Graham Chapman was one of Monty Python's most anarchic members, the only comedian in the group who regularly appeared on set in a full military uniform and nothing else. Born on January 8, 1941, in Leicester, England, he studied medicine at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he joined the Footlights, the university's legendary comedy club. He completed his medical degree but never practiced. Instead, he became John Cleese's primary writing partner, co-creating sketches for "At Last the 1948 Show" and "Doctor in the House" before the six members of Python came together in 1969. Chapman's contribution to Monty Python was substantial and often underestimated. He co-wrote many of the group's most celebrated sketches with Cleese, including the Dead Parrot sketch and the Spanish Inquisition. He played King Arthur in "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and Brian in "Life of Brian," the group's two most successful films. His performances brought a strange dignity to absurd situations that made the comedy more unsettling and funnier. He was openly gay from the early 1970s, one of the first British entertainers to come out publicly. He was also an alcoholic for much of his adult life, a problem that affected filming and his relationships with the other Pythons. He quit drinking in 1977 and wrote candidly about the experience. He was diagnosed with throat and spinal cancer in 1988. The disease progressed rapidly. He died on October 4, 1989, at age 48, one day before the 20th anniversary of Monty Python's first BBC broadcast. At his memorial service, John Cleese delivered a eulogy in which he used the word that the BBC had most famously censored, honoring Chapman's dedication to offending sensibilities in the name of comedy.