Peter Venkman

Peter Venkman, Ph.D. is a fictional character from the Ghostbusters franchise. He appears in the films Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II and in the animated television series The Real Ghostbusters. In both live action films, he was portrayed by Bill Murray, and was voiced in the animated series first by Lorenzo Music and then by Dave Coulier. He is a parapsychologist and the leader of the Ghostbusters.

In 2008, Peter Venkman was selected by the magazine Empire as one of The 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time, described by Empire's Nick de Semlyen as "the ultimate New York hero: cynical, sarcastic, secretly sweet-natured", "a man possessed by manic spontaneity, with a wont to twirl in circles around a public concourse or declare undying love for a woman he's just met", and the "most popular" character played by Murray.

Character

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Peter is one of three doctors of parapsychology on the Ghostbusters team. He holds PhDs in both parapsychology and psychology. Originally his professional interests were focused on paranormal phenomena like ESP; he appeared not to believe in ghosts until he actually saw one. In the movies, he is characterized by his flippant persona, his approach to his profession as a scientific charlatan, and his womanizing demeanor.Fred Pfeil sees in him a postmodern hero, whose level of "crass self-interest" safeguards him from being ensnared by a stereotypical role.

Peter

Peter often is used to refer to Saint Peter, a disciple of Jesus Christ. It can also refer to many other people, of which only a few are listed here. This page only lists people commonly referred to as "Peter" and nothing else; for others, please see List of people named Peter.

People

Given name

Religion

Other people

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Other uses

Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters is a 1984 American supernatural comedy film, directed and produced by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. The film stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as three eccentric parapsychologists in New York City who start a ghost-catching business. Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis co-star as a client and her neighbor. The Ghostbusters business booms after initial skepticism, eventually requiring a fourth Ghostbuster, played by Ernie Hudson; but, when an uptown high-rise apartment building becomes the focal point of spirit activity linked to the ancient god Gozer, it threatens to overwhelm the team and the entire world.

Originally intended by Aykroyd as a project for himself and fellow Saturday Night Live alumnus John Belushi, the film had a very different story during initial drafts. Aykroyd's vision of "Ghostmashers" traveling through time, space, and other dimensions to fight large ghosts was deemed financially impractical by Reitman. Based on the director's suggestions, Aykroyd and Ramis finalized the screenplay in May–June 1982. They had written roles specifically for Belushi and John Candy, but were forced to change the script after Belushi died and Candy did not commit to the film.

Peter Jepson-Young

Peter Jepson-Young, M.D. (1957–1992), better known as simply Dr. Peter, was a medical doctor in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada who promoted AIDS and HIV awareness and education in the early 1990s through his regular segment on CBC Television news broadcasts called The Dr. Peter Diaries. In this series, Dr. Peter documented his own experiences as a person with AIDS. Dr. Peter used honesty, pathos and humour to share his experience. The documentary was also nominated for an Academy Award.

Background

He was born in New Westminster, British Columbia in 1957 and raised in Nanaimo, and North Vancouver, British Columbia. After graduation in 1975 from Delbrook Senior Secondary School in North Vancouver, he attended medical school at the University of British Columbia in the 1980s and did his residency in Ottawa, Ontario. On September 29, 1986, he was diagnosed with AIDS, soon after completing his medical training.

The Dr. Peter Diaries

By 1989 Jepson-Young was unable to continue his medical practice due to his failing health. Turning his attention to AIDS education, in 1990 Jepson-Young began the Dr. Peter Diaries with five episodes airing on the CBC Early Evening News . Through these short segments, in which he was only referred to as “Dr. Peter”, he shared his experiences with the general public. Most viewers were not aware of his surname until after his death. The Diaries did much to educate the general public about AIDS and HIV and put a human face on the disease. Dr. Peter continued the series through 111 episodes,spanning two years from September 1990 up to his death in November 1992.

Bill Murray

William James "Bill" Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor, comedian, and writer. He first gained exposure on Saturday Night Live, for which he earned his first Emmy Award and later went on to star in comedy films, including Meatballs (1979), Caddyshack (1980), Stripes (1981), Tootsie (1982), Ghostbusters (1984), Scrooged (1988), What About Bob? (1991), and Groundhog Day (1993). He also co-directed Quick Change (1990). Murray garnered additional critical acclaim later in his career, starring in Lost in Translation (2003), which earned him a Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award for Best Actor, as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. He also received Golden Globe nominations for his roles in Ghostbusters, Rushmore (1998), Hyde Park on Hudson (2012), St. Vincent (2014), and the HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge (2014), for which he later won his second Primetime Emmy Award.

He has collaborated more than once with such notable film directors as Sofia Coppola, Ivan Reitman, Harold Ramis, Wes Anderson, Jim Jarmusch, Frank Oz and the Farrelly brothers.