RIP Ivan Dixon

The loss of Ivan Dixon is strange for me. “Noting But A Man” with Abbey Lincoln and Gloria Foster is probably one of the most influential films I’ve ever seen. The story of a black man wanting more in the South, finding some of that more in the love of a woman, then realizing that more is sometimes out of your reach, “Nothing But A Man” is often overlooked for the genius it is. Sure, everyone loves “The Spook Who Sat By The Door” and this day and age that shows a return of our fascination with snitches, it makes sense that this is the movie that most parade around. “Nothing But A Man” however, is harder to watch, gives you more at the end and stays with you like an argument with a lover.

For a writer, it would seem like it would be difficult to find a film with very little dialogue as an influence. On the contrary. I am not a word junkie. My ideal would be to use as few words as possible and have the story explode on the screen like watching a quiet scream. Abbey and Ivan showed me such a beautiful, subtle and touching interaction, intermingled with racism and desires to be better than the box the world puts around you. Gloria’s small but impactful scene as the girlfriend of Ivan’s character’s father bowls me over because he realizes that the peace he tries to get with his father will never happen with the father so he must deal with the closest person…the girlfriend. It’s ripe with the blues of smashed expectation. All set to fight, he finds no fight but an unlikely soldier in the same boat as he.

Soon after this movie, I heard Ivan went the Hollywood way and made himself more memorable in stuff like “Hogan’s Heroes” and all that, which is cool. But it will always be that simmering frustrated passionate quiet anger that pops into my head whenever I write a serious “love” scene, remembering that there is more in the room than just a man or just a woman…there is all of the baggage we carry along with us.

Actor Ivan Dixon dies at 76
Emmy nominee known for ‘Hogan’s Heroes’
By VARIETY STAFFActor, director and producer Ivan Dixon, known for his role as Sgt. Kinchloe on “Hogan’s Heroes,” died in Charlotte, N.C. on March 16 after suffering a hemorrhage. He was 76.
Dixon received an Emmy nom for the CBS Playhouse special “The Final War of Olly Winter” and appeared in films including “A Raisin in the Sun, “A Patch of Blue” and “Car Wash.”

His directorial credits include hundreds of episodic television shows such as “The Waltons,” “The Rockford Files,” “Magnum P.I.” and “Heat of the Night.” His theatrical film directing credits include “Trouble Man” and “The Spook Who Sat by the Door.”

Born in New York City, Dixon graduated North Carolina Central U. and studied drama at Western Reserve U., Karamu House in Cleveland, Ohio and the American Theater Wing in New York.

He began his career on Broadway in such plays as “The Cave Dwellers” and “A Raisin in the Sun.” In addition to roles in feature films “Something of Value” and “Nothing But a Man,” he appeared on TV shows such as “Perry Mason,” “The Twilight Zone,” “Outer Limits” and “The Mod Squad.”

He was honored with four NAACP Image Awards, the National Black Theater Award and the Paul Robeson Pioneer Award from the Black American Cinema Society. A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, Directors Guild of America, Screen Actors Guild of America, and the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame, he served on numerous Directors Guild and Academy committees, boards and councils.

He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Berlie; a son and a daughter.

Read the full article at:
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117982642.html