Charles Durning, who overcame poverty, battlefield trauma and nagging self-doubt to become an acclaimed character actor, whether on stage as Big Daddy in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" or in film as the lonely widower smitten with a cross-dressing Dustin Hoffman in "Tootsie," died Monday in New York. He was 89. He died of natural causes, The Associated Press reported, citing Judith Moss, his agent and friend. Charles Durning may not have been a household name, but with his pugnacious features and imposing bulk he was a familiar presence in American movies, television and theater, even if often overshadowed by the headliners.
Alongside Paul Newman and Robert Redford's con men, Mr. Durning was a crooked cop in the 1973 movie "The Sting"; starring with Nick Nolte; he was a dedicated assistant football coach in "North Dallas Forty" (1979); in the shadow of Robert De Niro, he was a hypocritical power broker in "True Confessions" (1981). ...
His television credits were voluminous, from guest spots to substantial parts in TV movies and mini-series. ...
Despite his success, Mr. Durning fought a lifelong battle with himself.
"I lack confidence as an actor," he told The Toronto Star in 1988. When asked what he thought his image was, he replied: "Image? Hell, I don't have an image." He later told The Pittsburgh Gazette that he was "driven by fear -- the fear of not being recognized by your peers." ...
... His combat experiences were harrowing. He was in the first wave of troops to land on Omaha Beach on D-Day and his unit's lone survivor of a machine-gun ambush. In Belgium he was stabbed in hand-to-hand combat with a German soldier, whom he bludgeoned to death with a rock. Fighting in the Battle of the Bulge, he and the rest of his company were captured and forced to march through a pine forest at Malmedy, the scene of an infamous massacre in which the Germans opened fire on almost 90 prisoners. Mr. Durning was among the few to escape. ...
"There are many secrets in us, in the depths of our souls, that we don't want anyone to know about," he told Parade. "There's terror and repulsion in us, the terrible spot that we don't talk about. That place that no one knows about -- horrifying things we keep secret. A lot of that is released through acting."
More (w/photos):
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/26/movies/charles-durning-prolific-character-actor-dies-at-89.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
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