Jan. 16, 2004) *The seventies blaxploitation icon from the 1972 film "Superfly," Ron O'Neal has died. His role as cocaine dealer, Youngblood Priest, made him an unforgettable member of filmmaking history.
After a lengthy bout with cancer, O'Neal died Wednesday evening at Cedars Sinai, according to his wife, Audrey Pool O'Neal.

O'Neal grew up in Cleveland, OH, but was born in Utica, NY. He developed an interest in theater and joined Cleveland's Karamu House, an interracial acting troupe, training there for nine years (1957-1966).

In 1967, he moved to New York and taught acting in Harlem to support himself, jointly appearing in summer stock and off-Broadway shows at the same time. He received critical acclaim in 1970 in Joseph Papp's Public Theatre production of "No Place to Be Somebody," in which he won the Obie, Drama Desk, Clarence Derwent and Theatre World awards for his powerful performance. It was this performance that brought him to the attention of the producers of "Superfly."

He made his directing debut the following year with "Super Fly T.N.T." which again starred himself. Unfortunately the blaxploitation film genre took a nose dive and within a couple of years, O'Neal was struggling, playing support roles and even less by the end of the decade.

Entertainment Weekly interviewed the star in May of 1996 and asked about this period of his life.

"I didn't work. I would go two or three years without working at all. It was a little crazy for me. I was divorced during that period - I think it probably helped break up my marriage."

Although he managed to co-star in the TV series "Bring 'Em Back Alive" and "The Equalizer" in the 80s, it was an uphill battle trying to shake the pimpish image of "Priest" from his Superfly days.

In 1996, he joined other former 70s blaxploitation film action stars, Jim Brown, Fred Williamson, Richard Roundtree and Pam Grier, in a reunion of sorts in the film "Original Gangstas."

He is survived by his wife. Funeral services will be private.





[This message was edited Fri Jan 16 10:23:51 PST 2004 by TheRealFiness]