Editing Graham Chapman (section)

== Career ==
=== Pre-Python career ===
Following their Footlights success, Chapman and Cleese began to write professionally for the [[BBC]],<ref name="tribute">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-51209197 |title=Monty Python stars pay tribute to Terry Jones |date=22 January 2020 |work=[[BBC News]] |access-date=25 February 2020 |language=en-GB}}</ref> initially for [[David Frost]] but also for [[Marty Feldman]]. Frost had recruited Cleese, and in turn Cleese decided he needed Chapman as a sounding board.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=56}} Chapman also contributed sketches to the radio series ''[[I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again]]'' and wrote material on his own and with [[Bill Oddie]].{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=57}} He wrote for ''[[The Illustrated Weekly Hudd]]'' (starring [[Roy Hudd]]), ''[[Cilla Black]]'', ''[[This Is Petula Clark]]'' and ''[[This Is Tom Jones]]''.{{sfn|Chapman|1980|p=136}} Chapman, Cleese and [[Tim Brooke-Taylor]] later joined Feldman in the television comedy series ''[[At Last the 1948 Show]]''.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=67}} It was Chapman's first significant role as a performer as well as a writer{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=67}} and he displayed a gift for [[deadpan]] comedy (such as in the sketch "[[The Minister Who Falls to Pieces]]") and imitating various British [[dialects]].{{sfn|Wilmut|1980|p=148}} The series was the first to feature Chapman's sketch of wrestling with himself.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=67}}

Despite the series' success, Chapman was still unsure about abandoning his medical career. In between the two series of ''At Last The 1948 Show'', he completed his studies at St Bartholomew's and became professionally registered as a doctor.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=68}} Chapman and Cleese also wrote for the long-running television comedy series ''[[Doctor in the House (TV series)|Doctor in the House]]'',{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=88}} and both appeared on a one-off television special, ''[[How to Irritate People]]'' alongside Brooke-Taylor and future Python member [[Michael Palin]].{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=89}} One of Cleese's and Chapman's sketches, featuring a used car salesman refusing to believe a customer's model had broken down, became the inspiration for the [[Dead Parrot sketch]].{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=90}} Chapman also co-wrote several episodes of ''Doctor in the House''{{'s}} follow up, ''[[Doctor in Charge]]'', with [[Bernard McKenna (writer)|Bernard McKenna]].{{sfn|McCall|2013|p=15}}

=== Monty Python ===
{{Main|Monty Python}}
In 1969, Chapman and Cleese joined the other Pythons, [[Michael Palin]], [[Eric Idle]], [[Terry Jones]] and [[Terry Gilliam]], for their sketch comedy series ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]''.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|pp=92–94}}<ref name="tribute"/> The group's writing was split into well-defined teams, with Chapman collaborating almost exclusively with Cleese.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=98}} Chapman was particularly keen to remove stereotypical [[punch line|punchlines]] in sketches{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=99}} and created [[The Colonel (Monty Python)|The Colonel]], who would stop them in mid-flow by saying they were "too silly".<ref name=telegraph>{{cite news |first=William |last=Langley|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/comedy/10948113/Monty-Python-Will-the-wrinkly-revolutionaries-have-the-last-laugh.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/comedy/10948113/Monty-Python-Will-the-wrinkly-revolutionaries-have-the-last-laugh.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Monty Python: Will the wrinkly revolutionaries have the last laugh? |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |location=London |date=5 July 2014 |access-date=15 May 2015}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

[[File:Graham Chapman Colonel.jpg|thumb|Chapman ended several ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'' sketches mid-flow dressed as [[The Colonel (Monty Python)|The Colonel]], complaining they were "too silly".<ref name=telegraph />]]

Although the pair were officially equal partners, Cleese later thought that Chapman contributed comparatively little in the way of direct writing, saying "he would come in, say something marvelous and then drift off in his own mind".{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=103}} The other Pythons have said that Chapman's biggest contribution in the writing room was an intuition for what was funny.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=103}} Gilliam later recalled that "Graham would do the nudge that would push it into something extraordinary".{{sfn|McCabe|2005|pp=139–140}} The series was an immediate success, and Chapman was delighted to learn that medical students at St Bartholomew's crowded round the television in the bar to watch it.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=107}} Chapman was frequently late for rehearsing or recording,{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=139}} leading to the other Pythons calling him "the late Graham Chapman".{{sfn|Chapman|Yoakum|2006|p=53}}

Chapman's main contribution to the "Dead Parrot sketch", derived from the piece within ''How to Irritate People'' and involving a customer returning a faulty toaster, was "How can we make this ''madder''?", turning the toaster into a dead Norwegian Blue parrot. Cleese later said he and Chapman believed that "there was something very funny there, if we could find the right context for it".{{sfn|McCabe|2005|pp=90–91}} Cleese was in particular concerned that the [[Cheese Shop sketch]] simply was not funny, in that it was just mainly a man listing different types of cheese. Chapman urged his partner to continue with it, telling him "Trust me, it's funny." When it was read out at the next script meeting, Cleese found that the others, particularly Palin, thought it was hilarious. The group felt that Chapman had the best acting skills among them. Cleese complimented Chapman by saying that he was "particularly a wonderful actor".{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=154}}

Chapman played the lead role in two Python films, ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail|Holy Grail]]'' and ''[[Monty Python's Life of Brian|Life of Brian]]''. He was chosen to play the lead in ''Holy Grail'' because of the group's respect for his straight acting skills, and because the other members wanted to play lesser, funnier characters.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|pp=185–186}} Chapman did not mind being filmed fully nude in front of a crowd in ''Life of Brian'', but the scene, filmed in Tunisia, caused problems with the female Muslim extras.{{sfn|Chapman|Yoakum|2006|p=17}}

=== Other work ===
In 1975, Chapman and [[Douglas Adams]] wrote a pilot for a television series, entitled ''[[Out of the Trees]]'', but it received poor ratings after being broadcast at the same time as ''[[Match of the Day]]'' and only the initial episode was produced.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=195}} In 1978, Chapman co-wrote the comedy film ''[[The Odd Job]]'' with McKenna and starred as one of the main characters. Chapman wanted his friend [[Keith Moon]] to play a co-lead role alongside him, but Moon could not pass an acting test, so the part went to [[David Jason]] who had previously appeared on ''[[Do Not Adjust Your Set]]'' with Pythons Idle, Jones and Palin. The film was moderately successful.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|pp=207, 208}} Chapman guest-starred on several television series including ''[[The Big Show (TV series)|The Big Show]]''.{{sfn|McCall|2013|p=75}}

In 1976, Chapman began writing a pirate film, ''[[Yellowbeard]]'' (1983), which came out of conversations between Chapman and Moon while in Los Angeles. Moon had always wanted to play [[Long John Silver]], so Chapman began to write a script for him.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=228}} Moon died in 1978 and the work stalled, eventually being rewritten by McKenna, then by [[Peter Cook]].{{sfn|McCabe|2005|pp=234–235}} The film, which starred Chapman as the eponymous pirate, also featured appearances from Cook, Marty Feldman, Cleese, Idle, [[Spike Milligan]] and [[Cheech & Chong]].{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=236}} It marked the last appearance of Feldman, who suffered a fatal heart attack in December 1982.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=238}} The project was fraught with financial difficulties and at times there was not enough money to pay the crew.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=237}} It was released to mixed reviews. [[David Robinson (film critic)|David Robinson]], reviewing the film in ''[[The Times]]'', said  that "the Monty Python style of comic anarchy requires more than scatology, rude words and funny faces".{{sfn|McCall|2013|p=97}}

Chapman published his memoirs, ''[[A Liar's Autobiography]]'', in 1980, choosing the title because he said "it's almost ''impossible'' to tell the truth".{{sfn|Chapman|Yoakum|2006|p=15}} He returned to Britain permanently after ''Yellowbeard'' was released. He became involved with the [[extreme sport]]s club [[Dangerous Sports Club]], which popularised [[bungee jumping]]. Chapman was scheduled to perform a bungee jump himself, but it was cancelled due to safety concerns.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=239}}

After reuniting with the other Pythons in the film ''[[Monty Python's The Meaning of Life|The Meaning of Life]]'' (1983), Chapman began a lengthy series of US college tours, talking about The Pythons, the Dangerous Sports Club and his friend Moon, among other subjects.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=239}} ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' creator and Python fan [[Lorne Michaels]] persuaded Chapman to star in ''[[The Big Show (TV series)|The Big Show]]''.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=241}}

In 1988, Chapman appeared in the [[Iron Maiden]] video "[[Can I Play with Madness]]".<ref>{{cite web |first=Drew |last=Magary |url=http://deadspin.com/5849204/a-not-at-all-homoerotic-tribute-shoulder-pads |title=A Not-At-All Homoerotic Tribute To Shoulder Pads |website=[[Deadspin]] |date=13 October 2011 |access-date=15 May 2015}}</ref> The same year, he starred in a pilot of a proposed television series, ''[[Jake's Journey]]'', but financial problems prevented a full series from being made.{{sfn|McCabe|2005|p=242}} In 1988, he also appeared on stage with three other Pythons (Gilliam, Jones and Palin) at the [[41st British Academy Film Awards]] where Monty Python received the [[British Academy Film Awards|BAFTA Award]] for Outstanding British Contribution To Cinema.<ref>{{cite news |title=Outstanding British Contribution To Cinema in 1988 |url=http://awards.bafta.org/award/1988/film/outstanding-british-contribution-to-cinema |access-date=25 August 2019 |website=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]]}}</ref>

Broadcast in November 1989, the 20th anniversary television special, ''[[Parrot Sketch Not Included – 20 Years of Monty Python]]'', hosted by Python fan [[Steve Martin]], was Chapman's final onscreen appearance with the other five Python members.<ref>{{cite news |title=Monty Python: 30 years of near reunions from the comedy troupe |url=https://www.digitalspy.com/showbiz/comedy/a532589/monty-python-30-years-of-near-reunions-from-the-comedy-troupe/ |access-date=25 August 2019 |work=Digital Spy}}</ref> Chapman was intended to be cast in the ''[[Red Dwarf]]'' episode "[[Timeslides]]", but died before shooting could begin.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/guide/index.cfm?seriesID=3&sectionID=behind-the-scenes&subsectionID=casting |title=Behind the Scenes – Series III |website=Red Dwarf (official website) |access-date=17 March 2015 |archive-date=18 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518100526/http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/guide/index.cfm?seriesID=3&sectionID=behind-the-scenes&subsectionID=casting |url-status=dead}}</ref>