Nicol Williamson has died
Nicol Williamson has died
#1Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:34amAccording to his website, Nicol Williamson has died at age 75 of esophageal cancer. Rest in peace.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
FindingNamo
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/22/03
#2Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:59am"Well, should I sing?"
Twitter @NamoInExile
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#2Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 12:35pmI'm sure Evan Handler will be skipping the funeral (which probably already happened, since he died a month ago; it's just been announced now).
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#3Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 12:52pm
I'll never forget all that controversy with "I Hate Hamlet" and Evan walking off the stage and quitting the show, right in the middle of a performance.
An old friend of mine (we were apprentices together in summer stock) was Evan's understudy who took over the role mid-performance and subsequently played the part. I never got to ask him about that experience, but it certainly goes down in the history books as one of Broadway's most "memorable" performances.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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#4Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 1:34pm
And don't forget Nicol's other famous and memorable moment in Rex, in which he famously slapped a chorus bow during bows, because he mistakenly heard him say "that was crap." (What the boy supposedly said was "that's a wrap.")
They say the audience gasped and stopped clapping, but Williamson continued to bow to silence, a la Mama Rose.
#5Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 1:41pmI only knew about that story from Paul Rudnick's article in The New Yorker a few years ago ("I Hit Hamlet"). I didn't realize he kept bowing in silence. Truly a character, that guy.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#6Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 3:15pm
The "I Hate Hamlet" story doesn't include the bowing. That's "Rex," or so I gather.
In "I Hate Hamlet," the two main character were dueling with rapiers on stage, and at one point Williamson poked Handler WAY too roughly in the rear end (yeah, go ahead and giggle, but apparently it injured him a bit, although I don't know if it drew blood). The tension had been building between these two actors for quite some time, but when this incident happened on stage, in the middle of a matinee performance, Handler threw down his sword and walked off the stage.
And left the theatre, never to return. Some say he told Williamson to "f*ck off" in front of the audience, but I've never confirmed that with anyone who was actually there.
My old friend Andrew from summer stock was Handler's understudy. And with NO rehearsal whatsoever before this happened (it was early enough in the run), he was shoved on stage to finish out the performance (some say script in hand). He also did the evening's performance and subsequently took over the role for a time after that. I believe they worked on getting a replacement in, but I'm not sure that happened. The show didn't run that long.
There were threats of lawsuits on both sides. Actors' Equity was involved, too. I don't know if anything ever came of that, though.
But I remember reading about it in Newsweek. I wished I had stayed in touch with Andrew. I'd have loved to have gotten the scoop firsthand.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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Updated On: 1/25/12 at 03:15 PM
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Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#7Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 3:20pm
"I wished I had stayed in touch with Andrew."
Andrew was a company member of Trinity Rep for several years. Don't know if he's still there or not.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#8Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 3:25pm
Williamson was also notorious for speaking to the audience from the stage.
When Andrew took over the role in the above mentioned incident, Williamson spoke to the audience from the stage and said "Andrew is doing a fine job." Didn't think anything about breaking character.
I also saw opening night of "Jack" his one man show about John Barrymore. At the curtain call, he stopped the applause and started explaining about all the mistakes he had made during the performance.
Such an odd man.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
husk_charmer
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/19/06
#9Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 3:32pmI guess the Nome King finally succumbed to eggs.
http://www.youtube.com/huskcharmer
#10Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 3:43pm
Very true, husk.
I just Googled around and found this old press release on the Hamlet incident.
Good god.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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Borstalboy
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/9/04
#11Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 7:36pmHandler didn't do much in New York after this, did he?
"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”
~ Muhammad Ali
#12Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 8:08pm
The "I Hate Hamlet" story doesn't include the bowing. That's "Rex," or so I gather.
Rudnick's article referenced Williamson's prior weird behavior, including the REX slap. That's what I was referring to.
The Rudnick article expands on pretty much everything you bring up, besty, including Williamson basically turning the curtain calls into soapbox sessions for the rest of the run. Hard to believe that Handler's understudy had absolutely no rehearsal, since the incident happened a month after the show opened (wouldn't they have understudy rehearsals?), but since you knew the u/s I assume you'd know better.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
Updated On: 1/25/12 at 08:08 PM
ghostlight2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/5/04
#13Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 8:12pm
He never returned to Broadway, Borstal, but that was likely a choice. In another interview, he said the the thought that went through his head as he left the stage was (paraphrased) "I didn't survive leukemia to put up with this". He had had to step down from an understudy job in Biloxi Blues (maybe it was Brighton Beach?) when he was diagnosed with the disease a few years prior.
He'd done three Broadway shows and a bit of tv before I Hate Hamlet, and has gone on to a successful career. Of the incident, from best12's link, he said:
""I can safely say," he continued, "that never in my 13 years in the professional theater have I been asked to put up with anything remotely resembling the kind of behavior and indulgences that went on in this production. Nicol Williamson is an extraordinarily gifted actor and a person the rest of us have to put up with until he finishes killing himself." "
Updated On: 1/25/12 at 08:12 PM
#14Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 10:46pm
AC, I'd heard Andrew had no rehearsal prior to going on in Act II of that performance. That sounds unusual 30 days into a run, unless you read the rest of it and realize that Nicol never learned his fight choreography. They were winging it still, during this legendary performance, so I'm not surprised that things were chaotic behind the scenes, and Andrew had never had a chance to run through the show on stage at that point.
Could I have heard wrong? Absolutely. As I said, I never asked Andrew about it. But I did hear he went on "cold" for Act II, with no rehearsal.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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#15Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 10:49pmOh, I don't doubt that your knowledge is accurate. It just seems odd. (But the whole situation seems odd)
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#16Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 10:53pm
As long as you understand my "knowledge" is hearsay. I wish I'd gotten more "from the horse's mouth," though.
Andrew was a great (and very funny) guy. We did a whole season of stock together in the mid-'80s, plus we worked in the box office together all summer.
I remember how floored I was when I heard about this incident, not only from mutual friends, but from the NY Times, Newsweek, Time, etc. It was a big entertainment story for a week or so.
Oh, and I agree with you, the whole thing is very odd.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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#17Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 10:57pmI remember Rudnick commenting that there was talk of Williamson being replaced (in an effort to appease Handler, who was threatening charges), but the producers shot it down; they recognized that Williamson was the main reason why people were going to the show. It became about what he was going to do during the show, what he was going to say at the curtain call, and if there was going to be another incident.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#18Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:04pm
It was the Spider-Man of the '80s. Come see what fresh hell happens tonight!
I did hear they were treating Andrew royally, even though he was the understudy. And I'm sure by the end of that weekend, he was fully up and running on the part. They were holding auditions though to replace him. I think they wanted a bigger name but didn't want to risk losing him in the interim.
As you say, the whole thing was very odd.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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#19Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:05pm
And was there another incident? Did Evan's replacement get the same treatment? What a fun story for the actors to tell at dinner parties.
Beyoncé is not an ally. Actions speak louder than words, Mrs. Carter. #Dubai #$$$
Updated On: 1/25/12 at 11:05 PM
#20Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:10pm
Nothing to the level of the Handler incident, though Rudnick in his essay about the production notes that Williamson became more and more eccentric as the show's run progressed:
Evan’s understudy took over, and the show wobbled along for a few more weeks. Nicol was in clover. He began leading the audiences in sing-alongs of “Happy Days Are Here Again,” and, at the curtain calls, he liked to instruct the crowd to “Head home and enjoy a nice juicy slice of sexual intercourse!” The Tony Award nominations were announced around this time, and while Adam Arkin received a nod Nicol did not. He was livid, and took to haranguing the nominating committee from the stage.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#21Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:14pm
One of the biggest issues was there were lawsuits threatened. Plus Equity stepped in. If an actor is "causing harm" to other actors on stage, they can shut the whole thing down. I'm pretty sure this didn't play out in massive courtroom dramas. Even though Evan walked out on his contract and quit the show, there was no way the producers were going to object.
They definitely would have heard from many lawyers then, not just from Evan but from Equity.
As far as Andrew, I know they were keen on keeping him happy in the interim ... and SAFE. Had Nicol done anything else approaching "harmful," I'm sure they would have either fired him or shut the production down before Equity beat them to the punch.
It's one thing to see an actor giving crazy/freewheeling performances. It's another if he's endangering his cast mates in any way.
One is totally unprofessional and perhaps amusing, while the other is illegal.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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#22Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:20pm
I wonder if he was genuinely crazy, or if he was playing to the audience's expectations of mayhem - probably both?
Either way, RIP.
Beyoncé is not an ally. Actions speak louder than words, Mrs. Carter. #Dubai #$$$
#23Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:27pmRudnick's testimony paints him as a self-destructive alcoholic who was, on some level, conscious of his bad habits and bad behavior. (For example, he states that Williamson claimed at their first meeting to have "not touched a drop in over a year," despite the fact that Rudnick had just witnessed him drink an entire bottle of wine, a few pints, and a brandy) I'm sure that to some degree his bahvior was performative--the curtain call speeches, for one--but it seems like he was also very troubled. According to Rudnick, Williamson's last words to him after the closing performance were "You knew this would happen."
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#24Nicol Williamson has died
Posted: 1/26/12 at 3:47amAccording to a biography of Richard Rodgers a few years back, Williamson was more than a handful during the production of "Rex" and had Rodgers regretting the day he ever hired him. It's unfortunate because the reputation Williamson built through his extreme behaviors really marked his legacy as an actor. He was quite good in the few things of his I've seen.
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