Wednesday, June 24, 2026

RiP Hal Holbrook, A Class Act Who Loved Acting, Nominated for an Oscar for “Into the Wild”

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Hal Holbrook, whose death at 95 came yesterday, was an actor’s actor. He loved it. When I really got to know him, in 2008, for “Into the Wild,” he’d been mostly a stage and TV actor. He had lots of awards and was in early 80s. He’d had a lifetime of acclaim, but “Into the Wild” — as independent films sometimes do–propelled him into the movie awards universe. He wasn’t going to win. The Academy had been so ginned up about “No Country for Old Men” that Javier Bardem was on a bullet train to the big finale. But Hal did all the press, was a total gentleman, and a pleasure to get to know. His long list of credits and bio can be found elsewhere. But those moments stick in my head. RIP Hal.

 

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Roger Friedman
Roger Friedman
Roger Friedman is the founder and editor-in-chief of Showbiz411. He wrote the FOX411 column on FoxNews.com from 1999 to 2009, where he covered Michael Jackson, and previously wrote the "Intelligencer" column at New York magazine in the mid-1990s, where he covered the O.J. Simpson trial. He also edited Fame magazine. His bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Daily News, the New York Post, Vogue, Details, and the Miami Herald. He is a voting member of the Critics Choice Awards (Film and Television branches), and his movie reviews are tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. With D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, he co-produced the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive," which screened at Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

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