Remembering Richard Chamberlain

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Richard Chamberlain died last March 27 in his home in Waimanalo, Hawaii. It was three days before what would have been his 91st birthday.

Richard Chamberlain! 90 years old! He once seemed ageless. Well, everybody grows old. There is no reason why he should have been any different. But there was a time when because he was adored, he did seem immortal.

It all began with Dr. Kildare on television in 1961 where Chamberlain played the title role of a young intern. It made him a popular teen idol. The girls in school swooned over him and eagerly looked forward to the weekly episodes.

All I remember now about the show was that it was on black and white TV and it had a nice theme song, Three Stars will Shine Tonight that became a hit for Chamberlain.

He also starred in some movies, particularly “Joy in the Morning,” a tale of young marriage with Yvette Mimieux, which was very well received, again, by females. Oh, he also recorded the title song.

Then because of the success of Dr. Kildare, it was easy enough to get him cast in the lead roles of two mini-series, “Centennial” and “Shogun.”

These mini-series not only won acclaim and a slew of awards, they also topped the ratings wherever they were shown. Soon Chamberlain was being hailed as the “King of the Mini-Series.” Therefore, there was no way that he would not be cast in “The Thorn Birds.”

“The Thorn Birds” was based on a book by Colleen McCullough. It was a sweeping saga about a sheep-ranching family in the Australian outback. The novel was so popular that National Bookstore in Rizal Avenue kept running out of copies. Those who had, grudgingly lent theirs out with the caveat of “To be returned” and “Don’t lose.”

Much of the appeal of “The Thorn Birds” centered on the forbidden love between the girl Meggie played by a lovely Rachel Ward and the priest, later cardinal Ralph de Briccasart, played by Chamberlain.

Maybe it was the thought of how hot he would look like wearing a cassock or because he was fresh out of “Shogun” but all of a sudden Chamberlain became not only a global star but also the sexiest creature to ever walk the earth.

The situation with the series was worse than with the novel. Followers waited eagerly for every episode of “The Thorn Birds” and Betamax shops made a killing copying these and then renting them out or selling them to the public. Those who were able to collect all of the episodes seemed like extra blessed.

To be fair, director Daryl Duke beautifully adapted “The Thorn Birds” into film. Particularly arresting was the music by Henry Mancini, the photography by Bill Butler and the big names who made up the cast.

Barbara Stanwyck, Jean Simmons, Christopher Plummer, Bryan Brown, Piper Laurie and others. They were all perfection. So just like the characters in the book. And particularly so, was Chamberlain.

He did some turns as Jason Bourne in “The Bourne Identity” and as Alan Quartermain in “King Solomon Mines.” But I do not know what happened later but Chamberlain just seemed to disappear little by little from the limelight. I later that he was concentrating on theater and films in the UK. Maybe it was because of a desire to be recognized as a serious actor.

He did a lot of period dramas in the UK playing characters like Lord Byron, Tchaikovsky, Octavious Caesar, Aramis, the Count of Monte Cristo and others. I was happy to come across him as Captain Von Trapp in “The Sound of Music” some years ago and he was also on stage in “My Fair Lady,” “The Sound of Music,” “Spamalot” and other musicals.

I was sad to hear of his passing. It felt like I went back to a happy, giddy time when life was watching television, sometimes reading a great novel and images of Richard Chamberlain.