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CNN Live At Daybreak
Charles Bronson Dies at 81
Aired September 01, 2003 - 05:57 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Tough guy actor Charles Bronson died over the weekend at the age of 81. Describing his face once, he said it looked like a rock quarry that someone had dynamited.
Our Paul Vercammen has more on the face and the actor.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His craggy face looked like the Monument Valley locations of "Once Upon A Time In The West." Charles Bronson was typecast in action films and he knew it.
CHARLES BRONSON, ACTOR: I don't look like somebody who leans on a mantelpiece with a cocktail in my hand, you know. I look like a kind -- the kind of guy who has a bottle of beer in his hand so.
That's known as playing it close to the chest.
VERCAMMEN: Playing it close to the chest was something Bronson did on screen. He played strong, silent types in most of his movies. He has relatively few lines in his starring role in "Chato's Land," for example, and kept his real personality close.
BRONSON: And I have a whole different personality, nothing I've ever played.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really?
BRONSON: Yes, and you're not getting it now either.
VERCAMMEN: The son of Lithuanian coal miners, Bronson returned from service in World War II intending to work as a set designer. But while working in a Philadelphia theater company, he switched to on stage.
BRONSON: I ran into a guy once. He said hey, you ought to be an actor. I said OK and that's why I'm an actor.
VERCAMMEN: Bronson moved into films in the 1950s and a memorable role as one of "The Magnificent Seven."
BRONSON: Squeeze. I'll tell you what, don't shoot the gun. Take the gun like this and you use it like a club.
VERCAMMEN: At the peak of his career, Bronson was one of the biggest box office stars in the world. As Westerns went out of style, he moved to violent thrillers like "Murphy's Law" and five installments playing a vigilante in the "Death Wish" series.
BRONSON: And I must impress upon you, Mrs. Craig, how important it is that you do everything I say.
JILL IRELAND, BRONSON'S WIFE: It's very important, Mr. Killian, that you do everything I say.
VERCAMMEN: Bronson shared the screen many times with his late wife actress Jill Ireland. Bronson continued to work into his 70s but found challenging work difficult to find.
BRONSON: It depends on the script. They keep sending them and I keep turning them down.
VERCAMMEN: Charles Bronson was always a man who knew which role was right for him.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And Bronson died of pneumonia. Funeral services will be private.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 1, 2003 - 05:57 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Tough guy actor Charles Bronson died over the weekend at the age of 81. Describing his face once, he said it looked like a rock quarry that someone had dynamited.
Our Paul Vercammen has more on the face and the actor.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His craggy face looked like the Monument Valley locations of "Once Upon A Time In The West." Charles Bronson was typecast in action films and he knew it.
CHARLES BRONSON, ACTOR: I don't look like somebody who leans on a mantelpiece with a cocktail in my hand, you know. I look like a kind -- the kind of guy who has a bottle of beer in his hand so.
That's known as playing it close to the chest.
VERCAMMEN: Playing it close to the chest was something Bronson did on screen. He played strong, silent types in most of his movies. He has relatively few lines in his starring role in "Chato's Land," for example, and kept his real personality close.
BRONSON: And I have a whole different personality, nothing I've ever played.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really?
BRONSON: Yes, and you're not getting it now either.
VERCAMMEN: The son of Lithuanian coal miners, Bronson returned from service in World War II intending to work as a set designer. But while working in a Philadelphia theater company, he switched to on stage.
BRONSON: I ran into a guy once. He said hey, you ought to be an actor. I said OK and that's why I'm an actor.
VERCAMMEN: Bronson moved into films in the 1950s and a memorable role as one of "The Magnificent Seven."
BRONSON: Squeeze. I'll tell you what, don't shoot the gun. Take the gun like this and you use it like a club.
VERCAMMEN: At the peak of his career, Bronson was one of the biggest box office stars in the world. As Westerns went out of style, he moved to violent thrillers like "Murphy's Law" and five installments playing a vigilante in the "Death Wish" series.
BRONSON: And I must impress upon you, Mrs. Craig, how important it is that you do everything I say.
JILL IRELAND, BRONSON'S WIFE: It's very important, Mr. Killian, that you do everything I say.
VERCAMMEN: Bronson shared the screen many times with his late wife actress Jill Ireland. Bronson continued to work into his 70s but found challenging work difficult to find.
BRONSON: It depends on the script. They keep sending them and I keep turning them down.
VERCAMMEN: Charles Bronson was always a man who knew which role was right for him.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And Bronson died of pneumonia. Funeral services will be private.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
