![]() ![]() Alan Rickman on the other hand turned in an amazing dramatic and comedic performance totally outshining his fellow actors. Kevin Costner was at the peak of his career around this time and although the film was a great success, I thought he was a bit underwhelming in it (give me Errol Flynn’s Robin Hood any day). In Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, he definitely stole the show playing the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham. He seems to have been the kind of actor who never played the leading man but kept popping up in supporting roles and stole the show. He was familiar to me then, so he must have appeared on TV shows and films prior to that. Thought I’d first really noticed Alan Rickman in Truly, Madly, Deeply – A lovely little film with Julia Stevenson but it turns out that Die Hard came out first where he brilliantly played the villain Hans Gruber. He was 69 years old.I am in disbelief – only four days into this blog and another of my heroes has died. Alan Rickman died of pancreatic cancer on 14 January 2016. He continued to play the role through the eighth and last movie Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011). Rowling's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001). In 2001, Rickman introduced himself to a whole new, younger generation of fans by taking on the role of Severus Snape in the film versions of J.K. Rickman even conquered the daunting task of singing a role in a Stephen Sondheim musical as he took on the role of Judge Turpin in the movie adaptation of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007). Alfred Blalock in Something the Lord Made (2004), and as Alex Hughes in Snow Cake (2006), showcased his ability to play ordinary men in extraordinary situations. He treated audiences to his comedic abilities in such films as Dogma (1999), Galaxy Quest (1999) and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), and roles like Dr. ![]() Although often cited as being a master of playing villains, Rickman actually played a wide variety of characters, such as the romantic cello-playing ghost Jamie in Anthony Minghella's Truly Madly Deeply (1990) and the noble Colonel Brandon of Sense and Sensibility (1995). His take on the urbane villain set the standard for screen villains for decades to come. Denied the role in the film version of the show, Rickman instead made his first film appearance opposite Bruce Willis in Die Hard (1988) as the villainous Hans Gruber. In 1987, he first came to the attention of American audiences as the Vicomte de Valmont in "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" on Broadway (he was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance in the role). ![]() At the relatively late age of 26, Rickman received a scholarship to RADA, which started a professional acting career that has lasted nearly 40 years, a career which has spanned stage, screen and television, and overlapped into directing, as well. He opened a successful graphic design business, Graphiti, with friends and managed it for several years before his love of theatre led him to seek an audition with the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). ![]() After three years at Chelsea College, Rickman did graduate studies at the Royal College of Art. He studied Graphic Design at Chelsea College of Art and Design, where he met Rima Horton, who would later become his longtime partner. He attended Latymer Upper School on a scholarship. When Alan was 8 years old, his father died. Alan Rickman had an older brother (David), a younger brother (Michael), and a younger sister (Sheila). Alan Rickman was born on a council estate in Acton, West London, to Margaret Doreen Rose (Bartlett), of English and Welsh descent, and Bernard Rickman, of Irish descent, who worked at a factory. ![]()
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