Page 31 - aruba-today-20190711

A31
PEOPLE & ARTS Thursday 11 July 2019

Rip Torn of ‘Larry Sanders Show,’ ‘Men in Black,’ dies at 88

By BOB THOMAS Turner. The role brought him
Associated Press his only Oscar nomination,
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Rip for best supporting actor.
Torn, the free-spirited Texan He also appeared in 1984’s
who overcame his quirky “City Heat.”
name to become a distin- But he never entirely shook
guished actor in television, his rebellious reputation.
theater, and movies, such “What do they say about
as “Men in Black,” and win all the guys that are tre-
an Emmy in his 60s for “The mendous actors?” he told
Larry Sanders Show,” has The New York Times in 2006.
died. He was 88. “Don’t they say they have
Torn died Tuesday after- a volatile temper and emo-
noon at his home with tions? Yeah, sure they do!
his wife, Amy Wright, and They’re not saying they like
daughters Katie Torn and a nice, mild guy. Look at
Angelica Page by his side, Sean Penn.
according to his publicist In 1994, actor-director Den-
Rick Miramontez. No cause nis Hopper said on “The To-
of death was given. night Show With Jay Leno”
His work on stage and that Torn once pulled a
screen spanned seven de- knife in a New York res-
cades, ranging from an taurant as he complained
early career of dark, threat- about being replaced in
ening roles to iconic come- “Easy Rider.” He sued Hop-
dic performances later in per for slander and won a
life. $475,000 judgment.
After acclaimed perfor- He remained active in film
mances in “Cross Creek,” and television in later years,
‘’Sweet Bird of Youth” and including a recurring role in
other dramas, Torn turned “30 Rock” and a voice act-
to comedy to capture his ing gig in the 2007 animat-
Emmy as the bombastic, ed “Bee Movie.”
ethically challenged televi- He weathered a couple of
sion producer in “The Larry drunken driving arrests, in-
Sanders Show.” cluding one in December
Created by and starring 2008 near his home in Salis-
Garry Shandling, HBO’s bury, Connecticut, that led
spoof of TV talk shows aired to his placement in an al-
from 1992 to 1998 and is In this Jan. 15, 1995, file photo, actor Rip Torn gives a thumbs-up to photographers after winning for cohol education program.
widely credited with inspir- Best Actor in a Comedy Series for HBO’s “The Larry Sanders Show,” at the 16th annual CableACE Born in Temple, Texas, Torn
ing such satirical programs Awards ceremony, in Los Angeles. initially studied agriculture
as “30 Rock” and “Curb Associated Press at Texas A&M and acting
Your Enthusiasm.” Harry Belafonte and oth- He did so billed against his on, Lyndon B. Johnson and at the University of Texas.
Torn played Agent Zed in er cultural and civil rights wishes as Elmore Torn. Walt Whitman. After service as a military
the first two “Men in Black,” leaders for a frank and Cast later in a “U.S. Steel His career hit a dry spell in policeman during the Ko-
movies, which starred emotional 1963 meeting Hour” production for televi- the 1970s, and he blamed rean War, he hitchhiked to
Tommy Lee Jones and Will with then-Attorney General sion, he was told to either it on the buzz in Hollywood Hollywood. Landing only
Smith. Robert F. Kennedy about change his name or forfeit at the time that he was dif- tiny roles in movies and TV
Born Elmore Rual Torn, the the country’s treatment of the role. He threatened to ficult to work with, a repu- dramas, and supporting
actor adopted the name blacks. return to his native Texas tation sealed when tension himself as a fry cook and
Rip in his boyhood, follow- Torn made his film debut in but finally agreed to be on the set of “Easy Rider” dishwasher, he decided to
ing the tradition of his fa- 1956 in an adaptation of credited as Eric Torn. He led to his being replaced shift to New York and seek
ther and uncle. It was the Tennessee Williams’ “Baby was billed as Rip Torn there- by Jack Nicholson for the more training as an actor.
subject of endless ridicule Doll,” and within a few after. His success eventual- 1969 release and missing Torn and his first wife, ac-
during his early days as a years was a respected film ly inspired a younger cousin out on one of the biggest tress Ann Wedgeworth,
stage actor in New York, and television actor, work- to take up acting, too — hits of the era. had a daughter, Danae,
and fellow drama students ing on occasions with his Oscar winner Sissy Spacek. “I wouldn’t say that I was before divorcing.
urged him to change it. second wife, Geraldine Other film credits included blacklisted,” he told The As- In 1963 he married Page,
With customary stubborn- Page. At the Actors Studio, “Critics Choice” and “The sociated Press in 1984, “but with whom he had co-
ness, he refused, eventually he gained the attention of Cincinnati Kid.” In Albert the word got around that I starred in the touring pro-
overcoming the jokes with Elia Kazan, who hired him Brooks’ “Defending Your was difficult and unreliable. duction and movie version
a series of powerful perfor- as understudy to Alex Ni- Life,” he was featured as a Unreliable! In all my years of “Sweet Bird of Youth.”
mances that led to his be- col, then playing Brick Pol- gregarious attorney in the in the theater I have never They had three children, a
ing regarded, along with litt in the Tennessee Williams afterlife. missed a performance.” daughter, Angelica, and
Marlon Brando, Paul New- classic, “Cat on a Hot Tin Brooks tweeted Tuesday He managed to keep work- twins Jon and Tony, and
man and James Dean, as Roof.” night, “R.I.P Rip Torn. He ing in small projects in the- appeared in productions
actors of a postwar gen- Toward the end of the was so great in Defending ater, films and TV, returning together until her death in
eration who brought tense show’s Broadway run, Torn Your Life. I’ll miss you Rip, to the mainstream in 1983 1987.
realism to their craft. He took over the role of the you were a true original.” with “Cross Creek,” in which Torn also had two children,
was also a political activist alcoholic, emotionally trou- On television he played he played table-smashing Katie and Claire, with ac-
who joined James Baldwin, bled former football hero. such figures as Richard Nix- backwoodsman Marsh tress Amy Wright.q