George Peppard
Encyclopedia
George Peppard, Jr. was an American film and television actor.
Peppard secured a major role when he starred alongside Audrey Hepburn
in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), portrayed a character based on Howard Hughes
in The Carpetbaggers
(1964), and played the title role of the millionaire sleuth Thomas Banacek in the early-1970s television series Banacek
.
He is probably best known to younger audiences for his role as Col. John "Hannibal" Smith, the cigar
-chomping leader of a renegade commando
squad, in the 1980s television show The A-Team
.
, the son of building contractor George Peppard, Sr. and opera
singer Vernelle Rohrer. He graduated from Dearborn High School
in Dearborn, Michigan
.
Peppard enlisted in the United States Marine Corps
at age 17 on July 8, 1946 and rose to rank of Corporal
in the 10th Marines, leaving the Marines at the end of his enlistment in January 1948.
From 1948 to 1949, he studied Civil Engineering
at Purdue University
where he was a member of the Purdue Playmakers theatre
troupe and Beta Theta Pi
fraternity. He then transferred to Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University
) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he received his bachelor's degree in 1955. He also trained at the Pittsburgh Playhouse
.
, Peppard enrolled in The Actors Studio, where he studied the Method
with Lee Strasberg
. His first work on Broadway
led to his first television appearance, with a young Paul Newman
, in The United States Steel Hour
(1956), as the singing, guitar-playing baseball player Piney Woods in Bang the Drum Slowly
.
Peppard's Broadway appearance in The Pleasure of His Company (1958) led to an MGM contract. Following to a strong film debut in The Strange One
(1957), he played the illegitimate son of Robert Mitchum
's character in the popular melodrama Home from the Hill
(1960).
His good looks, elegant manner and superior acting skills landed Peppard his most famous film role as Paul Varjak in Breakfast at Tiffany's with Audrey Hepburn
. This 1961 role boosted him briefly to a major film star. His leading roles in that film's wake included How the West Was Won
in 1962 (his character spanned two sections of the episodic Cinerama
extravaganza), The Victors
in 1963, The Carpetbaggers
in 1964, and The Blue Max
in 1966.
The Carpetbaggers was based on an epic Harold Robbins
novel which used the life of Howard Hughes
as inspiration and featured Alan Ladd
in his final screen role as Nevada Smith
, also played by Steve McQueen
in a smash hit prequel the following year.
Peppard started choosing tough guy roles in big, ambitious pictures where he was somewhat overshadowed by ensemble casts; for example, his role as German pilot Bruno Stachel, an obsessively competitive officer from humble beginnings who challenges the Prussian
aristocracy during World War I
in The Blue Max
(1966). For this role, Peppard earned a private pilot's license and did much of his own stunt flying, although stunt pilot Derek Piggott
was at the controls for the famous under-the-bridge scene.
Due to Peppard's alcoholism, and notoriously difficult personality on the set, his career devolved into a string of B-movies through the late sixties and early seventies. He then had a notable success with the TV series Banacek
(1972–74), (part of the NBC Mystery Movie
series), and one of his most critically acclaimed, though rarely seen, performances in the TV movie Guilty or Innocent: The Sam Sheppard Murder Case (1975), as Sam Sheppard
.
Among the disappointing films was the 1970 Western Cannon for Cordoba
, in which Peppard played the steely Captain Rod Douglas, who has been put in charge of gathering a group of soldiers on a dangerous mission into Mexico, and 1967's Rough Night in Jericho
in which he was billed over crooner Dean Martin
and Jean Simmons
, a reflection of his status at that point in his career. Peppard appeared in the short-lived (half a season) Doctors' Hospital
(1975) and several other television films. He was in the cult science-fiction film Damnation Alley
in 1977. With fewer interesting film roles coming his way, he acted in, directed and produced the drama Five Days from Home in 1979.
In a rare game show appearance, Peppard did a week of shows on Password Plus in 1979. Out of five shows, one was never broadcast on NBC
(but aired much later on GSN) due to a rant where he expressed dissatisfaction with NBC executives watching "as if you're some sort of crook."
in the TV series Dynasty
. During the filming of the pilot episode, which also featured Linda Evans
and Bo Hopkins
, Peppard repeatedly clashed with the show's producers, Richard and Esther Shapiro
; among other things, he felt that his role was too similar to that of J.R. Ewing
in the series Dallas
. Three weeks later, before filming was to begin on additional episodes, Peppard was fired and the part was offered to John Forsythe
; the scenes with Peppard were re-shot and Forsythe became the permanent star of the show.
, acting alongside Mr. T
, Dirk Benedict
and Dwight Schultz
. In the series, the A-Team was a crack squad of renegade commandos on the run from the military for a crime they did not commit while serving in the Vietnam war
. The A-Team members made their collective living as soldiers of fortune
, but they helped only people who came to them with just grievances.
In the series, Peppard played "Hannibal" Smith. He was the leader of the A-Team, distinguished by his cigar smoking, confident smirk, black leather gloves, disguises and catch phrase, "I love it when a plan comes together." The show ran five seasons on NBC
from 1983–1987. It made Peppard known to a whole new generation and is arguably his most well-known role. The role was reportedly written with James Coburn
in mind, but Coburn declined and thus the role went to Peppard. Peppard was reportedly annoyed by Mr. T upstaging him in his public image, and at one point in their relationship refused to speak directly to Mr. T. Instead, he sent messages through intermediaries and for this Peppard was occasionally portrayed by the press as not a team player.
Police Detective Sgt. Frank Doakey. The second film Man Against the Mob: The Chinatown Murders was broadcast in December 1989. A third film in this series was planned, but Peppard died before it was filmed.
in 1992. His illness never forced his retirement from acting, and Peppard completed a pilot for a new series in 1994 (a Matlock
spin-off) shortly before his death. Peppard died on May 8, 1994, in Los Angeles
, California
. Although he was still being treated for lung cancer, the direct cause of death was pneumonia
. He is buried alongside his parents George Sr and Vernelle in Northview Cemetery, Dearborn, Michigan
.
Peppard secured a major role when he starred alongside Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn was a British actress and humanitarian. Although modest about her acting ability, Hepburn remains one of the world's most famous actresses of all time, remembered as a film and fashion icon of the twentieth century...
in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), portrayed a character based on Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
in The Carpetbaggers
The Carpetbaggers (film)
The Carpetbaggers is a 1964 American film based upon the best selling novel The Carpetbaggers by Harold Robbins.The film stars George Peppard as Jonas Cord, a character based largely on Howard Hughes, and Alan Ladd as a former western gunslinger turned actor with the pseudonym Nevada Smith, played...
(1964), and played the title role of the millionaire sleuth Thomas Banacek in the early-1970s television series Banacek
Banacek
Banacek is a short-lived, light-hearted detective TV series starring George Peppard on NBC from 1972 to 1974. It alternated in its timeslot with several other shows but was the only one to last beyond its first season...
.
He is probably best known to younger audiences for his role as Col. John "Hannibal" Smith, the cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
-chomping leader of a renegade commando
Commando
In English, the term commando means a specific kind of individual soldier or military unit. In contemporary usage, commando usually means elite light infantry and/or special operations forces units, specializing in amphibious landings, parachuting, rappelling and similar techniques, to conduct and...
squad, in the 1980s television show The A-Team
The A-Team
The A-Team is an American action adventure television series about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces personnel who work as soldiers of fortune, while on the run from the Army after being branded as war criminals for a "crime they didn't commit". The A-Team was created by...
.
Early life
George Peppard, Jr. was born in Detroit, MichiganMichigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, the son of building contractor George Peppard, Sr. and opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer Vernelle Rohrer. He graduated from Dearborn High School
Dearborn High School
Dearborn High School is a secondary school, founded in 1893, located on Outer Drive in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. Dearborn High is one of the three high schools of the Dearborn City School District. There are over 1800 students currently attending Dearborn High...
in Dearborn, Michigan
Dearborn, Michigan
-Economy:Ford Motor Company has its world headquarters in Dearborn. In addition its Dearborn campus contains many research, testing, finance and some production facilities. Ford Land controls the numerous properties owned by Ford including sales and leasing to unrelated businesses such as the...
.
Peppard enlisted in the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
at age 17 on July 8, 1946 and rose to rank of Corporal
Corporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
in the 10th Marines, leaving the Marines at the end of his enlistment in January 1948.
From 1948 to 1949, he studied Civil Engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
at Purdue University
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
where he was a member of the Purdue Playmakers theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
troupe and Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi , often just called Beta, is a social collegiate fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, USA, where it is part of the Miami Triad which includes Phi Delta Theta and Sigma Chi. It has over 138 active chapters and colonies in the United States and Canada...
fraternity. He then transferred to Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he received his bachelor's degree in 1955. He also trained at the Pittsburgh Playhouse
Pittsburgh Playhouse
Pittsburgh Playhouse is Point Park University's performing arts center located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It houses three performance spaces and is home to The Rep, Point Park's resident professional theatre company, as well as three student companies—Conservatory Theatre Company, Conservatory...
.
Acting
Peppard made his stage debut in 1949 at the Pittsburgh Playhouse. After moving to New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Peppard enrolled in The Actors Studio, where he studied the Method
Method acting
Method acting is a phrase that loosely refers to a family of techniques used by actors to create in themselves the thoughts and emotions of their characters, so as to develop lifelike performances...
with Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg was an American actor, director and acting teacher. He cofounded, with directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed as "America's first true theatrical collective"...
. His first work on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
led to his first television appearance, with a young Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
, in The United States Steel Hour
The United States Steel Hour
The United States Steel Hour is an anthology series which brought hour-long dramas to television from 1953 to 1963. The television series and the radio program that preceded it were both sponsored by the United States Steel Corporation....
(1956), as the singing, guitar-playing baseball player Piney Woods in Bang the Drum Slowly
Bang the Drum Slowly
Bang the Drum Slowly is a novel by Mark Harris, a sequel to The Southpaw . It was first published in 1956, and was later made into a 1956 U.S...
.
Peppard's Broadway appearance in The Pleasure of His Company (1958) led to an MGM contract. Following to a strong film debut in The Strange One
The Strange One
The Strange One is a 1957 black-and-white film about students faced with an ethical dilemma in a military college in the Southern United States...
(1957), he played the illegitimate son of Robert Mitchum
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
's character in the popular melodrama Home from the Hill
Home from the Hill (film)
Home from the Hill is a 1960 film directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Robert Mitchum, Eleanor Parker, George Peppard, George Hamilton, Everett Sloane, and Luana Patten....
(1960).
His good looks, elegant manner and superior acting skills landed Peppard his most famous film role as Paul Varjak in Breakfast at Tiffany's with Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn was a British actress and humanitarian. Although modest about her acting ability, Hepburn remains one of the world's most famous actresses of all time, remembered as a film and fashion icon of the twentieth century...
. This 1961 role boosted him briefly to a major film star. His leading roles in that film's wake included How the West Was Won
How the West Was Won (film)
How the West Was Won is a 1962 American epic Western film. The picture was one of the last "old-fashioned" epic films made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to enjoy great success. It follows four generations of a family as they move ever westward, from western New York state to the Pacific Ocean...
in 1962 (his character spanned two sections of the episodic Cinerama
Cinerama
Cinerama is the trademarked name for a widescreen process which works by simultaneously projecting images from three synchronized 35 mm projectors onto a huge, deeply-curved screen, subtending 146° of arc. It is also the trademarked name for the corporation which was formed to market it...
extravaganza), The Victors
The Victors (film)
-Overview:The film follows a group of U.S. soldiers through Europe during World War II, from Britain in 1942, through the fierce fighting in Italy and France, to the uneasy peace of Berlin. It is adapted from a collection of short stories called The Human Kind by British author Alexander Baron,...
in 1963, The Carpetbaggers
The Carpetbaggers (film)
The Carpetbaggers is a 1964 American film based upon the best selling novel The Carpetbaggers by Harold Robbins.The film stars George Peppard as Jonas Cord, a character based largely on Howard Hughes, and Alan Ladd as a former western gunslinger turned actor with the pseudonym Nevada Smith, played...
in 1964, and The Blue Max
The Blue Max
The Blue Max is an 1966 British war film about a German fighter pilot on the Western Front during World War I. It was directed by John Guillermin, stars George Peppard, James Mason and Ursula Andress, and features Karl Michael Vogler and Jeremy Kemp. The screenplay was written by David Pursall,...
in 1966.
The Carpetbaggers was based on an epic Harold Robbins
Harold Robbins
Harold Robbins was one of the best-selling American authors of all time. During his career, he wrote over 25 best-sellers, selling over 750 million copies in 32 languages....
novel which used the life of Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
as inspiration and featured Alan Ladd
Alan Ladd
-Early life:Ladd was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He was the only child of Ina Raleigh Ladd and Alan Ladd, Sr. He was of English ancestry. His father died when he was four, and his mother relocated to Oklahoma City where she married Jim Beavers, a housepainter...
in his final screen role as Nevada Smith
Nevada Smith
Nevada Smith is a 1966 American Western film starring Steve McQueen and made by Embassy Pictures and Solar Productions, in association with and released by Paramount Pictures. The movie was produced and directed by Henry Hathaway with Joseph E...
, also played by Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
in a smash hit prequel the following year.
Peppard started choosing tough guy roles in big, ambitious pictures where he was somewhat overshadowed by ensemble casts; for example, his role as German pilot Bruno Stachel, an obsessively competitive officer from humble beginnings who challenges the Prussian
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
aristocracy during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in The Blue Max
The Blue Max
The Blue Max is an 1966 British war film about a German fighter pilot on the Western Front during World War I. It was directed by John Guillermin, stars George Peppard, James Mason and Ursula Andress, and features Karl Michael Vogler and Jeremy Kemp. The screenplay was written by David Pursall,...
(1966). For this role, Peppard earned a private pilot's license and did much of his own stunt flying, although stunt pilot Derek Piggott
Derek Piggott
Alan Derek Piggott MBE is one of Britain's best known glider pilots and instructors. His flying career has been long and varied. He first flew in an Avro 504 as a passenger at the age of four...
was at the controls for the famous under-the-bridge scene.
Due to Peppard's alcoholism, and notoriously difficult personality on the set, his career devolved into a string of B-movies through the late sixties and early seventies. He then had a notable success with the TV series Banacek
Banacek
Banacek is a short-lived, light-hearted detective TV series starring George Peppard on NBC from 1972 to 1974. It alternated in its timeslot with several other shows but was the only one to last beyond its first season...
(1972–74), (part of the NBC Mystery Movie
NBC Mystery Movie
The NBC Mystery Movie is the general name of an American television series, produced by Universal Studios, that was broadcast by NBC from 1971-77...
series), and one of his most critically acclaimed, though rarely seen, performances in the TV movie Guilty or Innocent: The Sam Sheppard Murder Case (1975), as Sam Sheppard
Sam Sheppard
Dr. Samuel Holmes Sheppard was an American osteopathic physician and neurosurgeon, who was involved in an infamous and controversial murder trial. He was convicted of the murder of his pregnant wife, Marilyn Reese Sheppard, in 1954, while residing in the Cleveland, Ohio area. Sheppard served...
.
Among the disappointing films was the 1970 Western Cannon for Cordoba
Cannon for Cordoba
Cannon for Cordoba was a western film that was released in 1970. Filmed in Spain, the large part of the movie takes place in Mexico in 1912...
, in which Peppard played the steely Captain Rod Douglas, who has been put in charge of gathering a group of soldiers on a dangerous mission into Mexico, and 1967's Rough Night in Jericho
Rough Night in Jericho (film)
Rough Night in Jericho is a 1967 western film starring George Peppard, Dean Martin, and Jean Simmons, and directed by Arnold Laven. The supporting cast includes John McIntire and Slim Pickens. This is the only film where Dean Martin portrayed the villain....
in which he was billed over crooner Dean Martin
Dean Martin
Dean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
and Jean Simmons
Jean Simmons
Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain during and after World War II – she was one of J...
, a reflection of his status at that point in his career. Peppard appeared in the short-lived (half a season) Doctors' Hospital
Doctors' Hospital
Doctors' Hospital is an American medical drama that ran on NBC during the 1975-1976 season. It followed the neurosurgery team at the fictional Lowell Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles, led by Dr. Jake Goodwin and his staff, including residents Norah Purcell , and Felipe Ortega , and Nurse Hestor...
(1975) and several other television films. He was in the cult science-fiction film Damnation Alley
Damnation Alley (film)
Damnation Alley is a 1977 film, directed by Jack Smight, loosely based on the novel of the same name by Roger Zelazny. The original music score was composed by Jerry Goldsmith.-Plot:...
in 1977. With fewer interesting film roles coming his way, he acted in, directed and produced the drama Five Days from Home in 1979.
In a rare game show appearance, Peppard did a week of shows on Password Plus in 1979. Out of five shows, one was never broadcast on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
(but aired much later on GSN) due to a rant where he expressed dissatisfaction with NBC executives watching "as if you're some sort of crook."
Dynasty
In 1981, Peppard was offered, and accepted, the role of Blake CarringtonBlake Carrington
Blake Carrington is a fictional character on the American TV series Dynasty. The role was portrayed by John Forsythe from the first episode of the series in 1981 until the finale in 1989. Forsythe returned for the 1991 miniseries Dynasty: The Reunion...
in the TV series Dynasty
Dynasty (TV series)
Dynasty is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981 to May 11, 1989. It was created by Richard & Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, and revolved around the Carringtons, a wealthy oil family living in Denver, Colorado...
. During the filming of the pilot episode, which also featured Linda Evans
Linda Evans
Linda Evans is an American actress. She is known primarily for her roles on television, and rose to fame playing Audra Barkley in the 1960s Western TV series, The Big Valley...
and Bo Hopkins
Bo Hopkins
Bo Hopkins is an American actor.-Career:Hopkins has appeared in more than one hundred film and television roles in a career of more than forty years, including The Bridge at Remagen, The Wild Bunch, The Getaway, American Graffiti, White Lightning, Radioland Murders, The Killer Elite, Midnight...
, Peppard repeatedly clashed with the show's producers, Richard and Esther Shapiro
Richard and Esther Shapiro
Richard Shapiro and Esther Shapiro are married American television screenwriters and producers best known as the creators of the long-running 1980s primetime serial Dynasty, its spin-off series The Colbys and the 1991 miniseries Dynasty: The Reunion.In 1984, Doubleday/Dolphin published the...
; among other things, he felt that his role was too similar to that of J.R. Ewing
J.R. Ewing
John Ross Ewing, Jr., more commonly known as J. R. Ewing, played by Larry Hagman, was a central, nefarious figure on the hit CBS television series Dallas . J. R...
in the series Dallas
Dallas (TV series)
Dallas is an American serial drama/prime time soap opera that revolves around the Ewings, a wealthy Texas family in the oil and cattle-ranching industries. Throughout the series, Larry Hagman stars as greedy, scheming oil baron J. R. Ewing...
. Three weeks later, before filming was to begin on additional episodes, Peppard was fired and the part was offered to John Forsythe
John Forsythe
John Forsythe was an American stage, television and film actor. Forsythe starred in three television series, spanning four decades and three genres: as single playboy father Bentley Gregg in the sitcom Bachelor Father ; as the unseen millionaire Charles Townsend on the crime drama Charlie's...
; the scenes with Peppard were re-shot and Forsythe became the permanent star of the show.
The A-Team
In 1982, George Peppard auditioned for and won the role of Colonel John "Hannibal" Smith in the TV action adventure series The A-TeamThe A-Team
The A-Team is an American action adventure television series about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces personnel who work as soldiers of fortune, while on the run from the Army after being branded as war criminals for a "crime they didn't commit". The A-Team was created by...
, acting alongside Mr. T
Mr. T
Mr. T is an American actor known for his roles as B. A. Baracus in the 1980s television series The A-Team, as boxer Clubber Lang in the 1982 film Rocky III, and for his appearances as a professional wrestler. Mr. T is known for his trademark African Mandinka warrior hairstyle, his gold jewelry,...
, Dirk Benedict
Dirk Benedict
Dirk Benedict is an American movie, television and stage actor, perhaps best known for playing the characters Lieutenant Templeton "Faceman" Peck in The A-Team television series and Lieutenant Starbuck in the original Battlestar Galactica film and television series.-Early life:Benedict was born...
and Dwight Schultz
Dwight Schultz
William Dwight Schultz is an American stage, television, film actor, and voice artist. He is best known for his roles as Captain "Howling Mad" Murdock on the 1980s action show The A-Team, and as Reginald Barclay in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Voyager, and the film Star Trek: First...
. In the series, the A-Team was a crack squad of renegade commandos on the run from the military for a crime they did not commit while serving in the Vietnam war
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. The A-Team members made their collective living as soldiers of fortune
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
, but they helped only people who came to them with just grievances.
In the series, Peppard played "Hannibal" Smith. He was the leader of the A-Team, distinguished by his cigar smoking, confident smirk, black leather gloves, disguises and catch phrase, "I love it when a plan comes together." The show ran five seasons on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
from 1983–1987. It made Peppard known to a whole new generation and is arguably his most well-known role. The role was reportedly written with James Coburn
James Coburn
James Harrison Coburn III was an American film and television actor. Coburn appeared in nearly 70 films and made over 100 television appearances during his 45-year career, and played a wide range of roles and won an Academy Award for his supporting role as Glen Whitehouse in Affliction.A capable,...
in mind, but Coburn declined and thus the role went to Peppard. Peppard was reportedly annoyed by Mr. T upstaging him in his public image, and at one point in their relationship refused to speak directly to Mr. T. Instead, he sent messages through intermediaries and for this Peppard was occasionally portrayed by the press as not a team player.
Man Against the Mob
Peppard's last series was an intended occasional series of television movie features entitled Man Against the Mob set in the 1940s. In these TV detective films, Peppard played Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
Police Detective Sgt. Frank Doakey. The second film Man Against the Mob: The Chinatown Murders was broadcast in December 1989. A third film in this series was planned, but Peppard died before it was filmed.
Personal life
Peppard was married five times, and was the father of three children.- Helen Davies (1954–1964): two children, Bradford and Julie
- Elizabeth AshleyElizabeth AshleyElizabeth Ashley is an American actress who first came to prominence as the ingenue in the Broadway play Take Her, She's Mine, which earned her a Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Play.-Early life:...
(1966–1972), his co-star in The CarpetbaggersThe Carpetbaggers (film)The Carpetbaggers is a 1964 American film based upon the best selling novel The Carpetbaggers by Harold Robbins.The film stars George Peppard as Jonas Cord, a character based largely on Howard Hughes, and Alan Ladd as a former western gunslinger turned actor with the pseudonym Nevada Smith, played...
: one son, Christian - Sherry Boucher-LytleSherry BoucherSherry Lynn Boucher, or Sherry Boucher-Lytle , is a former American actress who was once married to actor George Peppard. She is now a Realtor in Bossier Parish in northwestern Louisiana. She is a younger sister of actress Savannah Smith Boucher.Boucher was born in Springhill in northern Webster...
(1975–1979), originally from SpringhillSpringhill, LouisianaSpringhill is a city in northern Webster Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,439 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Minden Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
in northern Webster ParishWebster Parish, LouisianaWebster Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The seat of the parish is Minden. In 2010, its population was 41,207....
, LouisianaLouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties... - Alexis Adams (1984–1986)
- Laura Taylor (1992–1994)
Death
Peppard overcame a serious alcohol problem in 1978, and subsequently became heavily involved in helping other alcoholics. He had smoked two packs of cigarettes a day for most of his life until he quit after being diagnosed with lung cancerLung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 1992. His illness never forced his retirement from acting, and Peppard completed a pilot for a new series in 1994 (a Matlock
Matlock (TV series)
Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of attorney Ben Matlock. The show originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC, where it replaced The A-Team, then from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC.The show's format was similar...
spin-off) shortly before his death. Peppard died on May 8, 1994, in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Although he was still being treated for lung cancer, the direct cause of death was pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
. He is buried alongside his parents George Sr and Vernelle in Northview Cemetery, Dearborn, Michigan
Dearborn, Michigan
-Economy:Ford Motor Company has its world headquarters in Dearborn. In addition its Dearborn campus contains many research, testing, finance and some production facilities. Ford Land controls the numerous properties owned by Ford including sales and leasing to unrelated businesses such as the...
.
Awards
- 1960 NBR Award (National Board of Review of Motion PicturesNational Board of Review of Motion PicturesThe National Board of Review of Motion Pictures was founded in 1909 in New York City, just 13 years after the birth of cinema, to protest New York City Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr.'s revocation of moving-picture exhibition licenses on Christmas Eve 1908. The mayor believed that the new medium...
) for Home from the HillHome from the Hill (film)Home from the Hill is a 1960 film directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Robert Mitchum, Eleanor Parker, George Peppard, George Hamilton, Everett Sloane, and Luana Patten....
as Best Supporting Actor - 1961 BAFTA Award Nomination (British Academy Award) for Home From The Hill
- 1961 Promising newcomer to leading film roles
- Star on the Hollywood Walk of FameHollywood Walk of FameThe Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
(Category Motion Pictures, 6675 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles)
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | The United States Steel Hour The United States Steel Hour The United States Steel Hour is an anthology series which brought hour-long dramas to television from 1953 to 1963. The television series and the radio program that preceded it were both sponsored by the United States Steel Corporation.... |
Piney Woods | TV: Bang the Drum Slowly |
| 1956 - 57 | Kraft Television Theatre Kraft Television Theatre Kraft Television Theatre is an American drama/anthology television series that began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. In January 1948, it moved to 9pm on Wednesdays, continuing in that timeslot until 1958. Initially produced by the J... |
TV: The Long Flight Flying Object at Three O'Clock High |
|
| 1957 | The Kaiser Aluminium Hour | Lynch | TV: A Real Fine Cutting Edge |
| 1957 | Studio One | TV: A Walk in the Forest | |
| 1957 | The Alcoa Hour The Alcoa Hour The Alcoa Hour is a live anthology television series sponsored by Alcoa and telecast in the United States from 1955 to 1957. The series was seen Sundays on NBC at 9pm.-Overview:... |
Eddie Pierce | TV: The Big Build-Up |
| 1957 | The Strange One The Strange One The Strange One is a 1957 black-and-white film about students faced with an ethical dilemma in a military college in the Southern United States... |
Cadet Robert Marquales | |
| 1957 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents Alfred Hitchcock Presents Alfred Hitchcock Presents is an American television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock. The series featured dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. By the premiere of the show on October 2, 1955, Hitchcock had been directing films for over three decades... |
Evan Wallace | TV: The Diplomatic Corpse |
| 1957 - 58 | Matinee Theatre Matinee Theatre Matinee Theatre is an American anthology series that aired on NBC during the Golden Age of Television, from 1955 to 1958. The series, which ran daily in the afternoon, was frequently live. It was produced by Albert McCleery, Darrell Ross, George Cahan and Frank Price with executive producer George... |
TV: End of the Rope, Part 1 End of the Rope, Part 2 Aftermath |
|
| 1958 | Suspicion Suspicion (TV series) Suspicion is the title of an American television mystery drama series which aired on the NBC from 1957 through 1959. The executive producer of Suspicion was film director Alfred Hitchcock.-Overview:... |
Lee | TV: The Eye of Truth |
| 1958 | Hallmark Hall of Fame Hallmark Hall of Fame Hallmark Hall of Fame is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City based greeting card company. The second longest-running television program in the history of television, it has a historically long run, beginning in 1951 and continuing into 2011... |
Dennis Walsh | TV: Little Moon of Alban |
| 1959 | Pork Chop Hill Pork Chop Hill Pork Chop Hill , directed by Lewis Milestone, is a Korean War war film based upon the eponymous book by military historian S. L. A. Marshall, depicting the bitterly fierce first Battle of Pork Chop Hill between the U.S. Army's 7th Infantry Division, and Chinese and Korean Communist forces at the... |
Cpl. Chuck Fedderson | |
| 1960 | Home from the Hill Home from the Hill (film) Home from the Hill is a 1960 film directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Robert Mitchum, Eleanor Parker, George Peppard, George Hamilton, Everett Sloane, and Luana Patten.... |
Raphael "Rafe" Copley | |
| 1960 | Startime | Pat Lawrence | TV: Incident at a Corner |
| 1960 | The Subterraneans The Subterraneans The Subterraneans is a 1958 novella by Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac. It is a semi-fictional account of his short romance with an African American woman named Alene Lee in San Francisco in 1953. In the novel she is renamed "Mardou Fox," and described as a carefree spirit who frequents the... |
Leo Percepied | |
| 1961 | Breakfast at Tiffany's | Paul Varjak | |
| 1962 | How the West Was Won How the West Was Won (film) How the West Was Won is a 1962 American epic Western film. The picture was one of the last "old-fashioned" epic films made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to enjoy great success. It follows four generations of a family as they move ever westward, from western New York state to the Pacific Ocean... |
Zeb Rawlings | |
| 1963 | The Victors The Victors "The Victors" is the fight song of the University of Michigan . It was composed by UM student Louis Elbel in 1898 following the last-minute football victory over the University of Chicago that clinched a league championship... |
Cpl. Chase | |
| 1964 | The Carpetbaggers The Carpetbaggers The Carpetbaggers is the title of a 1961 bestselling novel by Harold Robbins, which was adapted into a 1964 film of the same title.The term "carpetbagger" refers to an outsider relocating to exploit locals . It derives from post-bellum South usage, where it referred specifically to opportunistic... |
Jonas Cord | |
| 1964 | Theatre of Stars | Buddy Wren | TV: The Game with Glass Pieces |
| 1965 | Operation Crossbow Operation Crossbow (film) Operation Crossbow is a British 1965 spy thriller and World War II film, made from a story from Duilio Coletti and Vittoriano Petrilli and filmed at MGM-British Studios... |
Lt. John Curtis | |
| 1965 | The Third Day The Third Day The Third Day is a feature film released in 1965. It stars George Peppard and his then wife Elizabeth Ashley, and is a suspense thriller. It was largely ignored in cinemas and is rarely seen on television. It was directed by Jack Smight from a book by Joseph Hayes.-Plot:Steve Mallory has been... |
Steve Mallory | |
| 1966 | The Blue Max The Blue Max The Blue Max is an 1966 British war film about a German fighter pilot on the Western Front during World War I. It was directed by John Guillermin, stars George Peppard, James Mason and Ursula Andress, and features Karl Michael Vogler and Jeremy Kemp. The screenplay was written by David Pursall,... |
Lt. Bruno Stachel | |
| 1967 | Tobruk | Capt. Kurt Bergman | |
| 1967 | Rough Night in Jericho Rough Night in Jericho (film) Rough Night in Jericho is a 1967 western film starring George Peppard, Dean Martin, and Jean Simmons, and directed by Arnold Laven. The supporting cast includes John McIntire and Slim Pickens. This is the only film where Dean Martin portrayed the villain.... |
Dolan | |
| 1968 | New Face in Hell | P.T. Detweiler | |
| 1968 | What's So Bad About Feeling Good? What's so bad about feeling good? What's So Bad About Feeling Good? is the title of a 1968 comedy film, starring George Peppard, Mary Tyler Moore, Jeanne Arnold, Dom DeLuise and Gillian Spencer.... |
Pete | |
| 1968 | House of Cards | Reno Davis | |
| 1969 | Pendulum | Capt. Frank Matthews | |
| 1970 | The Executioner | John Shay | |
| 1970 | Cannon for Cordoba Cannon for Cordoba Cannon for Cordoba was a western film that was released in 1970. Filmed in Spain, the large part of the movie takes place in Mexico in 1912... |
Capt. Red Douglas | |
| 1971 | One More Train to Rob One More Train to Rob One More Train to Rob is a 1971 film directed by Andrew McLaglen. It stars George Peppard and Diana Muldaur.-Cast:*George Peppard as Harker Fleet*Diana Muldaur as Katy*John Vernon as Timothy Xavier Nolan*France Nuyen as Ah Toy... |
Harker Fleet | |
| 1972 | The Bravos | Major John David Harkness | TV movie |
| 1972 | The Groundstar Conspiracy The Groundstar Conspiracy The Groundstar Conspiracy is a 1972 film directed by Lamont Johnson. It stars George Peppard and Michael Sarrazin. The script was very freely adapted from L. P. Davies' 1968 novel, The Alien... |
Tuxan | |
| 1972 - 74 | Banacek Banacek Banacek is a short-lived, light-hearted detective TV series starring George Peppard on NBC from 1972 to 1974. It alternated in its timeslot with several other shows but was the only one to last beyond its first season... |
Thomas Banacek | |
| 1974 | Newman's Law Newman's Law Newman's Law is a 1974 film directed by Richard T. Heffron. It stars George Peppard and Roger Robinson.-Cast:*George Peppard as Vince Newman*Roger Robinson as Garry*Eugene Roche as Reardon*Gordon Pinsent as Jack Eastman*Abe Vigoda as John Dellanzia... |
Vince Newman | |
| 1975 | The Week of Fear | Dr. Jake Goodwin | TV movie |
| 1975 | Guilty or Innocent: The Sam Sheppard Murder Case | Dr. Samuel Sheppard | TV movie |
| 1975 - 76 | Doctors' Hospital Doctors' Hospital Doctors' Hospital is an American medical drama that ran on NBC during the 1975-1976 season. It followed the neurosurgery team at the fictional Lowell Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles, led by Dr. Jake Goodwin and his staff, including residents Norah Purcell , and Felipe Ortega , and Nurse Hestor... |
Dr. Jake Goodwin | |
| 1977 | Damnation Alley Damnation Alley (film) Damnation Alley is a 1977 film, directed by Jack Smight, loosely based on the novel of the same name by Roger Zelazny. The original music score was composed by Jerry Goldsmith.-Plot:... |
Maj. Eugene Denton | |
| 1979 | Five Days from Home | T.M. Pryor | |
| 1979 | Crisis in Mid-air | Nick Culver | TV movie |
| 1979 | From Hell to Victory | Brett Rosson | |
| 1979 | Torn Between Two Lovers Torn Between Two Lovers "Torn Between Two Lovers" is the title of a pop song written by Peter Yarrow and Phillip Jarrell. It was inspired by Boris Pasternak's 1957 novel, Dr. Zhivago, which featured a man in love with two women. Yarrow originally intended the song to be sung by a man... |
Paul Rasmussen | TV movie |
| 1980 | Battle Beyond the Stars Battle Beyond the Stars Battle Beyond the Stars is a Roger Corman-produced science fiction film, directed by Jimmy T. Murakami and released in 1980. The film, intended as a "Magnificent Seven in outer space," is a pastiche of The Magnificent Seven, the Western remake of Akira Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai... |
Cowboy | |
| 1981 | Race for the Yankee Zephyr Race for the Yankee Zephyr Race for the Yankee Zephyr is a 1981 New Zealand supense-action-thriller film directed by David Hemmings and starring Ken Wahl, Lesley Ann Warren, George Peppard and Donald Pleasence.-Plot:... |
Theo Brown | |
| 1981 | Your Ticket Is No Longer Valid | Jim Daley | |
| 1982 | Twilight Theatre | TV movie | |
| 1982 | Jugando con la muerte | McFadden | |
| 1983 - 87 | The A-Team The A-Team The A-Team is an American action adventure television series about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces personnel who work as soldiers of fortune, while on the run from the Army after being branded as war criminals for a "crime they didn't commit". The A-Team was created by... |
John "Hannibal" Smith | |
| 1984 | Tales of the Unexpected Tales of the Unexpected (TV series) Tales of the Unexpected is a British television series originally aired between 1979 and 1988, made by Anglia Television for ITV. Filming began in 1978.The series was an anthology of different tales... |
Sgt. Guedo | TV: The Dirty Detail |
| 1988 | Man Against the Mob | Frank Doakey | TV movie |
| 1989 | Zwei Frauen Zwei Frauen Zwei Frauen is a 1989 German dramatic film. The film stars Jami Gertz, George Peppard, Bruce Payne and Rip Torn.... |
Mr. Martin | |
| 1989 | Man Against the Mob: The Chinatown Murders | Frank Doakey | TV movie |
| 1990 | Night of the Fox | Col. Harry Martineau/Max Vogel | TV movie |
| 1992 | The Tigress | Sid Slaughter | |
| 1994 | Matlock Matlock (TV series) Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of attorney Ben Matlock. The show originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC, where it replaced The A-Team, then from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC.The show's format was similar... |
Max Morgan | TV: The P.I. |
External links
- Ooh Yummy George Peppard Fan site
- George Peppard at Find A GraveFind A GraveFind a Grave is a commercial website providing free access and input to an online database of cemetery records. It was founded in 1998 as a DBA and incorporated in 2000.-History:...