Peter O’Toole passed away on December 14, 2013. Reports noted that he had been battling illness for a long period before succumbing at the age of 81. O’Toole, a 2003 honorary Oscar Winner, is most remembered for his role as T.E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia. Other memorable movies include Becket, Caligula, The Lion in the Winter and The Last Emperor.
On the heels of O’Tooles death, Hollywood lost another icon in Joan Fontaine, who died of natural causes at the age of 96 on December 15. Fontaine won the Oscar for Best Actress for her role in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1941 film, Suspicion. She was also nominated for Oscars in The Constant Nymph (1943) and Rebecca (1940).
Lastly, Tom Laughlin also passed away. Apparently the cause of death was complications from pneumonia. Laughlin was 82. He was best known for his character Billy Jack and the group of films revolving around Billy, Born Losers (1967), Billy Jack (1971), The Trial of Billy Jack (1974), Billy Jack Goes to Washington (1977) and The Return of Billy Jack (1984). The Billy Jack website notes that, “Tom Laughlin passed away at sunset on December 12, 2013.”