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 A prolific character actor on British television for three decades, Ronald Lacey was born on June 18, 1935 in the suburbs of London. He began his career in 1961 after compulsory National Service. He attended The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. His first notable performance was delivered on stage in 1962 at The Royal Court Theatre in "Chips With Everything". Lacey had an unusual pug look with beady eyes and cherub's cheeks which landed him repeatedly in bizarre roles on both stage and screen. However it was his unforgettable demonic smile and peculiar Peter Lorre mannerisms that would bring Lacey a short period of fame in Hollywood.After performing on British television throughout the 1960's and 1970's, Lacey finally landed the role for which these characteristics could be used to full advantage. In 1981 he was cast as the villainous Nazi henchman in 'Steven Spielberg' 's widescreen blockbuster Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) He followed this with a series of various villainous roles for the next five to six years: Firefox (1982) with 'Clint Eastwood', Sahara (1983) with Brooke Shields, and Red Sonja (1985) with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Lacey turned in two hilarious cinematic performances in full drag (Disney's Trenchcoat (1983) with Margot Kidder from 1982 and Invitation to the Wedding (1983) from 1985 - in which he played a husband/wife couple!).Lacey died in London of liver failure on May 15, 1991. A tremendous talent with great depth and many facets, Ronald Lacey will probably be remembered best for his small but significant role as the dapper yet psychotic Nazi in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).
Bio:
A prolific character actor on British television for three decades, Ronald Lacey was born on June 18, 1935 in the suburbs of London. He began his career in 1961 after compulsory National Service. He attended The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. His first notable performance was delivered on stage in 1962 at The Royal Court Theatre in "Chips With Everything". Lacey had an unusual pug look with beady eyes and cherub's cheeks which landed him repeatedly in bizarre roles on both stage and screen. However it was his unforgettable demonic smile and peculiar Peter Lorre mannerisms that would bring Lacey a short period of fame in Hollywood.After performing on British television throughout the 1960's and 1970's, Lacey finally landed the role for which these characteristics could be used to full advantage. In 1981 he was cast as the villainous Nazi henchman in 'Steven Spielberg' 's widescreen blockbuster Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) He followed this with a series of various villainous roles for the next five to six years: Firefox (1982) with 'Clint Eastwood', Sahara (1983) with Brooke Shields, and Red Sonja (1985) with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Lacey turned in two hilarious cinematic performances in full drag (Disney's Trenchcoat (1983) with Margot Kidder from 1982 and Invitation to the Wedding (1983) from 1985 - in which he played a husband/wife couple!).Lacey died in London of liver failure on May 15, 1991. A tremendous talent with great depth and many facets, Ronald Lacey will probably be remembered best for his small but significant role as the dapper yet psychotic Nazi in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).
Tivia:
He had his lower intestines removed in his early twenties and as a result had to have a colostomy bag implemented. Over the years he was refused certain film roles in other countries at his personal doctor's fervent request. His lack of "guts", so to speak, prevented the classically trained character actor from travelling abroad for the sake of appearing in motion pictures.Disappointed with his acting career by the late 70s, he began to consider starting a talent agency. Spielberg then cast him as the sadistic Nazi villain, Toht, in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and after basking in the afterglow of the film's blockbuster success, the classically-trained character actor quickly changed his mind.Being of Welsh decent, he owned a family cottage in Wales which was passed on to his three children after his death. The family would spend their holidays together at the cottage.He gained and lost weight over the last ten years of his life as he was ill with cancer off and on. He occasionally looked bloated and swollen as a result of medical treatment. He finally succumbed to the cancer when it overtook his liver in May of 1991 and he died under the care of his daughter, Rebecca.He was the father of actress Rebecca Lacey and actor Jonathan Lacey.His wife Joanna Baker pre-deceased him.Lacey was twice married. Originally wed to actress Mela White, he became the father of two children (Rebecca and Jonathan) in the 1960s. After a turbulent divorce he remarried in 1973. Joanna Baker, his second wife, gave birth to his third child, Matthew.Ian Bartholomew sang 'Sometimes When We Touch' (The Honesty Song) at Lacey's memorial service which took place at St. James in Covent Garden almost three months after his death in 1991.His daughter, Rebecca, became a television success on the BBC's long-running Casualty (1986) series (a dramatic soap opera somewhat comparable to ER).His son Matthew is the godson of Hammer film's Barbara Shelley.He was known for his generosity and warmth to fans but equally known in the London Theatre scene for having a great fondness for drinking and smoking. Often the actor was noted amongst the gossip pages as having been seen indulging at various functions and developing a bit of a reputation of raising more than just a few eyebrows in his direction.He was one of the few actors to have been cast in both The Avengers (1961) and The New Avengers (1976).Several obituaries cite his birthdate as June 18, 1935 and others list it as September 28, 1935.He was offered the role of Sir Percy Heseltine in Lifeforce (1985), but had to reject the part because the cancer he was suffering from made him unable to accept the role because of the demanding make up involving body casts, so Aubrey Morris was cast instead. He was also considered for Dr. Bukovsky in the film.Lacey was known for his trademark smile which oft-times turned into a gleaming malicious leer as he played a number of wicked roles. He also had a rather large mole on his left cheek which he chose not to have removed. The mole gave his sinister characterizations extra dimension as it was quite large. In 1982's Trenchcoat (1983) (opposite Margot Kidder) he used the mole as a beauty mark in his role as Princess Aida, a mysterious and sleazy drag queen on the island of Malta.He was also a stage director and drama teacher.He was considered for several roles in Doctor Who (1963) but never appeared. He was offered the role of Commander Uvanov in The Robots of Death: Part One (1977), which was taken by Russell Hunter. He was asked over six times to appear in Doctor Who (1963) in the 1980s but was always busy elsewhere. He was one of the first choices, along with Ian Holm, to play Morgus in Peter Davison's final serial as the Doctor, The Caves of Androzani: Part One (1984), which instead went to John Normington, and he was considered suitable for Gavrok in Delta and the Bannermen: Part One (1987), which was taken by Don Henderson. |
| Name: |
Ronald Lacey |
Type: |
Actor,Additional Crew (IMDB) |
| Area: |
All World |
Platform: |
IMDB |
| Category: |
|
Business scope: |
Actor,Additional Crew |
| Products for sale: |
Actor,Additional Crew |
| Model rank: |
3145 |
| Last update: |
2024-07-01 04:22:16 |
| Height: |
5' 8' (1.73 m) |
| Biography: |
A prolific character actor on British television for three decades, Ronald Lacey was born on June 18, 1935 in the suburbs of London. He began his career in 1961 after compulsory National Service. He attended The London Academy of Music and Dramatic A |
| Trivia: |
He had his lower intestines removed in his early twenties and as a result had to have a colostomy bag implemented. Over the years he was refused certain film roles in other countries at his personal doctor's fervent request. His lack of "guts", so to speak, prevented the classically trained character actor from travelling abroad for the sake of appearing in motion pictures.Disappointed with his acting career by the late 70s, he began to consider starting a talent agency. Spielberg then cast him as the sadistic Nazi villain, Toht, in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and after basking in the afterglow of the film's blockbuster success, the classically-trained character actor quickly changed his mind.Being of Welsh decent, he owned a family cottage in Wales which was passed on to his three children after his death. The family would spend their holidays together at the cottage.He gained and lost weight over the last ten years of his life as he was ill with cancer off and on. He occasionally looked bloated and swollen as a result of medical treatment. He finally succumbed to the cancer when it overtook his liver in May of 1991 and he died under the care of his daughter, Rebecca.He was the father of actress Rebecca Lacey and actor Jonathan Lacey.His wife Joanna Baker pre-deceased him.Lacey was twice married. Originally wed to actress Mela White, he became the father of two children (Rebecca and Jonathan) in the 1960s. After a turbulent divorce he remarried in 1973. Joanna Baker, his second wife, gave birth to his third child, Matthew.Ian Bartholomew sang 'Sometimes When We Touch' (The Honesty Song) at Lacey's memorial service which took place at St. James in Covent Garden almost three months after his death in 1991.His daughter, Rebecca, became a television success on the BBC's long-running Casualty (1986) series (a dramatic soap opera somewhat comparable to ER).His son Matthew is the godson of Hammer film's Barbara Shelley.He was known for his generosity and warmth to fans but equally known in the London Theatre scene for having a great fondness for drinking and smoking. Often the actor was noted amongst the gossip pages as having been seen indulging at various functions and developing a bit of a reputation of raising more than just a few eyebrows in his direction.He was one of the few actors to have been cast in both The Avengers (1961) and The New Avengers (1976).Several obituaries cite his birthdate as June 18, 1935 and others list it as September 28, 1935.He was offered the role of Sir Percy Heseltine in Lifeforce (1985), but had to reject the part because the cancer he was suffering from made him unable to accept the role because of the demanding make up involving body casts, so Aubrey Morris was cast instead. He was also considered for Dr. Bukovsky in the film.Lacey was known for his trademark smile which oft-times turned into a gleaming malicious leer as he played a number of wicked roles. He also had a rather large mole on his left cheek which he chose not to have removed. The mole gave his sinister characterizations extra dimension as it was quite large. In 1982's Trenchcoat (1983) (opposite Margot Kidder) he used the mole as a beauty mark in his role as Princess Aida, a mysterious and sleazy drag queen on the island of Malta.He was also a stage director and drama teacher.He was considered for several roles in Doctor Who (1963) but never appeared. He was offered the role of Commander Uvanov in The Robots of Death: Part One (1977), which was taken by Russell Hunter. He was asked over six times to appear in Doctor Who (1963) in the 1980s but was always busy elsewhere. He was one of the first choices, along with Ian Holm, to play Morgus in Peter Davison's final serial as the Doctor, The Caves of Androzani: Part One (1984), which instead went to John Normington, and he was considered suitable for Gavrok in Delta and the Bannermen: Part One (1987), which was taken by Don Henderson. |
| Job title: |
Actor,Additional Crew |
| Others works: |
Toured for several months across the UK in his very own play, Dylan & Liz, based on the life of the notorious poet Dylan Thomas
Appeared at both The Royal Court Theatre and on Broadway in Arnold Wesker's Chips with Everything (1962)
Played four vil |
| Spouse: |
Joanna Baker (1973 - 1989) (her death, 1 child)Mela White (1962 - 1969) (divorced, 2 children) |
| Children: |
Rebecca LaceyJonathan Lacey |
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