Mayhew was an orderly with no acting credits prior to 1977, the year he appeared in both Star Wars as Chewbacca and Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger as The Minotaur--a sort of human special effect in contrast to Ray Harryhausen's stop-motion miniatures.
Although his limited acting career was spent behind masks, Mayhew was more than a mere special effect, projecting his humanity beyond his wooly wookiee suit with distinctive body language. His work certainly went a long way in ensuring that Chewbacca would be a favorite character, especially among children (he certainly was my favorite when I was a Star Wars-addicted tot). Peter Mayhew was never going to win an Oscar, but he was well loved. He died this past Tuesday at the age of 74 after many years of health problems.
