IMAGES: Anthony Quinn
The Man and his Art.
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A six-city government survey released this week, marking the 20th anniversary of AIDS, showed some alarming results about the resurgence of the disease among gay men. The cities which participated in the survey were Baltimore, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York and Seattle.
The survey showed that 4.4% of gay bisexual men between the ages of 23 and 29 are newly infected each year with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. The survey suggests even more staggering infection rates among blacks in the same age group. 14.7% are becoming HIV positive each year. That's one in seven. These staggering rates are threatening years of progress the country has made to control the spread of HIV and AIDS.
The study included nearly 3,000 gay and bisexual men who were tested anonymously for HIV from 1998 to 2000. These men were recruited at dance clubs, bars, city shopping centers and gay and lesbian community centers. By gender, 70% of new HIV infections each year occur among men, although women are also significantly affected.
On the positive side, it has recently been reported that a new vaccine, in the developmental stages, has shown highly promising results. During the mid-to-late 1990's, advances in HIV treatments led to dramatic declines in AIDS deaths and slowed the progression from HIV to AIDS. Since the beginning of the epidemic, nearly half a million deaths were reported through December 2000. That's a staggering loss.Research for the development of new medicines/vaccines needs to continue at an accelerated pace, in order to provide the needed treatment and care services for HIV-infected individuals.
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ANTHONY QUINN
( 1915 - 2001 )
An Actor, An Artist, A Painter, A Sculptor.
A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS
Anthony Quinn died this past Sunday, June 3, 2001 from respiratory failure. He was 86 years old.
For all those who have come to know him, they all say that he lived his life to its fullest extent. Alice and I had the pleasure of meeting him in the mid 1970's in New York City, New York when I had nominated him to win The Man Of The Year award from the Hellenic American Chamber of Commerce. At that time, I was sitting on the Board of the Chamber and I had nominated him because of the several movies he had done for Greece.
Zorba the Greek, The Guns of Navarone, A Dream of Kings, The Greek Tycoon, just to name a few. The Board had approved the nomination and in 1974 he was named The Man Of The Year. It was an elegant formal affair held at the Pierre Hotel. We had over 1,000 people in attendance. The elite of the banking, shipping and investment industries had come to honor him.
In 1982, Alice and I were invited to attend his art exhibit in Hawaii. It was a smashing success. Every single piece of his paintings and sculptures was sold. They commanded prices ranging from \\$10,000 to $40,000 a piece. The sale of his artwork had brought in over two million dollars.
Quinn was born on April 25, 1915 in Chihuahua, Mexico to an Irish father and a Mexican mother. When he was two years old, the family moved to El Paso, Texas and subsequently to East Los Angeles, California. He made his first movie in 1936. By 1999, he had over 150 movies to his credit. In 1952, he won his first Academy Award by portraying Eufemio Zapata in the film Viva Zapata! With an Oscar to his credit, Quinn caught the attention of the international film industry. By the mid 1950's he was a favorite of Italian filmmakers. While in Rome, he worked with Dino De Laurentis and Carlo Ponti in the Kirk Douglas film Ulysses. He also appeared in Giuseppe Amato's film Angels of Darkness with Linda Darnell. He then starred as Attila the Hun with Sophia Loren in the De Laurentis/Ponti production Attila. Quinn was in high demand.
During the filming of Attila he worked simultaneously on Federico Fellini's La Strada, a 1956 release that secured Quinn's stature as an international star.
Quinn returned to the United States and spent much of 1955 in filming the life of Paul Gauguin in MGM's Lust for Life, under the directorship of Vincente Minelli which role won him his second Academy Award in 1957. That same year, he starred as Quasimodo in the Hunchback of Notre Dame with Gina Lollabrigida as Esmeralda. In 1962, he co-starred with Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif and Alec Guinness in Lawrence of Arabia. A seven Academy Awards winning film. In 1964, Quinn played the starring role of Alexis Zorba in the hit musical Zorba the Greek. The character became Quinn's signature role. He reprised the role of Zorba on tour in 1983. Quinn was married three times and fathered 13 children. His first marriage was to Katherine De Mille, the adopted daughter of Cecil B. De Mille. They had five children. They divorced in 1965. In 1966, he married to Iolanda Addolori. They had three children. They divorced in 1997. Quinn's romantic involvement with his secretary Kathy Benvin led him to his third marriage in 1997. After undergoing major heart surgery in 1990, he fathered his 12th child in 1994 and his 13th child in 1996.
Anthony Quinn left a legacy which will be difficult if not impossible for any actor or actress to match. He was the only Oscar winning actor who performed in more movies with other Oscar winning actors, than any other Oscar winning actor. A grand total of 46. 28 of them were Oscar winning actors. 18 of them were Oscar winning actresses. A truly tough act to match.
James C. Stathis
Associate Editor
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