By Andrew Dalton, Entertainment Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --Jeremy Bulloch, the English actor who first donned a helmet, cape and jetpack to play Boba Fett in the original "Star Wars" trilogy, died Thursday.
Bulloch died at a London hospital from health complications after years of living with Parkinson's disease, his agents at Brown, Simcocks & Andrews said in a statement. He was 75.
As the Mandalorian bounty hunter Boba Fett, Bulloch made off with a froze-in-carbonite Han Solo in 1980's "The Empire Strikes Back," then zoomed around the desert of Tatooine in a jet pack in 1983's "Return of the Jedi."
"Today we lost the best bounty hunter in the galaxy," Billy Dee Williams, whose Lando Calrissian appeared in key scenes with Bulloch in the films, said on Twitter.
Mark Hamill tweeted that Bulloch was "the quintessential English gentleman."
"A fine actor, delightful company & so kind to everyone lucky enough to meet or work with him," the Luke Skywalker actor said. "I will deeply miss him & am so grateful to have known him. #RIP_DearJeremy."
Boba Fett had just a few minutes of screen time, though important ones, between the two movies, and speaks just four lines of dialogue that were performed by another actor. But Boba Fett quickly became a cult favorite and eventually would emerge as one of the most beloved figures in the "Star Wars" galaxy, inspiring characters and plotlines in other "Star Wars" properties, most notably "The Mandalorian" on Disney+, where Boba Fett has recently reemerged.
The phenomenon made Bulloch a big draw on the convention circuit, where he was a regular in later years.
Born in Leicester, England, Bulloch began acting in commercials as a teenager and would have more than 100 credits in a career spent mostly in British television, with small roles on shows including "Dr. Who," "Crown Court" and "Sloggers.
He also appeared in a pair of James Bond films, 1981's "For Your Eyes Only" and 1983's "Octopussy."
Bulloch also played a pair of tiny "Star Wars" roles without the mask, Lieutenant Sheckil in "The Empire Strikes Back" and Captain Jeremoch Colton in "Revenge of the Sith."
Bulloch was the first of four actors to have taken on the role in some form. Jason Wingreen performed the voice in the original trilogy. Temuera Morrison, who played Boba Fett's father Jango Fett in 2002's "Attack of the Clones," plays an aging, ravaged Boba Fett in season two of "The Mandalorian." And Daniel Logan played Boba Fett as a boy in "Attack of the Clones."
"CONVENTIONS WONT BE THE SAME WITHOUT YOU MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU ALWAYS," Logan said on Instagram along with a photo of himself and Bulloch.
When the prequels were still in development in 1999, Bulloch told The Associated Press he would like to return for the role.
"But if he has to show his face, he would be much younger, and I would probably need a good plastic surgeon!" Bulloch said.
He would settle instead for the tiny role of Captain Colton, pilot of Alderaan, and one more flight through the "Star Wars" galaxy, instead.
Bulloch is survived by his wife Maureen and their three sons.
Avid completes acquisition of Wolftech
Avid®, known for software solutions for professional media production, has completed the acquisition of Wolftech Broadcast Solutions, a leader in cloud-based multiplatform news planning, production and publishing solutions.
The acquisition enables Avid to combine its digital-first, end-to-end media solution with Wolftech’s expertise in story-centric workflow management. News organizations will be able to increase efficiency and accelerate story delivery through enhanced remote collaboration and multiplatform amplification.
Avid CEO Wellford Dillard stated, “Wolftech is unquestionably on the leading edge of where the industry is going, and this acquisition demonstrates Avid’s commitment to transform news, sports, and live production workflows. We are delighted to welcome Wolftech into the Avid family.”
Wolftech CEO Arne Berven added, “We were focused on finding a partner that could accelerate the adoption of our platform globally. We explored a number of possibilities, but when we talked to Avid, we knew it was the right match.”
The closing of the acquisition follows Avid’s announcement on October 7 that the company had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Wolftech.
With this acquisition, Avid deepens the integration between the two toolsets while continuing to embrace an open approach in partnering with a wide range of media production tools and newsroom systems. Existing Wolftech customers will benefit from Avid’s global scale for customer support and professional services.
Ian Axton, head of production operations for ITV News, said, “As a customer of both Avid and Wolftech we’re excited about the benefits this acquisition will bring to our users and our business. Wolftech has transformed... Read More