Charles Gray

British character actor Charles Gray's silky voice and square-jawed visage made him ideal for playing icy, strong-willed men on both sides of the moral compass in such films as "Night of the Generals" (1967), "You Only Live Twice" (1967), "The Devil Rides Out" (1967), "Diamonds Are Forever" (1971) and "The Seven Per-Cent Solution" (1975). Classically trained and a veteran of the English stage, Gray's rigid bearing and clipped, precise tones kept him active in dramas, thrillers and stage adaptations for nearly 40 years. Amusingly, his most famous role outside of the Bond series was undoubtedly "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" (1975), the irreverent, gender-bending cult musical which allowed him a few song and dance numbers while trying to explain the hopelessly convoluted plot with a straight face. He later enjoyed popularity on both sides of the Atlantic in the PBS series "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" (Granada TV, 1984-1994), which cast him as Mycroft, older brother and frequent advisor to Jeremy Brett's master detective. Though never a "star" in the traditional sense, Charles Gray remained a favorite among character watchers, who delighted in his obvious relish for delivering such larger-than-life roles.