Could have been one of the best actors ever. What was his story?

Wikipedia says he died of lymphoma. I wonder if he actually died of AIDS.

I had a friend who developed lymphoma when he had AIDS.

We know he had aids but are you thinking about this Rollins or the muscle bound shithead?

Isn't that Henry Rollins?

Sorry, Hoard E. Rollins Jr. to be completely accurate. No idea who Henry Rollins is.

^^so,that's the actor. He did good work, but wasn't there a drug problem that his co-star Carroll O'Connor tried to help him with? Rollins died at 46.

Isn't it common knowledge that he died of AIDS?

You don't die of AIDS because AIDS is a syndrome in which various diagnoses and illnesses at present all at the same time.(HIV being one of them)

So when The Brady Bunch dad says he died of colon cancer, that is true.

When Henry Mancini and Raul Julia said they died of cancer, that is true.

When an out actor says he died of AIDS related illness, that also is true. (or complications of AIDS)

God I hope the people commenting are not gay men. It would be inexcusable for them to not know this by now.

R7, how does anyone say that he died of something? Clarity, please.

I actually thought he may have had AIDS. I was more wondering what his story was. He was so talented and died so young, and seemed very troubled.

He was a bizarre queen. Years ago I was flipping channels and landed on what seemed to be an interview with Marsha Warfield, a fat, black TV actress of the era.

I stopped because of her odd garb. A wildly patterned muumuu and some sort of Nefertiti headdress. After watching a minute I realized it was Howard Rollins.

He was stunningly beautiful in Ragtime and A Soldier's Story. Stunning AND mesmerizing. The camera absolutely loved him.

Had he come along even five years later, I wonder if he could have had a career similar to Denzel? Unlikely, given his orientation and society's narrowmindedness. He seemed a tortured soul, a conflict embodied in the contrast between his chocolatey, chiseled proud masculinity onscreen and the swishy, bewigged giggly dragfemme he became in private life.

"Swishy, bewigged, giggly dragfemme"

Well, that pretty well covers it.

Wow I’ve never seen or heard about this side of Howard Rollins. I just figured it was AIDS via a drug addiction tbh.

You never got to see his female side R13? It was a sight to see.

In about 1984 I was taking an art class in NYC. One of the other students was a woman whose husband was working on a Rollins film shooting in the South, I think A Soldier's Story. This woman had visited the shoot and jokingly said that Rollins was gay as a jay.

Jeez Louise am I behind the times. I had no idea he had died, and so long ago.

When he was on "In The Heat of the Night " series I seem to recall his fondness of cross dressing came out....believe that was when his irratic behavior became public

He was hopelessly addicted to drugs. He was in and out of rehab, Carroll O'Connor, whose son died of a drug OD, tried to help him repeatedly and he just could not shake his addiction. I agree he had talent and looks, and could have been a major film star. It was tragic. But I think what ever his cause of death it was definitely AIDS related. I had no idea he was Gay, I 'm still not sure, but he definitely was a drug addict.

R18 I thought he had a DUI mugshot in drag and Googled "Howard Rollins Jr mugshot." What came up was a thread about him from 2 years ago.

Sadly for him, there wasn't much interest back then, either.

r16

most of that cast were gay and quite a few died of aids.

rollins had a serious drug problem

Yep. That is true R21.

If I remember correctly, wasn't it kind of like Rock Hudson(on a much lower level of course) where, by the time he was in his final dying days, it was common knowledge that it was AIDS? I remember the mug shot of him when he was stopped driving around Conyers, Ga. and he was in complete drag. Of course, if there is one thing I have learned in the past 5 years, it is that the majority of cross dressers/MTF trans are hetero men. But Rollins was more in the RuPaul sort of drag queen getup.

R21 I know that Larry Riley died of AIDS, but was Ado;ph Caesar gay? How about DAG? I have always had mixed feelings about him. He is my age and never married, and for a celebrity that is almost unheard of(Heeey Leonardo) and he does gay characters quite believably, but then so does Damon Wayans, and we know he is straight. DAG is really well liked, and he is an excellent actor....I always look forward to his projects, but unfortunately they never seem to quite catch fire. I am surprised that, with practically the entire cast of MadTV and In Living Color having guest spots on "Blackish," that they couldn't find a good part for DAG on that show.

Larry Riley wasn't gay. He had drug issues. Rollins was quite active in the bathhouses of NYC in the 70s and 80s. Before that, Rock Creek Park in DC. He was from there.

I stand corrected. I thought that Riley acquired his AIDS through man sex.

So he was like Magic Johnson?

Larry Riley was gay. I remember.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pa3TmqOorZ6csm%2BvzqZmraCimq6le5FpbmpoY26FbrTOsJirnF2se26%2BzqWjoqajYrCwwcudZKGZppp6o7HEp2SoppVivKd506GcZpqVqMFurcKtpqurXZrDpr6NZq6hmaRixKK%2FjKGgrGWjqbyzxYw%3D