Rex Reed, 87, Dead: Controversial Film Critic Passes

Legendary film critic and entertainment journalist Rex Reed has died aged 87.

Reed, famed for his scathing reviews and love for old Hollywood stars, passed away on Tuesday morning at his home in Manhattan following a short illness, his representative confirmed to THR.

His brutally honest writing, combined with his slick style and penchant for hobnobbing with Hollywood's biggest stars in the 60s and 70s saw him quickly develop a reputation as a fearsome interviewer.

Reed famously landed in Ava Gardner's crosshairs in 1966 when she took offense at an Esquire profile he had written about her.

He responded: 'Every word of it is true, and it was written in as flattering a way as it is possible to write something when the subject will not let you ask questions, take notes or give any semblance of a dignified interview. Also, she was completely drunk.'

He notably interviewed elderly Hollywood icons including Bette Davis and , telling Newsweek: 'The old broads are the ones that interest me the most. Nothing bores me more than these mini-skirted girls with nothing on their minds.'

Reed wrote columns and film reviews for the New York Observer from 1987, with his final review on film Truth & Treason published in November.

He previously worked as an arts critic for the New York Daily News and the New York Post.

Reed was also embroiled in a spat with Frank Sinatra, calling the crooner a 'Woolworth rhinestone' in a searing 1974 review of the star's Madison Square Garden concert.  

He wrote of Sinatra: 'His public image is uglier than a first-degree burn, his appearance is sloppier than Porky Pig; his manners are more appalling than a subway sandhog's and his ego bigger than the Sahara (the desert, not the hotel in Las Vegas, although either comparison applies). 

'All of which might be tolerable if he could still sing. But the saddest part of all is the hardest part to face about this once-great idol now living on former glory: the grim truth is that Frank Sinatra has had it.'

Reed later revealed Sinatra was 'mad at me, but what did he do? He lost 25 pounds!'

In 1986, Reed claimed Marlee Matlin's Oscar for Best Actress for Children of a Lesser God was down to a 'pity vote' and 'that a deaf person playing a deaf character was not really acting.'

Further controversy followed in 1992 when Reed made wild claims that Marisa Tomei's Oscar for her work in My Cousin Vinny had been handed out mistakenly due to presenter Jack Palance reading out the wrong name.

As well as his exploits in journalism, he appeared in films including Superman (1978, in which he played himself), Laurence Olivier in Inchon (1981) and Irreconcilable Differences (1984).

His most famed onscreen role was as Myron, who becomes Myra, in Raquel Welch film Myra Breckinridge (1970) - which saw the lead actress undergo a sex change in a dream. 

Reed continued courting drama in his later years, sparking outrage in 2013 when he branded Identity Thief star 'tractor-sized' and a 'female hippo' in his New York Observer review.

His comments were lambasted by Modern Family star Eric Stonestreet and Bridesmaids Director Paul Feig - but a defiant Reed stood by his review and said McCarthy was 'crying all the way to the bank.'

He added to WOR-AM New York that the controversy contributed to Identity Thief's box office success.

He said: 'I object to using health issues like obesity as comedy talking points. That’s what this girl does.

'I have too many friends that have died of obesity-related illnesses, heart problems and diabetes. … I have helped people try to lose weight, and I don’t find this to be the subject of a lot of humor.'

Reed was openly gay and in 2018 told the New York Times that he still hoped to find love even as he struggled with his declining health.  

He said: 'Love is not something that I've been really good at. I think people are intimidated by people with opinions. How do you go start looking for a wife or a boyfriend or a significant other? It's too late. 

'It would be nice, though, to find somebody who's really handy with a wheelchair, because that day is coming.'