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Actor Peter O’Toole, who found stardom in 1962 playing T. E. Lawrence in “Lawrence of Arabia” has died, BBC News reports. He was 81.

O’Toole, who overcame a severe stomach sickness in the 1970s, died on Saturday (Dec. 14) at the Wellington hospital in London following a long illness, his agent Steve Kenis confirmed to The Guardian.

The Irish-born leading man of the stage and screen announced last year he was leaving acting behind, saying, “I bid the profession a dry-eyed and profoundly grateful farewell.”

O’Toole was nominated for eight Academy Awards for his roles in “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Becket” (1964), “The Lion In Winter” (1968), “Goodbye, Mr. Chips” (1969), “The Ruling Class” (1972), “The Stunt Man” (1980), “My Favorite Year” (1982) and “Venus” (2006). He allegedly holds the record for the most Academy Award acting nominations without a win. O’Toole won four Golden Globes, a BAFTA and an Emmy, and was the recipient of an Honorary Academy Award in 2003.

“[He was] one of a kind in the very best sense and a giant in his field,” Kenis told BBC News.

“His family are very appreciative and completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of real love and affection being expressed towards him, and to us, during this unhappy time,” his daughter Kate O’Toole tells Deadline. “Thank you all, from the bottom of our hearts. In due course there will be a memorial filled with song and good cheer, as he would have wished. We will be happy to speak to you all then but in the meantime if you could give Peter O’Toole the respect he deserves and allow us to grieve privately we’d appreciate it. Thank you all again for your beautiful tributes – keep them coming.”

O’Toole is survived by daughters, Kate and Patricia, and son, Lorcan.

Source : HuffPost:

O’Toole is believed to have been born in Connemara in County Galway in Ireland, and lived in London. He shot to stardom in the 1962 film of TE Lawrence’s life story and went on to take leading roles in Goodbye Mr Chips, The Ruling Class, The Stunt Man and My Favourite Year. He received an honorary Oscar in 2003 after receiving eight nominations and no wins – an unassailed record. He considered turning it down and asking the Academy to hold off until he was 80, on the basis that “I am still in the game and might win the bugger outright.”

He finally accepted, saying: “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride, my foot”.

He is survived by his two daughters, Pat and Kate O’Toole, from his marriage to actress Siân Phillips, and his son, Lorcan O’Toole, by Karen Brown.

He finally accepted, saying: “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride, my foot”.

He is survived by his two daughters, Pat and Kate O’Toole, from his marriage to actress Siân Phillips, and his son, Lorcan O’Toole, by Karen Brown.

The Guardian

Breaking News! – Nelson Mandela Dies.

South Africa’s first black president and anti-apartheid icon dies after battling lung infection for month

He was a Unifier from the moment he walked out of prison. He taught us how to come together and believe in ourselves – Bishop Desmond Tutu
A Giant For Peace! He showed what was possible for our world – Ban Ki Moon – UN Secretary General
Death is something inevitable. When a man has done what he considers to be his duty to his people and his country, he can rest in peace – Late Nelson Mandela – PBUH
The world has lost one of its greatest citizens. A voice of courage, a source of inspiration and a beloved leader to us all – Jakaya Kikwete – President of Tanzania
A man who took history in his hands and bent the arc of the moral universe towards justice – Barack Obama – USA President
South Africa has lost its greatest son – Jacob Zuma – South Africa President
A people’s person – who never forgot his roots in helping others – Mourning South African
He inspired us in the Arab Spring demonstrations – Ex Arab Demonstrator
He had courage to do what is right – Mourning South African
And so many others – globally!

Former South African President Nelson Mandela died peacefully at his Johannesburg home on Thursday after a prolonged lung infection. He was 95.

Mandela, the country’s first black president and anti-apartheid icon, emerged from 27 years in apartheid prisons to help guide South Africa out of bloodshed and turmoil to democracy.

“Fellow South Africans, our beloved Nelson Rohlihlahla Mandela, the founding president of our democratic nation, has departed,” President Jacob Zuma said in a nationally televised address.

“Our people have lost a father. Although we knew this day was going to come, nothing can diminish our sense of a profound and enduring loss. His tireless struggle for freedom earned him the respect of the world. His humility, passion and humanity, earned him their love,” he added.

Mandela would receive a full state funeral, Zuma said, ordering flags to be flown at half mast.

Al Jazeera’s Tania Page, reporting from outside Mandela’s home in Johannesburg, said that there was a real sense of celebration in tribute to Mandela there, while world leaders were also delivering their tributes.

Speaking to Al Jazeera from outside Nelson Mandela’s house, where people of various races were singing songs dedicated to the former leader, local journalist Kenichi Serino said that there were around a thousand people gathered there.

“There is a total mix of people. There are Indian people, black people, guys with dreadlocks… anyone with a car is here. It’s a cross-section groups. There are lots of South African flags.”

“Many people are in their bathrobes and appear to have just come out of their homes.”

He said that the atmosphere was a mixture of sombre and festive mood.

“People are also taking pictures of themselves here, so as to capture the moment of them being here as well.”

Al Jazeera’s Haru Mutasa, reporting from Soweto, where Mandela once lived, said radio stations were telling people that “once you wake up go to Vilakazi street”, famous for its place in the struggle against apartheid.

“The mood is basically one of celebrations … I think people know that he achieved a lot for his country. Yes, he was not perfect. He was, afterall, human but he was the man of the people,” she said.

Respected figure

Mandela rose from rural obscurity to challenge the might of white minority apartheid government – a struggle that gave the twentieth century one of its most respected and loved figures.

He was among the first to advocate armed resistance to apartheid in 1960, but was quick to preach reconciliation and forgiveness when the country’s white minority began easing its grip on power 30 years later.

Mandela was elected president in landmark all-race elections in 1994 and retired in 1999.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993, an honour he shared with FW de Klerk, the white Afrikaner leader who released from jail arguably the world’s most famous political prisoner.

“A great light has gone out in the world. Nelson Mandela was a hero of our time,” de Klerk told CNN. “He was a great unifier and a very, very special man in this regard beyond everything else he did. This emphasis on reconciliation was his biggest legacy.”

As president, Mandela faced the monumental task of forging a new nation from the deep racial injustices left over from the apartheid era, making reconciliation the theme of his time in office.

The hallmark of Mandela’s mission was the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which probed apartheid crimes on both sides of the struggle and tried to heal the country’s wounds. It also provided a model for other countries torn by civil strife.

In 1999, Mandela handed over power to younger leaders better equipped to manage a modern economy – a rare voluntary departure from power cited as an example to African

n retirement, he shifted his energies to battling South Africa’s AIDS crisis and the struggle became personal when he lost his only surviving son to the disease in 2005.

Mandela’s last major appearance on the global stage came in 2010 when he attended the championship match of the soccer World Cup, where he received a thunderous ovation from the 90,000 at the stadium in Soweto, the neighbourhood in which he cut his teeth as a resistance leader.

Charged with capital offences in the infamous 1963 Rivonia Trial, his statement from the dock was his political testimony.

“During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.”

Mandela’s passing comes ahead of the country’s fifth election, and at a time when the country is battling numerous challenges, both political and economic.

Political analyst Ayesha Kajee told Al Jazeera that as South Africa and the world grieves “we need to recognise that, in order to truly honour [Mandela’s] legacy, and that of the countless unnamed heroes who sacrificed so much for our freedoms, we must take great care to not trample on the rights of our fellows, nor to squander our own rights in pursuit of the ephemeral.”

Source – Extracted From Al Jazeera TV Website

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http://www.betweenusonly.com/?s=playing+with+the+enemy

http://majidwrite.com/2013/01/20/tutus-children/

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