Alfie Curtis (28 July 1930 – 30 November 2017) was a British actor. He appeared in a number of television and film roles and was best known for playing Dr. Cornelius Evazan in Star Wars (1977).
Life Curtis was born in Stepney, London on 28 July 1930.
He was an enthusiastic follower of football and supported Arsenal F.C. For a time, Curtis played as a semi-professional footballer and once played in a match against Arsenal.
Career Curtis was noted for his "rugged" features. He landed a number of acting parts that demanded a rough physical appearance through Ugly Models, a London modelling agency that specializes in artists and models who do not conform to typical standards of idealized beauty.
Most of Curtis's appearances were in minor roles in British television series. He played the part of Matt Beckett in the TV police drama Cribb (1980–1981) and Ted in the TV adaptation of J.B. Priestley's Lost Empires (1986). His cinema roles included an appearance in David Lynch's 1980 film The Elephant Man in which he played the part of a milkman.
He was best known for a small part in the 1977 space opera film Star Wars, in which he played the role of insane Dr. Cornelius Evazan, a mentally unstable criminal with a heavily scarred face who violently confronts Luke Skywalker in the Mos Eisley Cantina scene. Curtis' character states "I have the death sentence on twelve systems!" In the brief bar brawl, Evazan's partner, Ponda Baba, gets his arm chopped off by Obi-Wan Kenobi, the first use of a lightsaber in combat in the Star Wars franchise.
Death Curtis died on 30 November 2017 at the age of 87 in Billericay, Essex.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes1977 Star Wars Dr. Cornelius Evazan Uncredited1980 The Wildcats of St. Trinian's Taxi driver 1980 The Elephant Man Milkman 1981 Take It or Leave It Vicar Documentary Television Year Title Role Notes1973 Bowler Rocky / Alfie 2 episodes1975 Larry Grayson Man in Line-up / Cafe Customer / Sailor 5 episodes1979 The Jim Davidson Show Himself 1 episode1980 Grange Hill Gateman 1 episode1980 Fox Conk 1 episode1980–1981 Cribb Landlord / Matt Beckett 2 episodes1981 Lady Killers Mr . Waters 1 episode1982 Legacy of Murder Assistant thug 1982 Q.E.D. Referee 1 episode1982 The Gentle Touch Gaffer 1 episode1983 Jemima Shore Investigates Vic 1 episode1984 Tucker's Luck Steve 2 episodes1985 The Bill Bernie 1 episode1986 Lost Empires Ted 1 episode, (final appearance)
Music Videos
Curtis makes a brief appearance as a subway bystander in the English ska band Madness' 1979 Madness music video (cover of Prince Buster's song), at 00:26. Curtis also plays the role of one of the two villains who chase the hero (Morten Harket) in the Norwegian synth-pop band a-ha's 1985 Take On Me music video. Curtis, like other characters in the video, is rendered in pencil-sketch animation style.
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