Actor who found fame as the machiavellian Texan oilman in US soap dies in Dallas hospital after battle against throat cancer
Saturday 24 November 2012 11.34 GMT
Larry Hagman's Dallas co-star Linda Gray called the actor her 'best friend for 35 years'.
Larry Hagman, who played one of television's most infamous villains – the amoral oil tycoon JR Ewing – in the longrunning soap Dallas, has died at the age of 81.
The actor's family confirmed his death after the Dallas Morning News reported Hagman had died of complications from throat cancer in hospital in the city on Friday. He had suffered from liver cancer and cirrhosis of the liver in the 1990s after decades of drinking.
Hagman first found fame in 1965 staring in I Dream of Jeannie, a popular television sitcom in which he played Major Anthony Nelson, an astronaut who discovers a beautiful genie in a bottle.
But it was his role as the machiavellian oilman JR Ewing in Dallas that made Hagman an international star. The soap, which ran for 13 seasons from 1978 to 1991, broke viewing records with more than 350m people worldwide tuning in to the cliffhanger 1980 episode to find out "Who shot JR?".
Hagman's character became the villain TV viewers loved to hate, grinning wickedly in his Stetson cowboy hat and boots, plotting how to undermine his business rivals, his brother Bobby, and cheat on his long-suffering wife Sue Ellen.
His Dallas co-stars joined with his family to pay tribute to the star, who had recently returned to the role of JR in the 2012 revival of the series.
"Larry was back in his beloved Dallas re-enacting the iconic role he loved most," his family said in a statement carried by the Morning News. "Larry's family and close friends had joined him in Dallas for the Thanksgiving holiday. When he passed, he was surrounded by loved ones. It was a peaceful passing, just as he had wished for. The family requests privacy at this time."
Linda Gray, who plays Sue Ellen, called Hagman her "best friend for 35 years" and was at his bedside when he died, her agent told the BBC.
In a statement, she said: "He was the Pied Piper of life and brought joy to everyone he knew. He was creative, generous, funny, loving and talented and I will miss him enormously. He was an original and lived life to the full."
Ken Kercheval, who played JR's business rival Cliff Barnes, wrote on Twitter: "A friend and long time partner... the other half … RIP Larry Hagman … your spirit will live long."
Hagman, who also appeared in films including Nixon and Primary Colors, was born in Fort Worth, Texas on 21 September 1931, the son of actress Mary Martin and lawyer Ben Hagman, a biography on his official website said.
While in England with the US Air Force he met and married his wife of almost 60 years, Swedish designer Maj Axelsson. The couple later had two children.
Hagman was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver in 1992 and three years later he had a liver transplant.
In October last year he discovered a tumour on his tongue and was diagnosed with cancer, and underwent six weeks of chemotherapy and radiation before it went into remission in March.
Earlier this year he appeared in a new 10-episode series of Dallas, with a second series in production and due to run next year.
Other celebrities took to Twitter and Facebook to express their sadness at his death. Veteran American broadcaster Larry King wrote: "I'm shocked. Larry Hagman was a dear man who had an incredible career. He helped me to stop smoking. He really was a very special person."
Barbara Eden, who starred with Hagman in I Dream of Jeannie, published a statement on her Facebook page which read: "I can honestly say that we've lost not just a great actor, not just a television icon, but an element of pure Americana.
"Goodbye Larry, there was no one like you before and there will never be anyone like you again."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2012/nov/24/larry-hagman-jr-ewing-dies?intcmp=239
Saturday 24 November 2012 11.34 GMT
Larry Hagman's Dallas co-star Linda Gray called the actor her 'best friend for 35 years'.
Larry Hagman, who played one of television's most infamous villains – the amoral oil tycoon JR Ewing – in the longrunning soap Dallas, has died at the age of 81.
The actor's family confirmed his death after the Dallas Morning News reported Hagman had died of complications from throat cancer in hospital in the city on Friday. He had suffered from liver cancer and cirrhosis of the liver in the 1990s after decades of drinking.
Hagman first found fame in 1965 staring in I Dream of Jeannie, a popular television sitcom in which he played Major Anthony Nelson, an astronaut who discovers a beautiful genie in a bottle.
But it was his role as the machiavellian oilman JR Ewing in Dallas that made Hagman an international star. The soap, which ran for 13 seasons from 1978 to 1991, broke viewing records with more than 350m people worldwide tuning in to the cliffhanger 1980 episode to find out "Who shot JR?".
Hagman's character became the villain TV viewers loved to hate, grinning wickedly in his Stetson cowboy hat and boots, plotting how to undermine his business rivals, his brother Bobby, and cheat on his long-suffering wife Sue Ellen.
His Dallas co-stars joined with his family to pay tribute to the star, who had recently returned to the role of JR in the 2012 revival of the series.
"Larry was back in his beloved Dallas re-enacting the iconic role he loved most," his family said in a statement carried by the Morning News. "Larry's family and close friends had joined him in Dallas for the Thanksgiving holiday. When he passed, he was surrounded by loved ones. It was a peaceful passing, just as he had wished for. The family requests privacy at this time."
Linda Gray, who plays Sue Ellen, called Hagman her "best friend for 35 years" and was at his bedside when he died, her agent told the BBC.
In a statement, she said: "He was the Pied Piper of life and brought joy to everyone he knew. He was creative, generous, funny, loving and talented and I will miss him enormously. He was an original and lived life to the full."
Ken Kercheval, who played JR's business rival Cliff Barnes, wrote on Twitter: "A friend and long time partner... the other half … RIP Larry Hagman … your spirit will live long."
Hagman, who also appeared in films including Nixon and Primary Colors, was born in Fort Worth, Texas on 21 September 1931, the son of actress Mary Martin and lawyer Ben Hagman, a biography on his official website said.
While in England with the US Air Force he met and married his wife of almost 60 years, Swedish designer Maj Axelsson. The couple later had two children.
Hagman was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver in 1992 and three years later he had a liver transplant.
In October last year he discovered a tumour on his tongue and was diagnosed with cancer, and underwent six weeks of chemotherapy and radiation before it went into remission in March.
Earlier this year he appeared in a new 10-episode series of Dallas, with a second series in production and due to run next year.
Other celebrities took to Twitter and Facebook to express their sadness at his death. Veteran American broadcaster Larry King wrote: "I'm shocked. Larry Hagman was a dear man who had an incredible career. He helped me to stop smoking. He really was a very special person."
Barbara Eden, who starred with Hagman in I Dream of Jeannie, published a statement on her Facebook page which read: "I can honestly say that we've lost not just a great actor, not just a television icon, but an element of pure Americana.
"Goodbye Larry, there was no one like you before and there will never be anyone like you again."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2012/nov/24/larry-hagman-jr-ewing-dies?intcmp=239
