A Great Writer and a Great Actor

Two greats are no longer with us. Kurt Vonnegut has died at the age of 84 and Roscoe Lee Browne at 81.

I haven't read any Vonnegut novels in quite some time but the ones I had read never failed to make me laugh nor to feel the pain of whatever he was writing about. His satire was funny, yes, laugh-out-loud funny, but it was always biting too and certainly made you think.

Among his books are "Slaughterhouse 5", "Cat's Cradle" and "Breakfast of Champions."

Roscoe Lee Browne was an actor of great dignity and power. He often played well-educated, dignified characters at a time when such parts were often difficult for African-American actors to secure.

If you don't recognize his name or his face, however, I'm sure you'd recognize his voice.

It was warm, deep and rich and it was he who narrated the movie "Babe."

Both the literary and film world are a little less brighter with the loss of these two great men.