Peter O’Toole dead at 81
OHMYGOSSIP — Peter O’Toole has died. The actor passed away Saturday at the Wellington hospital in London following a long illness, his agent Steve Kenis said. He was 81.
In July last year, Peter said he was retiring from the arena that made him a household name going back to 1962′s Lawrence of Arabia.
“It is time for me to chuck in the sponge,” Peter said at the time. “To retire from films and stage. The heart for it has gone out of me: it won’t come back.
“My professional acting life, stage and screen, has brought me public support, emotional fulfillment and material comfort. It has brought me together with fine people, good companions with whom I’ve shared the inevitable lot of all actors: flops and hits.
“However, it’s my belief that one should decide for oneself when it is time to end one’s stay. So I bid the profession a dry-eyed and profoundly grateful farewell.”
The Irish-born actor was nominated for eight Academy Awards throughout his 58-year career, which has seen him star in classic films The Lion in the Winter, Goodbye Mr. Chips, Caligula, Man of La Mancha and more recently in 2004 war movie Troy alongside Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom and Diane Kruger.