Remembering Kirk Douglas

Kirk Douglas died recently at age 103.  Imagine what he has seen in his lifetime.  As I'm reading about his life, I'm awed by what he accomplished.  Born into an family of impoverished immigrants with six siblings, he became one of the most recognized movie star of the Golden Age.  But making movies, 90+ movies like Spartacus, The Bad and the Beautiful, Lonely are the Brave, Ulysses, and one of my favorites, Lust for Life, was not all he did.

Kirk Douglas will be remembered as a film star, but he was also a screen writer, producer and director.  He is largely responsible for breaking the black list in Hollywood during the 1950's.  He was able to get Dalton Trumbo, one of the blacklisted writers, to write Spartacus, thus breaking the blacklist.  I consider this one of his great achievements in the film industry, although he also won several Academy Awards and Lifetime Achievement awards.

Kirk Douglas was also an activist, working hard for social and political causes in which he believed.  He was a writer of 10 novels, including a memoir.  In 1996 he suffered a stroke, which left him unable to speak.  With hard work and good care, Kirk Douglas was again able to speak, although his speech was slow and deliberate.  After recovering, he wrote Stroke of Luck, which he hoped would be a guide for other stroke victims in their recovery.

At age 100, there was a big party for him at the Beverly Hills Hotel.  He was still able to walk in to the party himself and enjoy the accolades that were given to him.  He was one of the last surviving stars of the Golden Age of Film, and will be missed.  We have his many movies and books that will last forever.  Oh, did I mention how good looking he was?