Kirk Douglas, one of the last survivors of the golden era of Hollywood, has died at the age of 103.
Born Issur Danielovitch, the son of a ragman in a Yiddish-speaking home, he made his first film in 1946 and went on to star in over 50 more.
His roles ran from Ulysses in the film of the Homeric epic to Doc Holliday in the classic Western Gunfight at the OK Corral to the artist Vincent van Gogh in Lust for Life.
But he was famed most for playing the leader of a slave revolt against the Romans in Spartacus, which came out 60 years ago.
His actor son Michael said, “To the world he was a legend, an actor from the golden age of movies who lived well into his golden years, a humanitarian whose commitment to justice and the causes he believed in set a standard for all of us to aspire to.
“But to me and my brothers Joel and Peter he was simply Dad…
“He leaves a legacy in film that will endure for generations to come, and a history as a renowned philanthropist who worked to aid the public and bring peace to the planet.”
He also starred in the Broadway version of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s nest and acquired the film rights, but it was Michael who went on to produce the film.
In the 1966 film, Cast a Giant Shadow, he played an American volunteer who helps Israel in its War of Independence.
As a youth, his Jewish neighbourhood thought he would make a fine rabbi. “That scared the hell out of me. I didn’t want to be a rabbi. I wanted to be an actor,” he recalled. “I had nightmares — wearing long payos and a black hat. I had to work very hard to get out of it.
“But it took me a long time to learn that you don’t have to be a rabbi to be a Jew.”
He never abandoned his Judaism, always fasting on Yom Kippur, even when he was on set.
But he became more engaged with the religion after surviving a helicopter crash in 1991. He took up learning Torah and had a second barmitzvah at the age of 83.
His second wife Anne, whom he married in 1954, converted to Judaism in 2003.
Three years ago, they published Kirk and Anne: Letters of Love, Laughter and a Lifetime in Hollywood.
The filmmaker Steven Spielberg said, “Kirk retained his movie star charisma right to the end of his wonderful life and I’m honoured to have been a small part of his last 45 years.
“I will miss his handwritten notes, letters and fatherly advice, and his wisdom and courage — even beyond such a breathtaking body of work — are enough to inspire me for the rest of mine.”
