Spotlight: Richard Chamberlain

Publicity photo, 1964.

I can hardly believe it's August already.  The year is speeding by, and the planet is speeding up - no wonder the world is going all to pieces.  When M.P. made Sunday dinner this week, everything seemed to go wrong - the hamburger steaks were tough, the onion rings too crunchy, the biscuits didn't rise, and the cake fell.  Now we know why.

If your nerves need steadying, here's a look at smooth and mellow Richard Chamberlain - yes, he's still alive and well, and living in Hawaii.  I can't say I was a big fan of his as a kid - we watched Ben Casey at my house instead of Dr. Kildare (swarthy and hairy has always done it for me), but I loved his swashbuckling performances in the 1970s:  The Three (or Four) Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo, and The Man in the Iron Mask.

In this first video, Chamberlain talks about coming out at age 68:

I passed on his big miniseries hits like Centennial, Shogun, and The Thorn Birds - but here's a clip of Richard with a gorgeous beard talking up Shogun in 1980:

Admirers of the male form will enjoy this compilation of Richard's shirtless pics - turns out, he's actually quite hairy when you get right down to it:

 

And if you just can't get enough of Richard, you'll enjoy this wide-ranging interview, circa 2013:

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