Harold Hopkins, an Australian actor characterized by his family as a charming larrikin, has passed away from mesothelioma, a cancer linked to asbestos, at a hospice in Sydney.
At the age of 67, he received his diagnosis several months prior and died on Saturday at Neringah Private Hospital located in Wahroonga, a suburb of Sydney.
According to his family, he developed the illness during his first job following high school; he worked as an apprentice carpenter with asbestos sheeting in south-east Queensland during the early 1960s.
His extensive career included appearances in numerous films and TV series, such as Don’s Party, Gallipoli, and Age of Consent. He portrayed the local bully Les McCann in Gallipoli and the character Cooley, who was obsessed with sex, in Don’s Party. Recently, he played George Joseph, a gun dealer from Melbourne, in Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities.
John Jarratt, a fellow actor and friend, described Hopkins as a caring individual whose emotional honesty contributed to his incredible talent as an actor.
“He learned of his cancer after demolishing a house in 1968 that contained fibro,” he shared.
“If someone asked me to bet on who would reach 100, I would have placed my money on Harold. It is deeply tragic that such a wonderful man has faced this fate.”
Rowland Hill, Hopkins’s brother-in-law, mentioned that he had auditioned for a part in Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming film The Great Gatsby in May, merely days after receiving his cancer diagnosis.
That opportunity allowed Hopkins to showcase his skills for the role of Henry C Gatz, Gatsby’s estranged father, dressed in a 1920s suit and fedora.
Though he understood he might never take on the role, he embraced the chance wholeheartedly.
“[The audition] represented an excellent opportunity to engage in an industry where he had devoted his life,” Mr. Hill said.
“He appreciated every aspect of [his work].
“He had a robust ego that propelled him to return to it… yet he was not arrogant.
“He was a man dedicated to his own passions and interests.”
Born on March 6, 1944, in Toowoomba, southern Queensland, Hopkins leaves behind his twin brother John as well as five other siblings.