Michael Clarke Duncan, star of such movies as “The Green Mile” and “The Whole Nine Yards,” passed away this morning. He was 54.
According to TMZ sources, his passing came very suddenly. We’re told his fiancee, Omarosa Manigault, was with him in his hospital room in Los Angeles and left for a short period of time. When she returned … he had died.
Duncan’s rep tells TMZ the actor never fully recovered from the myocardial infarction he suffered on July 13.
Best known for his breakout role as John Coffey in The Green Mile, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. He is also recognized for his appearances in motion pictures such as Armageddon, The Whole Nine Yards, and Daredevil, as well as staring in the popular TV series The Finder.
Born in Chicago in 1957, Duncan was raised by a single mother whose resistance to his playing football led to his deciding he wanted to become an actor. But when his mother became ill, he dropped out of college, Alcorn State University, and worked as a ditch digger and bouncer to support her. By his mid-20s, he was in Los Angeles, where he looked for acting parts and became a bodyguard for Will Smith, Jamie Foxx and other stars. The murder of rapper Notorious B.I.G., for whom Duncan had been hired to protect before switching assignments, led him to quit his job and pursue acting full-time.
Early film and television credits, when he was usually cast as a bodyguard or bouncer, included “Bulworth,” ”A Night at the Roxbury” and “The Players Club.”
The muscular, 6-foot-4 Duncan, a former bodyguard who turned to acting in his 30s, “suffered a myocardial infarction on July 13 and never fully recovered,” the statement said. “Manigault is grateful for all of your prayers and asks for privacy at this time. Celebrations of his life, both private and public, will be announced at a later date.”
In the spring of 2012, Clarke had appeared in a video for PETA, the animal rights organization, in which he spoke of how much better he felt since becoming a vegetarian three years earlier.
“I cleared out my refrigerator, about $5,000 worth of meat,” he said. “I’m a lot healthier than I was when I was eating meat.”
Duncan had a handful of minor roles before “The Green Mile” brought him an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor. The 1999 film, based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, starred Tom Hanks as a corrections officer at a penitentiary in the 1930s. Duncan played John Coffey, a convicted murderer with a surprisingly gentle demeanor and extraordinary healing powers.
Duncan’s performance caught on with critics and moviegoers and he quickly became a favorite in Hollywood, appearing in several films a year. He owed some of his good fortune to Bruce Willis, who recommended Duncan for “The Green Mile” after the two appeared together in “Armageddon.” Clarke would work with Willis again in “Breakfast of Champions,” ”The Whole Nine Yards” and “Sin City.”
MHSRIP
I liked the guy. MHSRIEP
MHSRIP
mulale mucibote chamfumu mwisho…
MHSRIP!!
MHSRIP
Sleep well, Gentle Giant
Ohh,thats sad,immediately i saw the headline i remembered the movie he acted as John Coffey…
LT MHSRIP but he looks like he was using drugs how would one be that big? I prefer fit men to be honest, I am saddened though
Thanks
You are the one on drugs. Have respect for the dead..
What is wrong with your head? You must have it checked sooner than later. If you are not well fed….. please do something,
you dog!
Very Sad NEWS MHSRIP
Sad, very sad. He went too soon…
your pic is disgusting!!
Sad news. MHSRIP. I was deeply moved by his trememdous role in “The Green Mile”.
But, that’s life… one moment you’re vitally alive and blogging the next moment you’re dead and dumb. What is left? Nothing but vague memories of what you said and did.
Frank Sinatra put it like this: “I would like to be remembered as a man who had a wonderful time living life, a man who had good friends, fine family – and I don’t think I could ask for anything more than that, actually.”
\:d/\:d/\:d/\:d/\:d/\:d/:((:((:((:((:((:((:((:((:((:((:o:o:o:o:o:o:o:o
Mhsrip
Sad indeed
RIP also was known as Billy Blanks in some famious movies
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Journey well, bigfella! one of my favourite hollywood personalities and a true gentle giant. RIP john coffey!
“I cleared out my refrigerator, about $5,000 worth of meat,” he said. “I’m a lot healthier than I was when I was eating meat.”
Whether one is a vegetarian or not, or one is as young as our under5 HH or as old as our own presido, Cycle Matter, when to die comes, kuyaa bebele……………………………!!!
:(
Too bad… good actor..
$creW Man city
MY GREAT ACTOR, SAD! MHSRIP
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