{"id":41651,"date":"2015-06-18T04:44:04","date_gmt":"2015-06-18T08:44:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=41651"},"modified":"2015-06-18T19:11:23","modified_gmt":"2015-06-18T23:11:23","slug":"farewell-sir-christopher-lee-legendary-movie-villain-played-dracula-fu-manchu-scaramanga-saruman-and-dooku","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=41651","title":{"rendered":"Sir Christopher Lee: Legendary movie villain played Dracula, Fu Manchu, Scaramanga, Saruman and Dooku"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

By
\nD.B.S.Jeyaraj<\/strong><\/p>\n

T<\/strong>here was a time when I was afflicted by the supernatural in the form of ghost stories and horror movies. Being terrified by terrible tales of ghosts, devils, vampires and monsters was an enjoyable type of agony then.It was a self-inflicted period of craze for the macabre. This phase in my life began in my childhood and continued through my teenage years lasting till my early thirties. I do see an occasional scary movie now and then but reading such books has ended.<\/p>\n

\"Sir<\/a>

Sir Christopher Lee (May 27, 1922 – June 7, 2015)<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Dracula\"<\/a>

Dracula<\/p><\/div>\n

While referring to reading books causing dreadful fright, an experience that I recall now with amusement is reading Bram Stoker\u2019s \u2018Dracula\u2019. The novel written in 1897 by the Irish author was a Gothic horror cult classic. It is about the human vampire Count Dracula who relocates to England from Transylvania.
\n
\nI was 13 when I first read it in full. It was late into the night when I finished. Dracula was the embodiment of evil and horror. The fear of the devil came upon me. I frantically read the Bible again and again. I kept entreating God to protect me from Dracula. Finally I went to sleep with a small cross tucked under my pillow.<\/p>\n

I am reminded of that incident concerning Dracula and my past fascination for ghosts and horror by the death of legendary British actor Sir Christopher Lee. The 93-year-old veteran has enacted the role of Dracula in many movies and personified the Transylvanian Count on screen to generations of film fans including myself. Dracula was made alive to me on the screen by Christopher Lee.<\/p>\n

Dracula<\/strong><\/p>\n

Christopher Lee was an actor of repute who received many honours including a knighthood in 2009. In a career spanning more than six decades, he has acted in about 350 film and TV roles, setting a Guinness World Record. The younger generation of today will identify Christopher Lee as the wizard Saruman in \u2018Lord of the Rings\u2019 and Count Dooku in \u2018Star Wars\u2019. To an earlier generation Christopher Lee will always be remembered as Dracula, though the actor himself hated being stereotyped in that part.<\/p>\n

\"Dracula\"<\/a>

Dracula<\/p><\/div>\n

From \u2018Dracula\u2019 in 1958 (it was titled \u2018Horror of Dracula\u2019 in the USA) to \u2018The Satanic Rites of Dracula\u2019 in 1973, Christopher Lee has acted in many versions and variations of Dracula. Most of them were made by Hammer Productions.Among these are \u2018Dracula Prince of Darkness\u2019 (1965), \u2018Dracula has Risen from the Grave\u2019 (1968), \u2018Taste the Blood of Dracula\u2019 (1969), \u2018Scars of Dracula\u2019 (1970), \u2018Dracula A.D. 1972\u2019 (1972). At one stage of his life Christopher Lee hated to act as Dracula but was reluctantly compelled to do so due to \u201cemotional blackmail\u201d.<\/p>\n

In an interview with \u2018Total Film,\u2019 Christopher Lee was pointedly asked: \u201cYou played Dracula seven times for Hammer. Didn\u2019t you ever think, \u2018Oh, no. Not this again…?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

He replied: \u2013 \u201cI did have a big problem after the first two. I said to my agent, \u2018I don\u2019t want to do this part again.\u2019 Because all they do is write a story and try and fit the character in somewhere, which is very clear when you see the films. They gave me nothing to do! I pleaded with Hammer to let me use some of the lines that Bram Stoker had written. Occasionally, I sneaked one in. Eventually I told them that I wasn\u2019t going to play Dracula any more. All hell broke loose. I got frantic telephone calls from [Hammer honcho] Jimmy Carreras saying, \u2018I\u2019m begging you! I\u2019m on my knees. You\u2019ve got to do this film!\u2019 I asked why and he said, \u2018I\u2019ve already sold it to the American distributor with you playing the part.\u2019 Then he said something I\u2019ve never forgotten because it was sheer blackmail: \u2018Think of the people you\u2019re putting out of work.\u2019 That\u2019s the only reason I did the last few Draculas. I didn\u2019t want to be the reason for a hundred people not working.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nostalgic sorrow<\/strong><\/p>\n

The British actor who portrayed Dracula and several other epitomes of evil on the screen passed away on 7 June at the Chelsea-Westminster hospital. His wife Birgit Krancke Lee made a public announcement of his death only four days later on 11 June. The delay was in order to inform all other family members before the public came to know.
\nNews of Lee\u2019s death though belated has churned in its wake a worldwide wave of nostalgic sorrow. Among those issuing condolence messages was UK Prime Minister David Cameron. Lee was a longstanding supporter of the British Conservative party.<\/p>\n

Family and early years<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee was born on 27 May 1922 in London. His father was Lt. Col Geoffrey Trollope Lee of the 60th King\u2019s Royal Rifle Corps. His mother was Contessa Estelle Marie Carandini di Sarzano. She was of Italian aristocracy. Christopher had one sister, Xandra Carandini Lee, who is no more. His maternal ancestors trace their lineage to European emperor Charlemange and were entitled to wear the coat of arms of the Holy Roman Empire.<\/p>\n

Christopher Lee married Danish painter and model Birgit Krancke known as \u201cGitte\u201d on 17 March 1961 after a year-long courtship. Their daughter Christina Erika Carandini Lee was born in 1963. His great grandmother was the famous Opera singer Marie Carandini. One of Lee\u2019s distant relatives was Gen. Robert E. Lee, who commanded the Confederates in the American civil war. Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond novels, was a step-cousin of Lee. British actress Dame Harriet Walker is also a niece.<\/p>\n

\"Early<\/a>

Early photo<\/p><\/div>\n

Entry into acting<\/strong><\/p>\n

Christopher Lee joined the Royal Air Force during World War II. He later worked for the Special Air Services (SAS). After the war his cousin Nicolo Carandini who was then the Italian Ambassador to Britain suggested that Christopher try his hand at acting. Christopher liked the suggestion and enrolled at a training school for actors (Charm School) run by the Rank organisation. Later he signed a seven-year contract with Rank Organisation.<\/p>\n

Despite the training at Rank\u2019s charm school, Lee found it difficult to get good acting roles. His imposing height of six feet and four-and-a-half inches was seen as an impediment to getting parts easily. Lee\u2019s film debut was in 1947. He acted in Terence Young\u2019s \u2018Corridor of Mirrors,\u2019 playing the part of Charles in one scene. The Director surmounted Lee\u2019s height problem by seating him at a table in a nightclub with the other actors such as Lois Maxwell, Mavis Villiers, Hugh Latimer and John Penrose.<\/p>\n

For almost a decade Lee got only minor roles. He recalls that time in the \u2018Total Film\u2019 interview thus: \u201cI was around a long time \u2013 nearly 10 years. Initially, I was told I was too tall to be an actor. That\u2019s quite a fatuous remark to make. It\u2019s like saying you\u2019re too short to play the piano. I thought, \u2018Right, I\u2019ll show you…\u2019 At the beginning I didn\u2019t know anything about the technique of working in front of a camera, but during those 10 years, I did the one thing that\u2019s so vitally important today \u2013 I watched, I listened and I learned. So when the time came I was ready… Oddly enough, to play a character who said nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Frankenstein\u2019s monster<\/strong><\/p>\n

The character \u201cwho said nothing\u201d that Lee refers to is Frankenstein\u2019s monster. After his contract with Rank expired, Lee was free to act in outside films, His break out movie was \u2018The Curse of Frankenstein\u2019 (1957) by Hammer Film Productions. The story was loosely based on the novel \u2018Frankenstein\u2019 by Mary Shelley. Peter Cushing played Victor Frankenstein and Christopher Lee his \u2018Creature\u2019. Lee described his role thus: \u201cWhen I was in full make-up as the Creature \u2013 which was pretty unattractive \u2013 somebody said I looked like a road accident. For a character put together from bits and pieces of other people, that\u2019s a very good description.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Curse of Frankenstein<\/p><\/div>\n

The film was a huge success and a number of \u2018Frankenstein Monster\u2019 films starring Cushing and Lee were made by Hammer Productions. It was a passport to success for both Cushing and Lee, who became close friends thereafter. They acted together successfully in many films.<\/p>\n

Christopher Lee says of his friendship and partnership with Peter Cushing: \u201cHe was a wonderful human being and a brilliant actor. He did things other people simply couldn\u2019t do. And I loved him, I really did. I remember something Boris Karloff said to me, which does apply to Peter and myself. He said, \u2018Find something that other actors can\u2019t do, or won\u2019t do, and if you make an impact doing that you\u2019ll never be forgotten.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Fu Manchu<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Dracula and Frankenstein films boosted Lee\u2019s film career immensely. He branched out to many more roles in different films thereafter. One of these roles was that of the criminal genius Dr. Fu Manchu who was a fictional character invented by British novelist Sax Rohmer.<\/p>\n

\"Fu<\/a>

Fu Manchu<\/p><\/div>\n

Film Producer Harry Alan Towers made five \u2018Fu Manchu\u2019 films starring Christopher Lee who played the titular character with oriental features and a moustache which became famous or notorious as the Fu Manchu moustache. The five films were \u2018The Face of Fu Manchu\u2019 1965), \u2018The Brides of Fu Manchu\u2019 (1966), \u2018The Vengeance of Fu Manchu\u2019 (1967), \u2018The Blood of Fu Manchu\u2019 (1968), and \u2018The Castle of Fu Manchu\u2019 (1969).<\/p>\n

Francisco Scaramanga<\/strong><\/p>\n

As stated earlier, the writer Ian Fleming who wrote the James Bond novels was a step-cousin of Christopher Lee. His 1958 novel \u2018Dr. No\u2019 was filmed under the same name in 1962 by Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli. The Director was Terence Young. Fleming wanted his cousin to play the part of the Villain \u2018Dr. No\u2019 and Lee accepted. The absentminded Fleming forgot to inform the producers and director of this. Not knowing that Lee had consented, another well- known actor Joseph Wiseman was picked to play Dr. No in the first-ever James Bond movie.<\/p>\n

Christopher Lee however got another chance to act in a James Bond film in 1974. Ian Fleming had passed away but Saltzman and Broccoli continued to make James Bond films. In 1974 they made \u2018The Man with the Golden Gun\u2019 with Roger Moore instead of Sean Connery as \u2018Double O Seven\u2019. The film script was vastly different to that of the original book.<\/p>\n

Christopher Lee was cast as Francisco Scaramanga, the man with the golden gun who assassinates persons with a golden bullet. Scaramanga was projected in the film as an alter ego to James Bond like \u201ca super-villain of the stature of Bond himself\u201d. Lee says of his role: \u201cIan wasn\u2019t with us when I did Scaramanga, who is not remotely like the character in the book. In Fleming\u2019s novel he\u2019s just a West Indian thug, but in the film he\u2019s charming, elegant, amusing, lethal\u2026 I played him like the dark side of Bond.\u201d His portrayal of Scaramanga earned Christopher Lee rave reviews as a \u201cGoodish Villain\u201d.<\/p>\n

Saruman<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 1977 Christopher Lee left the UK and moved to the USA. He explains the reason for this in this way: \u201cI became totally disillusioned with the British film industry. Richard Widmark told me, \u2018You\u2019re wasting your time here. They\u2019ll always be asking you to play the same sort of characters, you\u2019ll get bored and so will the audience. You must come to the States.\u2019 So I did, and my life changed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Saruman<\/a>

Saruman in The Hobbit<\/p><\/div>\n

Christopher Lee had met J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of \u2018Hobbit\u2019 and \u2018Lord of the Rings\u2019 once. He also read and re-read the novels often. Lee says of \u2018Lord of the Rings\u2019: \u201cI always dreamed that it would one day be made a film and I always dreamed I\u2019d be in it. Sometimes dreams do come true. At the time I read it, I wanted to play Gandalf. Who wouldn\u2019t? But they thought I was too old. So I played Saruman, which is in many ways immensely important because Sauron is just an eye, so Saruman is the one and only total adversary of the Fellowship. Everything that happens he\u2019s responsible for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lee\u2019s part was cut off in the final film of the Trilogy but re-instated in the extended DVD edition due to public outcry.
\nThe man who played the wizard Saruman also says that he knew the films were going to make film history as blockbusters. Christopher Lee recalls: \u201cI remember when I was making the first one, most of the executives from New Line visited the set and one of the biggest cheeses sat next to me and asked me what I thought of the film. I\u2019d seen a very rough assembly and I said to him, \u2018You\u2019re going to make motion picture history.\u2019 He never forgot it. And I\u2019ve never let him forget it. Nothing will ever surpass these films.\u201d<\/p>\n

Count Dooku<\/strong><\/p>\n

Another role in which Lee made his mark was as Count Dooku also known as Darth Tyranus in \u2018Star Wars\u2019. Lee played Dooku in \u2018Attack of the Clones\u2019 (episode two) and \u2018Revenge of the Sith\u2019 (episode three). What is impressive about Lee\u2019s performance is that he did much of the stunts himself despite his age.<\/p>\n

\"Lee<\/a>

Lee as Count Dooku<\/p><\/div>\n

Lee says: \u201cIn Star Wars, for the light sabre fights, everything from the waist up is me, but I was doubled for long shots \u2013 I couldn\u2019t do the running. I was 80! I said to George Lucas, \u2018I can do the sword fighting, but I can\u2019t run!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Lord Summerisle<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lee has acted in more than 200 big screen films and over a 100 small screen films playing numerous parts. Which is the best film he ever starred in? <\/p>\n

According to Lee it was \u2018The Wicker Man\u2019 in which he acts as Lord Summerisle. The film made in 1973 was inspired by David Pinner\u2019s novel \u2018Ritual\u2019 and was directed by Robin Hardy. The film has achieved celebrity status as an intelligently-made horror movie. An American re-make of the British film was released as \u2018The Wicker Man\u2019 in 2006 with Nicolas Cage.<\/p>\n

Muhammed Ali Jinnah<\/strong><\/p>\n

Among the diverse roles essayed by Christopher Lee, which is the one he savours most?<\/p>\n

\"Sir<\/a>

Sir Christopher Lee as Muhammed Ali Jinnah<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cI played Muhammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan .That\u2019s the best thing I\u2019ve ever done. And the greatest responsibility I\u2019ve ever had as an actor because quite a few of his relatives came to watch and they were wonderfully supportive.\u201d The biopic was made in 1998.The narrator is Hindi actor Shashi Kapoor.<\/p>\n

Lee elaborates further about Jinna in an interview in 2004 to the BBC. Here are excerpts: \u201cThe most important film I made, in terms of its subject and the great responsibility I had as an actor was a film I did about the founder of Pakistan, called Jinnah,\u201d he said. \u201cIt had the best reviews I\u2019ve ever had in my entire career \u2013 as a film and as a performance. But ultimately it was never shown at the cinemas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Filmed seven years ago in Pakistan, Jinnah was never released on the big screen \u2013 though it was applauded at film festivals around the world and later appeared on satellite television. \u201cIt\u2019s a film about a Muslim who said the Muslims of India should have their own country… it\u2019s about a Muslim leader.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a very, very good film but, I\u2019m guessing, the Americans were a bit cautious,\u201d said Lee, referring to the film\u2019s non-release. The film, which was also the subject of unspecified legal wrangles, was finally released on DVD and according to a delighted Lee was selling extremely well, but clearly its thwarted release remains a disappointment.<\/p>\n

Reaction from people<\/strong><\/p>\n

I began this column by stating how Christopher Lee personified Dracula to me on the silver screen. He played many characters who were the embodiments of evil. How did his fans perceive those roles and relate to him in real life?<\/p>\n

Let me end with an answer by quoting Christopher Lee himself: \u201cThe reaction I get from people is always the same. They say, \u2018You\u2019re Christopher Lee, aren\u2019t you?\u2019 I say, \u2018Yes.\u2019 Then they say, \u2018I do so enjoy your films. Thanks for the pleasure you\u2019ve given me.\u2019 Nobody says, \u2018You\u2019ve scared the living daylights out of me!\u2019 Nobody comes up to me and makes the sign of the cross before backing away.\u201d<\/p>\n

DBS Jeyaraj can be reached at dbsjeyaraj@yahoo.com<\/font> <\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"SL<\/a><\/p>\n

This article written for the “Spotlight” Column appears in the “Daily FT” of June 13, 2015. It can be accessed here:<\/em><\/strong> Farewell, Sir Christopher Lee<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
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By D.B.S.Jeyaraj There was a time when I was afflicted by the supernatural in the form of ghost stories and horror movies. Being terrified by terrible tales of ghosts, devils, vampires and monsters was an enjoyable type of agony then.It was a self-inflicted period of craze for the macabre. This phase in my life began …<\/p>\n

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