Horrors (1965) and its later horror anthologies, a couple of Dr. Who films (1965, 1966), I, Monster (1971), and others. By the mid-1970s, these companies had stopped production, but Cushing, firmly established as a horror star, continued in the genre for some time thereafter.
Perhaps his best-known appearance outside of horror films was as Grand Moff Tarkin in George Lucas' phenomenally successful science fiction film Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977). Biggles: Adventures in Time (1986) was Cushing's last film before his retirement, during which he made a few television appearances, wrote two autobiographies and pursued his hobbies of bird watching and painting. In 1989, he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in recognition of his contributions to the acting profession in Britain and worldwide. Peter Cushing died at age 81 of prostate cancer on August 11, 1994.
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The Adventure Of The Six Napoleons
Peter Cushing Lyrics
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The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
Drew Schaefer
😎✌️
I think Rathbone could have been the GOAT Holmes, if the scripts he followed weren't so God-awful, and overly dramatic, with excessive buffoonery written for both Watson and Lestrade.
Maybe, emerging out of the Chaplin era of melodramatic excesses, it was felt that buffoonery was needed for the audience.
Brett hit the high notes until his health or habits, in living this high-strung role so long, took him down during the last two seasons. His purest "Holmes moment" (imo) was in the episode "The Red-headed League" ~ early, when he leaps over the sofa, in frenetic desire to bring Watson into the case, of "Mr Jabez Wilson" ("Jayyy-bez") 😎🎃✌️
Cushing does very well, but his vocals seem nervous as he speaks: of any quality, my own Holmes would not sound so high-strung.
I don't think there can be "the perfect Holmes" because the Holmes in each of our heads "is perfect"...
✌️🎃✌️✌️🎃✌️
Gert Madsen
Ever since I was a small child, Jeremy Bret was a hero of mine and will allways be Sherlock Holmes to me.
But this is also amazing.
Peter Chrusing is owning it as Sherlock.
If Brett wins Gold as the great detective, 🥇
Peter takes the silver.🥈
Benedict can have the Bronze 🥉
Basil Mouse have to settle for the fourth place. 🧀
CrazyRunt298
Thank you for this I love Peter Cushing he’s one of my all time favorite actors! I also love his portrayal as Sherlock Holmes! ❤️
Rentaghost76
Peter Cushing was a lovely man. Always polite and had time for anyone. He loved his wife so much that after she died in 1971 he carried her photograph onto whatever set he was filming on.
1groundfog
Thank you for posting this. That shows he truly loved her IMHO. My father was the same.
Mary Pagones
The Brett version is IMHO definitive and more faithful to the original tale, but still a delight to see a strong Watson and the lovely Mr.Cushing in this adaptation.
Friedrich Schmidt
@Samael Dietrich
Vasily Livanov did an incredible job as Holmes in the Russian films of the 80s, which are absolutely splendid.
He is, along with Brett and, yes, Rathbone, my favourite Holmes.
Drew Schaefer
😎✌️
I think Rathbone could have been the GOAT Holmes, if the scripts he followed weren't so God-awful, and overly dramatic, with excessive buffoonery written for both Watson and Lestrade.
Maybe, emerging out of the Chaplin era of melodramatic excesses, it was felt that buffoonery was needed for the audience.
Brett hit the high notes until his health or habits, in living this high-strung role so long, took him down during the last two seasons. His purest "Holmes moment" (imo) was in the episode "The Red-headed League" ~ early, when he leaps over the sofa, in frenetic desire to bring Watson into the case, of "Mr Jabez Wilson" ("Jayyy-bez") 😎🎃✌️
Cushing does very well, but his vocals seem nervous as he speaks: of any quality, my own Holmes would not sound so high-strung.
I don't think there can be "the perfect Holmes" because the Holmes in each of our heads "is perfect"...
✌️🎃✌️✌️🎃✌️
Samael Dietrich
@Brutus0223 Agree on both counts, the original post and yours. However, being a SH junkie has started to turn me into a bit of a snob. I favor Brett, Cushing, Howard and Rathbone, despite now personally feeling Rathbone is highly overrated. Being spoiled by Brett and Cushing have lead me to that conclusion. I grew up watching the Rathbone and Howard versions, and originally balked at Brett portraying Holmes. I am now thankful I got past my bias and gave him a chance.
The rest of the myriad of actors portraying Holmes are tolerable at best, anything post Brett is absolute trash. Sherlock Holmes should not be modernized.
I did however enjoy Monk, he was in essence SH in modern times in many aspects, but it worked for me because he was not marketed as SH.
Brutus0223
Completely agree. But I’m such a Sherlock junkie ill watch them all
alexander dela cruz
When mr cushing speaks,its like music!
Am a big fan of his,rip sir.
synchc
@Samved Iyer Or villain. "Hyou hmay fire, hwhen hready". Speaking the same perfect Oxford English, he could lend it either a warmth or an ice only ever equalled by Rickman and only ever bettered by Guinness. I'd like to think that the two contemporaries had, at the very least, studious respect for one another while Rickman was lucky enough to be one of the last traditional English actors to be able to transfer his talents into tinsel town at the very highest level. Sorely missed, all.