BOB HOSKINS, the British actor who starred in films including Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and The Long Good Friday, has died of pneumonia at the age of 71.
He was nominated for an Oscar for his performance in Mona Lisa in 1986, a role which won him Bafta and Golden Globe best actor awards. He was also known for a series of advertisements for BT in the late 80s and early 90s with the catchphrase: "It's good to talk".
Hoskins' family said in a statement: "We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Bob. Bob died peacefully in hospital last night, surrounded by family, following a bout of pneumonia. We ask that you respect our privacy during this time and thank you for your messages of love and support."
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The actor retired in 2011 after he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Before he withdrew from public life, he was regarded as one of the funniest, most honest and most foul-mouthed interviewees in modern cinema.
Below is a selection of quotes from the much-loved actor:
On acting: "There's two things I love about this business. One's acting and the other one's getting paid for it. The rest of it is a mystery to me. But I ain't got the faintest idea what the f*** is goin' on, you know. I've read Stanislavsky, and I thought, well, this is obvious." – Quoted in The Guardian
On the worst film he ever did: "The worst thing I ever did? Super Mario Brothers. It was a f****** nightmare. The whole experience was a nightmare. It had a husband-and-wife team directing, whose arrogance had been mistaken for talent. After so many weeks their own agent told them to get off the set! F****** nightmare. F****** idiots." – Quoted in The Guardian
On Who Framed Roger Rabbit: "It really is a barmy, awful experience. Everything is blue. Things start to lose their meaning. On Roger Rabbit I'd go out and see weasels pulling people's hair – you really start to hallucinate to make it all work. I thought I was going mad, going f****** potty." – Quoted on the Yahoo! move editor's blog
On saying sorry (during the filming of Hook): "We had Dustin [Hoffman] on the set apologising for making Ishtar. And [Steven] Spielberg apologising for 1941 and Robin Williams jumping in and saying: 'I apologise for Cadillac Man'. I was sitting there and shouted 'Well, I apologise for f****** nothing!'" – Quoted on the Yahoo! move editor's blog
On acting in his older years: "When you get to my age, what you want is the cameo. You get paid a lot of money. You fly in for a couple of weeks. Everybody treats you like the crown jewels. It's all great and if the film turns out to be a load of s***, nobody blames you." – Quoted in the Daily Mirror
On being typecast: "Most dictators were short, fat, middle-aged and hairless. Besides Danny Devito, there's only me to play them." – Quoted in the International Business Times
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