Peter Graves 1926-2010
Actor Peter Graves, best known for his work in the AIRPLANE! movies, passed away on Sunday from natural causes. Graves first made a name for himself in the 1960s television series of “Mission Impossible”, the show which later spawned the popular film franchise. Throughout the years Graves has moved in and out of the television world, making nearly 70 films in his lifetime as well as being a part of numerous television shows.
Graves has talked about his love for the industry in the past. He traveled out to Hollywood when he was in his 20s and moved in with his older brother who was already staring in the popular TV western “Gunsmoke”. Soon, Graves was getting bit-roles in camp-classic sci-fi films. But, it was his work in “Mission: Impossible” that earned Graves the Golden Globe for best actor in 1971 and launched his career into the stars. He became the rugged leading man is several roles thereafter and was once considered to be the next Charlton Heston. Once his career cooled down, Graves took to his family for several years. However, Graves’ career received an unexpected boost when he took on the role of the clueless airline pilot, Captain Clarence Oveur, in the AIRPLANE! films. He drew from his campy beginnings and delivered the most memorable performance of his career. AIRPLANE is considered a comedy gem by today’s movie standards and kept Graves in the limelight until he passed away Sunday.
On a personal note, I can remember my grandmother talking about her love for Peter Graves in the “Mission Impossible” series and for his guest role in “Fantasy Island.” She would talk about how dashing and charismatic the actor was and how much he reminded her of my grandfather back when he was still trying to get a date. As I grew up, I can remember seeing AIRPLANE! for the first time on cable TV and laughing the hardest at Graves’ lines to the young passenger “Timmy.” There was an obvious passion for acting inside Graves and it came through with every performance he gave. His presence will be sorely missed in both the television and movie worlds.
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