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The great character Yaphet Kotto has died at age 81, according to a Facebook post from his third wife, Tessie Sinahon.
She wrote:
“I’m saddened and still in shocked of the passing of my husband Yaphet of 24 years. He died last night around 10:30pm Philippine time.
This is a very painfall moment for me to inform you all fans, friends and family of my husband.
We still have a lot of plans honey that we discussed you have a lot of interviews waiting and you have movie offers like G.I. Joe and the movie of Tom Cruise and others. You still have plan to release your book and build a religious organization based on Yogananda’s Teachings.
You played a villain on some of your movies but for me you’re a real hero and to a lot of people also. A good man, a good father, a good husband and a decent human being, very rare to find.
One of the best actor in Hollywood a Legend. Rest in Peace Honey, I’m gonna miss you everyday, my bestfriend,my rock.I love you and you will always be in my heart.Till we meet again!”
Born Frederic Kotto in New York, and identified as Jewish on his Wikipedia page, Kotto was famous for his long run on TV’s “Homicide: Life on the Streets.” Acclaimed also for performances in movies like “Alien,” “Midnight Run,” and “Live and Let Die.”
His survivors include six children from his first two marriages. Condolences to his family and friends. He was an enormous talent.
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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.