Peter MacGregor Pagan (24 July 1921 – 2 June 1999)[1] was an Australian-American actor from Sydney best known for his role in The Overlanders (1946).
Following the success of that film, he left Australia for Britain, then moved to the U.S. where he worked extensively in theatre and TV.[2][3]
He became a U.S. citizen in 1954.[4] He died in New York City, age 77.[1]
Career
Pagan was born in Sydney, one of three sons. His family moved to Hay, where his father was the town surveyor. He boarded at Scots College, Bellevue Hill. His brother was Brigadier Sir John (Jock) Ernest Pagan, CMG MBE (1914–1986), federal president of the Liberal Party of Australia and NSW agent-general for New South Wales in London.[5]
When 16 he joined an amateur group at Bryant's Playhouse, Forbes Street, Darlinghurst, and studied drama there for four years.[citation needed]
Pagan joined the AIF at 21, and served over three years with an armoured division in Western Australia and was discharged on medical grounds in 1945.[citation needed]
He was cast in The Overlanders. He went to London and then New York.[6]
When he was 27, Pagan joined the Barter Theatre Company in Virginia.[citation needed]
In the mid 1970s Pagan said, "I'm not interested in Broadway anymore - the critics are killing it." In the late '70s and '80s, Pagan divided his time between New York and Sydney.[6]
