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Who is Tom Baker

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Tom Baker

Often called an eccentric who plays eccentrics, Tom Baker is an actor in plays, television, and movies, along with being an accomplished voice actor and writer.

Mini Biography: The British character actor Tom Baker, best known as the fourth incarnation of Dr. Who, was born in 1934 in Liverpool, England. Tom, along with his younger sister Lulu and younger brother John, was raised in a poor Irish Catholic community by his mother Mary Jane Baker, a housecleaner and barmaid, who was a devout Catholic, and his father John Stewart Baker, a Jewish sailor, who was rarely at home. At age 15, Baker left school to become a monk with the Brothers of Ploermel on the island of Jersey. Six years later, he abandoned the monastic life and performed his National Service in the Royal Army Medical Corps., where he became interested in acting. Baker then served on the Queen Mary for seven months as a sailor in the Merchant Navy before attending Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama in Kent, England, on scholarship. Baker acted in repertory theaters around Britain until the late 1960s when he joined up with the National Theatre, where he performed with such respected actors as Maggie Smith, Anthony Hopkins, and Laurence Olivier, who helped him get his first prominent film role as Rasputin in Nicholas and Alexandra (1971). His performance in this film earned him two Golden Globe Award nominations, one for best actor in a supporting role and another for best new star of the year. A couple of years earlier, Baker had made his theatrical film debut in Winter's Tale, The (1968). Despite appearances in a spate of films, including Pier Paolo Pasolini's Racconti di Canterbury, I (1972), Mutations, The (1973), Vault of Horror, The (1973), and Golden Voyage of Sinbad, The (1974), Baker was working as a labourer at a building site when he landed the title role in the popular, long-running British television series "Doctor Who" (1963), a role that brought him international fame and popularity. After his seven-year stint as Dr. Who (from 1974 to 1981), Baker returned to theatre and continued to make regular television and film appearances, playing Sherlock Holmes in "The Hound of the Baskervilles" (1982), Puddleglum in The Chronicles of Narnia story Silver Chair, The (1990), Hallvarth, Clan Leader of the Hunter Elves, in Dungeons & Dragons (2000) and Professor Hought in the ITV series "Medics". Throughout his career, Baker's acting style has been to portray his characters with a "larger-than-life" air.

Three reasons to love Tom Baker
Great Tom Baker stuff from Amazon
Trivia
Quick, what do you think of Tom Baker?
The Latest Yahoo News on Tom Baker
Tom Baker Videos
Are you in the Tom Baker Fan Club?
Tom Baker on Flickr
Tom Baker Links Plexo

Three reasons to love Tom Baker

1. Two words: Doctor Who! Possibly the best version of the Doctor and definitely the longest running!

2. Monarch of the Glen's best new colorful character!

3. Little Britain's narrator who slips a whole new level of sly humor into the over-the-top show.

Great Tom Baker stuff from Amazon

Trivia

Several reference books published in the late 1980s erroneously reported that Baker died of a drug overdose in 1982. The confusion arose from the death of an American actor named Tom Baker, who did indeed die of a drug overdose that year. Baker does have a reputation, acknowledged in his autobiography, of being a heavy drinker, and sometimes makes humorous references to it. For example, in response to the numerous enquiries he gets about his time as the Doctor he often replies, "You will have to excuse me but I was drunk at the time."

Tom Baker is not related to Colin Baker, who played the Sixth Doctor in Doctor Who, nor to Bob Baker, the script-writer for many of the series' episodes.

Human League released a tribute song to the actor entitled "Tom Baker", as B-side to their "Boys and Girls" single. The song was re-released on some CD versions of their Travelogue album.

A cartoon Tom Baker appeared as the fourth incarnation of The Doctor, in The Simpsons episode "Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming" and the "Treehouse of Horror X".

In a poll published by BBC Homes and Antiques magazine in January 2006, Baker was voted the fourth most eccentric star. He was beaten by Björk, Chris Eubank and David Icke.

In the late 1990s, it was reported that Baker was a candidate for the role of Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings films. Baker has since stated that he was only approached for "a role" in the film, and when told that it would mean spending months away in New Zealand, he turned down the offer.

His distinctive voice has become a gift for impressionists such as Jon Culshaw and John Guilor. Culshaw regularly impersonates Baker in the comedy series Dead Ringers: in one episode, he makes a prank call to Baker in character as the Doctor, which prompts the memorable reaction from the real Baker: "No, no there must be a mistake, I'm the Doctor." Similarly, when Culshaw called another Doctor, Sylvester McCoy, in character, he got the response: "Tom? Is that you? Have you been in the pub?"

A tireless advocate of internet culture, Baker is known to field fans' questions on the DALnet Internet Relay Chat channel.

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Tom Baker Videos

Tom Baker interviewed by Jon Culshaw on Alter Ego 2001: by Peterdalek | video info

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Dec 11, 2010 @ 10:37 am | delete

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Nov 6, 2010 @ 3:28 am | delete

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REVAMPED_K-9 Feb 28, 2009 @ 9:21 am | delete

Tom Baker was among the most captivating of the doctor incarnates.Funny witty playful, intelligent, all understatements, everything I look for in characters :)
Been a fan my whole life.My father got me hooked on the Doctor Who series before I could wear pants . If your reading this Tom, thanks for the ride!

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REVAMPED_K-9 Feb 28, 2009 @ 9:21 am | delete

Tom Baker was among the most captivating of the doctor incarnates.Funny witty playful, intelligent, all understatements, everything I look for in characters :)
Been a fan my whole life.My father got me hooked on the Doctor Who series before I could wear pants . If your reading this Tom, thanks for the ride!

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tardisgirlfrance Sep 22, 2008 @ 3:36 pm | delete

I love everything about Tom Baker. I think he's an amazing actor, a talented writer and just a wonderful person. I feel such admiration for him.

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tracy rickhuss Apr 5, 2008 @ 10:02 am | delete

I LOVE EVERY THINK BOUT TOM BAKER. I HAVE BEEN A FAN SINCE TOM CAME TO DR WHO WHEN I WAS 11 IM NOW 44 IVE ONLY JUST HAD MY FIRST LAPTOP AND I CAN WATCH INTERVIEWS OF TOM AND ID LIKE TO WISH TOM A BELATED WEDDING ANNIVERSERY

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