Like many others, I was very sad to hear about the passing of Bob Hoskins, who will forever be known for his work in Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

But he was so excellent in so many other films, from great British movies like The Long Good Friday and Mona Lisa (for which he was nominated for an Oscar) to Hollywood roles in Mermaids, Hook, and Nixon.

I don’t have any stories about him. I only met him once. I was visiting Terry Jones, who was supervising the recording of the audiobook version of his FAIRY TALES book many years ago. Terry had recruited Bob Hoskins to read one of them. At the time, he had recently finished The Long Good Friday, but he hadn’t achieved the level of fame that he later would. It was a pleasure to listen to that familiar Hoskins voice in the recording studio, and it was an even greater pleasure to meet him afterward and realize what a genuinely nice guy he was.

Terry Gilliam was smart enough to recruit Bob Hoskins for this memorable role in his memorable Brazil. Enjoy. And rest in peace, Bob Hoskins.