He was a planet, that’s what he was, some people in acting have their own gravitational pull, one fo the best actors on stage and in film of his generation, unfortunately his vices killed him (a hard core alcoholic) . he is worth you investigation, Oliver reed is not only an incredible actor but also, like most amazing artistic personalities, a cautionary tale of too much! Reed died from a heart attack during a break from filming Gladiator in Malta. Reed had encountered a group of sailors from the Royal Navy in a bar (the pub), and challenged them to a drinking match. Reed fell ill during the match and collapsed; despite efforts at resuscitation by his friends, he died in an ambulance while en route to the hospital.
In this wonderful scene (gladiator) he messes his lines (the word thunder comes to his mind instead of storm, so he breaks, in a blink of an eye recollects and continues) and yet he finds his way, he is magnificently BIG for cinema…
on the second clip you will see him appearing drunk in most of his interviews…again a cautionary tale for all actors.
