Page 31 - Aruba Today

PEOPLE & ARTS A31
Alan Rickman, star of stage and ‘Harry Potter,’ dies at 69
JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — British ac-
tor Alan Rickman, a classi-
cally trained stage star and
sensual screen villain in the
“Harry Potter” saga and
other films, has died. He
was 69.
Rickman’s family said that
the actor died early Thurs-
day in London after a bat-
tle with cancer.
Daniel Radcliffe, who
played opposite Rick-
man in eight “Harry Pot-
ter” films, said Rickman was
“undoubtedly one of the
greatest actors I will ever
work with.”
Born to a working-class
London family in 1946 and
trained at the prestigious
Royal Academy of Dra-
matic Art, Rickman was
often cast as the bad guy;
with his rich, languid voice
he could invest evil with
wicked, irresistible relish.
His breakout role was as
scheming French aristocrat
the Vicomte de Valmont in
an acclaimed 1985 Royal
Shakespeare Company
production of Christopher
Hampton’s “Les Liaisons
Dangereuses.”
Film roles included the psy-
chopathic villain Hans Gru-
ber who tormented Bruce
Willis in “Die Hard” in 1988; a
Ruby Dee documentary offers lovely pearls of wisdom
MARK KENNEDY
AP Drama Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — The late
Ruby Dee was many things
— an artist, an activist and
a pioneer of stage and
screen. But she was also
something equally impor-
tant — a grandmother.
A new documentary
packed with Dee’s life les-
sons has been created by
one of her grandsons, and
it offers a very personal
look at the widely admired
woman.
Muta’Ali Muhammad,
grandson of Dee and Ossie
Davis, filmed Dee talk-
ing about everything from
what was in her detailed FBI
file to her opinion of open
marriages. He hopes others
will be encouraged to do
the same.
“This piece has served as
an inspiration and an ex-
cuse to those people who
In this June, 2015 photo, actor Alan Rickman attends the premiere of “A Little Chaos” at the Mu-
seum of Modern Art, in New York. British actor Alan Rickman, whose career ranged from Britain’s
Royal Shakespeare Company to the “Harry Potter” films, has died. He was 69. Rickman’s family
said Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016 that the actor had died after a battle with cancer.
deceased lover who con-
soles his bereaved part-
ner in 1990’s “Truly Madly
Deeply”; the wicked Sher-
iff of Nottingham in “Robin
Hood: Prince of Thieves”
in 1991; and a wayward
husband in 2003 romantic
comedy “Love Actually.”
Millions know him from the
Potter films, in which he
In this 2008 photo, Ruby Dee
poses at the 14th Annual
Screen Actors Guild Awards,
in Los Angeles.
(AP Photo/Reed Saxon)
have wanted to record
interviews with their loved
ones,” Muhammad said
this week.
“I think grandpa and
grandma Ruby would really
like that because the No. 1
played Hogwarts teacher
Severus Snape, who was
either a nemesis or an ally
— possibly both — to the
titular teenage wizard.
Radcliffe, who played Har-
ry, said Rickman “was one
of the first of the adults on “there are no words to ex-
Potter to treat me like a
peer rather than a child.
Working with him at such a
thing that they wanted me
to know was you have rich-
ness when you have fam-
ily.”
The film, “Life’s Essentials
with Ruby Dee,” will make
its small-screen debut on
the BET-owned Centric TV
on Sunday and will then be
released Feb. 1 on iTunes,
Amazon and Google Play.
Dee’s long career earned
her an Emmy, a Grammy,
two Screen Actors Guild
awards, the NAACP Image
Award, Kennedy Center
Honors, the National Medal
of Art and the National Civil “It left me with that feeling
Rights Museum’s Lifetime
Achievement Award.
She received an Oscar
nomination at 83 for best
supporting actress for her
role in the 2007 film “Ameri- them about important,
can Gangster” and was
celebrated for her 57-year
marriage with Davis. She
died at age 91 in 2014.
Friday 15 January 2016
was a magnificent actor
(and) a wonderful man.”
Emma Thompson, who
(Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
starred alongside Rickman
formative age was incred-
ibly important and I will car- in films including “Sense
ry the lessons he taught me
for the rest of my life and and Sensibility” and “Love
career.” Actually,” praised Rick-
Harry Potter creator J.K. man’s “humor, intelligence,
Rowling tweeted that wisdom and kindness” and
called him “the finest of ac-
press how shocked and tors and directors.”
devastated I am to hear of “I couldn’t wait to see what
Alan Rickman’s death. He he was going to do with his
face next,” she told News-
week. Mohammed Saghir,
the present-day Sheriff of
Nottingham — now a cer-
emonial role in the English
Midlands city — paid trib-
ute to Rickman’s version of
Robin Hood’s famous foe.
“His sheriff was a gloriously
nasty character who it was
easy to love to hate and
who he appeared to have
great fun playing,” Saghir
said.
Rickman’s villains were
memorable, and included
an Emmy-winning turn as
“mad monk” Rasputin in a
1996 TV biopic.
But Rickman’s screen roles
were remarkably varied,
and included the upright
Col. Brandon in Ang Lee’s
1995 film version of “Sense
and Sensibility” and Irish
politician Eamon de Val-
era in 1996 historical drama
“Michael Collins.”
The film includes family the idea of framing it as
photos and memorabilia, a grandmother passing
as well as appearances of along her values and jew-
Alan Alda, Angela Bassett, els of wisdom to her grand-
Harry Belafonte, Danny son. “She really latched on
Glover, Hill Harper, Samuel to that because family is so
Jackson, Spike Lee, S. Ep- important to her and she
atha Merkerson, Phylicia felt like a story like that can
Rashad, Glynn Turman, really strengthen the bonds
Cornel West, Sonia San- in any family. Anyone who
chez and Malik Yoba. watched it might be in-
Muhammad, who has spired to connect and talk
made seven feature-length with their elders.”
documentaries, got the Muhammad started inter-
idea of making one about viewing Dee in November
Dee after his grandfather 2011 and would eventually
died in 2005. move in with her, schedul-
ing six or seven hour-long
that seems to be univer- chunks of time to ask her
sal when an elder passes views on camera. He struc-
away — you regret not tured it in three sections —
having taken the time to love, art and activism.
sit with them and talk with But Dee was no softie when
it came to her grandson.
deep things.” “She was tough on me!”
But Dee rejected a tradi- said Muhammad, laugh-
tional documentary un- ing. “She critiqued my inter-
til Muhammad floated view style!”