In Remembrance: Brock Peters

     Brock Peters, the actor best remembered for his portrayal of a black man falsely accused of rape in the 1962 classic To Kill A Mockingbird, has passed away August 23, 2005 in Los Angeles. He was 78.

     Born George Fisher on July 2, 1927 in New York City, Peters attended the Music and Arts High School in New York City before making his Broadway debut at age 15 in a minor role in the 1943 production of Porgy And Bess. After studying at the University of Chicago and City College of New York, Peters held down numerous odd jobs while acting in various productions. Peters distinctive rich voice earned him jobs touring with the DePaur Infantry Chorus and singing backup vocals on some Harry Belafonte recordings.

     Peters first film appearances were in a pair of all-black musicals directed by Otto Preminger- 1954’s Carmen Jones, where he played the brutal Army officer Sergeant Brown and the 1959 film adaptation of Porgy And Bess, playing the villainous Crown. Peters’ performances in both films were so strong that he soon found it difficult to get film producers to consider him for other roles. Holding out for a role that would allow him to show his range, Peters landed the part of Johnny, a gay trumpet player who befriends Leslie Caron in the 1962 British drama The L-Shaped Room.

     Having beaten James Earl Jones for the role, Peters made an indelible impression as Tom Robinson, a black man wrongfully accused of raping a white woman in the racially charged south, in 1964’s To Kill A Mockingbird. The film was nominated for five Academy Awards and Peters’ performance was singled out for an All-American Press Award for best supporting actor.

     To Kill A Mockingbird cemented Peters's reputation as one of the premier black actors in America and he appeared in strong supporting roles in such films as The Pawnbroker (1964), Major Dundee (1965), The Incident (1967), Slaughter’s Big Rip-Off and Solyent Green (both 1973).

     In 1973, Peters tried his hand at producing, forming Delbro Enterprises with his wife Delores Daniels and producing the comedy Five On The Black Hand Side and a PBS documentary This Far By Faith (1975).

     Through the 1980s and 90s, Peters gravitated more towards television work, appearing in the mini-series Roots: The Next Generation (1979), the series This Is The Life (1982) and several made-for-television movies. He also lent his voice to several animated series and to National Public Radio’s audio adaptation of the original Star Wars trilogy.

     Peters also appeared in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) and Ghosts Of Mississippi (1996).