Christopher Lee
The towering actor who brought Dracula, Saruman, and Count Dooku to life.
Christopher Frank Carandini Lee was born on 27 May 1922 in Belgravia, London.[1]
Quick Facts
- Birth name
- Christopher Frank Carandini Lee
- Born
- 27 May 1922
- Birthplace
- Belgravia, London, England
- Died
- 7 June 2015
- Place of death
- Chelsea, London, England
- Occupation
- Actor
- singer
- military officer
- Years active
- 1948–2015
- Spouse
- Birgit Krøncke (1961)
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
He attended Summer Fields School and later Wellington College, where he won scholarships in the classics.[2][3] He played the assassin Francisco Scaramanga in the James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun (1974).[4] Lee later played Saruman in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequel trilogy.[5] At age four, Lee's parents separated, and their divorce was finalized twenty-four months later.[6]
Following the war's conclusion, his duties included assisting in the location of Nazi war criminals.[7] The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) was the initial film Lee made for Hammer Film Productions, where he portrayed the monster created by Frankenstein.[8] According to writer Kevin Jackson, Lee's portrayal of Count Dracula in the 1958 film Dracula established the enduring popular image of the fanged vampire.[9]
What the cited sources add
A 2006 article in the Borehamwood & Elstree Times notes that Lee began his screen career 60 years ago and has since notched up nearly 300 appearances.[10] A 2003 Guardian article quotes Lee saying that Nothing But the Night was the only film he ever produced, "never again"[11] The AllMovie biography lists his other film roles including Francisco Scaramanga, Count Dooku, and Saruman.[12] The same source indicates that George Lucas selected Lee for the role of Count Dooku, describing him as "a classic."[10]
A 2004 BBC News article reports that Lee regarded the biographical film Jinnah as his most significant work.[13]
References
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Merchant of menace", The Daily Telegraph, 19 May 2002; "Christopher Lee obituary", The Guardian; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Exshaw, "Sir Christopher Lee: 'Crown Prince of Terror' whose work with Hammer Horror led the postwar revival of Gothic fantasy", UCD News, 12 June 2015, p. 118 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lee 2003, p. 6–7; "Christopher Lee biography"; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; "Christopher Lee obituary", The Guardian; Lee 2003, p. 6–7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Interview – Christopher Lee", Total Film, 1 May 2005 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Paul, "Good Versus Evil in the Films of Christopher Lee", McFarland, 2018, p. 1; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; "Cameras in Middle-earth (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Special Extended Edition documentary)", New Line Cinema, 2002; The Tolkien Ensemble, "At Dawn in Rivendell", Decca, 2003; McCarrick, "Lord of the Rings: Why Saruman Doesn't Appear in Return of the King's Theatrical Cut", CBR, 25 February 2021 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; Lee 2003, p. 6–7; "Christopher Lee: a giant among actors", The Times, 20 November 2009; "Christopher Lee: a giant among actors", The Times, 20 November 2009; Lee 2003, p. 6–7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Christopher Lee- Biography" . Yahoo!. Retrieved 7 May 2012; "Interview – Christopher Lee", Total Film, 1 May 2005; "Christopher Lee filmography", AllMovie; Welsh, "A prolific star of the Elstree screen", Borehamwood & Elstree Times, 16 February 2006 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Christopher Lee" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Christopher Lee- Biography" . Yahoo!. Retrieved 7 May 2012; Jackson, "Fangs for the memories: The A-Z of vampires", The Independent; Furness, "Barry Norman's list of 49 best films", The Daily Telegraph, 5 February 2013; "The 100 best British films". Time Out. Retrieved 24 October 2017; "Why Christopher Lee's Dracula didn't suck", The Daily Telegraph}}{{cbignore; "The 100 Best Horror Movie Characters", Empire, 2020; "The Screening Room's Top 10 British Villains – CNN", CNN (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Welsh, "A prolific star of the Elstree screen", Borehamwood & Elstree Times, 16 February 2006. facts only, no text reused. borehamwoodtimes.co.uk
- Barrett, "The good, the bad and the Christopher Lee", The Guardian, 29 May 2003. facts only, no text reused. theguardian.com
- "Christopher Lee filmography", AllMovie. facts only, no text reused. allmovie.com
- Lindrea, "Christopher Lee on the making of legends", BBC News, 11 October 2004. facts only, no text reused. news.bbc.co.uk
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Christopher Lee (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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