Gregory Peck, the Oscar-winning actor who perhaps more than anyone of his generation epitomised old-fashioned honour and integrity in his screen persona, has died at the age of 87.
His death came only a week after his role in To Kill A Mockingbird was voted the greatest heroic role in the his tory of film. The actor, whose range ran from the romantic lead in Roman Holiday to a Nazi on the run in The Boys from Brazil, died in his sleep at his Los Angeles home. His wife, Veronique, was by his side, according to a family spokesman.
”She told me very briefly that he died peacefully,” Monroe Friedman told the Associated Press. ”She was with him, holding his hand, and he just went to sleep. He had just been getting older and more fragile. He sort of ran his course and died of old age.”
Only last week, Peck was in the news when his role as the ethical white southern lawyer, Atticus Finch, who defends a black man accused of rape in the 1962 film To Kill A Mockingbird, was voted top heroic film role of all time by the American Film Institute.
”I’m extremely lucky to have a picture like that in my background because it’s not forgotten,” Peck said once. His famous line in the film – ”In our courts all men are created equal” – is still often recalled in coverage of the civil rights movement of the time.
The role mirrored Peck’s own concerns. A longtime Hollywood liberal, he was once encouraged to run for the Democrats against Ronald Reagan when his fellow-actor stood for the governorship of California. Peck declined but his political inclinations remained a part of his public persona.
He said his individualism and refusal to be told what to do was part of his Irish inheritance. He was advised by some against tackling anti-semitism in his 1947 role in Gentleman’s Agreement but ignored them.
A modest, popular figure in the film world, he was actively involved over the years in AFI and the National Council for the Arts. He served as president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences from 1967 to 1970.
His trademark was that of the strong, silent individual whose integrity was challenged. But he also played in comedies and westerns. His hard-bitten reporter in Roman Holiday was one of his favourite roles. Born Eldred Gregory Peck in La Jolla, California, he was a medical student when he decided to change courses and try an acting career. His first films was Days of Glory in 1944, and his final performance was in a TV film of Moby Dick in 1998. Along the way, he made 55 films, and was nominated for an Oscar five times.
Married twice, he had five children, four of whom survive him. – Guardian Unlimited Â