Maxwell John Phipps (18 November 1939 – 6 August 2000) was an Australian actor, known for a number of roles in theatre, films and television during the 1960s until the end of the 1990s.

Max Phipps
Born
Maxwell John Phipps

18 November 1939
Died6 August 2000(2000-08-06) (aged 60)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Life and career

edit

Phipps was born in Dubbo and grew up in Parkes. He started his acting training in Sydney at the age of 21, at the Ensemble Theatre. There he appeared in such productions as Buffalo Skinner, Long Day's Journey into Night, Fortune and Men's Eyes, The Removalists and Rooted. In the Sydney Opera House's inaugural season he played Harry Bustle in What If You Died Tomorrow?. In London he reprised this role, as well as appearing in Don's Party. He played Dr Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Show in Melbourne in 1975–77.

His most notable screen roles included Bernie Dump in The Miraculous Mellops, The Toadie in Mad Max 2 (1981), Prime Minister Gough Whitlam in the television mini-series The Dismissal (1983), Sir Frank Packer in True Believers (1988), and Queensland Police Commissioner Terry Lewis in the Four Corners TV documentary drama Police State (1989), which helped to bring about investigations into corruption within that state's police force and political system. He was nominated for an AFI award for his role in Stir (1980). Other films included The Cars That Ate Paris (1974), Thirst (1979), Nightmares (1980), Dead Easy (1982), The Return of Captain Invincible (1983), Savage Islands (1983), which was released in the United States as Nate and Hayes, Sky Pirates (1986) and What the Moon Saw (1990). He appeared as Detective Inspector Mcallister in the Inspector Morse episode "The Promised Land" in 1991, which was set in Australia. Phipps also played the role of Edward "Dinosaur" Spence in the first season of the short lived Australian television series "FIRE" (1995) set in Queensland.

in the early to late 90s He also briefly worked on the ill-fated video game Wizardry: Stones of Arnhem at DirectSoft which was being contracted out to them by Sirtech.

Death

edit

He died from cancer in Sydney in August 2000, survived by his three siblings. He had never married.

Filmography

edit

Film

edit
Year Title Role Type
1964 Split Level Louis TV movie
1969 You Can't See 'round Corners Keith Grayson Feature film
1974 The Tony Hancock Special Hotel Clerk TV movie
1974 The Cars That Ate Paris Mulray Feature film
1975 Polly Me Love TV movie
1977 Benny Hill Down Under Various roles TV movie
1979 Temperament Unsuited Supervisor Short film
1979 Thirst Mr. Hodge Feature film
1980 Stir Norton Feature film
1980 Nightmares George D'alberg Feature film
1981 Mad Max 2 The Toadie Feature film
1982 Dead Easy Francis Feature film
1983 The Return of Captain Invincible Admiral Feature film
1983 Savage Islands Ben Pease Feature film
1983 Who Killed Baby Azaria? Mr. Baker QC TV movie
1985 Emoh Ruo Sam Tregado Feature film
1986 Sky Pirates (aka Nate and Hayes) Savage Feature film
1986 The Blue Lightning Brutus Cathcart TV movie
1986 Body Business Max TV movie
1987 Dark Age John Besser Feature film
1989 Police State Queensland Police Commissioner Terry Lewis TV docudrama movie
1989 How Wonderful! The Doctor TV movie
1990 What the Moon Saw Mr. Zachary Feature film
1990 Sky Trackers Doctor Giles TV movie
1999 Without Warning Mayberry TV movie

Television

edit
Year Title Role Type
1964 The Stranger Soshuniss Citizen TV miniseries
1964 Consider Your Verdict TV series, 1 episode
1969 Delta Tony Spencer TV series, 1 episode
1970 Woobinda, Animal Doctor TV series, 1 episode
1971 The Thursday Creek Mob Lieutenant Wigg TV series
1971 Dynasty Dr. Loftus TV series, 1 episode
1972 Catwalk Jack Wilson TV series, 1 episode
1972 A Nice Day at the Office Graeme 'Snow' Carter TV series, 1 episode
1972 Boney Morris Answorth TV series, 1 episode
1972 Snake Gully with Dad and Dave Harry Phealy TV series, 1 episode
1972 Behind the Legend TV series. 1 episode
1973 Ryan Bradley TV series, 1 episode
1975 Shannon's Mob Patrick Ryan TV series, 1 episode
1979 Glenview High TV series, 1 episode
1980-81 Cop Shop Glen Anderson / Harry Shelton / Clyde Hewitt / Robert Doyle TV series, 7 episodes
1981 Holiday Island Matthew Kramer TV series, 2 episodes
1981 Bellamy Evans TV series, 1 episode
1982 Women of the Sun Doug Cutler TV miniseries, 1 episode
1983 The Dismissal Prime Minister Gough Whitlam TV miniseries, 3 episodes
1983 Carson's Law Inspector Cullen TV series, 2 episodes
1984 Special Squad Arthur Lambert / Arthur TV series, 2 episodes
1985 Zoo Family Elephant Jim TV series, 1 episode
1986 My Brother Tom J.B.Strapp TV miniseries, 1 episode
1988 True Believers Sir Frank Packer TV miniseries, 2 episodes
1988 Rafferty's Rules Vern O'Connor TV series, 1 episode
1989 Mission: Impossible Rudensky TV series, 16 episode
1989 This Man... This Woman Barry Farmer TV miniseries, 1 episode
1989 E Street Joseph Parker TV series, 2 episodes
1991 A Country Practice Gordon Barlow / Gus Roach TV series, 4 episodes
1991 Inspector Morse Detective Inspector Glenn McAllister TV series, episode "The Promised Land"
1991 Screen One Ray TV series, 1 episode
1991-92 The Miraculous Mellops Bernie Dump TV series, 20 episodes
1992 G.P. Derek Harwood TV series, 1 episode
1995 Fire Edward 'Dinosaur' Spence TV series, 13 episodes
1995 Snowy River: The McGregor Saga Commissioner Henry Dengate TV series, 1 episode
1996 Naked: Stories of Men Leonard TV series, 1 episode
1996 Halifax f.p. Detective Inspector Derrida TV series, 1 episode
1997 Bullpitt! Archbishop TV series, 1 episode
1998 Wildside Sam Farmer TV series, 1 episode
1998-99 All Saints Joe Goretski TV series, 2 episodes
1999 Big Sky Ellison TV series, 2 episodes
1999 Noah's Ark Jezer TV miniseries, 2 episodes
1999 Farscape Pa'u Tuzak TV series, 1 episode

References

edit
edit