(MENAFN- Famagusta Gazette) Even if the name doesn't ring a bell, you'd recognise David Tomlinson's face – genial and continually perplexed, he was Mr Banks in Mary Poppins, Professor Browne in Bedknobs and Broomsticks and Peter Thorndyke in The Love Bug. To many, he's the epitome of post-war British comedy. This week sees the publication in paperback of the acclaimed biography“Disney's British Gentleman: The Life and Career of David Tomlinson”. For sure, as the book makes clear, at times Tomlinson's life was more tragedy than comedy.
A distinguished RAF pilot in the Second World War, his first marriage was to end in horrific tragedy and his next romance ended with his lover marrying the founder of the American Nazi Party.
Kathleen Harrison and David Tomlinson on the set of 'All For Mary'.
By this point, Tomlinson had enjoyed a distinguished career in British pictures playing permanently perplexed characters in Hotel Sahara, Three Men in a Boat, and Up the Creek, with Peter Sellers.
He did find love and security in his second marriage, but drama still played its part in his life – from the uncovering of an earthshattering family secret to the fight for an autism diagnosis for his son, up against the titans of the British medical establishment.
Walt Disney first noticed David Tomlinson in 1958, starring in 'The Ring of Truth' in London's West End, and invited him for supper at a little restaurant in Soho.
“The evening went very well,” Tomlinson recalled.“Walt was charming. We had drinks back at his hotel. I literally had my pen ready expecting to sign a film contract, but nothing happened...I didn't hear another word from him for five years!”
However, when the call finally came, Walt offered a life-changing role: the curmudgeonly George Banks in Mary Poppins.“It was a truly magical moment... I was enchanted by it”.
Looking back, Tomlinson's widow Audrey remembered rollicking times.“Disney's people were so impressed with the work he'd done on Mary Poppins. They were bowled over by him,” she recalled with a hoot.“That's why he was offered the role of Peter Thorndyke in 'The Love Bug,' a few years later”.
That film – about 'Herbie,' a Volkswagen Beetle with a mind of its own – again revealed Tomlinson's ability to not take himself or his profession too seriously.“I loved that,” David gushed.“It was an extraordinary story because that film – which was modest in comparison with Poppins – became the most successful film in America at the time”.
As Peter Thorndyke in 'The Love Bug'
His final wish – made tongue firmly in cheek – was to have the epitaph:“David Tomlinson, an actor of genius, irresistible to women,” chiseled on his headstone.
Tomlinson may have died over twenty years ago, but his star continues to shine. In Disney's British Gentleman, Nathan Morley reveals the remarkable story of one of Disney's most beloved icons for the very first time.
'Disney's British Gentleman: The Life and Career of David Tomlinson' by Nathan Morley is published by The History Press.
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Author famagusta gazette
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