Peter Gordeno R.I.P.

[cally]

Sad to read Peter Gordeno has died.



He was really good in UFO and a shame he never went on to prove his credentials as an actor proper in other productions.



R.I.P. my friend.

[Dame Starry]

Peter Gordeno was a very talented man - RIP, Peter.

Peter Gordeno Obituary



DS x.

[smudge]

Very sad news indeed to those of us of the generation that went to bed at night diving under the covers like a SHADO Moonbase operative on Interceptor launch...



Respect.



Smudge

[dpgmel]

That is such sad news. R I P.

[wadsy]

So sad to here this. He was the consummate all round entertainer! R.I.P. Peter.

[batman]

RIP Mr Gordeno.

[julian_craster]

Peter was great dancer and choreographer as well ....

[julian_craster]

Obituary

Peter Gordeno: Dancer and singer who had a starring role in the sci-fi

series 'UFO'



The Independent London

Tuesday, 28 October 2008

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/peter-gordeno-dancer-and-singer-who-had-a-starring-role-in-the-scifi-series-ufo-975463.html



In the late 1960s, when he was at the height of his fame as a dancer and

singer, Peter Gordeno was cast in an acting role and propelled to

international stardom as Capt Peter Carlin in UFO, the first live-action

television production from the producers of the puppet series Thunderbirds

and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons.



"Gerry and Sylvia Anderson are sticking their necks out by giving me this

chance," said Gordeno at the time. "I've had no drama training, but I had no

training as a dancer or as a singer, and I mastered choreography on my own."

It was a measure of the performer's star quality that he is remembered as

one of the stalwarts of the cult sci-fi drama, despite appearing in only

seven episodes of the 26-part series after his agent feared that he might

become typecast in the role.



As Carlin (1970-71), he was one of those under the leadership of Commander

Ed Straker (played by Ed Bishop), in the near-future, 1980, when

green-skinned, liquid-breathing aliens were kidnapping humans for body

parts. The team, which also included Col Alec Freeman (George Sewell) and

Col Paul Foster (Michael Billington), operated from SHADO, the Supreme

Headquarters, Alien Defence Organisation, in an underground base outside

London, and kept in touch with the planet's first line of defence, on

Moonbase, and its SkyDiver submarine fleet. Alongside the inevitable

gadgetry, Gabrielle Drake, Wanda Ventham and Ayshea Brough wore white cat

suits and purple wigs in a programme that was the epitome of sci-fi camp.



Carlin was commander of the submarine SkyDiver and pilot of its interceptor

aircraft, Sky One. He joined SHADO in the hope of discovering what had

happened to his sister, who vanished after they discovered a UFO together,

and eventually learned that her organs had been harvested.



The programme was - unusually for live-action television sci-fi -

expensively made and full of high production values, as well as adult

themes. However, it fell victim to its own sophistication, baffling British

television executives as to whether it was aimed at children or adults, and

ITV failed to network UFO, with different regions showing it at varying

times. Nevertheless, it was an iconic 1970s sci-fi series and became a hit

when screened in the United States. Gordeno later made appearances at fan

conventions.



Born Peter Godenho in Rangoon, Burma, in 1939, he and his Scottish-Burmese

mother left the country after his father, an Italian-American, was killed

during the Second World War. He was brought up in Calcutta and his talent

for dancing led him to perform in a cabaret act in India with the English

dancer Yvonne Scott.



In search of greater recognition and opportunity, Godenho moved to Britain -

where he changed his professional name to Gordeno - and took filler jobs in

a plastics factory, a petrol station and a coffee bar. Then he met a

showgirl who told him about an audition for dancers in Blue Magic (Prince of

Wales Theatre, 1959), a West End revue starring Shirley Bassey. He became

one of the two male dancers in the chorus and subsequently performed in the

London production of West Side Story (Her Majesty's Theatre, 1959-61), in

which he eventually took over the role of Bernardo, and the musical Do Re Mi

(alongside Max Bygraves, Prince of Wales Theatre, 1961). Gordeno also began

performing in cabaret and was asked to appear on television as a regular in

The Kathy Kirby Show (1964-65), in which he was given the chance to

choreograph the dance numbers and sing alongside the popular female singer.



This led Gordeno to put together his own troupe of dancers and he was seen

in a string of television variety shows over almost 20 years. They included

Boxing Night Out (hosted by the comedians Mike and Bernie Winters, 1964),

Cilla at the Savoy (1966), The Blackpool Show (1966), The Saturday Crowd (a

regular in the show as dancer, singer and choreographer, 1969), A Royal Club

Night (1976) and Leslie Crowther's Scrapbook (1979). He also had small roles

in the films Secrets of a Windmill Girl (1966) and The Touchables (1968), as

well as acting the shaman (doctor-priest) in Carry On Columbus (1992),

played one of the muleteers in the West End stage production of Man of La

Mancha (Piccadilly Theatre, 1968) and took his stage act all over the world,

including three seasons at the Riviera, Las Vegas.



As a singer, Gordeno recorded singles including "You're Following Me" (1961)

with the John Barry Orchestra. He also choreographed the West End musical

Passion Flower Hotel (with music by John Barry, Piccadilly Theatre, 1965)

and stage routines for his manager Gordon Mills' other stars such as

Engelbert Humperdinck and Tom Jones.



A musical based on Gordeno's rags-to-riches life is currently in

development. His two sons are the songwriter Peter Gordeno, who has worked

with Seal and last year's X Factor winner, Leon Jackson, and the West End

club owner Jeremy Gordeno.



Anthony Hayward



Peter Godenho (Peter Gordeno), dancer, choreographer, singer and actor: born

Rangoon, Burma 20 June 1939; married Angie Wallace (two sons, one daughter);

died London 18 October 2008.

[Marky B]

RIP Mr Gordeno.

Mark

[Lord Brett]

He attended a Fanderson convention a few years ago, and was such good fun, particularly in the Saturday night disco, where he led the dancing.



A lovely, talented guy who should have been a bigger star, but for the vagaries of fashion.

[smudge]

name='Lord Brett']

A lovely, talented guy who should have been a bigger star, but for the vagaries of fashion.

Hear, hear!



Smudge

[Shadwell]

Ye Gods! There's not many of the UFO gang left. RIP Mr Gordeno and thanks for your performances for those of a certain age who remember you as Capt Carlin....

[Mark O]

name='Shadwell']Ye Gods! There's not many of the UFO gang left. RIP Mr Gordeno and thanks for your performances for those of a certain age who remember you as Capt Carlin....

Unfortunately there's not Shadwell, what with Ed, Michael, George, etc; as well



R.I.P. Peter

[Hackett]

I won some tickets to see him in cabaret at the old Chesford Grange back in the late 70's. I must admit that I only went for the free meal. He came on with six of the tallest women dancers I'v ever seen and worked his socks off entertaining us all for two and a half hours. At the end of his act he was soaked through with perspiration and made a big thing of commending his troop and especially his drummer who was his right arm and went everywhere with him they all got a standing ovation from an audience of people who like myself did not expect to enjoy themselves so much. I'll never forget a routine he did where he danced with all the girls individually each one a different style but always ending up with one girl who kept putting her hand on his bum which he objected to. A simple premise and just the one joke but must have taken hours to perfect. A real old school entertainer and a fantastic dancer. Shame he did not get a last hurrah with all this new dancing interest on saturday night TV.

[julian_craster]

Peter Gordeno appeared in one of my 'guilty pleasures' films SECRETS OF A WINDMILL GIRL (Compton Films 1965), with Pauline Collins and Martin Jarvis. Sadly only released on a Region 1 DVD....

[Lord Brett]

I've just rememberd, when I met Mr Gordeno I asked him about a film he was in in the 1980s called Urge to Kill, which got a lot of publicity in the Daily Star, as it was apparently packed with page 3 girls, but then never seemed to get a release. He remembered it well, and was pleased and surprised that anyone had even heard of it.



He played a man who lived in a fully automated house which (as they do) decided to kill the occupants. Has anyone else come across the film?

[batman]

I have never heard of it .... sounds good though!



"A wealthy music producer (Peter Gordeno) lives in a hi-tech apartment which is run by a computer system called S.E.X.Y. However the computer develops human feelings and quickly becomes jealous of the would be female singers that hang around its owner. Soon the computer is killing the girls off by scalding in the shower, death by electric toothbrush while another unfortunate girl gets trapped in a sun bed which causes her breasts to explode."



From IMDb



It has an alternative title of Attack of the Killer Computer.

[bhowells]

I am sorry to hear about Peter Gordednos death. I will remember him more for his work on variety shows rather than his role on U.F.O. U.F.O. took a long time to reach Htv land.



Fans of Peter mabye be interested to know that he appears on three tracks on a double cd of John Barry. The collection is entitled, John Barry the hits and the misses 50 tracks arrannged and conducted by John Barry.



Peter Gordeno appears on the following, "You're Following Me." a little known song written by Burt Bacarach and his pre Hal David partner Hilliard.;, "Uptown." "Down By The Riverside." and "You can do it if you Try."



The cd is on the Play It Again label and the tracks are from the EMI stable, I dont know if its still available.



Highly recommended though also features tracks by, Adam Faith, The Dallas Boys, Adam Faith, Anita Harris, Tommy Steele and Billy Cotten and some wonderful obscure artists.



A real treat and a nice tribute to Peter Gordeno.

[Geoffers]

name='cally']Sad to read Peter Gordeno has died.



He was really good in UFO and a shame he never went on to prove his credentials as an actor proper in other productions.



R.I.P. my friend.

He was also a decent singer.

[Geoffers]

name='Geoffers']He was also a decent singer.

I was trying to add an image from photobucket, and failing, as usual!