Actor Richard Farnsworth dies of self-inflicted gunshot wound

publiziert: Samstag, 7. Okt 2000 / 11:15 Uhr

Lincoln - Richard Farnsworth was battling terminal cancer during the filming of "The Straight Story," a movie that earned him an Oscar nomination for best actor. His fight ended Friday with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The two-time Academy Award nominee took his life at his New Mexico ranch as he had lived it _ with dignity, said his fiancee, Jewely Van Valin. Farnsworth, 80, a former stuntman who was involved in filmmaking for more than 60 years, was nominated earlier this year for the Oscar, becoming the oldest person ever nominated in the best-actor category.

Lincoln County Sheriff Tom Sullivan released a statement Friday night saying Farnsworth died in the evening at his home in Lincoln, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) southeast of Albuquerque. Officials did not release further details. Van Valin, Farnsworth's fiancee of 11 years, was at the actor's home when he shot himself. "I was just in the other room and I heard the shot," she said. "He was in incredible pain today. He was going downhill."

Van Valin said Farnsworth was diagnosed with cancer several years ago. She said the disease in recent years left him partly paralyzed and unable to walk.

Van Valin said that when the actor was working on "The Straight Story," he fought through the pain. "He was very ill in that movie, but phenomenally he made it through. He didn't want the world to know he was sick," she said.

The last time Missy Farnsworth, 52, saw her father was in June at the University of California-Los Angeles Medical Center. The actor couldn't move his legs, but the mood was joyful as his daughter and Van Valin drew pictures on his toes.

"He was a very private and proud man who chose not to discuss his health issues. He had reached a level of pain that he was unable to get beyond," Missy Farnsworth said by telephone from her Hollywood home. Van Valin said Farnsworth would be buried in Hollywood.

Farnsworth was nominated for an Oscar this year for his portrayal of Alvin Straight in "The Straight Story." He played an Iowa man who made headlines in 1994 for riding his lawnmower more than 250 miles (400 kilometers) to see his ailing, estranged brother. The actor said the depth of his performance came from his respect for Straight.

"I admired him very much and tried to be as much like his character as I could, talked to two of his boys, who are now truck drivers, and we filmed along his actual route. Every time we stopped somewhere, people would come by and say, 'Heck, I remember when old Alvin came through,' and tell us about it," he told The Associated Press last March.

The Oscar went to Kevin Spacey for his portrayal of a suburban father in "American Beauty." "It feels a lot better because I'm getting up there in age and might not have a chance again," Farnsworth said in an interview after he was nominated in February.

It was the second nomination for Farnsworth, who was nominated for the 1978 film "Comes a Horseman." Henry Fonda had been the oldest leading actor nominee at 76 for his role in "On Golden Pond" Born in Los Angeles, Farnsworth was a poor student who dropped out of school during the Depression at age 15 and went to work as a stable boy at a polo barn.

Two years later, in 1937, two men from Paramount studio happened by looking for ponies and mentioned they needed someone who could ride horses on film. Farnsworth took the job, which paid dlrs 7 a day, about what he had been making per week.

The Los Angeles native was a stuntman for more than 30 years who moved into acting at age 57, appearing in "The Grey Fox," "The Natural," "Tom Horn," "Resurrection," "Rhinestone Cowboy" and "Anne of Green Gables."

"He was a stuntman. He was so in tune with his body for so many years," Van Valin said. He "knew he was riddled with cancer. He just knew it was time."

(klei/AP)

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