Peter Ustinov does Charles Laughton Impressions
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- Опубликовано: 7 июн 2024
- Criterion extras for Spartacus. Abbreviated at the start. Missing Ustinov talking about the secular uniqueness of this type of costume drama.
I was blown away by the off the top of his head eloquence of this man. I could listen to him all day.
Really loved his Charles Laughton impressions.
Lots of anecdotes. Kubrick, Kirk, the times.
I don't own this. Just sharing this fragment. 
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How I miss the days when such eloquence, class and sophistication were so readily on show!!!
In fairness, there has never been anyone like him either.
@@krishanchoudhury Bullshit. The Charles Manson Generation ruined the culture. You only have to look at a monster like Howard Stern and know how he would have been received by the pre-Woodstock society to see the difference.
Stephen Fry. Douglas Murray.
You are not alone. Now it's clicks on tik tok!!! Who knew we'd disintegrate to mud so quickly? I Claidius for ever
Lol, getting old. Sound like your grandparents. Funny how much we love change when young and dislike it when we grow old.
An evening with Peter Ustinof was a bargain at any price. We all miss him greatly.
Thanks. I wonder what Peter would think about events in Ukraine and Russia. Civilisation has a thin skin. Life is cheap.
@@dennisesplin3285 I think hed be appalled and would probably be on whatever boards of communication he could to try and end it asap.
@@soeffingwhat Peter was in a film with Humphrey Bogart. I can't remember it's title. I loved him in Topakaki. A brilliant heist film filmed in Istanbul. The most fascinating city in the World.
@@dennisesplin3285 We're No Angels.
Humphrey Bogart, Alan Alda, and Peter Ustinov.
Great film.
@@soeffingwhat Have to stop Putin first. That will end it.
Mr Ustinovs impressions of Olivier and Laughton are stellar 😀 Olivier calling everyone " dear boy"
Totally. And especially the Richard III-like “the future”
When Peter Ustinov passed away, the world became a poorer place. His interviews and acting roles put on display a man who was genuinely articulate, intelligent and talented with a presence of humility that is rarely seen in stars of his calibre. I wonder if it will ever be possible for our stars/role models of today to follow in the footsteps of such an incredible example of what human beings could be like if they put their minds to it.
Stars/role models of today (?). John Sayles 🩵 eg. 2004 Silver City ; 1988 Eight Men Out etc etc Of course if you literally mean today (2023) I’m stumped ! !
Would be nice.
There are no stars or role models today. At least in Hollywood.
A brilliant, witty and wickedly talented actor. Thank you, England.
Russian, German, Polish, Ethiopian and Jewish descent
And English born and bred.
Ustinov could have given a talk on how paint dries, and it still would have been interesting!
ruclips.net/video/Bi1GXrLLHjs/видео.html
In some remote cranny of my memory I seem to recall that Ustinov began his magistral lecture on this very subject in AD 74 with Pliny the Elder on saturnism
Allways like PETER GREAT ACTOR. DOES CHARLES LAUGHTON TO TEA. TWO BAD I WAS THERE I REMEMBER ALL MOVIES THEY DID. I LOVE TO SEE PETER TALK ABOUT TOPAKI. HOW WAS GREEK ACTRESS WAS IN REAL LIFE.
One never gets a gossipy slant from Ustinov, just the facts without judgement as well was all his accents and nationalities. THE greatest raconteur without doubt.
Anyone who is interested in Charles Laughton, should watch Hobsons Choice , a true Classic.
British actors, at their best , a Classic
He is absolutely amazing in that wonderful film
@@reasonrestored9116 And in a lot of other films. My favorite is Rembrandt and Ruggles of Red Gap.
Absolutely fascinating to see how he paints a scene like Rembrandt, only that he does so with words. What an absolute treasure.
He was a brilliant humorist, impressionist, author, and actor. Shame one can't live forever, Ustinov would have been a candidate for this task. He was wonderful.
I know what you mean. If only we could live forever. It's sad when great celebrities pass away. Loved his voice.
Rodney Morgan Brown Good he is not around today; he would be dismayed and disgusted.
Jim LaGuardia On what basis are you saying that? Did you know the man or somehow have an insight into Ustinov’s mind? Unless you did that rather ungracious and presumptuous.
dont forget, diplomat, linguist, UN Ambassador, friend to some very powerful people etc, but still was able to be with the 'common man'
@@delenngm I don't think that it's ungracious or presumptuous to note that he was an urbane, sophisticated man with a wonderful command of the English language, and that precisely these qualities are today in precipitous decline, and that this may well have dismayed him, not to mention the catastrophic state of world affairs. I'm beginning to presume that the act of thinking itself is the real target of political correctness, any speculation, any form of imagination to be neutralised as a purported affront to human dignity.
Hollywood studios spend $100 million making films that are less entertaining than the half hour I just spent listening to Peter Ustinov talk into a single fixed camera with no props or set dressing to speak of. How does someone get this good at storytelling?
This is the best comment possible about this video, you’re so right!
Agree
Spot on!
His interviews are legendary. Fascinating man, fascinating life. If you haven’t seen them watch his appearances on Parkinson, hilarious as always.
Because the goal of the masters behind hollywood is to lower the morales and consciouness of the masses
I never tire of listening to this man.. every word a delight. I was lucky enough once to get tickets to see him live at the Palladium in London, rarely has two hours passed so quickly. Absolutely without equal.
His like are few and far between..old school brilliance...
Peter Ustinov was a truly great man, there are too few people like him today. He is and will always be greatly missed.
There is nobody like him. There are many 'great' speakers, men, women and everything in between. Listen to BBC World Service or Radio 4 to find some of what you want for a good start. 😉
The best ever raconteur - sorely missed by all of us who admired this giant of a personality.
His flat American accents are brilliant.
I once saw Peter Ustinov in his one-man show. 2 hours of wit, entertainment and holding the audience in the palm of his hand. He could have gone on for a further 2 hours and it would have been no less enjoyable.
Always admired Mr. Ustinov. His education, eloquence, ability, humor, etc...RIP
His impressions of Charles Laughton had me laughing so hard I could hardly breathe. I could listen to Peter U talking all day. He is incredibly engaging. One has the feeling he is specifically conversing with you alone.
Very well put. He really had that gift.
Scene with Ustinov & Laughton in Kubrick's Spartacus, a dialog, is one of the very best in motion-picture history; in my humble opinion... dialog-wise anyhow. The finest possible acting.
Total agree
What a joy to listen to his vocabulary and syntax. How sadly rare. I never tire of him. Thank you for posting this.
Thank god for all the joy he had recorded, and his printed word.
Not just in English. He was fluent in Russian, Spanish, French, German and Italian as well.
His mimicry of Olivier has me laughing still. I've saved the entire clip for the story of Huston and Olivier conspiring to rewrite the scene, with Laughton upsetting the whole thing!
Totally! Right toward the end of it when he said “The future!” Very Olivier like in a Richard III sense.
He was scary as Nero in Quo Vadis . But, wow! What a performance . He was not scary in reality . And what a great story teller. No wonder Michael Parkinson had him as a guest so many time . A gentle man and a good entertainer as well .
I mention that Nero was seventeen in 54AD when he became Emperor and he suicided in 68. I thought the actor should have been younger.
The greatest storyteller we miss you Peter Ustinov
Did a hell of a lot for UNICEF and worked as a mediator by the world governments . A great man with a quick wit and a brilliant brain. Great comedian as well
What an extraordinary raconteur. I could listen to Ustinov for hours.
Bobbnoxious yes yes me too, what vivid enunciation!!
Check this out: ruclips.net/video/SfxxEfdmn_Y/видео.html
He occasionally toured, just him on stage telling stories. I was fortunate enough to see him at one of these performances.
There is a distinct difference between ability learned from academic pursuit and that gained through experience of life. Ustinov possessed both in abundance but his facility as raconteur demonstrated how a life of varied experience can provide both a wealth of material and the confidence and erudition to share it with others. He was a unique and marvellous entertainer.
Ustinov and Sellers were absolute geniuses.
Brilliant man, brilliant wit. His impression of Laughton is brilliant
This is hilarious in part and his Laughton impression is uncanny!
I love his over-the-top American accents.
I'm an American and Many Americans sound just like that!
If you were to invite ten guests from history for a dinner party Ustinov would surely be on the list, could listen to his tales all day!
A Charles Laughton film favourite for me is not the Hollywood blockbusters, but Hobson's Choice, the quintessentially English film.
Barry Cross Featuring a very young Prunella Scales.
My favorite Laughton film is the one he directed but wasn't in, Night and the Hunter. Genius.
I liked "Jamaica Inn," but it was universally panned by critics.
Indeed, I second your sentiments.. I watched 'yet again' Hobson's Choice' last evening.. An absolutely corking film, all the actors were splendidly cast too.. :D
I LOVE “Hobson’s Choice”! All the actors are brilliant in it, but of course Laughton shines.
Crikey, the man was an absolute flaming *planetary treasure*.
porcospino289 can't some private space contractor send Trump off to Mars or some other humor less life less domain?
@@bobbywimsy6741 Why in the world would you even mention that person on this page? No call for it, at all.
love his facial transformation when he's doing Laughton
I had the great pleasure of seeing him live,in a one man show. Genius,genius,genius.
Wonderful man. A great credit to the British acting community.
What an absolutely lovely, brilliant, charming man.
A consummate professional, witty, extremely funny, accent raconteur and multi linguist.. Sir Peter was and still is an absolutely magical actor to watch, either on stage or film..
He was a GREAT actor, wonderful raconteur, just a fabulous entertainer.
What a class act, could listen to him for hours!
A man of many talents. I first saw him as Nero on a bed sheet in my church youth theater room. But I really loved “We’re NoAngels.” Such a touching Christmas movie.
How lucky we are to have gems like this to visit
Awesome actor doing an awesome impression of an awesome actor!
Apart from Michael, Kirk Douglas had another son who tried his hand at comedy, but he wasn't particularly good. He was playing in Britain and wasn't going down well and he shouted 'l'm Kirk Douglas's son!' so one bloke stood up and shouted 'No! l'm Kirk Douglas's son!' Apparently true.
brilliant bloke
@Billy the dog
I don't care if that's true or not -- I love it!
You made up that story. You Sir, are a lying dog faced pony soldier.
I suspect it’s apocryphal, but it was worth telling lol
Great man. Class act. Old school. A pleasure to listen to him speak.
pantslizard
Neil Davies
pantslizard what an impression he could do of our Mr. Twitler! One of the most perfevrly gifted mimics since the late David Frye!
One of the absolute greats in the world of theatre and film
Bob, I heard you on Gilbert Gottfried. You were one of his best guests. I mentioned you on Doug TenNapel's podcast. Top ten gorilla men. The other guys thought it was hilarious I had that sort of data stored.
Thanks for posting this. Ustinov was one of the truly rare artists of our time who never took himself too seriously.
If anyone hasn't seen Ustinov's performance in Quo Vadis I encourage you to do so. It's amazing.
Jack Thompson I watched it a couple of months ago and I enjoyed it immensely. 👍
I remember seeing that years ago
Refreshing to not have an interviewer constantly jumping in.
this man was incredibly witty and funny. one of the funniest imitators I've ever seen.
A brilliant, articulate and funny man.
I can listen to this man all day.
His resume fills more volumes than are in the Library of Congress. A brilliant man of extremely rare quality. A complete joy…...
This man was a true genius......so very funny
I could listen to this magnificent, intelligent, funny, wonder of a man for the rest of my life. Thank you for the post.
Such a brilliant and cultured gentleman.
Incredible intellect, wit, and talent. Never a boring moment with PU. One of the most interesting characters ever. The stories he could have told.
Great, lovely, wonderful, funny, and no bad language. How unfashionable
NAILS thatAmerican accent.
One cannot help but to be enraptured by every new delivery of life's encounters by Peter. I could sit for hours listening to him expounding on his seemingly endless, episodic-like, enchanted life. His brilliant & worldly experiences are so refreshing & overwhelm me w/their scope.
Ustinov was always enormously entertaining, and this was no exception. I laughed out loud.
Absolutely brilliant! One of my favorite actors of all times.....I don't get tired of watching one of the great minds in cinema, either in film or interviews like this one.
Brilliant perfomance Peter, one of your finest I dont know if you got an oscar . God bless
I’ve been a fan of Ustinov ever since I watched him play Blackbeard in “Blackbeard’s Ghost”, as a kid. He could broad comedy and he could do high drama, much like Laughton. His impressions are so fun! His Laughton voice and facial expression is so spot on.
Best story teller ever, and certainly a great actor ... thanks for sharing this
Amazing mimicry. Just perfect voice work.
My parents drove away. Leaving me at A gas station. They traveled 45 minutes before noticing I wasn't there.
Watching him as a young man in WW2 films, I think he also wrote a few, are fascinating to watch especially as you picture him in later ‘bigger films’ to follow. One I recall was ‘The Way Ahead’ and another was ‘The New Lot’ and a smaller part in ‘One of Our Aircraft is missing’….. I think they can be found here on RUclips…. He had so much talent and his intellect was astounding…. Sorely missed…. Thank You for so much joy and wit….!
All actors gave a fantastic performance, but for me in order of Impact 1-5 - K Douglas, Lawrence Olivier, Charles Laughton, P Ustinov, Jean Simmons
Good ranking.
I don’t recall a better impression of Charles Laughton and his story of Laughton being wrongly identified by two tourists was wonderful.
Watching Ustinov act is a masterclass in details. He underplays brilliantly.
Imagine having Ustinov as your dinner guest.
A lesson in how to talk off the cuff for 30 minutes without once saying "You know" or "If you like" or, above all, "incredible".
Awesome!
@@alantallentire5834 Oh yes, that's another one!
That is a good point! An incredibly polished gentleman - and I cannot think of his equivalent now.
A pleasure to hear such an intelligent, articulate, man.
Shame that Laughton didn't direct more movies. He shrunk back after the criticism of Night Of The Hunter starring Robert Mitchum. An atmospheric and scary movie that didn't need monsters and great props. Only recognised as a terrific movie in much later years. I would love to have seen what else Charles might have provided for us.
Kohl423 Reminds me of the anecdote about Laughton: He spoke at, of all things, a prayer breakfast. The lector read the Scripture, Psalm 23, after which Charles arose. He began surveying the assembled dignitaries; for some reason I think President Eisenhower was in the audience; must've been the annual Presidential Prayer breakfast. Anyway, Charles surveyed the audience, and said: I also could read this Psalm; some say I am an actor, and it is true I know the words of this Psalm.But the previous speaker knows the Author.
@@bobbywimsy6741.
@@bobbywimsy6741 Now that is quite the anecdote. Very good.
I wish this guy could have lived for ever, such an intelligent person and a great human being..
Wow, fascinating interview! I could listen to Peter Ustinov for days ... Thanks for posting this!
I loved how he mentioned Charles Laughton and immediately did his facial characteristics. Peter was a giant intellect and such a lovely man.
My parents saw Charles Laughton perform readings from Shakespeare in Philadelphia about 1954 or so. It remains unforgettable to them even in their 80s.
God bless them for Charles was one one the best ever..I envy them
As good as it gets:
The Hunchback of Notre Dame!
Hacklebernie Grundsau What a blessing! Are you related to Sarah Huckleberry, Hair Furor's preusse secretary by any chance? I'm from Philadelphia, and I'd love to hear their original voices, and their opinion of Trumpius. Wasn't Benedict Arnold a NYer, too, or was that Major André?
It was a brief but great pleasure of my life to once meet this man, and to experience his wit, wisdom, warmth and charm first hand.
wow. i listened to the whole thing. It went by like a flash.
A classic timeless raconteur, of an age of "real" celebrities and personalities . Where are these people now ?
Peter McDonald's: Gone, along with so many other class actors and true gentlemen
The British have a very intelligent humorous way of speaking....and a great command of -simply put-.WORDS......they brilliantly know how to SPEAK...something that has escaped the American actors
Bless him, fond memories :) x
Peter was great. I saw a 70mm screening after Spartacus was restored, in '91, a limited run screening, at select US theaters, including here in Denver. I took my parents, I had free tickets via a radio station I still work at. I'm glad that I saw so many classics, on the big screen, in the 1980s-90s.
I ADORE Péter I miss him sooo much. God Bless his soul
Modern day directors and actors: PAY ATTENTION TO THIS MAN! Especially about Mr. Ustinov's perspective about what REAL drama is.
There is no space for anybody like Mr. Ustinov any more.
Yes, the world has gotten too small ! A world where foul language and a crude Twittering Troll President rule !
So well spoken! I wish he were still with us.
'A thermos of filled with beef tea and vodka, hidden under his toga..'
..just great.
Lytton333 My dream imitation would be Peter
doing Trump! Wonder what's under that foot long red tie, besides 3 or 4 spare tires.
Laughton was a superb actor and he stood out even in this one which was one of his last acting performances.He could and indeed did do so many different Characters and very few actors could do that and those that could could not do them as good as him.Les Miserables /The private life of henry the VIII/and Mutiny on the bounty (was was his greatest acting performance in my opinion )were 3 of his best .
This is my other account. I posted this clip from this plazpastic acct. You're right about Laughton. His hunchback destroyed me. ruclips.net/video/H3kTApLhQpA/видео.html
Your mention of Mutiny makes me want to see it again. I remember how on a dime my sympathies switched to Bligh the way he played getting into the boat. Like he was just waiting for this new challenge. And of course Night of the Hunter. What he poured into that made it classic. I'd like to hear Mitchum talk about it.
Stellar artist, Charles Laughton!
👏👏👏
Brilliant. Well told and fascinating BTS revelations.
Video ended on the perfect anecdote.
Thanks for uploading.
Thank you so much for putting this up. What a genial genius! No more like him, alas!
This was a great interview with fascinating stories (wish I could hear more). Loved Ustinov's performance in Spartacus. His American accents are spot on.
Yep, he was a great storyteller.
As teenager use to watch Dick Cavett... and Peter Ustinov appeared on his show. I loved his conversation skills, a true raconteur. Discovered he spoke 7 languages, most of them fluently. Well... that stuck in my head, and I'm must admit that lead to having studied 7 languages. However not fluent in any of the languages XD
He was one of a kind, real nice guy. His stories I personally will miss..........
Brilliant raconteur
Such a clever, funny bloke. Loved to have met him.
It should be titled “Ustinov does imitations of Americans”. Which he does very well.
I'm going to give myself a showing of Quo Vadis this evening, it is going to be a lot more nuanced than the first time i saw it! Thank you so much for posting these wonderful extracts.