The Beatles in film directed by Lester. It was a satire of World War II films, and its dry, ironic British humour was not well received by American audiences. He would later produce avant-garde films with his second wife Yoko Ono, such as "Rape" which was produced for the Austrian television network ORF. In 1969, Ringo Starr took second billing to Peter Sellers in the satirical comedy "The Magic Christian", in a part which had been written especially for him. In 1971, Starr played the part of Frank Zappa in Zappa's epic cult film about a rock and roll band touring, entitled "200 Motels".
Peter Sellers be known as 'alternative'"—including himself, while the media historian Graham McCann states "the anarchic spirit of the Goon Show ... would inspire, directly or indirectly and to varying extents, ... "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", "The Young Ones", "Vic Reeves Big Night Out", "The League of Gentlemen" [and] "Brass Eye"." The stage play "Being Sellers" premiered in Australia in 1998, three years after the release of the biography by Roger Lewis, "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers". In 2004, the book was turned into an HBO film with the same title, starring Geoffrey Rush. The play later transferred