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Willam Hootkins passes away |
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 Bill Hootkins William Hootkins, who played Jek Porkins in the original Star Wars film, has passed away at age 58.
According to What's On Stage :
American stage and screen actor William Hootkins - who lived
and worked for many years in the UK and was last seen on the London
stage in Hitchcock Blonde - has passed away after a battle with
pancreatic cancer. Diagnosed earlier this year, he died last night
(Sunday 23 October 2005) at St Johns Hospital in Santa Monica near his
Californian home. He was 58.
Born in Dallas, Texas on 5 July 1948, the ebullient Hootkins ? known as
Bill or 'Hoot' to his friends - made his stage debut in a local school
production that co-starred a fellow student who later had success in
Hollywood, Tommy Lee Jones. He initially tried to distance himself from
drama by studying astrophysics and Chinese linguistics at Princeton
University, but soon became involved with Princeton?s Intime Theatre
group. On the recommendation of his friend, John Lithgow, he moved to
the UK after graduation to study at LAMDA (London Academy of Music and
Dramatic Arts) and subsequently made his home in this country.
 Jek Porkins In a busy career, Hootkins worked regularly on both sides of the
Atlantic. His first film role was in 1977, playing Jedi fighter Jek
Porkins in George Lucas' Star Wars. Though the part was small, it had a
big impact. He joked in a Whatsonstage.com interview two years ago (See
20 Questions, 28 Jul 2003): "In a sense, my career's been downhill ever
since. Fans still come to greet me at the stage door with action
figures of my character and embarrassing photographs for me to sign."
But such recognition did have its upside. As he also told
Whatsonstage.com: "I still didn't realise what power would come from
that job until a year later I received my first fan letter. In it was a
drawing of my scene by a little boy, and it was actually a clearer and
more understandable version of the scene than George Lucas'! He asked
if he could have an autographed photo. When I checked the return
address, it was the leukaemia ward of a children's hospital. It's a
blessing to me that I have any power to make even the tiniest
difference in other people's lives."
Read more
Click here for the Jed Porkings fan site
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