Photographer/filmmaker Gordon Parks Dead

[MountainLaurel]

Gordon Parks, who captured the struggles and triumphs of black America as a photographer for Life magazine and then became Hollywood's first major black director with "The Learning Tree" and the hit "Shaft," died Tuesday, a family member said. He was 93.

Parks, who also wrote fiction and was an accomplished composer, died in New York, his nephew, Charles Parks, said in a telephone interview from Lawrence, Kan.

"Nothing came easy," Parks wrote in his autobiography. "I was just born with a need to explore every tool shop of my mind, and with long searching and hard work. I became devoted to my restlessness."

He covered everything from fashion to politics to sports during his 20 years at Life, from 1948 to 1968.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/07/AR2006030701330.html

:cry:

[hatrack]

1. One of the last Renaissance men - though I never met him, I'll miss him

:toast: to you, Mr. Parks.

[Greeby]

2. sigh, 93, not bad

nt

[MuseRider]

3. Oh Noooo

He was such an amazing man, very accessible and very kind. I am so sad to hear this.

[pitohui]

4. sorry to hear that

another icon gone

[mitchum]

5. Rest In Peace, Mr Parks

you did good

[Hissyspit]

6. I had some stuff on him in my Black History movie thread

about Oscar Micheaux, but I edited it out from the final post because I wanted to reduce the focus of a long post; now I wish I had left it in. I was just talking about him class the other day.

Ever see his appearance in an episode of "Homicide"? He was a mortician who was taking bodies home and setting them up as a party because he was lonely - this was around 1993. They had Moses Gunn in an episode, too.

[Bryan]

9. Actually, that was Melvin Van Peebles on "Homicide"

But, come to think of it, it would also have been cool to see Parks on an episode of Homicide, as well.

[Hissyspit]

11. Yeah, you're right.

"Superfly" director, not "Shaft" director. My bad.

[Nikki Stone 1]

7. It's always depressing when artists die, especially those with guts

But at least he lived a long influential life

[FrenchieCat]

8. Shit....another great person gone!!

:cry:

[AlCzervik]

10. So sad, HBO had a wonderful special on about him, i bet they'll run it

again.

[Hissyspit]

12. I've posted some of his images in this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=601684&mesg_id=601684

[ljm2002]

13. I got to see an exhibit of his work...

...at the Oakland Museum, not long after 9/11.

I didn't know who he was before that -- but wow, what a life story and what wonderful work.

Sad to see him go, but at least he lived a good long life.

[newyawker99]

14. Rest in Peace Mr Parks.