Michael Clarke Duncan Dies at 54
54 year old Oscar nominated actor is best known for his role as John Coffey in The Green Mile.
Actor Michael Clarke Duncan died yesterday morning in a Los Angeles hospital. His death was confirmed by a statement from his fiancee, Omarosa Manigault. He was 54.
Duncan was a beloved actor, who typically portrayed kind-hearted or vulnerable characters despite his massive stature. He is best known for his role as John Coffey in The Green Mile, for which he earned an Oscar nomination. Despite only taking up acting in 1995, Duncan was a prolific actor, with 94 credits to his name. Those credits include Daredevil, The Whole Ten Yards, Sin City, Kung Fu Panda, and Green Lantern.
My favorite role of Duncan's was his work in Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. Normally when serious actors like Duncan are in comedies they stick out, but in Talladega Nights he has some of the funniest moments of a very funny movie. As soon as I heard of his death I instantly thought back to an outtake in the credits that made me laugh harder than few things have. I've included it below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wgi5hdHDVAk&feature=related
Duncan's health problems started on July 13th when he was sent to the hospital after suffering a heart attack. He was removed from the ICU in early August but remained hospitalized. Early today his publicist announced Duncan had died, issuing this statement:
"Michael Clarke Duncan passed away this morning in Los Angeles, said his fiancée, Reverend Omarosa Manigault. The Oscar-nominated actor suffered a myocardial infarction on July 13 and never fully recovered. Manigault is grateful for all of your prayers and asks for privacy at this time. Celebrations of his life, both private and public, will be announced at a later date."
Following Duncan's death, I went to Twitter and saw numerous tweets talking about how sweet of a guy he was. In a place like Hollywood, it's nice to know that there are some good people out there, and that only makes this loss even sadder.
@EricVespe: Everything I've ever heard from anybody who has spent even a minute with Duncan was that he was the nicest, biggest teddy bear of a guy
@DrewAtHitFix: I'm going to have to write-up about Michael Clarke Duncan tonight. I am devastated. He was a great, great, guy.
And lastly, this quote comes from his long-time manager Dan Spilo, courtesy of Empire.
He was the only actor I ever knew that more often than not when fans came up to him, of any age or race or gender, they wouldn't ask for an autograph, they'd want a hug. He had a heart as big as the world."
We lost a great today, and he will be missed. RIP.