Actor Tom Noonan, best known for his iconic collaboration with director Michael Mann, has died at the age of 74. The news of his death was confirmed by Fred Dekker, the director of the cult 1980s horror comedy The Monster Squad, in which Noonan played Frankenstein’s monster. He published the information
“It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of Tom Noonan. Tom’s unforgettable performance as Frankenstein is a highlight of my modest filmography… he was a true gentleman and scholar. The world has lost a great talent,” wrote Dekker on Facebook.
Karen Sillas, who starred with Noonan in the film What Happened Was…, also paid tribute to him on social networks.. Based on his own stage play, Noonan not only directed, but also wrote and starred in the film. “It was a privilege and a lot of fun to work with this man and to be able to call him my friend until the very end,” said Sillas. In 1994, the film won the Grand Jury Prize at the prestigious Sundance festival.
Noonan began his career on the boards of off-Broadway theaters, where he shone, for example, in the original production of Sam Shepard’s play The Buried Child. He entered the world of film in the 1980s. He got one of his first roles in Michael Cimino’s Heaven’s Gate, later appeared in the comedy s Tom Hanks The Man with the Red Shoe or in an action thriller F/X.
The turning point in his career came in 1986, when Michael Mann cast him in the adaptation of Thomas Harris’ novel Manhunter (Manhunter). Noonan played the terrifying serial killer Francis Dolarhyde in it. He later met Mann again during the filming of the cult crime film The Merciless Showdown (Heat, 1995). “The news of Tom’s passing hit me deeply,” the director wrote on social networks. Noonan’s extensive filmography also included titles such as RoboCop 2, The ultimate action hero, Astronaut’s wife, The oath, The House of the Devil whether Spider terror.
