![]() ![]() ![]() O'Neal is survived by his wife Audrey Pool O'Neal, and sister, Kathleen O'Neal. He was cast alongside fellow blaxsploitation stars Pam Grier, Fred Williamson, Jim Brown and Richard Roundtree in the genre's tribute film Original Gangstas (1996) the film was a modest hit, and O'Neal made the rounds in a few more urban action thrillers, most notably his final film On the Edge (2002), co-starring rap and televisions star, Ice-T. Better still, as scholars and film fans rediscovered his performance in Superfly, O'Neal gathered some movie work again. His fortunes did brighten in the mid-'80s with television, earning semi-regular roles in two of the more popular shows of the day: The Equalizer (1985-89) and A Different World (1987-93). Sadly, O'Neal's fame (as well as the blaxsploitation genre itself), would inevitably fade, and by the decade's end, O'Neal would be co-starring in such B-films as When a Stranger Calls, and the Chuck Norris actioner A Force of One (both 1979). Unfortunately, his lack of experience showed as the poorly directed film lacked its predecessor's wit and pace, and proved a resounding commercial flop. O'Neal would try his hand at directing when he took on the sequel Superfly T.N.T. The film was a box-office smash, and O'Neal, looking slick and ultra-stylish in his big fedora hat, leather boots, flowing scarf, and floor length trench coat, became a pop culture icon of the "blaxsploitation" genre overnight. The producers of Superfly saw him in that production and cast him in the film's lead role of "Youngblood Priest". He came to critical notice in the off-Broadway production of Charles Gordone's Pulitzer Prize-winning No Place to be Somebody where he earned an Obie Award (the off-Broadway Tony) for his work. During his nine-year stint with the playhouse, he had roles in such varied productions as A Raisin in the Sun, A Streetcar Named Desire and Kiss Me Kate.Īfter moving to New York City in the mid-'60s, he taught acting classes in Harlem and performed in summer stock. After graduating high school in 1955, he joined the city's widely acclaimed Karamu House, an experimental interracial theatrical troupe. O'Neal was born on Septemin Utica, New York, but he grew up in Cleveland. Smokey & The Bandit (1977) By the mid-1970s it seemed like Burt Reynolds could do no wrong at the box office.Ron O'Neal, the handsome, athletic black actor who shot to fame in the '70s for his role as the Harlem drug dealer "Youngblood Priest" in the cult flick, Superfly (1972), died of cancer in Los Angeles on January 14th.Exorcist, The (1973) This classic tale of a girl possessed by a demon was the first and still is the best of its….Cotton Comes To Harlem (1970) Soon after the Reverend Deke O'Malley (Calvin Lockhart) has sponsored a massive barbecue in the heart of Harlem and persuaded….Paper Moon (1973) Ryan O'Neal plays Moses "Moze" Pray, a bible-selling conman in depression-era Kansas, who falls in with Addie, a sassy, cigarette-smoking….Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973) The final (and weakest) picture in the superb five-part Planet Of The Apes series, Battle centres on a war that will decide….Last Movie, The (1971) After the huge success of Easy Rider (1969), director Dennis Hopper could have made any movie he wanted.Born To Boogie (1973) Born To Boogie was, first and last, a celebration of the phenomenon of Marc Bolan.It’s little surprise that this sequel bombed in cinemas and took forever to be released on video. 30 TV And Movie Couples With The Best Chemistry As Pointed Out By Folks In. In stark contrast to Curtis Mayfield‘s brilliant musical score from the original movie, the African-Caribbean-styled musical soundtrack for TNT, performed by Osibisa, is dreadful and seems completely out of context for the streetwise Priest character. tag team partners against TNT Champion Wardlow & FTR at AEWAllOut Sun. Sheila Frazier reprises her role from the original movie as Priest’s loyal, understanding (and extremely attractive) girlfriend while veteran actor Roscoe Lee Browne delivers the movie’s best performance as the eloquent, outspoken Dr Lamine Sonko, the African official who hires Priest.Ī young Robert Guillaume makes his movie debut in Superfly TNT as Jordan Gaines, a black American writer who befriends Priest in Rome. This time, he is persuaded to leave his Rome hideout, where he is now retired and financially secure, to smuggle arms to anti-government forces in Umbia, West Africa, in an attempt to start a revolution.Īlthough O’Neal’s performance in the original 1972 movie was the stuff of legend, he also directs this sequel and unfortunately, as a result, much of the film is confusing and vague, with pointless and tediously long scenes. Harlem hustler Priest (Ron O’Neal) is back in a sequel to the hit Superfly(1972). ![]()
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