Tim Curry, the prolific British actor and singer, has passed away. TMZ reports that Curry passed away last night at home in Los Angeles. Curry remains most famous for his role as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the cult-beloved 1975 musical The Rocky Horror Picture Show and for playing comic-relief villains in a long string of movie roles. He also excelled in tons of stage-musical roles, and he had a run as a pop artist in the late '70s and early '80s. No cause of death has been reported, but Curry suffered a number of health problems later in life, including a 2012 stroke that left him unable to walk. He was 80.
Timothy James Curry, the son of a naval chaplain, grew up in Hong Kong and in a number of British seaside towns. He studied classical vocal singing as a boy, and he got his start as an actor in 1968, when he was cast in the West End production of the musical Hair. In 1973, he originated the role of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, a stage musical that started out in a small experimental theater before moving to larger venues, both on the West End and Broadway. Curry had a lot of input into the character, which worked as an exaggeration of the glam rock that was sweeping through the UK at the time. When the musical was a hit, Curry was cast in the movie adaptation, which was not a success upon its release but which became a cult phenomenon, with midnight screenings running for decades.
In the wake of Rocky Horror, curry signed with A&M Records, and he recorded his 1978 debut album Read My Lips with Alice Cooper/KISS producer Bob Ezrin. On that record, Curry covered artists like the Beatles and Joni Mitchell. His 1979 follow-up Fearless included "I Do The Rock," a flamboyant novelty song that cracked the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #91. Curry continued to work with film composer Michael Kamen on his music, and he evidently had enough success to warrant a 1985 best-of collection.
Curry got his first Tony nomination when he played Mozart in the 1981 stage play Amadeus, and he lost it to co-star Ian McKellen, who played Salieri. He was nominated twice more for musical roles — My Favorite Year in 1993 and Mothy Python's Spamalot in 2005. Onscreen, Curry made a big impression as Pennywise in the 1990 miniseries adaptation of Stephen King's It, and he had memorable roles in movies like Annie, Legend, Clue, The Hunt For Red October, Home Alone 2, Muppet Treasure Island, and Charlie's Angels.
Below, check out some of Curry's work in the musical arena.
