David Hemmings, 1960s Icon, Dead

The iconic star of the ultra-cool 1960s classic Blowup died of a heart attack after finishing a day's movie shoot in Romania. He was 62. AP reports:

Hemmings died Wednesday after paramedics on the film set of "Samantha's Child" were unable to revive him, his agent, Liz Nelson, said.

He had just finished his final shots of the day and was going back to his dressing room," she said.

Hemmings was one of the screen icons of the swinging '60s but later went behind the camera to focus on directing and producing TV shows like the "A-Team," and "Airwolf." He returned to acting in Ridley Scott's 2000 epic "Gladiator" and most recently appeared in "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen."

Born Nov. 18, 1941 in Guildford, England, Hemmings began his career as a singer, with nightclub appearances in his early 20s, before moving onto the stage and gradually into films.

After his voice changed, Hemmings studied painting at the Epsom School of Art where he staged his first exhibition at 15.

He returned to singing in his early 20s with nightclub appearances before moving onto the stage and gradually into films.

His early British movie roles usually saw him cast as misunderstood youths and belligerent "Teddy Boys," leading to his role in Michelangelo Antonioni's "Blow Up," which won Cannes' Golden Palm award in 1967.

"I desperately wanted to work for him. This was a job you seek," Hemmings later said of the role.

Hemmings played a fashion photographer, reportedly based on David Bailey, who believes he may have unwittingly photographed a dead man. Scenes in which he photographed a model, played by Vanessa Redgrave, have often been ranked among the sexiest moments captured on screen.

His boyish good looks were also put to use in the science-fiction romp "Barbarella" and the film version of the stage musical "Camelot."

I'm not sure if I'd rank Blowup "among the sexiest moments captured on screen"--it's far too cool and detached (early reviews compared it to an enigmatic Hitchcock mystery), but because it's one of the few serious films set (and filmed) in "swinging London" at its peak, it's a great time capsule of that era. Not surprisingly, the Austin Powers films have aped it endlessly, when they weren't copying James Bond movies.

Hemmings' thin, blond, mod looks made him a superstar, if only for a few years. Fortunately, he managed to sustain quite a long career in his chosen profession.

(Incidentally, Blowup is scheduled for release on DVD on February 17, 2004.)

Article Author: Ed Driscoll

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