Richard Henry Sellers , CBE , commonly known as Peter Sellers ( 8 September 1925 -- 24 July 1980 ) was a British comedian and actor best known for his three roles in Dr. Strangelove , as Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther films , and as Clare Quilty in the original 1962 screen version of Lolita . Richard Henry Sellers , CBE ( 8 September 1925 -- 24 July 1980 ) , known as Peter Sellers , was a British comedian and actor best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series , for playing three different characters in Dr. Strangelove , as Clare Quilty in Lolita , and as the man-child and TV-addicted Chance the gardener in his penultimate film , Being There .