Michael Pate
Encyclopedia
Michael Pate was an Australian actor, writer and director.
, Sydney
. Initially interested in becoming a medical missionary, but unable to afford the university fees due to the Depression
, he worked in Sydney before 1938, when he became a writer and broadcaster for the Australian Broadcasting Commission
, collaborating with George Ivan Smith
on Youth Speaks. For the remainder of the 1930s, he worked primarily in radio drama. He also published theatrical and literary criticism
and enjoyed brief success as an author of short stories
, publishing works in both Australia and the United States
.
During World War II
, Pate served in the Australian Army
in the South West Pacific Area
. He was transferred to the 1st Australian Army Amenities Entertainment Unit, known as "The Islanders", entertaining Australian troops in various combat areas.
. In 1950, he appeared in Bitter Springs with Tommy Trinder
and Chips Rafferty
.
Also in 1950, Pate adapted, produced, and directed two plays — Dark of the Moon and Bonaventure. Later that year he travelled to the U.S. to appear in a film adaptation of Bonaventure for Universal Pictures
, which was released in 1951 as Thunder on the Hill
, starring Claudette Colbert
and Ann Blyth
.
Pate spent most of the 1950s in the U.S., appearing in over 300 television shows and many films. Most notable among these was a 1953 Climax! live production of Ian Fleming
's Casino Royale
, in which Pate played the role of "Clarence Leiter
", opposite Barry Nelson
's "Jimmy Bond
". On the big screen, he played the one-scene role of Flavius
in Julius Caesar
, the 1953 film adaptation of William Shakespeare
's play. In the same year he first played a Native American
in Australian director John Farrow
's western Hondo
playing opposite John Wayne
; he later said that this was his favourite film role. Pate went on to play many Native American roles. In 1956 he appeared in the film The Court Jester
. Pate also played the lead role of a gunfighting vampire
in the 1959 horror film Curse of the Undead
.
During his time in the U.S., Pate became an acting instructor and lecturer, and wrote many screenplays and teleplays for the major American networks. In 1959, he returned briefly to Australia, where he starred in the TV program The Shell Hour. He returned to the U.S. for another eight years, during which he enjoyed a successful career as a television character actor
, appearing repeatedly on such programs as Gunsmoke
, The Rifleman
, Branded ("Call to Glory"), Daniel Boone
, The Virginian
, Batman
, Mission: Impossible
("Trek"), The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
("The Foreign Legion Affair"), Get Smart
, Rawhide
("Incident of the Power and the Plow"), and Wagon Train
. In the 1963 movie PT 109
he played the part of Arthur Reginald Evans
, the Australian coast watcher who helped rescue John F. Kennedy
and his crew. Pate assayed roles in three different episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964-1968.
In 1968, Pate returned to Australia and became a television producer, winning two Logie Award
s while working at the Seven Network
. In 1970, he published a textbook
on acting, The Film Actor. From 1971 to 1975 he starred as Detective Senior Sergeant Vic Maddern in Matlock Police
. In 1977 he wrote and produced The Mango Tree
, starring his son Christopher Pate.
Pate continued working in theatre in both Sydney and Melbourne. In 1979 he adapted the screenplay for Tim
from the novel by Colleen McCullough
, as well as directing the film, which starred Mel Gibson
and Piper Laurie
. Pate won the Best Screenplay Award from the Australian Writers Guild for his adaptation.
Pate also appeared (as the U.S. President) in The Return of Captain Invincible
(1982), in which he sings "What the World Needs", a song calling for the return of Captain Invincible to save the world.
During the early 1980s Pate and his son Christopher collaborated in a stage production of Mass Appeal. This was a success, and closed with a season at the Sydney Opera House
.
He died on 1 September 2008 at Gosford Hospital, of pneumonia
.
, and had a son, Christopher (also an actor — both had cameos in the film Howling III
) and a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Early life
He was born Edward John Pate in DrummoyneDrummoyne, New South Wales
Drummoyne is a suburb in the inner west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 6 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area of the City of Canada Bay....
, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. Initially interested in becoming a medical missionary, but unable to afford the university fees due to the Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, he worked in Sydney before 1938, when he became a writer and broadcaster for the Australian Broadcasting Commission
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
, collaborating with George Ivan Smith
George Ivan Smith
George Ivan Smith AO career spanned radio, war correspondent, movie director, diplomat, poet and author. He was born 11 July 1915 George Charles Ivan Smith in Sydney, New South Wales , Australia...
on Youth Speaks. For the remainder of the 1930s, he worked primarily in radio drama. He also published theatrical and literary criticism
Literary criticism
Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals...
and enjoyed brief success as an author of short stories
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
, publishing works in both Australia and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Pate served in the Australian Army
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
in the South West Pacific Area
South West Pacific Area
South West Pacific Area was the name given to the Allied supreme military command in the South West Pacific Theatre of World War II. It was one of four major Allied commands in the Pacific theatres of World War II, during 1942–45...
. He was transferred to the 1st Australian Army Amenities Entertainment Unit, known as "The Islanders", entertaining Australian troops in various combat areas.
Acting career
After the war, Pate returned to radio, appearing in many plays and serials. Between 1946 and 1950 he began breaking into films. In 1949 he appeared in his first leading role in Sons of MatthewSons of Matthew
Sons of Matthew is a 1949 Australian film directed by Charles Chauvel. The film was shot in 1947 on location in Queensland, Australia and the studio sequences in Sydney...
. In 1950, he appeared in Bitter Springs with Tommy Trinder
Tommy Trinder
Thomas Edward Trinder CBE known as Tommy Trinder, was an English stage, screen and radio comedian of the pre and post war years whose catchphrase was 'You lucky people'.-Life:...
and Chips Rafferty
Chips Rafferty
Chips Rafferty MBE was an iconic Australian actor. Called "the living symbol of the typical Australian", Rafferty's career stretched from the 1940s until his death in 1971, and during this time he performed regularly in major Australian feature films as well as appearing in British and American...
.
Also in 1950, Pate adapted, produced, and directed two plays — Dark of the Moon and Bonaventure. Later that year he travelled to the U.S. to appear in a film adaptation of Bonaventure for Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
, which was released in 1951 as Thunder on the Hill
Thunder on the Hill
Thunder on the Hill is a 1951 mystery drama film made by Universal International Pictures. It was directed by Douglas Sirk and produced by Michael Kraike, from a screenplay by Oscar Saul and Andrew Solt, based on the play Bonaventure by Charlotte Hastings. The music score was by Hans J. Salter and...
, starring Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
and Ann Blyth
Ann Blyth
Ann Marie Blyth is an American actress and singer, often cast in Hollywood musicals, but also successful in dramatic roles. Her performance as Veda Pierce in the 1945 film Mildred Pierce was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.-Life and career:Blyth was born in Mount Kisco,...
.
Pate spent most of the 1950s in the U.S., appearing in over 300 television shows and many films. Most notable among these was a 1953 Climax! live production of Ian Fleming
Ian Fleming
Ian Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Naval Intelligence Officer.Fleming is best known for creating the fictional British spy James Bond and for a series of twelve novels and nine short stories about the character, one of the biggest-selling series of fictional books of...
's Casino Royale
Casino Royale (novel)
Casino Royale is Ian Fleming's first James Bond novel. It paved the way for a further eleven novels by Fleming himself, in addition to two short story collections, followed by many "continuation" Bond novels by other authors....
, in which Pate played the role of "Clarence Leiter
Felix Leiter
Felix Leiter is a fictional CIA agent created by Ian Fleming in the James Bond series of novels and films. In both, Leiter works for the CIA and assists Bond in his various adventures as well as being his best friend. In further novels Leiter joins the Pinkerton Detective Agency and in the film...
", opposite Barry Nelson
Barry Nelson
Barry Nelson was an American actor, noted as the first actor to portray Ian Fleming's secret agent James Bond.-Early life:...
's "Jimmy Bond
James Bond (character)
Royal Navy Commander James Bond, CMG, RNVR is a fictional character created by journalist and novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. He is the main protagonist of the James Bond series of novels, films, comics and video games...
". On the big screen, he played the one-scene role of Flavius
Flavius
Flavius was a gens of ancient Rome, meaning "blond". The feminine form was Flavia.After the end of the popular Flavian dynasty of emperors, Flavius/Flavia became a praenomen, common especially among royalty: the adoption of this praenomen by Constantine I set a precedent for some imperial...
in Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar (1953 film)
Julius Caesar is an 1953 MGM film adaptation of the play by Shakespeare, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the uncredited screenplay, and produced by John Houseman. The original music score is by Miklós Rózsa...
, the 1953 film adaptation of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's play. In the same year he first played a Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
in Australian director John Farrow
John Farrow
John Villiers Farrow, CBE was an Australian, later American, film director, producer and screenwriter. In 1957 he won the Academy Award for Best Writing / Best Screenplay for Around the World in Eighty Days and in 1942 he was nominated as Best Director for Wake Island.-Life and career:Farrow was...
's western Hondo
Hondo (film)
Hondo is a movie that was made in 1953 by 3-D Warnercolor western film starring John Wayne, directed by John Farrow. The screenplay is based on the 1952 short story "The Gift of Cochise" by Louis L'Amour...
playing opposite John Wayne
John Wayne
Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...
; he later said that this was his favourite film role. Pate went on to play many Native American roles. In 1956 he appeared in the film The Court Jester
The Court Jester
The Court Jester is a 1956 musical-comedy film starring Danny Kaye, Glynis Johns, Basil Rathbone, and Angela Lansbury. The movie was co-written, co-directed, and co-produced by Melvin Frank and Norman Panama...
. Pate also played the lead role of a gunfighting vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
in the 1959 horror film Curse of the Undead
Curse of the Undead
Curse of the Undead is a 1959 American vampire/Western film directed by Edward Dein and starring Eric Fleming, Michael Pate, Kathleen Crowley, John Hoyt, Bruce Gordon, and Jimmy Murphy.-Plot:...
.
During his time in the U.S., Pate became an acting instructor and lecturer, and wrote many screenplays and teleplays for the major American networks. In 1959, he returned briefly to Australia, where he starred in the TV program The Shell Hour. He returned to the U.S. for another eight years, during which he enjoyed a successful career as a television character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
, appearing repeatedly on such programs as Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
, The Rifleman
The Rifleman
The Rifleman is an American Western television program that starred Chuck Connors as homesteader Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son, Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show, filmed in black-and-white with a half hour running time, ran...
, Branded ("Call to Glory"), Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone (TV series)
Daniel Boone is an American action/adventure television series starring Fess Parker as Daniel Boone that aired from September 24, 1964 to September 10, 1970 on NBC for 165 episodes, and was made by 20th Century Fox Television. Ed Ames co-starred as Mingo, Boone's Native American friend, for the...
, The Virginian
The Virginian (TV series)
The Virginian is an American Western television series starring James Drury and Doug McClure, which aired on NBC from 1962 to 1971 for a total of 249 episodes. Filmed in color, The Virginian became television's first 90-minute western series...
, Batman
Batman (TV series)
Batman is an American television series, based on the DC comic book character of the same name. It stars Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin — two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City. It aired on the American Broadcasting Company network for three seasons from January 12, 1966 to...
, Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
("Trek"), The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is an American television series that was broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1964, to January 15, 1968. It follows the exploits of two secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who work for a fictitious secret international espionage and law-enforcement...
("The Foreign Legion Affair"), Get Smart
Get Smart
Get Smart is an American comedy television series that satirizes the secret agent genre. Created by Mel Brooks with Buck Henry, the show starred Don Adams , Barbara Feldon , and Edward Platt...
, Rawhide
Rawhide (TV series)
Rawhide is an American Western series that aired for eight seasons on the CBS network on Friday nights, from January 9, 1959 to September 3, 1965, before moving to Tuesday nights from September 14, 1965 until January 4, 1966, with a total of 217 black-and-white episodes...
("Incident of the Power and the Plow"), and Wagon Train
Wagon Train
Wagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
. In the 1963 movie PT 109
PT 109 (film)
PT 109 is a 1963 biographical film which depicts the actions of John F. Kennedy in command of Motor Torpedo Boat PT-109 as an officer of the United States Navy during World War II. The movie was adapted by Vincent Flaherty and Howard Sheehan from the book PT 109: John F. Kennedy in World War II by...
he played the part of Arthur Reginald Evans
Arthur Reginald Evans
Arthur Reginald Evans was a shipping clerk at Paddington, a suburb of Sydney, when he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 25 July 1940. He was allotted service number NX57823 and served with the 2/9th Army Field Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery until discharged on 9 October 1942 as a...
, the Australian coast watcher who helped rescue John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
and his crew. Pate assayed roles in three different episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964-1968.
In 1968, Pate returned to Australia and became a television producer, winning two Logie Award
Logie Award
The TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a...
s while working at the Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
. In 1970, he published a textbook
Textbook
A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...
on acting, The Film Actor. From 1971 to 1975 he starred as Detective Senior Sergeant Vic Maddern in Matlock Police
Matlock Police
Matlock Police was an Australian television police drama series made by Crawford Productions for the 0-10 Network between 1971 and 1975....
. In 1977 he wrote and produced The Mango Tree
The Mango Tree (film)
The Mango Tree is a 1977 Australian drama film directed by Kevin James Dobson and starring Geraldine Fitzgerald and Sir Robert Helpmann.The film is about Jamie, a young man in his formative teen years, growing up in rural subtropical town of Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia, set around World War I...
, starring his son Christopher Pate.
Pate continued working in theatre in both Sydney and Melbourne. In 1979 he adapted the screenplay for Tim
Tim (film)
Tim is an Australian romantic drama film. Released in 1979, it was written and directed by Michael Pate, based on the 1974 novel by Colleen McCullough....
from the novel by Colleen McCullough
Colleen McCullough
Colleen McCullough-Robinson, , is an internationally acclaimed Australian author.-Life:McCullough was born in Wellington, in outback central west New South Wales, in 1937 to James and Laurie McCullough. Her mother was a New Zealander of part-Māori descent. During her childhood, her family moved...
, as well as directing the film, which starred Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
and Piper Laurie
Piper Laurie
Piper Laurie is an American actress of stage and screen known for her roles in the television series Twin Peaks and the films The Hustler, Carrie, and Children of a Lesser God, all of which brought her Academy Award nominations...
. Pate won the Best Screenplay Award from the Australian Writers Guild for his adaptation.
Pate also appeared (as the U.S. President) in The Return of Captain Invincible
The Return Of Captain Invincible
The Return of Captain Invincible is a 1983 Australian musical comedy and superhero film starring Alan Arkin and Christopher Lee.-Plot:The plot involves the Captain America/Superman inspired super-hero called "Captain Invincible" who is active during World War II and afterwards...
(1982), in which he sings "What the World Needs", a song calling for the return of Captain Invincible to save the world.
During the early 1980s Pate and his son Christopher collaborated in a stage production of Mass Appeal. This was a success, and closed with a season at the Sydney Opera House
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
.
Later life
Although Pate retired from acting in 2001 he remained busy with voiceover work, and was writing a screenplay at the time of his death.He died on 1 September 2008 at Gosford Hospital, of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
.
Personal life
He was married to Felippa Rock, daughter of American film producer Joe RockJoe Rock
Joe Rock was an American movie producer, director, actor and screenwriter best remembered today for producing a series of 12 two reel comedies starring Stan Laurel in the 1920s....
, and had a son, Christopher (also an actor — both had cameos in the film Howling III
Howling III
Howling III is a 1987 Australian horror sequel to The Howling, directed by Howling II: Stirba - Werewolf Bitch director Philippe Mora and filmed on location in and outside Sydney, Australia...
) and a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
External links
- Michael Pate Memorial
- http://colsearch.nfsa.afc.gov.au/nfsa/search/summary/summary.w3p;adv=yes;group=;groupequals=;page=0;parentid=;query=Number%3A351448%20|%20Number%3A353149%20|%20Number%3A359630%20|%20Number%3A427300%20|%20Number%3A427217%20|%20Number%3A350619%20|%20Number%3A352074%20|%20Number%3A351097%20|%20Number%3A351701%20|%20Number%3A351379%20|%20Number%3A353813%20|%20Number%3A352605%20|%20Number%3A445412%20|%20Number%3A445410%20|%20Number%3A445414;querytype=;resCount=10Michael Pate at the National Film and Sound Archive]
- Michael Pate at FelixLeiter.com
- Michael Pate dies at 88
- Obituary in The Times