Terry-Thomas, Known for Comic Roles as Cads, Dies

Terry-Thomas, the gap-toothed comedian who played the cad in dozens of British and American films including “Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines,” died today at age 78.

Terry-Thomas, disabled and impoverished by Parkinson’s disease, died of complications from the illness at a nursing home in Godalming, Surrey, according to an announcement from the Parkinson’s Disease Society.

The star of films that included “I’m All Right, Jack” and “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World” had been too ill to attend a gala benefit in his honor in London last April, which raised $51,000 for his care.

Terry-Thomas battled the degenerative muscle disease since 1971 and had been unable to work for several years. His last film roles included “The Last Remake of Beau Geste” in 1977 and “The Hound of the Baskervilles” in 1978.

A cigarette holder, a well-brushed mustache and the gap between his upper front teeth were Terry-Thomas’ signatures. He often portrayed the upper-class cad murmuring “jolly good show,” such as his role as Sir Percy in “Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines.”

“It’s much more fun being the stinker,” he once said. “I’ve made all my money--or most of it anyway--sending up pompous Englishmen. I was exposed to an awful lot of them as a young man and when I come back to Britain, I still see plenty of them walking about.”