Iconic Actor Dead At 95

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Don Arpeggio

Hollywood legend Robert Duvall passed away at his home on Sunday, his wife confirmed.

He was 95.

The Oscar-winning actor was famous for his roles in “The Godfather,” “Apocalypse Now,” and other tough-guy characters in his seven-decade career.

“Yesterday we said goodbye to my beloved husband, cherished friend, and one of the greatest actors of our time. Bob passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by love and comfort,” his wife, Luciana, wrote.

“To the world, he was an Academy Award-winning actor, a director, a storyteller. To me, he was simply everything. His passion for his craft was matched only by his deep love for characters, a great meal, and holding court. For each of his many roles, Bob gave everything to his characters and to the truth of the human spirit they represented. In doing so, he leaves something lasting and unforgettable to us all. Thank you for the years of support you showed Bob and for giving us this time and privacy to celebrate the memories he leaves behind,” she continued.

CNN has more:

Duvall memorably played the Corleone family consigliere, or key adviser, in Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather,” earning his first of his seven Academy Award nominations for the 1972 film before reprising the role two years later in “The Godfather Part II.” Duvall noticeably skipped a long-delayed second sequel, “The Godfather Part III,” due to a pay dispute.

Born in San Diego, California – his father was a career naval officer – Duvall played a wide variety of roles, from cowboys to military men.

He attended Principia College in Illinois and served in the army during the Korean War before moving to New York and studying drama under famed acting coach Sanford Meisner. During that period, he shared an apartment with Dustin Hoffman and hung out with Gene Hackman, another young actor who would go on to great success.

Duvall appeared in a number of plays before being cast in the film version of “To Kill a Mockingbird” in the small but pivotal of Arthur “Boo” Radley in 1962. (He later named one of his dogs “Boo.”)

An array of film roles followed, among them the bad guy opposite John Wayne in Wayne’s lone Oscar-winning performance, “True Grit”; the part of Major Frank Burns in the Robert Altman movie “M*A*S*H”; and the lead in “Star Wars” director George Lucas’ dystopian 1971 sci-fi directing debut, “THX 1138,” in which Duvall (and everyone else) sported shaved heads.

Tributes poured in for the beloved actor, with some social media users sharing clips from his storied career.

PEOPLE shared further:

In Coppola’s 1979 classic Apocalypse Now, Duvall played Lt. Col. Kilgore. He told PEOPLE in 2003 that he nailed the iconic line — “I love the smell of napalm in the morning” — in just a take to two. He said, “Just got up and did it. An epic scene and a fun film to do.” He received his second Oscar nomination for the movie.

But by 1977, Duvall was upset about the roles he was getting and wanted to move out of supporting roles into starring ones. So he starred in David Mamet’s American Buffalo on Broadway. He told PEOPLE at the time, “People keep asking me, ‘Why walk away when you’re hot?’ I hope this will get me better film roles.”

Still, he wasn’t sure he really wanted to be a leading man. “To be a McQueen or a Redford,” he said, “I don’t know. They do the same thing all the time. They do themselves, and that must get boring.”

Duvall received a third Oscar nomination in 1980 for his leading role in The Great Santini. In 1983, he directed Angelo My Love, a movie about Romani people.

Duvall won an Oscar, for Best Actor, in 1983 for Tender Mercies. He told PEOPLE in 1984, weeks before the ceremony, “I guess the main reason I want the Academy Award is for the artistic power and freedom it gives you. The right to choose your own director, to have control over the project.”

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