 | Andrew Gilmore (10)
12/15/2003 |  His movies weren't always that funny (Dr. Strangelove being the major exception, of course), and so I took Sellers for granted for quite a while. Then, this summer, I discovered his early radio work on the legendary The Goon Show, which was hugely influential to Monty Python but, unfortunately, is not as well-known here in America as it should be. Anyway, Sellers' work on the Goon Show was hysterical. He had a gift for mimicry and was versatile and brilliant at doing voices. I would say, without hyperbole, that he was the English Mel Blanc! To reiterate, he may not have always been given the funniest material, but it amazes me how he could not only portray practically any type of character you could imagiane, but, as his fellow Goon, the late Sir Harry Secombe, once said, he actually, physically and mentally, BECAME the characters he played, which to me is something that defines a truly great actor. Richard Henry Sellers (his real name) was truly a genius and has inspired me to try to get work as a voice actor. It's a shame he died while in his 50s, but his work, in both movies and radio, will live on to inspire future generations of comedians British and (maybe?) American alike.
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