Obituaries
Entries from May 2010
By Lee Pfeiffer
Dennis Hopper, who has been battling prostate cancer for months, has died at age 74. Hopper was a larger-than-life figure in American films, having started out with high profile supporting roles in the James Dean classics Rebel Without a Cause and Giant. His rebellious behavior often alienated him from studio executives. In 1969, he directed and co-wrote Easy Rider, which was made a on shoestring budget and grossed tens of millions of dollars. The film also transformed the movie industry and helped usher in an era of new filmmakers. However, Hopper's penchant for drugs and alcohol sidetracked his success. His follow-up film, The Last Movie, was a critical and boxoffice disaster. He began a comeback a decade later with an acclaimed supporting performance as a crazed war photographer in Apocalypse Now and scored an Oscar nomination for his performance in the 1986 film Hoosiers. Hopper set his sites on getting sober and his career flourished. He worked consistently until his illness last year. Most improbably, later in life Hopper empathized with the political convictions of John Wayne, with whom he made two films, by donating money to the Republicans. However,he became disillusioned with the direction the party had taken in recent years and backed Barack Obama for President. In Hopper's final days, he was able to attend the ceremony that saw him receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. However, he was also in the midst of a bitter divorce that he filed for while literally on his death bed. For more click here
Gary Coleman, who found stardom in the 1970's TV sitcom Diff'rent Strokes has died from an intercranial hemmorrhage at at 42. Coleman's death was not unexpected: he had been placed on life support earlier this week. Like many actors who became stars as children, Coleman struggled throughout his adult life, which was plagued by medical, behavioral and legal problems. For more click here
Art Linkletter, one of the few remaining superstars from the early days of television, has died peacefully at age 97. Linkletter was a successful radio personality as early as 1942 and later brought his programs to television. His shows House Party and People Are Funny were marked by his penchant for gentle humor. His catch phrase "Kids say the darndest things" became the title of his autobiography and was made into a TV series by Bill Cosby. Linkletter prided himself on being the epitome of a family man, but ironically his life had many tragedies and he suffered the loss of three grown children during his life. He is survived by his wife of 75 years. For more click here
Author Peter O'Donnell, who created the action hero Modesty Blaise, has died at age 90. O'Donnell's character was a popular success through his adventure novels and a long-running series of comic strips that ran in the 1960s and which have been reissued in recent years as graphic novels by Titan publishers. O'Donnell also wrote the screenplay for the 1967 big screen version of Modesty Blaise that starred Monica Vitti. For more click here
By Lee Pfeiffer
Frank Frazetta, a legendary name in the world of comic art, has died from a stroke at age 82. For legions of comic book fans, his last name was a valued brand- one that called to mind his unique style of creating iconic heroes and super-sexy female characters. Frazetta was one of the key contributors to E.C. horror comics in the 1950s before censorship efforts drove the titles out of business. His specialty was dark, menacing characters such as Conan the Barbarian. Beginning with the 1965 film What's New Pussycat?, Frazetta also found a lucrative sideline in creating movie posters. Unlike many of his peers, he successfully marketed himself as an independent artist and lived to reap large sums of money from the sale of his original works. Sadly, in the last year of his life, he witnessed distressing family in-fighting over the long-term rights to his life's work. For more click here
Lena Horne, one of the great jazz singers of all time, has died at age 92. Horne was instrumental in battling racism throughout her career, beginning with her first breakthrough screen role in the 1943 musical Stormy Weather. The title track would become her signature song but her sequences were shot independently from those featuring other actors so the scenes could be cut out of prints being shown in the segregated South. Horne became a civil rights activist and continued to battle for racial equality throughout her life. She was the mother-in-law of acclaimed film director Sidney Lumet, who cast her in a key role in his 1978 screen adaptation of The Wiz. For more click here
Actress Dorothy Provine died last week at age 75. Provine was a sexy blonde whose career was somewhat sidelined by critics who felt she was an imitation Doris Day. Her perky on-screen personality landed her prominent roles in films such as Good Neighbor Sam, Kiss the Girls and Make Them Die, That Darn Cat! and Who's Minding the Mint? Provine also was the female lead in the Man From U.N.C.L.E. feature film One Spy Too Many. Her most memorable role was in Stanley Kramer's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World as the reluctant participant in a treasure hunt who ironically discovers where the fortune is buried. Provine was also a singer who scored two pop chart singles in the UK in the 1960s. For more click here
Lynn Redgrave, of the Redgrave acting dynasty, died on May 2 at age 67. She had recently been battling breast cancer. Redgrave made her screen debut in a bit role in the Oscar winning 1963 film Tom Jones, directed by her brother-in-law Tony Richardson. She scored her best leading role three years later as the frumpy title character in the classic British film Georgy Girl, for which she received a Best Actress Oscar nomination. By her own account, however, Redgrave's career paled in comparison with her sister Vanessa's and her father Michael Redgrave's. She continued to act over the decades, occasionally scoring good reviews for supporting performances but never fully capitalized on her early success. Her other films include The Deadly Affair and Smashing Time. For more click here
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