History Creator / AlecGuinness

Guinness spoke highly of the finished movie, calling ''A New Hope'' "pretty staggering... as spectacle and technically brilliant." But any affection he had soon waned as [[IAmNotSpock he became identified almost exclusively with Obi-Wan Kenobi]]. In later years, Guinness recounted a story in which a little boy said he'd [[SawStarWarsTwentySevenTimes seen Star Wars over a hundred times]], to which Guinness responded by asking the boy never to watch it again. In Guinness's telling, the boy went away crying; the boy himself recalls their meeting as much friendlier and Guinness's comment as more joking than his memoir implies, though it doubtless expresses Guinness's feelings towards the role. In later years he did not even bother to read his ''Star Wars'' fan mail. He didn't [[MoneyDearBoy return the checks, however]]. Guinness was smart enough to negotiate a 2% share of Lucas's 20% share of the ''Star Wars'' profits. This made him ''very'' rich.

Guinness became known to a new generation of moviegoers when he played [[Characters/StarWarsObiWanKenobi Obi-Wan Kenobi]] in the ''Franchise/StarWars'' original trilogy. Guinness famously [[CreatorBacklash hated his character]], calling the films "childish banalities" and describing the production of the film as "hot, boring and indecisive". In his memoir, Guinness claimed that he talked Creator/GeorgeLucas into killing Obi-Wan off because not only because it would make him stronger, but also because he "couldn't go on speaking those bloody awful, banal lines" (Lucas disputes this, claiming ''he'' made the decision and that Guinness didn't take it well). Despite this, his costars had nothing but good things to say about Guinness, with Creator/MarkHamill remembering him as "the most wonderful epitome of an English gentleman.”[[note]]Hamill also noted that Guinness had a wonderful sense of humor - watch him tell a story about Sir Alec [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LB7ue_exdig here]][[/note]]

Guinness became famous early in his career as the star of a series of [[BlackComedy black comedies]] made by Creator/EalingStudios. ''Film/KindHeartsAndCoronets'' involved the illegitimate descendant of a noble family killing all his relatives in order to inherit a dukedom; Guinness played not the murderer but all eight of the nobles who stood in the murderer's way. Two years later, he earned his first Oscar nomination for ''Film/TheLavenderHillMob'', playing a meek bank clerk turned criminal. ''Film/TheLadykillers1955'' features Guinness as the head of a band of bank robbers (this film was remade by Creator/TheCoenBrothers with Creator/TomHanks playing the Guinness part). His partnership with Lean brought him an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward for Best Actor as the StiffUpperLip Col. Nicholson in ''The Bridge on the River Kwai''. In 1959 he was knighted.

Guinness became known to a new generation of moviegoers when he played [[Characters/StarWarsObiWanKenobi Obi-Wan Kenobi]] in the ''Franchise/StarWars'' original trilogy. Guinness famously [[CreatorBacklash hated his character]], calling the films "childish banalities" and describing the production of the film as "hot, boring and indecisive". In his memoir, Guinness claimed that he talked Creator/GeorgeLucas into killing Obi-Wan off because not only because it would make him stronger, but also because he "couldn't go on speaking those bloody awful, banal lines" (Lucas disputes this, claiming ''he'' made the decision and that Guinness didn't take it well). Despite this, his costars had nothing but good things to say about Guinness, with Creator/MarkHamill remembering him as "the most wonderful epitome of an English gentleman.”