WILL THE REAL MR. SELLERS…

December 18, 1969

Directed
by Tony Palmer

Peter
Sellers
(1925-1980) was born Richard Henry Sellers to a well-off English
acting family. His mother and father worked in an acting company run
by his grandmother. He was hailed as one of the greatest comic actors
of his time. He was nominated for three Oscars, including two for
acting in Dr.
Strangelove
(1965) and Being
There
(1979). He was probably best known for playing the bungling Inspector
Clouseau in The
Pink Panther
films. On
July 22, 1980 he collapsed from a massive heart attack and fell into
a coma. He died in a London hospital aged 54.

“If
you ask me to play myself, I will not know what to do. I do not know
who or what I am.”
~ Peter Sellers

This
fascinating 50-minute pseudo-documentary was created in 1969 as a
promotional movie for Sellers’ 1969 British film The
Magic Christian.
It defies logical summary and is practically free-form. It features
a voice-over by UK comedy legend Spike Milligan, a frequent
collaborator of Sellers. The
footage provides no coherent through line, which reinforces the
underlying point that the enigmatic Sellers has no tangible essence
to grasp onto. The
documentary includes some graphically strong scenes (a bullfight,
open heart surgery, nudity) and adult language.

The
documentary was never re-broadcast by the BBC, reportedly because
Sellers thought he came off as depressed. It was never aired in the
US. Some of the footage was shot on the ship Queen Elizabeth II and
some was centered around finishing an promoting The
Magic Christian.

The
film features appearances from the likes of Richard Attenborough,
Lionel Blair, Yul Brynner, Ava Gardner, Laurence Harvey, Raquel
Welch, Roger Moore, three out of the four Beatles, and yes –
Lucille Ball. All except Ball are also in The
Magic Christian.
The film was shot in Mid-1969, which means Lucille Ball was probably
on summer hiatus from “Here’s Lucy.”  

How
does Lucy figure into this obscure collection of images? Peter
Sellers is traveling and invites the viewers into a VIP lounge “to
experience a VIP.” 

Once inside, the VIP is Lucille Ball, who is
seen in silent close-ups putting on make-up and having unheard conversations.
There is no dialogue and the entire sequence lasts just 15 seconds. 

It is unclear if Lucy is traveling to or from New York or London or if they are traveling by air of on the QE2.

The film feels like hidden camera footage and it would be interesting to know if Lucy knew she was being filmed and if she was aware of the finished project.

 As with the rest of the film, the ambiguity of Lucy’s cameo is deliberate.

This Date in Lucy History – December 18th

“LUCY AND THE GROUP ENCOUNTER” (S5;E14)