Monday, February 16, 2026

Robert Duvall loses fight with old age--passes at 95; ap gives him a decent obituary (videos)

By Grand Grand Rapids Anonymous
monday, february 16, 2026 at 4:01:00 p.m. est

Robert Duvall loses fight with old age--passes at 95; ap gives him a decent obituary

Los angeles (ap) — Robert Duvall, the Oscar-winning actor of matchless versatility and dedication whose classic roles included the intrepid consigliere of the first two Godfather movies and the over-the-hill country music singer in Tender Mercies, has died at age 95.

“Duvall died 'peacefully' at his home sunday in Middleburg, Virginia, according to an announcement from his publicist and from a statement posted on his Facebook page by his wife, Luciana Duvall.

“'To the world, he was an academy award-winning actor, a director, a storyteller. To me, he was simply everything,' Luciana Duvall wrote. “His passion for his craft was matched only by his deep love for characters, a great meal, and holding court. For each of his many roles, Bob gave everything to his characters and to the truth of the human spirit they represented.”

“The bald, wiry [?] Duvall didn’t have leading man looks, but few 'character actors' enjoyed such a long, rewarding, and unpredictable career, in leading and supporting roles, from an itinerant preacher to Josef Stalin. Beginning with his 1962 film debut as Boo Radley, the reclusive neighbor in To Kill a Mockingbird, Duvall created a gallery of unforgettable portrayals. They earned him seven Academy Award nominations and the best actor prize for Tender Mercies, which came out in 1983. He also won four Golden Globes, including one for playing the philosophical cattle-drive boss in the 1989 miniseries Lonesome Dove, a role he often cited as his favorite.”

--GRA


N.S.: Imagine how long he might have lived, if not for apartheid?

At scenes from his pictures at youtube, other fans cited countless performances of his. And it made sense. Did Sinatra have just one signature song? No; he had a dozen or more.

Perhaps one day I'll do justice to this man, but today is not that day.


Lonesome Dove: "Cutting Cards for a 'Poke'"

It's been a hell of a ride. To the sunny slopes.


Lonesome Dove | "The Final Goodbye"




The first 1:08 of Basil Poledouris' music below, covers Capt. Woodrow Call (Tommy Lee Jones), Texas Rangers,' odyssey taking his best friend, Capt. Augustus MacCrae's corpse back from Montana to Clara's Orchard, outside of San Anton,' to bury him, after having promised his dying friend to do so.

The greatest tribute to Duvall's character and his performance in Lonesome Dove, is that during the eighth and final episode, Gus is dead, and yet his spirit looms over the entire episode.

Lonesome Dove - "A Symphony" (Basil Poledouris - 1989)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Here's a couple of favorites-

OUTER LIMITS "The Chameleon" Season 1, ep. 31:

https://archive.org/details/the-outer-limits-tos-31-the-chameleon-4-27-1964/The+Outer+Limits+TOS+-+31+The+Chameleon+(4-27-1964).mp4

Duvall is a compromised intelligence agent who is recruited to infiltrate a party of aliens who've landed on earth. His haunting monologue at about the midpoint of the episode was likely written by Joseph Stefano, though the soon-to-be-famous Robert Towne is credited with the script. That was a Stefano trademark- having one of the characters launch into a monologue about his inner torment!
Duvall is also star of the fine season 2 episode "The inheritors" (ep. 42-43), though that's more of an ensemble piece than a vehicle for Duvall.

VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA "The Invaders," s.1, ep. 20:

https://archive.org/details/voyage-to-the-bottom-of-the-sea_202506/Voyage+to+the+Bottom+of+the+Sea+-+S01E20+-+The+Invaders.avi

One of the better episodes, with Duvall again as an alien, discovered in a sealed capsule on the ocean floor. He's effectively non-human in the sinister role; his line about the irrationality of earthmen going to sleep just because the sun has set is one I tried on my parents at bedtime, to no avail! (You can infer that I saw this when it was first-run!)

R.I.P. to one of the greats. Was going to mention some other actors who are about the same age (besides Mr. Eastwood), but don't want to put the whammy on them!

-RM