English actor Bob Hoskins passed away today at the age of 71. His thespian accomplishments are too numerous to mention, although this writer particularly recommends seeing him in Terry Gilliam’s Brazil (1985) and in Mermaids (1990). I mention him here, however, because of his starring role in Dennis Potter’s 1978 television mini-series “Pennies from Heaven” as Arthur Parker, a traveling sheet music salesman, for which he won a BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor. That show reintroduced a younger generation to the British dance band music of the 1930s, and has notable actors miming original recordings, one of which is featured here for obvious reasons.

Bob Hoskins as Elsie Carlisle, singing “The Clouds Will Soon Roll By”:

Dennis Potter’s ‘Pennies From Heaven’ – ‘The Clouds Will Soon Roll By’

Video from songanddanceman1234 (YouTube)