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Paul Ainsley, 67, actor (Jesus Christ Superstar, Three's Company)
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Jan 22, 2013, 1:54:03 PM1/22/13
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Press release posted on the All That Chat board.
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Veteran performer Paul Ainsley, who created the role of "King Herod" in the landmark original Broadway staging of "Jesus Christ Superstar", has died at age 67 from heart related complications in Los Angeles announced his brother Mark Ainsley White.
Opening Oct. 12, 1971, the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice rock opera staged by Tom O'Horgan was an immediate cultural and popular sensation. Ainsley's second-act performance of "King Herod's Song" was a showstopper and is considered the definitive version of the number.
Ainsley claimed more than 3000 performances of the song - on Broadway (for 700+ performances), national tours, stock productions, concerts and benefits. (Ainsley is credited with originating the role of Herod on stage since - in a rare reversal - the show's Broadway staging preceded its London version.)
Other select theater career highlights include: originating Thenardier in the first national company of "Les Miserables"; essaying Mr. Darling/Captain Hook to Cathy Rigby's "Peter Pan"; succeeding Barry Bostwick and Jim Belushi as the Pirate King in "Pirates of Penzance" and playing Herbie to Karen Morrow's Rose in "Gypsy".
Ainsley was also a member of the Improvisational Theatre Project at the Mark Taper Forum.
In TV, Ainsley was most recognized for his recurring role of Jim the Bartender on "Three's Company" among numerous other credits.
Details on a future celebration of Ainsley's life are pending.
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Veteran performer Paul Ainsley, who created the role of "King Herod" in the landmark original Broadway staging of "Jesus Christ Superstar", has died at age 67 from heart related complications in Los Angeles announced his brother Mark Ainsley White.
Opening Oct. 12, 1971, the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice rock opera staged by Tom O'Horgan was an immediate cultural and popular sensation. Ainsley's second-act performance of "King Herod's Song" was a showstopper and is considered the definitive version of the number.
Ainsley claimed more than 3000 performances of the song - on Broadway (for 700+ performances), national tours, stock productions, concerts and benefits. (Ainsley is credited with originating the role of Herod on stage since - in a rare reversal - the show's Broadway staging preceded its London version.)
Other select theater career highlights include: originating Thenardier in the first national company of "Les Miserables"; essaying Mr. Darling/Captain Hook to Cathy Rigby's "Peter Pan"; succeeding Barry Bostwick and Jim Belushi as the Pirate King in "Pirates of Penzance" and playing Herbie to Karen Morrow's Rose in "Gypsy".
Ainsley was also a member of the Improvisational Theatre Project at the Mark Taper Forum.
In TV, Ainsley was most recognized for his recurring role of Jim the Bartender on "Three's Company" among numerous other credits.
Details on a future celebration of Ainsley's life are pending.
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