Maxwell John Phipps (18 November 1939 – 6 August 2000) was an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal ...

actor, known for a number of roles in theatre, films and television during the 1960s until the end of the 1990s.

Life and career

Phipps was born in

Dubbo Dubbo () is a city in the Orana Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest population centre in the Orana region, with a population of 43,516 at June 2021. The city is located at the intersection of the Newell, Mitchell, and G ...

and grew up in Parkes. He started his acting training in Sydney at the age of 21, at the

Ensemble Theatre The Ensemble Theatre is an Australian theatre company and theatre, situated in the Sydney suburb of Kirribilli, New South Wales. History It is Australia's longest continuously running professional theatre group, having given its first performa ...

. There he appeared in such productions as ''Buffalo Skinner'', '' Long Day's Journey into Night'', '' Fortune and Men's Eyes'', ''

The Removalists ''The Removalists'' is a play written by Australian playwright David Williamson in 1971. The main issues the play addresses are violence, specifically domestic violence, and the abuse of power and authority. The story is supposed to be a microco ...

'' and ''

Rooted In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the sur ...

''. In the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century archit ...

's inaugural season he played Harry Bustle in '' What If You Died Tomorrow?''. In London he reprised this role, as well as appearing in '' Don's Party''. He played Dr Frank-N-Furter in ''

The Rocky Horror Show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' is a Musical theatre, musical with music, lyrics and book by Richard O'Brien. A humorous tribute to the Science fiction film, science fiction and Horror film, horror B movies of the 1930s through to the early 1960s, the ...

'' in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

in 1975–77. His most notable screen roles included Bernie Dump in '' The Miraculous Mellops'', The Toadie in ''

Mad Max 2 ''Mad Max 2'' (released as ''The Road Warrior'' in the United States) is a 1981 Australian post-apocalyptic action film directed by George Miller. It is the second installment in the '' Mad Max'' franchise, with Mel Gibson reprising his role ...

'' (1981), Prime Minister

Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the he ...

in the television mini-series ''

The Dismissal The 1975 Australian constitutional crisis, also known simply as the Dismissal, culminated on 11 November 1975 with the dismissal from office of the prime minister, Gough Whitlam of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), by Governor-General Sir Joh ...

'' (1983), Sir

Frank Packer Sir Douglas Frank Hewson Packer (3 December 19061 May 1974), was an Australian media proprietor who controlled Australian Consolidated Press and the Nine Network. He was a patriarch of the Packer family. Early life Frank Packer was born in ...

in '' True Believers'' (1988), and

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Police Commissioner Terry Lewis in the ''

Four Corners The Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. The Four Corners area ...

'' TV documentary drama ''Police State'' (1989), which helped to bring about investigations into corruption within that state's police force and political system. He was nominated for an AFI award for his role in '' Stir'' (1980). Other films included '' The Cars That Ate Paris'' (1974), ''

Thirst Thirst is the craving for potable fluids, resulting in the basic instinct of animals to drink. It is an essential mechanism involved in fluid balance. It arises from a lack of fluids or an increase in the concentration of certain osmolites, such ...

'' (1979), ''

Nightmares A nightmare, also known as a bad dream, Retrieved 11 July 2016. is an unpleasant dream that can cause a strong emotional response from the mind, typically fear but also despair, anxiety or great sadness. The dream may contain situations of d ...

'' (1980), '' Dead Easy'' (1982), ''

The Return of Captain Invincible ''The Return of Captain Invincible'' is a 1983 Australian superhero musical comedy film directed by Philippe Mora, and starring Alan Arkin and Christopher Lee. It was a box office disappointment on release but has become a cult film since then. ...

'' (1983), ''

Savage Islands The Savage Islands or Selvagens Islands ( pt, Ilhas Selvagens ; also known as the Salvage Islands) are a small Portuguese archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean, south of Madeira, and north of the Canary Islands.30,000), white-faced storm- ...

'' (1983), which was released in the United States as ''Nate and Hayes'', '' Sky Pirates'' (1986) and '' What the Moon Saw'' (1990). He appeared as Detective Inspector Mcallister in the ''

Inspector Morse Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse, GM, is the eponymous fictional character in the series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter. On television, he appears in the 33-episode drama series '' Inspector Morse'' (1987–2000), ...

'' episode "The Promised Land" in 1991, which was set in Australia. Phipps also played the role of Edward "Dinosaur" Spence in the first season of the short lived Australian television series "FIRE" (1995) set in Queensland. in the early to late 90s He also briefly worked on the ill-fated video game

Wizardry ''Wizardry'' is a series of role-playing video games, developed by Sir-Tech, that were highly influential in the evolution of modern role-playing video games. The original ''Wizardry'' was a significant influence on early console role-playing ...

: Stones of Arnhem at DirectSoft which was being contracted out to them by

Sirtech Sir-Tech Software, Inc. was a video game developer and publisher based in the United States and Canada. History In fall 1979, Sirotech Software was founded by Norman Sirotek, Robert Sirotek and Robert Woodhead. Sirotech Software published ''Info ...

Death

He died from cancer in Sydney in August 2000, survived by his three siblings. He had never married.

Partial filmography

*'' You Can't See 'round Corners'' (1969) - Keith Grayson *'' The Cars That Ate Paris'' (1974) - Mulray *'' Temperament Unsuited'' (1979) - Supervisor *''

'' (1979) - Mr. Hodge *'' Stir'' (1980) - Norton *''

'' (1980) - George D'alberg *''

'' (1981) - The Toadie *'' Dead Easy'' (1982) - Francis *''

'' (1983) - Admiral *''

'' (1983) - Ben Pease *''Emoh Ruo'' (1985) - Sam Tregado *'' Sky Pirates'' (1986) - Savage *''

Dark Age The ''Dark Ages'' is a term for the Early Middle Ages, or occasionally the entire Middle Ages, in Western Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire that characterises it as marked by economic, intellectual and cultural decline. The conce ...

'' (1987) - John Besser *''

Sky Trackers The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...

'' TV Movie (1990) *'' What the Moon Saw'' (1990) - Mr. Zachary *'' Halifax f.p.'' (1996) - Det. Insp. Derrida (1 episode)

External links

* Australian male film actors Australian male television actors Australian male stage actors People from Dubbo 1939 births 2000 deaths 20th-century Australian male actors Deaths from cancer in New South Wales {{Australia-screen-actor-stub