We flock to the theaters to see them, allow them into our homes through our television sets and DVD players, feel as though we know them, and even as though they are welcome Friday night friend, so it is only right that we note their passing with a touch of sadness and a sense of loss, for these actors at one time or another have transported us through their acting ability to another place and time, and on rare occasions made us feel part of something larger than ourselves. So it only seems right that we take a moment to note their passing, and pay tribute to their talent which kept us entertained, amused, and even enthralled.
Peter O’Toole
Peter O’Toole will be remembered more by older generations who remember this him as young man in his first major role as Lawrence of Arabia, for which he received an academy award nomination, losing to Gregory Peck and to Kill a Mockingbird. He would be nominated another 7 times and would lose another 7 times giving him the record of the actor with the most academy award nominations without a win. However, O’Tooles work did not go unnoticed by the Academy who in 2003 gave him an honorary Academy award for his lifetime body of work and the contributions he had made to film industry. Peter O’Toole died at age 91 of illness and left behind a large body of work for which he will be remembered.
Paul Walker
When the announcement came late on November 30, 2013 that actor Paul Walker had died in a fiery car wreck millions of “Fast and Furious” fans were shocked and stunned at the news. The 40 year old actor had almost a cult following for his movies and fans took to Facebook and Twitter to post condolences to the family and talk about their feelings of deep sadness at the loss of this young actor. Known as much for his charitable work as for his acting role, Paul Walker will be sorely missed by people both in and out of the film industry.
Lee Thompson Young
Perhaps one of the saddest and least understandable losses of 2013 was the death of 29 year old actor Lee Thompson Young who first rose to fame as the “Famous Jett Jackson.” From there Young went on to play in such movies as “Friday Night Lights, Akeelah and the Bee, and The Hills have eyes 2. He also played a cocky intern in the television series scrubs and at the time of his death was starring with Angie Harmon in the hit series Rizzoli and Isles. Fans of young can’t help wander what roles this young man would have matured into had he not chosen to end his life on that fateful August day.
There were other noteable actors that passed away in 2013 including Michael Ansara (known for his roles in Star Trek, Lost in Space, and the I dream of Jeanie) Cory Monteith who played a popular character on Glee, And Ed Lauter who was a supporting actor known for his great character development in movies such as the “Longest Yard” and “The Artist”
Each of these actors contributed greatly to audiences viewing pleasure and their talents will be sorely missed.