The hits just keep coming as another iconic actor has passed away at age 80. Tim Curry, a veteran of stage and screen with one of the most recognizable voices in the biz, died peacefully at his home in Toluca Lake, Los Angeles, on Tuesday, August 25th.
The British actor had an infamous career of playing some of cinema’s most notorious villains, including the scheming Rooster Hannigan in Annie (1982), the frightening Pennywise the Clown in It (1990), the devious Cardinal Richelieu in The Three Musketeers (1993), and the ever-oily essence of destruction, Hexxus, in the animated film Ferngully: The Last Rainforest (1992). He even played the most evil of them all, the Lord of Darkness himself, in the 1985 fantasy film Legend, and yet somehow, under all that makeup and prosthetics, made us think, ‘Hey, would losing our innocence to this beefy bad boy really be the worst thing?”
Tim was just as good at being funny as he was at being nefarious. His performance as Wadsworth the Butler in the board game-inspired film Clue (1985)is a comedy cornerstone, and he is widely known for somehow out Muppet-ing the Muppets as Long John Silver in 1996’s epic adaptation Muppet Treasure Island.
But he will be remembered more than anything for embodying Dr. Frank-n-Furter in the campy cult classic musical The Rocky Horror Show in London and then bringing the larger-than-life character to the screen in 1975’s The Rocky Horror Picture Show. And we do mean em-body. Mr. Curry spends the majority of the film barely dressed - decked out in a corset, panties, garter, and fishnets, and even gets down and dirty in bed with costar Barry Bostwick.
Known for its audience participation and for having the longest-running release in film history, The Rocky Horror Picture Show was and is a monumental part of queer culture and the sexual liberation movement. Dr. Frank-n-Furter urged us all to “Don’t Dream It, Be It,” but the message that feels even more appropriate is his ballad “I’m Going Home.” We hope Tim has made it there, finally.
