Bob Hoskins: R.I.P.

So sad.

From ABC News:

British actor Bob Hoskins, whose career ranged from noir drama "Mona Lisa" to animated fantasy "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" has died aged 71.

A family statement released Wednesday said Hoskins died in a hospital after a bout of pneumonia. He had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2012.

A versatile character actor capable of menace, quiet poignancy and Cockney charm, Hoskins appeared in some of the most acclaimed British films of the past few decades, including gangster classic "The Long Good Friday." His Hollywood roles included "Mermaids" and "Hook."

His movie breakthrough came in 1980 thriller "The Long Good Friday," playing an East End gangster hoping to profit from redevelopment of London's docks. It contained one of his most memorable speeches, a Cockney-accented dismissal of American culture: "What I'm looking for is someone who can contribute to what England has given to the world: culture, sophistication, genius. A little bit more than an 'ot dog, know what I mean?"

The film, which also featured Helen Mirren and a young Pierce Brosnan, is ranked 21 in the British Film Institute's list of the top 100 British films of the 20th century.

Hoskins specialized in tough guys with a soft center, including the ex-con who chaperones Cathy Tyson's escort in Neil Jordan's 1986 film "Mona Lisa." Hoskins was nominated for a best-actor Academy Award for the role.

His best-remembered Hollywood role was as a detective investigating cartoon crime in 1988 hit "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," one of the first major movies to meld animation and live action.

John Mackenzie: R.I.P.

John Mackenzie, Film Director, known as Frenzy Mackenzie, died on June 8, 2011 in London.

John Mackenzie's film The Long Good Friday is not only acknowledged as his most compelling film but it is widely considered the UK's greatest gangster movie. Harold Shand (Bob Hoskins) is a ferocious East End gangster who tries to do a deal with the American mafia. But into this hectic atmosphere Mackenzie brought a sense of balanced realism; he was keen to let Hoskins display a more vulnerable quality for, as he said, "the worst villains in the world have certain qualities that are liked, and Bob had the personality and humour to pull it off".

Read about John Mackenzie here.