Angel Comas requests:
 
 
> As a writer and journalist  I am  preparing a book on: infarcts in the
> movies. My aim is to write about films in which collpase, heart attacks
> and sudden
> death  have an importance in the plot.
> I am asking for suggestions. Thank you very much.
 
Here are some that come to mind:
 
Herbert Marshall in THE LITTLE FOXES
the father in NORMA RAE
the "natural causes" that killed the title character in Hitchcock's
        THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY
the mother who suddenly dies in Griffith's short, MUSKETEERS OF PIG
        ALLEY
Robert Morely as Hepburn's brother in THE AFRICAN QUEEN
the dead husband in Sirk's ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS
Pa Bailey in IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE
Wilber Minafer, Major Amberson and Isabelle in THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS
Old Vito Corleone in the garden in THE GODFATHER (and the parody of the
        scene in the recent JANE AUSTEN'S MAFIA)
the grandfather in THE GRAPES OF WRATH
although not a direct cause of death, REBECCA's heart condition turns
        out to be an important plot element
Uncle Chris/Oscar Homolka (I think) in I REMEMBER MAMA
Mrs. Moore/Peggy Ashcroft in PASSAGE TO INDIA
the pre-film death of Rachel's husband in WITNESS
the off-screen death of the mother in WHITE HEAT
James Earl Jones in CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER
Monroe Starr/De Niro in THE LAST TYCOON
At least one of the pilots in one of the AIRPORT movies (and their
        AIRPLANE! parodies) not to mention the train engineer in
        RUNAWAY TRAIN
the death of "Momo," the gangster don, in GET SHORTY
the horse that dies in the office in ANIMAL HOUSE
Maurice Evans as the family friend in ROSEMARY'S BABY
the death of the Brandon de Wilde character in A MEMBER OF THE WEDDING
Melvyn Douglas got to die fairly often in his later years in films
        like I NEVER SANG FOR MY FATHER
In Kubrick's version (I don't know about Lynne's) of LOLITA, we're told
        that Humbert Humbert died of a heart attack in prison
National leaders such as the original dictator in MOON OVER PARADOR and
        the President in DAVE die in the saddle, so to speak
At least one of the family members played by Alec Guinness is scared
        to death in KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS
Jimmy Durante's death in IT'S A MAD MAD MAD MAD WORLD kicks off the
        caper
the mother in WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE?
Billy Crystal in MEMORIES OF ME
the protagonist of the Australian BLISS
Jessica Lange's husband in MEN DON'T LEAVE
Olympia Dukakis as a relatively rare female victim in DAD
the violinist in BASILEUS QUARTET
an apparent heart attack motivates MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY
exorcism proves to be too much for Max von Sydow in THE EXORCIST
family life changes for FANNY AND ALEXANDER when their father dies
the mother in Louis Malle's THE MAY FOOLS
a priest has a heart attack in the back of Benigni's cab in
        Jarmusch's NIGHT ON EARTH
a heart attack brings UNCLE BUCK to babysit
Bette Davis' mother in NOW, VOYAGER
Jim Morrison dies of a heart attack at the end of THE DOORS
heart attacks plague the GRUMPY OLD MEN and/or Burgess Meredith in
        one or more of the series
speaking of Meredith, his boxing coach has an attack in one of the ROCKY
        movies
Michael Palin tries to induce a heart attack in A FISH CALLED WANDA
the father in MY LEFT FOOT
 
 
Of course, these don't include other sudden deaths by violence or slow,
lingering illnesses.
 
Don Larsson
 
----------------------
Donald Larsson
Minnesota State U, Mankato
[log in to unmask]
 
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