In Memoriam- R.I.P. Sir Christopher Lee

Sir Christopher Lee: May 27, 1922 - June 7, 2015

On June 7, 2015 actor and musician Sir Christopher Lee  (at the age of 93) passed away due to an upper respiratory infection and heart failure. He is survived by his wife Birgit Kroncke Lee, and their daughter Christina Erika Carandini Lee.

When it comes to summing up the likes of someone as incredible as Sir Christopher Lee, only one word comes to my mind; legend. I remember reading once where Sir Lee said "To be a legend, you've either got to be dead or excessively old." Even though I'm sure that statement was meant to be comedic, I've always personally disagreed. Yes, one does become a legend when they finally die, but only after they become an icon.

It's not everyday that someone like Sir Lee comes along. There are so few people the world-over who can ever hope to lay claim to being nearly half as amazing as this one man was for the majority of his ninety three years of life.

I actually think it's an easier task to list the achievements Sir Lee hasn't done than it is for the things he has. I could go down the line of almost literal milestones this lone individual possesses, but then this piece would extent for pages to come. All I can say is that Sir Christopher Lee was, and probably will always be, the most interesting man in the world.

What is more important to say right now is what Sir Lee meant to me as a performer. For as long as I can remember there wasn't a time that I didn't know who Sir Christopher Lee was. When I was just a child watching re-runs of the old Hammer Horror films on the Sci-Fi Network, I made it a point to watch the ones that had Sir Lee in a starring role. He always had a certain air about him in whatever role he played. It's difficult for me to articulate, but he had this presence that just made me adore him, even as a kid. Looking back on it all now, I'm fairly certain it was all the experiences of his life reflecting in his performances on-screen that made him so captivating to watch.

I have no shame in admitting that my brother and I have written some characters in our own fiction who were clearly based off of Sir Lee. By my count, I personally have created at least three, and I'm sure there will be a few more in my creative future. For us, he was one of our all-time favorite actors, and we just couldn't get enough of him. In our eyes, he was such the epitome of cool, that we used to joke how Sir Lee growing older only made him more awesome. Hell, it almost seemed for a time like the man was immortal, as he always looked healthy whenever he appeared publicly, and was even making heavy metal albums well into his eighties. If that isn't awesome, I don't know what is.

While I may never have had the opportunity to personally meet him, I will always cherish the myriad works he has done. From his films, to his music albums, to even some of his youtube videos, Sir Lee made it his life's goal to entertain as many people as he could. That is admirable to me in so many ways. As an aspiring artist and writer, I find this one man to be inspirational in every sense of the word. Frankly, we all could strive to be a little bit more like Sir Christopher Lee, and simply do all that we can, while we can. To be honest it seems like he couldn't live any other way if you were to ask me. With the passage of time, I can only hope future generations will appreciate and respect all that Sir Lee has done. This was a man who even in the twilight of his life still worked hard to make sure we had something to enjoy.