Brock Peters

All you want to know about Brock Peters

Brock Peters
Born George Fisher
July 2, 1927(1927-07-02)
New York City, New York, United States
Died August 23, 2005 (aged 78)
Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation Actor
Years active 1949-2005

Brock Peters (July 2, 1927 – August 23, 2005) was an American actor, best known for the role in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird of Tom Robinson, the black man unjustly convicted of raping a white girl.

Contents

Early life

Peters was born George Fisher in New York City, the son of Alma A. (née Norford) and Sonnie Fisher, a sailor.[1] He was of African and West Indian descent. Peters set his sights on a show business career early on, at age 10. A product of NYC's famed Music and Arts High School, Peters initially fielded more odd jobs than acting jobs as he worked his way up from Harlem poverty. Landing a stage role in Porgy and Bess in 1949, he quit physical education studies at City College of New York and went on tour with the opera.

Career

Peters made his film debut in Carmen Jones in 1954, but he really began to make a name for himself in such films as To Kill a Mockingbird and The L-Shaped Room. He received a Tony nomination for his starring stint in Broadway's Lost in the Stars.

He sang background vocals on the 1956 hit, "Banana Boat (Day-O)" by Harry Belafonte as well as Belafonte's 1957 hit, "Mama Look At Bubu."

In the movie Abe Lincoln, Freedom Fighter (1978), Peters plays Henry, a freed Negro slave who is falsely accused of robbery but, defended by Abe Lincoln, is found not guilty due to the fact he has a damaged hand and couldn't have committed the crime. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Peters plays Tom Robinson, a black man falsely accused of raping a white girl, whom Atticus Finch shows could not have committed due to the fact his hand (and arm) were damaged.

In radio, Peters was the voice of Darth Vader for the National Public Radio adaptation of the original Star Wars trilogy.

He also worked in the films Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country as Fleet Admiral Cartwright of Starfleet Command.[2]

Peters worked with Charlton Heston on several theater productions in the 1940s and 1950s. The two became friends and subsequently worked together on several films, including Major Dundee, Soylent Green, and Two-Minute Warning.

He also voiced Soul Power in the cartoon Static Shock (2000–2004).

He died in Los Angeles, California of pancreatic cancer on August 23, 2005 at the age of 78.

Notable performances

Deep Space Nine appearances

References

  1. ^ Brock Peters Biography (1927-)
  2. ^ "Brock Peters Biography". StarTrek.com. CBS Studios. Retrieved on 2008-10-08.

External links


v • d • e
Major Cast Members of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine


Persondata
NAME Peters, Brock
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actor
DATE OF BIRTH 1927-7-2
PLACE OF BIRTH New York City, New York, United States
DATE OF DEATH 2005-8-23
PLACE OF DEATH Los Angeles, California, United States
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brock_Peters"

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