OT: RIP Actor Reg E. Cathey, UM Alum

Submitted by Pepper Brooks on

"Reg E Cathey, who featured in the US version of House of Cards and in The Wire, has died aged 59...

He won an Emmy award in 2015 for his House of Cards role as Freddy Hayes, the owner of a restaurant favoured by Kevin Spacey’s character, Frank Underwood.

In The Wire he played Norman Wilson, a newspaperman who became a political operative.

Cathey told the Guardian in 2016 that his career took off after Barack Obama was elected president because people could begin to accept the idea of a well-spoken black man.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“He got inaugurated, and I started working like a fiend – hired by the same people who would previously ask: ‘Have you always spoken like that?’ It’s like, you know what, motherfuckers, yes, I have,” he said.

Cathey was born in Alabama and spent time in Germany as a child. He attended the University of Michigan and the Yale School of Drama."

 

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/feb/10/house-of-cards-actor-reg-e-cathey-dies-aged-59?utm_source=esp&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=GU+Today+USA+-+Collections+2017&utm_term=263614&subid=21513221&CMP=GT_US_collection

 

EDIT:  removed Cathey quote "The world is being destroyed by psychopaths", reference to 2016 Guardian interview with Cathey.

Yostal

February 10th, 2018 at 12:28 PM ^

One of Cathey's earliest roles was on Square One TV on PBS, a show well known for its mass inclusion of references to the University of Michigan (several of the creators of the series were Michigan alums.)

Square One is also the origin of Mathman, he of the winged helmet and my longtime Twitter avatar.

SalvatoreQuattro

February 10th, 2018 at 5:01 PM ^

That is government regulation of one's thoughts. In case you didn't notice this board is not the government. It is a privately-owned board that explicitly forbids political chatter because it soon dissolves into ugliness as this thread proves.

The statement has nothing to do with the man's relevance to Michigan, which is what this particular board is dedicated to. It is the political beliefs of the man. 

rjc

February 10th, 2018 at 3:31 PM ^

“The world is being destroyed by psychopaths, so of all the things to be concerned about – acting, it’s not really up there, is it?"

Duke of Zhou

February 10th, 2018 at 6:20 PM ^

I am saddened by Mr. Cathey's passing. As a child, I was a big fan of his work on the PBS program "Square One." In recent years, I was pleased to be able to enjoy his acting abilities once again. RIP to a talented actor who expired too soon.

Mgostats

February 10th, 2018 at 8:12 PM ^

In the fall of 1976, I had a small part in Soph Show's performance of "How to Succeed in Business Without Realky Trying". Reg had one of the leads. The cast also included David Alan Grier, who has gone on to have a outstanding career in TV, movies, and comedy. Reg was obviously talented, but also very intelligent and VERY funny. I was not surprised to see him become successful, albeit (for the most part) as a supporting player.
Sharing the stage with Reg (and Dave, for that matter) was an honor--especially for someone with my obvious lack of acting chops!! I would've loved to have had the chance to reminisce with him. He's gone way too soon.