British Playwright Tom Stoppard Dies Aged 88
Deutsche Welle
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Oscar-winning British playwright Tom Stoppard, whose celebrated work revolutionized modern theater and earned him one of cinema's highest accolades for Shakespeare in Love, has passed away at the age of 88.
According to his agency, United Agents, the acclaimed playwright passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by his family.
Stoppard, a Czech-born writer who is often hailed as the greatest British dramatist of his generation, had a career defined by wit, intellectual daring, and a mastery of language.
His Academy Award was one of many distinctions he received, including multiple Tonys and Oliviers.
Stoppard escaped Nazis as a child
Stoppard was born Tomas Sträussler to a Jewish family in Czechoslovakia in 1937. He fled the Nazi occupation with his family in 1939, first settling in Singapore and then in India, before eventually resettling in Britain.
He started his career as a journalist but rose to prominence with the tragicomedy Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, an absurdist spin-off of Shakespeare that launched his rise to international acclaim.
Over the course of six decades, Stoppard explored a variety of ideas in his plays, ranging from philosophy and science to love, politics, and history.
His major works, including Travesties, The Real Thing, The Coast of Utopia, and "Leopoldstadt," earned him five Tony Awards for Best Play. Biographer Hermione Lee praised his ability to fuse "language, knowledge, and feeling."
Mick Jagger leads tributes
Tributes poured in following news of his death, with singer Mick Jagger calling Stoppard his "favorite playwright," praising the "majestic body of intellectual and amusing work" he leaves behind.
Theaters in London's West End also announced that they will dim their lights on Tuesday in his honor.
Stoppard’s later plays often carried themes of exile, memory and loss — shaped partly by his family history, much of which he confronted only late in life.
He also wrote for film and television and adapted and translated works by Czech playwright and president Vaclav Havel. He was a staunch advocate for free expression.
He was knighted in 1997 and is survived by four sons and several grandchildren.
This story was originally published on DW.
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