Ron Silver

Ron Silver has died. Didn't even know he was ailing. He was a major character actor/not quite star who was a regular presence on stage and screen for the past 35 years. He won a Tony for Speed-the-Plow (even though co-star Joe Mantegna had the bigger role) and was also nominated for Emmys, including his fairly recent stint as tough political operator Bruno Gianelli on West Wing.



I know him best for his movie work, where he was equally deft at comedy and drama, and at playing good guys and bad guys. He had such a strong presence I can still recall his first movie appearance, a bizarre comic turn as Dr. Manuel Labor in Tunnel Vision, and soon after that, the confused placekicker Vlada Kostov in Semi-Tough.

I think his first film lead was in the forgettable horror film The Prophecy. I say forgettable, but I still remember him in it. He got to stretch a bit as Holocaust survivor Herman Broder in Enemies, A Love Story. Perhaps his highest profile role was Alan Dershowitz in Reversal Of Fortune (though it was Oscar-winner Jeremy Irons who got most of the attention as Claus Von Bulow). But no matter what he played, he always brought his distinct and strong personality to the part.