Kirk Douglas, one of the last superstars of Hollywood's golden age of cinema renowned for his intense, muscular performances in "Spartacus" and "Paths of Glory," died Wednesday aged 103. The US leading man, producer and director came to prominence in the late 1940s and never lost his popularity, taking on nearly 100 movies over a six-decade career that endured beyond a severe stroke in his later years.
His death at his family home in Beverly Hills was confirmed by his son Michael, the Oscar-winning actor and filmmaker. "It is with tremendous sadness that my brothers and I announce that Kirk Douglas left us today at the age of 103," Michael Douglas said in a statement posted to Facebook.
"To the world he was a legend, an actor from the golden age of movies who lived well into his golden years, a humanitarian whose commitment to justice and the causes he believed in set a standard for all of us to aspire to." Tributes poured in from across Hollywood and around the world on social media, with many declaring "I am Spartacus!" in a nod to Douglas's legendary role as a rebellious Roman slave.
Douglas, born Issur Danielovitch to Jewish-Russian immigrants in upstate New York in 1916, began as a stage actor before serving in the US Navy during the Second World War. He graduated to movies in 1946 when "Casablanca" producer Hal Wallis signed him, and he became a star for his role as a double-crossing and womanizing boxer in 1949's "Champion." Douglas is survived by second wife Anne Buydens, 100, and three sons. A fourth child, Eric, died of a drug overdose in his 40s, in 2004.
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