Murray McGibbon pays tribute to his close friend, the late Jimmy Lithgow.
Friday October 17th dawned a beautiful crisp autumn day in
Bloomington, Indiana, where I live in the United States. The previous evening I
had met David Henry Hwang the playwright of M
Butterfly which I was directing for Indiana University. All was well in my
world, as I braced myself for the lengthy weekend of technical rehearsals prior
to our opening. Suddenly an email message popped upon my computer screen from
Anthony Stonier in Durban saying Jimmy Lithgow had passed away.
I was dumbstruck.
Within minutes my email and FaceBook account were being
flooded with the confirmation of a fact I did not want to be true. Jimmy
Lithgow and I only met in the early 1990’s but our friendship was intense and
precious. I had known of him through reading annual magazines of Maritzburg
College, sent to my father by the Old Boys’ Association. Jimmy had been a
remarkable actor at my alma mater, but I missed him by a good ten years.
Shortly after we met at the home of mutual friends in Pietermaritzburg, I
showed him photographs of him in the “College Magazine” playing Richard II in
standard nine; this started a conversation that continued on and off until a
few days before he died.
Jimmy Lithgow was a rare human being. Erudite, well spoken,
witty, elegant and possessed of a wicked sense of humour. He was the elder
brother I never had and we remained firm friends for over twenty years.
Others will write more eloquently than I regarding his
immense contribution to the sport of horse-racing which he adored and knew a
great deal about. My interactions were within another, more gentle discipline,
the theatre.
Jimmy was born in Johannesburg on 16th November 1946. His
father was a gynaecologist and his mother, Lesley, the daughter of a compound
manager at the Robertson Deep Mine. He was the elder brother to Laraine and
John.
At an early age, Jimmy was introduced to the heady world of
horse racing by his grandmother Ida. This became a lifelong passion.
After matric, Jimmy received a BA in English and the History
of Art from Wits. It was there that he got his first role in a professional
production at the Alexander Theatre and a second career was born.
In 1968 he joined SAA’s PR department, graduating to
becoming the airline’s In Flight Entertainment Manager. This necessitated him making
business trips to the UK and USA, “hobnobbing with the stars” as he told me on
numerous occasions.
In the early 1970’s he met his wife to be at a stable
belonging to racing legend Les Rathbone. Elaine and Jimmy were married in 1974,
and celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in early October, a few days
before his untimely death.
They had two children, Jonathan, and Aidan.
Jimmy acted for me in a number of NAPAC productions in
Durban. Aidan joined him on several of these and I well remember him in The Young Visitors, Peter Pan, Oliver! and
Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner? His
finely studied tipsy Anglican Priest in the latter literally brought the house
down.
Our most noteworthy association, however, was starting an
industrial theatre company during the dying days of the arts councils. Jimmy
and I hit on the idea of forming a company to provide entertainment for
corporate functions. Presto Theatre International was born and within a week of
launching ourselves we had secured a R1m “gig”. Jimmy wrote the libretto for The Taming of a River Giant, which I
directed, for an international conference on large dams, held at the Convention
Centre in Durban. The production was part of the opening ceremony, attended by
President Nelson Mandela, and several thousand delegates from around the world.
Despite the success of the initial venture we both felt that
our hearts lay in more artistic theatrical pursuits, and we explored other
avenues. Jimmy went to Johannesburg to resume his career as a horse racing
administrator and I took up a professorship at Indiana University in America.
We remained close friends and confidants, and would
regularly meet at either OR Tambo airport, or at our family home in Kloof.
Jimmy was an intellectual, with a very broad based
appreciation of the performing arts. He was a fine actor, and had he not
limited himself to the confines of South Africa, could well have been Sir James
Lithgow by the time of his demise. He was a gentle man and a gentleman. He was
compassionate, understanding and sincere. Yet he had a delightful sense of humour
and if the two of us were left alone for even a few minutes, we could create
merry havoc. I will miss those times enormously.
Jimmy lived a very full, productive life and delighted in
the success of his wife Elaine, in running a bed and breakfast establishment on
the banks of the Vaal Dam in Denysville. He was hugely proud of his two sons,
Jonathan, an executive chef, who had the honour of catering for her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh on their state
visit to South Africa, and Aidan, a talented horseman, actor and filmmaker who
will no doubt continue the family legacy in the horse racing industry.
The world will be a poorer place for Jimmy’s passing, but I
can only wonder, being the wonderful raconteur that he was, what stories he
will be telling at the pearly gates tonight and for centuries to come.
M. Butterfly opened
in the USA just a few hours after Jimmy’s memorial function in Johannesburg on
Friday 24th October. I dedicated the production to him and his life and work
that evening in faraway, Bloomington, Indiana.
Go well Jimmy. I hope that you were upgraded to first class
on your final journey. – Murray McGibbon
Murray McGibbon, former Director of Drama for NAPAC and
The Playhouse Company, is Professor of Acting and Directing in the Department
of Theatre, Drama and Contemporary Dance at Indiana University, USA.
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