Extra, Extra!: Christopher Lee Dies at the Age of 93

In which I report on the latest entertainment news.

This last year has been marked by an uncommonly high number of celebrity deaths.  First there was Robin Williams.  Then there was Leonard Nimoy.  Now, at the age of 93, Christopher Lee has also left us.

He was easily one of the most exceptional men to ever work in Hollywood.  Even before he broke out as an actor in 1957, he served the British military in World War II.  He was an airman, an intelligence officer and a member of Churchill's "Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare," where he would conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance behind the Nazi lines.  When Peter Jackson asked him to imagine the sound of a man being stabbed in the back, he told the Lord of the Rings director that he didn't have to imagine it.

His acting career has included over 250 film and television appearances, including a whopping 10 as Dracula.  He was golf partners with Ian Flemming - his cousin and author of the James Bond novels - and was his first choice for the role of Dr. No.  Although a scheduling conflict prevented him from the role - and others in future Bond films - he eventually was able to work on the series as Scaramanga, the titular "man with the golden gun."

Over the years, his roles have included The Lord of the Rings' Sarumon, The Wicker Man's Lord Summerisle, Star Wars' Count Dooku, Sherlock Holmes, Frankenstein's Monster and Kharis the Mummy.  He was known for doing as many of his own stunts as possible and has participated in the most on-screen sword fights in history.

The thing is, it gets even better.  Among his other accomplishments, he was a champion fencer.  At the age of 88, he recorded a heavy metal concept album about Charlemagne.  He was additionally fluent in five languages - English, Italian, French, German, Spanish - "moderately proficient" in three others - Swedish, Russian, Greek - and conversational in Mandarin.

 After completing work on last year's The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies, he had already moved on to his next project, the now-completed Angels in Notting Hill.  He, and his work, will be dearly missed.

So what is your favorite Christopher Lee film?  Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Join the Filmquisition on Twitter (@Filmquisition) or by subscribing to this blog.