\n<\/p>\n
It was a minute that changed the course of the \u201cStar Wars\u201d franchise. In \u201cThe Empire Strikes Back,\u201d the now-celebrated 1980 sequel, audiences were treated to the first on-camera sighting of Emperor Palpatine.<\/p>\n
After receiving only a glancing mention in the first movie, he could have looked and sounded like anything. A human. A Wookiee. A droid. A turtle. There was, instead, a disfigured, robed face \u2014 portrayed by the actress Marjorie Eaton \u2014 that terrified fans and etched the character into \u201cStar Wars\u201d lore.<\/p>\n
But Palpatine\u2019s voice \u2014 cool, crisp and commanding<\/a> \u2014 belonged to Clive Revill, who in about 60 seconds set the stage for one of the most feared and infamous characters in science fiction. Mr. Revill died on March 11 in Sherman Oaks, Calif., his daughter, Kate Revill, said on Thursday. The cause, she said, was complications of dementia. He was 94.<\/p>\n Palpatine\u2019s appearance, however brief, is pivotal. In the conversation with Darth Vader it is established that Vader, already an iconic villain, has a boss \u2014 one whom Vader himself<\/em> fears. Additionally, Palpatine recognizes Luke Skywalker as a true threat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In just a few lines, Mr. Revill established Palpatine as a cold, dominant figure.<\/p>\n When the original trilogy was rereleased in 2004, his voice was replaced by that of Ian McDiarmid, who played Palpatine in subsequent \u201cStar Wars\u201d films, starting with \u201cReturn of the Jedi\u201d (1983). But in various iterations of Palpatine since the original \u2014 including the franchise films, the video game \u201cFortnite\u201d and even Lego<\/a> re-enactments \u2014 the character\u2019s voice is built on Mr. Revill\u2019s work.<\/p>\n \u201cThose voices are all influenced by this first example,\u201d said Greg Iwinski, a writer on the animated \u201cStar Wars\u201d series \u201cYoung Jedi Adventures.\u201d \u201cThat was 45 years ago. That\u2019s the importance of that legacy. He was the first guy to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n The small choices Mr. Revill made in introducing Palpatine \u2014 for example, making him emotionless with a touch of regality \u2014 were anything but. Mr. Revill provided a first draft of a character that would be built on for decades. His performance projected power without raising his voice, while making it believable that Darth Vader could fear him.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was frightening and powerful and also reassuring in a way,\u201d said Christopher Tramantana, an actor and an instructor at New York University. \u201cI remember thinking, \u2018Oh, Vader can be beaten.\u2019 There\u2019s something more powerful than him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAlso,\u201d he added, \u201cit was just such a cool voice.\u201d<\/p>\n Keith Powell, a \u201cStar Wars\u201d fan and an actor best known for his work on the NBC sitcom \u201c30 Rock,\u201d said in an email that Mr. Revill\u2019s voice was distinct and clear \u201cwhile still somehow sending a chill down my spine.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cHow did he do that? I still don\u2019t know,\u201d Mr. Powell said.<\/p>\n Mr. Revill\u2019s involvement in \u201cThe Empire Strikes Back\u201d came about after he received a call from the film\u2019s director, Irvin Kershner<\/a>. Mr. Kershner and Mr. Revill had previously worked together on the 1966 film \u201cA Fine Madness.\u201d By then, the New Zealand-born Mr. Revill, who grew up intending to become an accountant, was a veteran actor. He had several Broadway credits to his name and had been nominated twice for a Tony Award: in 1961 for \u201cIrma La Douce!\u201d and in 1963 for \u201cOliver!\u201d He was also nominated for a Golden Globe for best supporting actor for his performance in the film \u201cAvanti!\u201d (1972).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n During the production of \u201cThe Empire Strikes Back,\u201d Mr. Kershner invited Mr. Revill to a recording studio in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve got a line here that I want you to think about because it\u2019s got to be the right sort of thing,\u201d Mr. Revill recalled Mr. Kershner saying in an interview<\/a> at a 2017 fan event. \u201cI said, \u2018OK, fine.\u2019 And he gave me a piece of paper and I said, \u2018Irv, what do you want me to do with this?\u2019 And he said, \u2018Think about it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The line, now often quoted in pop culture, was, \u201cThere is a great disturbance in the Force.\u201d Mr. Revill said that it took him several tries to get the read right \u2014 each one progressively deeper and more deliberate.<\/p>\n Mr. Revill never expressed bitterness about being replaced as Palpatine.<\/p>\n \u201cI was the original Emperor, but they wanted continuity with the later movies,\u201d he told The Oklahoman<\/a> in 2015. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Mr. Revill is on the list of \u201cStar Wars\u201d performers who made an indelible mark on the franchise, and pop culture generally, but didn\u2019t become household names in part because their faces were not visible to audiences. It includes Peter Mayhew, who played Chewbacca, Han Solo\u2019s Wookiee sidekick; and Jeremy Bulloch, who originated the role of the masked bounty hunter Boba Fett.<\/p>\n Palpatine wasn\u2019t Mr. Revill\u2019s only contribution to the \u201cStar Wars\u201d universe. In 1993, he lent his voice to the video game \u201cStar Wars: X Wing.\u201d<\/a> He also returned to the franchise almost two decades later to voice multiple characters for the 2011 video game \u201cStar Wars: The Old Republic.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Clive Selsby Revill was born on April 18, 1930, in Wellington, New Zealand. In addition to his daughter, he is survived by a granddaughter.<\/p>\n Mr. Revill\u2019s acting career began in 1950, shortly after he left Rongotai College in Wellington. Laurence Olivier encouraged him to pursue an acting career, and Mr. Revill moved to London and studied at the Old Vic Theater for two years with the help of a government grant.<\/p>\n His first professional job was on Broadway: a 1952 production of \u201cMr. Pickwick<\/a>,\u201d based on the Charles Dickens novel, before he moved back to England, where he worked steadily in television, film and theater. His television credits include \u201cStar Trek: The Next Generation,\u201d \u201cBabylon 5\u201d and \u201cMurphy Brown.\u201d<\/p>\n He worked often as a voice actor both for video games and in cartoons. Arguably his most famous role \u2014 other than Palpatine \u2014 was as the voice of Alfred in \u201cBatman: The Animated Series,<\/a>\u201d alongside Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill, who voiced the Joker. He also voiced characters in cartoons like \u201cTom and Jerry\u201d and \u201cAlvin & the Chipmunks.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n It was \u201cStar Wars,\u201d however, that brought Mr. Revill the most fame and led him to occasionally attend fan conventions. In the interview with The Oklahoman, he described interactions with fans waiting to greet him: \u201cThey come up to me, and I tell them to get close and shut their eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n Then, Mr. Revill said, he would do the voice.<\/p>\n \u201cI say, \u2018There\u2019s a great disturbance in the Force.\u2019 People turn white, and one nearly fainted!\u201d<\/p>\n Hank Sanders contributed reporting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n