Sutherland was born July 17, 1935 in New Brunswick, Canada, later moving to Bridgewater, Nova Scotia. Throughout his childhood he battled a number of serious illnesses including polio, rheumatic fever and spinal meningitis.
He left Canada to pursue an interest in acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, and soon found work in TV and low-budget films.
He got a Hollywood breakthrough in the classic war film The Dirty Dozen, whose ensemble cast includes Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson, Ernest Borgnine and Jim Brown. It was the fifth highest grossing film of 1967.
After leaving London for Hollywood, Sutherland landed one of his most iconic roles in the 1970 anti-war comedy-drama MASH, originating the role of “Hawkeye” Pierce. MASH was one of the most successful films of the decade and is regarded as a classic.
Throughout the ’70s, Sutherland was a Hollywood leading man: his films include in the Oscar-winning Klute opposite Jane Fonda, the psychological horror Don’t Look Now, and the remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. He also appeared in the hit comedy Animal House.
In 1980, he starred in Robert Redford’s Ordinary People, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Other major films include Backdraft, JFK, Six Degrees of Separation, The Italian Job and Pride and Prejudice.
Sutherland also had success on TV, winning an Emmy Award for the 1995 film Citizen X, and a Golden Globe for the television film Path to War.
A younger generation of moviegoers was introduced to Sutherland through The Hunger Games, the hit dystopian blockbuster series: Sutherland starred as the villainous President Coriolanus Snow.
Though he surprisingly never received an Oscar nomination, he received an Academy Honorary Award in 2017, “for a lifetime of indelible characters, rendered with unwavering truthfulness.” He also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2011, and on the Canadian Walk of Fame in 2000.
Sutherland was married three times; he was married to actress Francine Racette for 52 years until his death. He was previously married to Lois May Hardwick and Shirley Douglas, and also had an affair with his Klute co-star Jane Fonda.
He had five children — including most famously his son Kiefer Sutherland, the actor best known for playing Jack Bauer in 24.
”I was too young to go watch my father’s films in the cinema,” Kiefer Sutherland told The Hollywood Reporter in 2017. “By the time I hit 20, VHS was available and a friend of my fathers had a lot of his films. In three days I watched Don’t Look Know, Klute, M*A*S*H, Kelly’s Heroes, 1900 and Fellini’s Casanova.”
“It was such a wide spectrum of characters, and I remember calling him up and I felt really badly that I grew up not knowing what a profoundly special actor he was, I felt horribly guilty of that. As a young actor, I had never known or seen another actor who’ve done characters so diverse either.”
Rest in peace to the iconic actor Donald Sutherland who lent his talents to so many great, classic movies — you will be missed 💔😢
I Was the Only One Who Went to My Grandma’s Birthday Brunch — After Seeing Her Tears, I Taught My Family a Lesson
My dear Gran-Gran invited our family to celebrate her birthday, and that’s when it all began. I had no idea that my family would let her down in such a painful way. I was resolved to impart a lesson on them that they would never be able to forget.
Gran-Gran is a remarkable woman who raised my siblings and me essentially during our parents’ divorce. She is everything to me, thus I found it incomprehensible that the other members of my family could let her down.
Rather than having us arrange something exceptional for her 83rd birthday, Gran-Gran decided to host a brunch at her home. She got up early to bake her own bread and pastries in spite of her health problems. Even though her hands were shaking, she wrote and assembled the invitations herself.
I was inspired to attend by Gran-Gran’s special day by the time and work she put into it. Regretfully, work obligations caused me to arrive ten minutes late. I was astonished to find my grandmother clearing dishes off the table and putting coffee down the sink when I first went in.
I questioned Gran-Gran why there was nobody else at the celebration, feeling both confused and worried. She told me, fighting back tears, that nobody had bothered to come. Her attempts to conceal her disappointment and act as though everything was fine crushed my heart.
I was unable to overlook this. I vowed to myself that I would make up to Gran-Gran and leave my family with a lasting lesson. I excused myself and went outside to make some phone calls after spending some quality time with her.
Initially, I informed my mother over the phone that my grandmother had fallen and was currently in the hospital. I put her under pressure by telling her that if she had gone to the brunch, the accident might have been prevented. My mother consented to send funds to pay the fictitious hospital expenses.
Next, I called my brother and asked him why he hadn’t been there. I informed him that Gran-Gran was hospitalized and that his presence might have had an impact. He said he would pay some money toward the imaginary bills.
I called additional relatives in a similar way, making them feel bad and persuading them to contribute money for the purported hospital bills. I surprised Gran-Gran with a trip to a stunning location she had always wanted to see with the money we raised.
We made wonderful memories together and lavishly celebrated her birthday during our time together. Gran-Gran was beaming with happiness when we got home. My family never missed another event after that day. Every birthday, holiday, and Sunday meal they attended.
I had no remorse about what I did, even though they still gave me the cold shoulder over it. Gran-Gran’s joyful expression made it all worthwhile. How would you have responded if you had been in my position? Tell me what you think.
Though it has been romanticized for artistic purposes, this work draws inspiration from actual individuals and events. For reasons of privacy protection and story improvement, names, characters, and details have been changed. Any likeness to real people, alive or dead, or real events is entirely accidental and not the author’s intention.
The publisher and author disclaim all liability for any misinterpretation and make no claims on the veracity of the events or character portrayals. The thoughts represented in this story are those of the characters and do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of the author or publisher. The story is offered “as is.”
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