“A wonderful man,” Tom Hanks recalled on social media. He was referring to Bill Paxton who died from complications due to heart surgery on February 25, 2017. Bill had problems with his heart since he was a young teenager, when he contracted rheumatic fever that damaged parts of his heart.
But he never let that get in the way of living his life.
His acting career was a long and prosperous one.
He started out humbly as a set dresser and aspiring director behind the movie camera before he switched to acting. He had several small bit parts in the early 1980s which finally led to supporting parts in action flicks including Predator 2. These in turn led him to acting in blockbusters such as Apollo 13 and Titanic.
It led him to do Aliens with Sigourney Weaver. Everyone remembers his, ”
“Game Over Man, GAME OVER!”
Watch the video here:
Aliens is definitely one of my favourite films! I saw him in Twister. His fans say that he was the only guy who got killed by three different monsters: in Terminator, in Aliens and in Predator 2. He had a long career that took him to do TV series, the latest being Detective Frank Roarke in Training Day, where he had a lead roll.
Bill Paxton will be remembered as someone who was a nice guy on and off the set.
Ironically as an actor he played some real nasty guys at times. Definitely a sign of a very good actor to play his parts so convincingly that you think he’s a fool or someone you want to see go down hard.
“Paxton was known by friends and fans alike as one of the most charming, funny, and caring actors in the business who’d go out of his way to make his co-stars have fun, and spend a little extra time with a journalist if an interview was going particularly well.”
~ Emma Stefansky, Vanity Fair Magazine
He was the kind of actor who loved acting, plain and simple, and always seemed excited about whatever movie he was a part of.
He was the kind of actor who had a great relationship with the directors he worked with.
“Bill wrote beautiful heartfelt and thoughtful letters, an anachronism in this age of digital shorthand. He was a good man, a great actor, and a creative dynamo.”
~ Director James Cameron
I can see gratitude written all over this guy. Bill Paxton didn’t take his blessings for granted, instead he grew them. He had a wonderful sense of wonder! He appreciated every role he received and therefore he kept receiving them until the day he died.
He has one last movie coming out, which is in post-production, called “The Circle.” Watch for it and know he gave this last role as much love for the craft of acting and for living as he did everything else!
So, what about you?
Are you pouring your heart and soul into something that has a lot of meaning for you?
Are you ready to make tough decisions and go after what it is you want?
Success is not easy, not matter how you cut it. But the results are mighty fine. Stop living small. Dream big. Do big. Take a leap of faith. And be your own person all the way!
Dr. Joanny Liu, TCMD, RAc, P.Eng, International #1 Best Selling Author and founder of Extraordinary Sports Medicine, where we help athletes reverse injury, get back in the game they love and improve their quality of life.
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