Greg Kramer (11 March 1961 – 8 April 2013)

Richard Burnett Richard Burnett, also known as Bugs Burnett, is a Canadian writer, editor, journalist, and columnist. He is known as an often controversial fixture of the Montreal media, with his writing sometimes attracting attention internationally. His column ...

Xtra! ''Xtra Magazine'' (formerly ''DailyXtra'' and ''Xtra!'') is an LGBTQ-focused digital publication and former print newspaper published by Pink Triangle Press in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The publication is a continuation of the company's former pr ...

'', 10 April 2013. was a British-Canadian author, actor, director, and magician. Born and raised in

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

, England, he emigrated to Canada in 1981 and spent the remainder of his life living in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Early life

Kramer was born in

, England on 11 March 1961.

Career

His first novel, ''The Pursemonger of fugu'', published by Riverbank Press in 1995, was shortlisted for the City of Toronto Book Award. His other novels included ''Couchwarmer'' (1997) and ''Wally'' (2004). His short story collection ''Hogtown Bonbons'' (1999) was originally published by ''

'' in

as a regular column. He also wrote several theatrical plays. As an actor, he appeared regularly on the television series ''

Forever Knight ''Forever Knight'' is a Canadian television series about Nick Knight, an 800-year-old vampire working as a police detective in modern-day Toronto, Ontario. Wracked with guilt for centuries of killing others, he seeks redemption by working as a ho ...

'', '' John Woo's Once a Thief'' and ''

Tales from the Neverending Story ''Tales from the Neverending Story'' is a single-season TV series that is loosely based on Michael Ende's 1979 novel ''The Neverending Story'', produced (in Montreal, Quebec, Canada during December 2000-August 2002) and distributed by Muse Entert ...

'', and as a voice actor in ''

Tripping the Rift ''Tripping the Rift'' is an adult CGI science fiction comedy television series. It is based on two short animations published on the Internet by Chris Moeller and Chuck Austen. The series was produced by CineGroupe in association with the Syfy n ...

'', ''

George and Martha ''George and Martha'' is a series of children's books written and illustrated by James Marshall between 1972 and 1988. Each book in the series contains five short stories describing interactions between two hippos, George and Martha. The books i ...

'' and ''

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...

''. He also had supporting roles in numerous films, including ''

300 __NOTOC__ Year 300 (Roman numerals, CCC) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Valerius (or, less frequently, ...

'', ''

The Day After Tomorrow ''The Day After Tomorrow'' is a 2004 American science fiction disaster film directed, co-produced, and co-written by Roland Emmerich. Based on the 1999 book ''The Coming Global Superstorm'' by Art Bell and Whitley Strieber, the film stars Denn ...

'', ''

I'm Not There ''I'm Not There'' is a 2007 musical drama film directed by Todd Haynes, and co-written by Haynes and Oren Moverman. It is an unconventional biographical film inspired by the life and music of American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Six actors de ...

'' and ''

On the Road ''On the Road'' is a 1957 novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across the United States. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagonis ...

''. In theatres he worked across Canada, from the Vancouver Playhouse to the

National Arts Centre The National Arts Centre (NAC) (french: Centre national des Arts) is a Arts centre, performing arts organisation in Ottawa, Ontario, along the Rideau Canal. It is based in the eponymous National Arts Centre (building), National Arts Centre build ...

in Ottawa. Directing credits include ''Tiger's Heart'' at the

Centaur Theatre The Centaur Theatre Company is a theatre company based in Montreal, Quebec. It was co-founded in 1969 by Maurice Podbrey along with The Centaur Foundation for the Performing Arts. It currently has Eda Holmes as the Artistic and Executive Director, ...

, ''Marat/Sade'' ( Dora nomination, best production), and ''

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' is a three-act play written by Tennessee Williams. An adaptation of his 1952 short story "Three Players of a Summer Game", the play was written by him between 1953 and 1955. One of Williams's more famous works and his p ...

'' at the

Segal Centre for Performing Arts The Segal Centre for Performing Arts, formerly the Saidye Bronfman Centre for the Arts, is a theatre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located at 5170 chemin de la Côte-Sainte-Catherine, in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâc ...

in Montreal, which garnered him a Best Director MECCA award. Also a magician, Kramer was the magic consultant and coach for Des McAnuff's production of '' The Tempest'' at the

Stratford Shakespeare Festival The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson (theatre producer), Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was fo ...

, featuring

Christopher Plummer Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage, and television. He received multiple accolades, inc ...

. As a playwright, his credits included ''Lies of the Vampyre'', ''Skateboard Tango'', ''Queens and the Great Out Doors'' and ''Isadora Fabulist!''.

Personal life and death

Kramer was found dead in his Montreal apartment on 8 April 2013. Although a cause of death was not immediately confirmed, Kramer was

HIV-positive The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause AIDS, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the ...

and had previously had a lung removed due to a bout of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

. His last play ''Sherlock Holmes'' was performed at the

in Montreal from 4 to 26 May 2013. The play, which starred

Jay Baruchel Jonathan Adam Saunders Baruchel (; born April 9, 1982) is a Canadian actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. He is known for his voice role as Hiccup Haddock in the ''How to Train Your Dragon'' franchise, and for his roles in comedy movies ...

in the titular role, had also cast Kramer as Inspector Lestrade.'Punk-rock renaissance man' Greg Kramer dies on eve of rehearsals
''The Globe and Mail'', 9 April 2013. The play went ahead, with fellow cast member Patrick Costello stepping in to replace Kramer as Lestrade.
. ''

The Gazette The Gazette (stylized as the GazettE), formerly known as , is a Japanese visual kei Rock music, rock band, formed in Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa in early 2002.''Shoxx'' Vol 106 June 2007 pg 40-45 The band is currently signed to Sony Music Recor ...

'', 4 May 2013. Kramer was openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

."Prudes vs. Libertines"
, ''

Xtra! West ''Xtra Vancouver'' (), formerly ''Xtra! West'', was a gay bi-weekly newspaper, published by Pink Triangle Press in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Printed on newsprint in tabloid format from its establishment in 1993, Pink Triangle Press ...

'', 14 October 2004.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kramer, Greg 1961 births 2013 deaths 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian short story writers 21st-century Canadian short story writers 20th-century English dramatists and playwrights 21st-century British dramatists and playwrights 20th-century English novelists 21st-century English novelists English emigrants to Canada Canadian male novelists Canadian male short story writers Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Canadian male stage actors Canadian male dramatists and playwrights English male novelists English male short story writers English short story writers English male television actors English male voice actors English male stage actors English male dramatists and playwrights English theatre directors LGBT writers from England Canadian LGBT novelists LGBT dramatists and playwrights Canadian gay writers Canadian gay actors Male actors from Hertfordshire Writers from Hertfordshire People with HIV/AIDS 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers Canadian expatriates in England