RIP Yaphet Kotto….
Sad news to share: the Iconic Actor Yaphet Kotto has died at the age of 81..-
He was born in Harlem, New York, of Cameroonian royal ancestry (his great -grandfather had been a king in pre-colonial days of the country!
Kotto got his start on Broadway, before launching a great career in movies and on TV.
Among his many credits were “Across 110th St”, the gritty 1972 thriller about two New York City cops go after amateur crooks who are trying to rip off the Mafia and start a gang war.
Kotto starred alongside the legendary Anthony Quinn.
Here is the trailer:
Many will know Kotto for appearing in a legendary film franchise:
Kotto starred in Roger Moore’s first turn as 007 in “Live And Let Die” in 1973, and the following year starred in another terrific 70’s action thriller:
“Truck Turner”
In this 1974 film, Isaac Hayes plays Truck is a bounty hunter who gets a job to track down a guy named Gator. When he and his partner find him, a chase ensues and Gator is killed. This makes Gator’s woman, Dorinda, very angry and she puts a hit on Truck.
Kotto plays Harvard Blue.
Here’s the great trailer:
Kotto was also in the terrific 1978 film “Blue Collar” alongside Richard Pryor and Harvey Keitel.
Kotto is also well known for playing ill-fated Nostromo engineer Parker in “Alien”:
It’s one of the most iconic movie posters of all time, and a shocker to be sure…check out the trailer:
Yaphet Kotto had a long career in both film and TV…among his many small screen credits was a recurring role as a senior detective on television’s long-running detective series “Homicide: Life on the Street”.
One of my favorite Kotto roles was in this hilarious 1988 film:
FBI agent Alonzo Mosely, who was driven crazy by Bounty Hunter Robert DeNiro as they both were searching for Charles Grodin, an Accountant who had the goods on a big Mobster….
“Midnight Run” is one of the funniest, most entertaining movies ever…you can see the trailer and much more about this classic “buddy” film by clicking on my story here:
Ultimately, the Actor amassed more than 90 credits.
Along with his wife, Tessie, they operated an Artists retreat resort in Southern Leyte, Philippines called “The Running Man Institute”, which was founded in 2001 and is focused on working with people in the entertainment industry to build their creativity, as well as to relax and read up about holistic health.
Kotto died on March 15 2021 in the Phillipines at the age of 81.
RIP Yaphet Kotto…
Kotto was a great bad guy in Roger Moore’s first 007 film, which happens to have the best Bond theme of all time…click here to see the best and the worst, and two that were censored:
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Categories: 70's Cinema, 70's Music, Action Films, Art, Books / Media, British Cinema, Comedy Movies, Cult Movies, Film Fight Club, Great Films, Grindhouse, Hollywood, Horror films, Movies, New York, Obscure Movies, Pop Culture, Revenge Movies, Talent/Celebrities
johnrieber 
Had a great smile! And what a great-sounding name! RIP.
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He was a great actor. I knew his face, his movies (who would forget that), but not his name. Thank you for the homage, John.
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A great actor whose face I remember but not his name…He certainly had a long and successful tv and film career and will be remembered for a long, long time…I am sure we will be seeing reruns of his most iconic roles 🙂 R.I.P
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I’ve seen his face in many films over the years, but I didn’t know his name.
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Reblogged this on By Hook Or By Book and commented:
I have to share John’s wonderful tribute to the charismatic veteran actor Yaphet Kotto. R.I.P.
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Drat. This is sad news.
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What a great compilation of his work! RIP 😦
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I remember Yaphet Kotto from Live and let Die but I never thought of him as being old. He had a great career.
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Timeless, and he’s one of those Actors you see in so many films and TV shows that he just seems timeless, right?
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Yes, I have seen him in a number of films.
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he really had a full portfolio of work, and what great movies to be in – rip
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One of those familiar faces you just get used to seeing in everything!
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Yet another great loss…
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Yes, a great Actor in some really interesting films and TV shows…
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A sad loss indeed. He was in some great films, and brought something extra to each one of them.
Best wishes, Pete.
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May flights of Angels sing this icon to his rest.
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