Even into his so-called golden years, the writer Sam Greenlee was outspoken about the curious fate of his 1973 film "The Spook Who Sat by the Door." A Chicago native, Greenlee, 83, died from natural causes early Monday morning at his home.

"The Spook Who Sat by the Door" was Greenlee's one feature film (he was writer and producer), adapted from his 1969 novel of the same name, which was an underground classic inspired, in part, by Greenlee's own experience as the rare black man working for the Foreign Service from the late 1950s through the mid-'60s, stationed in Iraq, Pakistan and Greece before returning to Chicago.

Full story here.

May he rest in power.

Classic movie and book. He contributed a masterpiece to the cultural canon that is STILL a great educational and teaching tool on this thng called race and racism. Rest in peace indeed!

gone too soon