Actor Bill Flynn dies
Thu, 12 Jul 2007
The death of actor Bill Flynn on Wednesday will leave a huge hole in the drama world, his friend of 40 years and fellow actor Paul Slabolepszy said.
"As a creative artist, Bill was one of the best in the world," said Slabolepszy who had once been a student with Flynn at the University of Cape Town.
"This is such a shock."
Slabolepszy said he had driven down to Durban on Wednesday and had tried to get hold of him during the course of the day.
Upon hearing of his death, he immediately flew back to Johannesburg.
Producer Bobby Heaney said the acting fraternity was "utterly devastated".
"Bill was the most loved actor in the whole country."
Wednesday night's performance of 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum' at Johannesburg's Civic Theatre, in which Flynn was scheduled to act, was cancelled.
Heaney said he found 40 messages and "missed calls" from friends and colleagues when he switched his cellphone on after doing a shoot on Wednesday afternoon.
"People are utterly devastated. It's a terrible tragedy that such a fine actor and human being should die at such a young age."
Heart attack
Flynn (58) is believed to have suffered a heart attack.
A stage and screen actor, he was known for his roles in films including 'Heel Against the Head' and 'Running Riot'.
His highly successful career includes leading roles in over 140 stage plays, musicals, 42 films, dozens of TV shows and thousands of radio and TV commercials, according to his website.
Flynn and Heaney took Arthur Miller's 'Death of a Salesman' to South African audiences in 2001, with Flynn playing the role of Willie Loman.
He had won 13 best actor awards, including the Dublin Critics and Golden Entertainer Awards. His film writing also won him a Best Screenplay award for 'Saturday Night at the Palace'.
Flynn had written on his site: "I have had offers to live and work permanently in America and England and I have worked overseas dozens of times — but somehow — I always return home.
"I am proud of being a South African artist and I don't think that's ever going to change. This is my home and I get really homesick when I'm away from it for too long."
At the time of his death Flynn was married to actress Jana Cilliers, his second wife.
