paul scofield, the actor, has died. he was in his eighties, so this is not tragic. it's how it goes. i am noting his death in particular, because i admired his work greatly. Most people who know who he was may recall his oscar-winning performance as sir thomas more in 'a man for all seasons'. for my part, the only play i have ever chosen to attend 3 times during its run is 'amadeus', and that was because of his performance as salieri. to this day i remember the anguish of the man who recognised and appreciated brilliant music, and not only was unable to reach such heights himself, but also had to endure the placing of such a gift in a boor such as mozart. simon callow played mozart, i think. when the movie came out, written by peter shaffer and directed by milos forman, it won a gazillion oscars. however, simon callow was reduced to a bit part, f. murray abraham got the lead, and the focus was much more on the story of mozart, as related in flashback by a salieri committed to a psych ward. more bankable, perhaps, but utterly losing scofield's agony. btw. was amused to note that while the broadsheets online highlighted the death of scofield, the mail ran it as a footnote to the death of the actor who played foggy in 'last of the summer wine', and officer barraclough in 'porridge' on tv.
the telegraph
the indy
the times
the grauniad
bbc online
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