Died Today (January 2nd): Pete Postlethwaite (1946–2011)

Pete Postlethwaite (1946–2011)

Born: February 7, 1946 in Warrington, Cheshire, England, UK
Died: January 2, 2011 (age 64) in Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, UK

My first agent wanted me to change [my name]. So I changed him instead. When I made a breakthrough as an actor, people started to say, ‘Who’s that bloke with the funny name?’ They advised me to change it, saying it would never be put up in lights outside theaters because they couldn’t afford the electricity. But I would never contemplate changing it. It’s who I am. It’s my mother and father, my whole family. It’s where everything I am comes from. I couldn’t imagine living my life with another name.

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