Other Passings

It's been a sad weekend. Over the past few days we've lost:

Elia Kazan, director of so many classic films including On The Waterfront and famed name-namer;

George Plimpton, author and founder of The Paris Review;

Donald O'Connor, the great comic actor and dancer, whose moves in Singin' In The Rain were unforgettable;

Althea Gibson, the first black tennis star;

and Edward Said, author of, among other works, Orientalism. I last saw Said on the tube just after the September 11th attacks, and it was sad to see him: he looked like an apologist and, worse, he looked like he was being outmsarted by, of all people, the vapid Paula Zahn.

O'Connor's death is the saddest of all, for me. He was always a figure of great energy and humour. "Make 'Em Laugh" remains one of my favourite screen memories.