American actor and country star Kris Kristofferson died on Saturday at the age of 88, his family announced on Sunday. He especially inspired Bob Dylan and acted in films alongside Barbra Streisand.
“Kris Kristofferson died peacefully at his home on Saturday” in Hawaii, his relatives announced on their Facebook site. “When you see a rainbow, know that it is he who smiles at us all”they added.
Winner of a Golden Globe in 1976 for his role alongside Barbra Streisand in a star is bornKris Kristofferson also distinguished himself in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid by Sam Peckinpah, with James Coburn, in 1973.
Author in particular of the classics. Sunday morning is coming down (1969) and Me and Bobby McGee (1970), covered by Janis Joplin, Kristofferson was a noted country singer-songwriter, as were Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson, with whom he formed The Highwaymen.
“There’s Nashville before Kris and Nashville after Kris”
Winner of several Grammy Awards, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1985 and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2004.
Born on June 22, 1936 in Brownsville, Texas, Kris Kristofferson began a military career, like his father, before settling in Nashville, the Mecca of country music, where he primarily wrote. Sunday morning is coming down for Johnny Cash.
“There’s Nashville before Kris and Nashville after Kris. Because he changed everything.”stressed Bob Dylan, quoted by the Kristofferson site.
The hoarse-voiced singer, who throughout his life nurtured a passion for the English poet William Blake, continued to perform regularly on stage until his artistic retirement at the age of 84, in 2021.