Michael Gwynn

A versatile performer, British character actor Michael Gwynn is today best remembered for a single television episode. Born and raised in the spa city of Bath, he entered the army during World War II, serving in Africa and eventually rising to the rank of Major. When the war was over, Gwynn returned to England and took up acting, getting his start in the theater. In under 25 years, he appeared in over 80 films and television series, though memorable leading parts largely eluded him. One exception was the 1958 horror film "The Revenge of Frankenstein," a variant on the famous tale where the well-meaning Dr. Frankenstein experiments upon his hunchback assistant, Karl, giving him a new body; Gwynn delivered a memorably frenzied performance as the freshly undeformed Karl. On stage, Gwynn held his own opposite famed thespians like John Gielgud and Alan Bates, as well as recording many plays for Caedmon Records. But the part he's still remembered for came in 1975 on John Cleese's beloved sitcom "Fawlty Towers." As the guest star of the very first episode, he portrayed Lord Melbury, a phony aristocrat who tries to swindle Cleese's snobbish hotel proprietor. The next year, he died of a heart attack.