William John Hunter (27 February 194021 May 2011) was an Australian actor of film, stage and television, who was also prominent as a voice-over artist. He appeared in more than 60 films and won two AFI Awards. He was also a recipient of the

Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or g ...

Early life

William John Hunter was born on 27 February 1940 in

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria. Within mo ...

, Victoria, the son of William and Francie Hunter. He had a brother, John, and a sister, Marie Ann.Blake, Jason
Aussie bloke of screen was larger than life
, ''The Sydney Morning Herald'', 23 May 2011. During his teens, Hunter was a champion swimmer, and briefly held a world record for the 100 yards freestyle until his record was broken by John Devitt in the very next heat 10 minutes later.Atterton, Margot; Alan Veitch: ''The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Australian Showbiz'' (1984). Hunter qualified for the Australian swimming team for the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XVI Olympiad and officially branded as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December ...

in Melbourne, Australia, before a bout of

meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, intense headache, vomiting and neck stiffness and occasion ...

ended his Olympic hopes.

Career

Hunter made his film debut as an extra in 1957 film '' The Shiralee''. An introduction to

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' att ...

saw him gain a job as an extra and swimming double in the Hollywood film '' On the Beach'', which was filming in Melbourne. Hunter claimed that he was inspired to take up acting after watching one of the leads (variously claimed to be either

Gregory Peck Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, 12th-greatest male ...

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...

) do 27 takes of a scene, and thinking he could do better.Bill Hunter faces the final curtain
''Herald Sun'', 19 May 2011. He took an intensive drama course in Melbourne and sailed aboard the RHMS Ellinis on New Year's Eve 1964 for England. There he won a two-year scholarship to the prestigious Northampton Repertory Company in England. In 1966, Hunter made his first television appearance, two episodes in '' The Ark'', a serial within the third season of the BBC television drama series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

''. Hunter returned to Australia in 1967 and began working in television drama and feature films. He had interviewed with Gavrik Losey in London, making no great impression in that highly competitive atmosphere, but Losey was able to offer Hunter his first Australian film appearance in ''

Ned Kelly Edward Kelly (December 185411 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader, bank robber and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing armour of the Kelly gang, a suit of bulletproof ...

'' in 1970 with Losey as production supervisor. Hunter often played characters who were the strong, opinionated, archetypal gruff Australian whose exterior belies a softer heart and sensibilities vulnerable to pressure. Some of his most notable movie roles include '' Mad Dog Morgan'' (1976), '' Newsfront'' (1978), ''

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

'' (1981), '' The Dismissal'', '' Scales of Justice'' (1983), '' Strictly Ballroom'' (1992), '' Muriel's Wedding'' (1994), ''

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert ''The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' is a 1994 Australian road comedy film written and directed by Stephan Elliott. The plot follows two drag queens (played by Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce) and a transgender woman (Terence S ...

'' (1994) and ''

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

'' (2008). In 2007, he reprised the role of Bob in the Australian touring stage production of ''Priscilla''. He also provided the voice of the dentist in ''

Finding Nemo ''Finding Nemo'' is a 2003 American animated comedy-drama adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. The film was directed by Andrew Stanton, co-directed by Lee Unkrich, and produced by Graham Walters, from ...

'' (2003) and the voice of Bubo in '' Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole'' (2010). He portrayed United Nations Secretary General Spencer Chartwell in the American science fiction series '' Space: Above and Beyond''. His last film role was in '' The Cup'' (2011). Of acting, Hunter said, "As long as the director told me where to stand and what to say, I was happy. Anyone who says there's any more to it than that, is full of bullshit. ... It's a job. It is a craft, but there's no art involved. What you need is common sense and a reasonably rough head. You put on the makeup and the wardrobe, and that is half the performance. That upsets the purists, but never mind, they don't work as much as I do."

Awards and honours

Hunter won the 1978 AFI Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for '' Newsfront'', and the 1981 Best Supporting Actor award for ''

''. In 2001, he was awarded the

"for service to acting, including the films ''Gallipoli'' and ''Frontline''. A painting of Hunter by artist Jason Benjamin won the Packing Room Prize in conjunction with the 2005

Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, J. F. Archib ...

Personal life

Hunter was a supporter of the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...

, appearing in the party's official 1996 Federal Election Campaign advertisement. Hunter's first marriage was to Robbie Anderson from 1963 to 1973, with whom he had a son, named James Hunter. His next marriage was to actress

Pat Bishop Patricia Mary Bishop (13 June 1946 – 28 March 2000) was an Australian actress, born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, noted for her performances in theatre, film and television series. Personal Life She was married to the renowned Australian a ...

, in 1976. According to writer

Bob Ellis Robert James Ellis (10 May 1942 – 3 April 2016) was an Australian journalist, screenwriter, playwright, filmmaker, and political commentator. He lived in Sydney with author and screenwriter Anne Brooksbank; they had three children. Early ye ...

, the marriage was short-lived after Hunter ran off with their marriage celebrant. His third marriage was to artist and television presenter Rhoda Roberts, in 1993. They lived together until 1999, when he suddenly announced that he wanted to leave the marriage. She did not know why until he visited her shortly before his death in 2011 and told her that he did not want her to have to nurse him. They did not, however, get divorced. She also said that, despite the common perception that he contracted

liver cancer Liver cancer, also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy, is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary in which the cancer starts in the liver, or it can be liver metastasis, or secondar ...

because he drank too much, he was in

Alcoholics Anonymous Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a global, peer-led Mutual aid, mutual-aid fellowship focused on an abstinence-based recovery model from alcoholism through its spiritually inclined twelve-step program. AA's Twelve Traditions, besides emphasizing anon ...

when they met and was not a drunk.

Death

On 15 May 2011, Hunter was admitted to Caritas Christi hospice in

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is ...

, after refusing to go to a hospital. Surrounded by family and friends, he died of

on 21 May 2011, aged 71. A memorial service for Hunter was held at Melbourne's Princess Theatre on 26 May 2011. Close friend and co-star Mick Molloy paid tribute to Bill Hunter on stage at the 54th

Logie Awards The TV Week Logie Awards (known colloquially as The Logies) is an annual ceremony celebrating and honouring the best shows and stars in Australian television, sponsored and organised by the magazine ''TV Week''. The event is telecast live and ...

in April 2012.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

Hunter's theatre roles included:

References

External links

*
"Bill Hunter's list of film and television credits"
''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of b ...

''. Retrieved on 21 May 2011
Bill Hunter
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australianscreen

Strictly Heslop – Bill Hunter Tribute Fanzine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Bill 1940 births 2011 deaths Australian male film actors Australian male stage actors Australian male television actors Australian male voice actors Australian male freestyle swimmers Best Actor AACTA Award winners Best Supporting Actor AACTA Award winners Entertainers from Ballarat Male actors from Victoria (state) Deaths from liver cancer in Australia Deaths from cancer in Victoria (state) Australian male comedians 20th-century Australian sportsmen