Peter Henry Fonda (February 23, 1940 – August 16, 2019) was an American actor, film director, and screenwriter. He was twice an Academy Award nominee, both for acting and screenwriting, and a two-time Golden Globe Award winner for his acting. He was a member of the Fonda acting family, as the son of actor Henry Fonda, the brother of actress and activist Jane Fonda, and the father of actress Bridget Fonda.
Fonda began his career on stage, winning a New York Drama Critics' Circle Award and the Theatre World Award for his performance in the play Blood, Sweat and Stanley Poole. He became a prominent figure in the counterculture of the 1960s, starring in and co-writing the film Easy Rider (1969), which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay. He then made his directorial debut with the Revisionist Western film The Hired Hand (1971), in which he also starred. During the following decade, he established himself as an action star, appearing in a variety of productions including Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry (1974) and Futureworld (1976).
Fonda achieved a major critical comeback with his starring role in the drama film Ulee's Gold (1997), receiving an Oscar nomination for Best Actor and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama. He also won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for The Passion of Ayn Rand (1999). In 2003, Fonda received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7018 Hollywood Blvd, for his contributions to the film industry.
Early life
Fonda was born by caesarean section (C-section) on February 23, 1940, at LeRoy Hospital in Lenox Hill, Manhattan, New York City, the only son of actor Henry Fonda and socialite Frances Ford Seymour; his older sister is actress Jane Fonda. He and Jane had a half-sister, Frances de Villers Brokaw (1931–2008), from their mother's first marriage. Their mother committed suicide in a mental hospital when Peter, her youngest, was 10. He did not discover the circumstances or location of her death until he was 15.
One month prior to his 11th birthday, he accidentally shot himself in the abdomen and nearly died. He went to Ossining Hospital, in Ossining, New York and stayed for a few months for recovery. Years later, while taking LSD with John Lennon and George Harrison, he referred to this incident, saying, "I know what it's like to be dead." This inspired the Beatles' song "She Said She Said" from their seventh studio album Revolver (1966).
Peter attended the Fay School in Southborough, Massachusetts, and was a member of the Class of 1954. He then matriculated in Westminster School, a Connecticut boarding school in Simsbury, where he graduated in 1958.
Once he graduated, Fonda studied acting in Omaha, Nebraska, his father's hometown. While attending the University of Nebraska Omaha, Fonda joined the Omaha Community Playhouse.
Early years and film work
Upon his return to New York, Fonda joined the Cecilwood Theatre in 1960. Afterwards, he found work on Broadway and gained notice in Blood, Sweat and Stanley Poole, written by James and William Goldman, which ran for 84 performances in 1961. Fonda began guest starring on television shows like Naked City, The New Breed, Wagon Train, and The Defenders.
Fonda's first film came when producer Ross Hunter was looking for a new male actor to romance Sandra Dee in Tammy and the Doctor (1963). He was cast in the role, in what was a minor hit. He followed this with a support part in The Victors (1963), a bleak look at American soldiers in World War II, directed by Carl Foreman. Fonda's performance won him a Golden Globe Award for most promising newcomer.
Fonda continued to work in television, guest starring in Channing, Arrest and Trial, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and 12 O'Clock High. He also tested for the role of John F. Kennedy in PT-109. Fonda impressed Robert Rossen who cast him in what would be Rossen's last movie, Lilith (1964), alongside Warren Beatty, Jean Seberg and Gene Hackman. Fonda's performance was well reviewed. Shortly before dying, Rossen signed him to a seven-film contract which was to start with an adaptation of Bang the Drum Slowly. Fonda graduated to a starring role in The Young Lovers (1964), about out-of-wedlock pregnancy, the sole directorial effort of Samuel Goldwyn Jr.
Counterculture figure and Roger Corman
By the mid-1960s, Fonda was not a conventional "leading man" in Hollywood. As Playboy magazine reported, Fonda had established a "solid reputation as a dropout". He had become outwardly nonconformist and grew his hair long and took LSD regularly, alienating the "establishment" film industry. Desirable acting work became scarce. Through his friendships with members of the band The Byrds, Fonda visited The Beatles in their rented house in Benedict Canyon in Los Angeles in August 1965. While John Lennon, Ringo Starr, George Harrison, and Fonda were under the influence of LSD, Lennon heard Fonda say, "I know what it's like to be dead." Lennon used the phrase in the lyrics for his song, "She Said She Said", which was included on their 1966 album, Revolver.
In August 1966 Fonda was charged with possession of marijuana, and was later acquitted in December of that year. In November 1966 Fonda was arrested in the Sunset Strip riot, which the police ended forcefully. The band Buffalo Springfield protested the department's handling of the incident in their song "For What It's Worth". In 1967, Fonda recorded "November Night", a 45-rpm single written by Gram Parsons for the Chisa label, backed with "Catch the Wind" by Donovan, produced by Hugh Masekela.
Fonda's first counterculture-oriented film role was as a biker in Roger Corman's B movie The Wild Angels (1966). Fonda originally was to support George Chakiris, but graduated to the lead when Chakiris revealed he could not ride a motorcycle. In the film, Fonda delivered a "eulogy" at a fallen Angel's funeral service. The movie was a big hit at the box office, screened at the Venice Film Festival, launched the biker movie genre, and established Peter Fonda as a movie name. Fonda made a television pilot, High Noon: The Clock Strikes Noon Again, filmed in December 1965. It was based on the film High Noon (1952), starring Gary Cooper, with Fonda in the Cooper role. It did not become a series.
Fonda next played the male lead in Corman's film The Trip (1967), a take on the experience and "consequences" of consuming LSD, which was written by Jack Nicholson. His co-stars included Susan Strasberg, Bruce Dern, and Dennis Hopper. The movie was a hit. Fonda then traveled to France to appear in the portmanteau horror movie Spirits of the Dead (1968). His segment co-starred his sister Jane and was directed by her then-husband Roger Vadim. For American television, he appeared in a movie, Certain Honorable Men (1968), alongside Van Heflin, written by Rod Serling.
Easy Rider
Fonda produced, co-wrote and starred in Easy Rider (1969), directed by Dennis Hopper. Easy Rider is about two long-haired bikers traveling on shiny chopper motorcycles through the southwestern and southern United States until they encounter intolerance and violence. The two perform motorcycles stunts at county fairs. Fonda played "Wyatt", a charismatic, laconic man who performed as Captain America. His motorcycle jacket bore a large American flag across the back, and stars&stripes were painted on the gas tank and helmet. Dennis Hopper played his sidekick, the garrulous "Billy". Luke Askew was the stranger on the highway, the first passenger picked up by Fonda. Jack Nicholson played George Hanson, an alcoholic civil rights lawyer who rides along with them. Fonda co-wrote the screenplay with Terry Southern and Hopper.
In 1967, Fonda tried to secure financing from Roger Corman and American International Pictures (AIP), with whom he had made The Wild Angels and The Trip. While promoting the films with a Wild Angelsposter in which Bruce Dern was his passenger on a Harley…