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Peter Finch (September 28, 1916 - January 14, 1977) was an English-born Australian actor. Born Frederick George Peter Ingle-Finch in London, he lived as a child in France and India, and finally in Australia, his parents' native country. There he grew up in Sydney. After finishing school, he worked in several badly paid jobs until he tried acting. He began in 1935 playing theatre roles, and also working in radio. In 1938, he appeared in his first film, Dad and Dave Come to Town . Thereafter he played again on stage, where he was noticed by Laurence Olivier and encouraged to return to London. During this time Finch had an affair with Olivier's wife, Vivien Leigh. The affair began in 1948, and continued on and off for several years. Despite his stage experience, Finch suffered from stage fright and turned to films. His first role in a British-made film was in Eureka Stockade (1949) (set in Australia). Finch's Hollywood debut was in The Miniver Story in 1950, but his first major role was in 1956's A Town Like Alice . In 1972, his role of the homosexual Jewish doctor in Sunday Bloody Sunday earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role. He did not win the award on that occasion. Finch died from a heart attack on January 14, 1977 at the age of 60. At the time, he was doing a promotional tour for the 1976 film Network in which he made an over-the-top portrayal of the crazed television anchor man Howard Beale. He was posthumously nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his role, and went on to win the award, which was accepted by his widow. Although James Dean, Spencer Tracy, and Massimo Troisi had also been posthumously nominated for a Best Actor Oscar, Peter Finch was the first (and only) actor ever to win the award posthumously. He was also the first Australian actor to win the Best Actor award. Finch also won five Awards of the British Film Academy. Peter Finch was married three times. His first wife was Tamara Tchinarova and his second wife Yolande Turner. Both marriages ended in divorce. His third wife was Eletha Finch. He had four children from his three marriages. He is interred in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, California. Some references say his original name was William Mitchell. This is not correct. He was once arrested for drunkenness in Rome and, when asked for his name, he gave a fictitious one in order to protect his professional reputation. When his real identity was later revealed, some commentators made the incorrect assumption that William Mitchell must have been his legal name. In 1980, noted author and film/theatre industry insider Elaine Dundy wrote his biography titled Finch, bloody Finch: A biography of Peter Finch .
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