Rick James (10 October 1939 – 24 September 2018) was an Antiguan actor, politician, journalist and mas pioneer.

Early life

He began his education at Moravian School and continued on to

Princess Margaret School Princess Margaret School (founded 1955) is a public secondary school in St. John's, Antigua. Its principal is Colin Greene. History The Princess Margaret School was Antigua's first public secondary school to be established and opened by Princess ...

. Involved with the 1st Antigua Scout Troop Anglican, James first left his home country to attend the 8th

World Scout Jamboree The World Scout Jamboree is a Scouting jamboree of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, typically attended by several tens of thousands of Scouts from around the world, aged 14 to 17. The first World Scout Jamboree was organized by T ...

in 1955 as a

Queen's Scout A King's Scout is a Scout (Scouting), Scout who has attained the King's Scout Award. The King's Scout Award is the highest youth award achievable in the Scouting movement in the Commonwealth realms, including the United Kingdom, Canada (Queen's ...

.The Eulogy of George "Rick" James – The Museum of Antigua and Barbuda
/ref> An amateur enthusiast, he entered the Carnival mas as a designer, presenting The Remnants of Rome at the first Summer Carnival in 1957. James went on to win Band of the Year in 1962 with Interplanetary Flag Wavers and again in 1963 with Atlantis Revellers, making him the first back to back winner of the prize. 1961 was an important year for James. Travelling to Trinidad, he represented Antigua at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...

in the 100-yard sprint. Now a Master Scout, he also attended the 2nd Caribbean Scout Jamboree

Acting

That same year, James secured a scholarship to study in the United States. Moving to San Francisco, he took up studies at Adult High School. A subsequent move to Los Angeles saw him enrol in acting school, studying under the tutelage of

James Doohan James Montgomery Doohan (; March 3, 1920 – July 20, 2005) was a Canadian actor, author and soldier, best known for his role as Montgomery "Scotty" Scott in the television and film series ''Star Trek''. Doohan's characterization of the Scottish ...

. Rick made his Hollywood debut in the West Coast Premiere of ''

Blood Knot ''Blood Knot'' is an early play by South African playwright, actor, and director Athol Fugard. Its single-performance premier was in 1961 in Johannesburg, South Africa, with the playwright and Zakes Mokae playing the brothers Morris and Zachariah ...

'' produced and directed by

Frank Silvera Frank Alvin Silvera (July 24, 1914 – June 11, 1970) was a Jamaican-born American character actor and theatrical director. Born in Kingston, Jamaica and raised in Boston, Silvera dropped out of law school in 1934 after winning his first stage ...

in 1965. Moving to England, James resumed his career in the theatre, appearing in the West End (''Sit Quietly on the Bollard'' and ''Shack-Shack'') and Royal Exchange (''Detective Story'') before moving into television. He appeared in an episode of ''

Dixon of Dock Green ''Dixon of Dock Green'' was a BBC police procedural television series about daily life at a fictional London police station, with the emphasis on petty crime, successfully controlled through common sense and human understanding. It ran from 19 ...

'', two ''

Play for Today ''Play for Today'' is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage ...

''s and ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' (the 6-part serial ''

The Mutants ''The Mutants'' is the fourth serial of the ninth season of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 8 April to 13 May 1972. The serial is set on and high above th ...

''). The actor was even offered a bit part in a James Bond movie (possibly '' Live and Let Die'') but ultimately turned it down, having auditioned for a more substantial role. Realising that he was not being taken seriously as an actor, James decided on a different career path. By the-mid 1970s, he became an operator for

British Telecom BT Group plc (trade name, trading as BT and formerly British Telecom) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered in London, England. It has operations in around 180 countries and is th ...

, during which he became acquainted with a woman from Germany called Rita Jansen. They married in 1985 and the following year gave birth to a son, Sven. A return to acting in the 1980s saw Rick appear in the penultimate episode of ''

Blake's 7 ''Blake's 7'' (sometimes styled ''Blakes7'') is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. Four 13-episode series were broadcast on BBC1 between 1978 and 1981. It was created by Terry Nation, who also wrote the first ...

'' entitled "Warlord" and various stage productions. During these years, Rick wrote his first column for

Tim Hector Leonard "Tim" Hector (24 November 1942 – 12 November 2002) was a leftist Antiguan political leader and cricket administrator known for his opposition to the rule of the Bird family. Early life Born in St John's, Antigua, and named Leonard C ...

's Outlet Newspaper in Antigua about his experiences abroad, keeping in touch with his roots. Missing his homeland, James decided to move back there with his family in 1989.

Politics

Returning home, the actor started his own theatre ensemble, playing short plays with small casts at beach hotels. Dedicated and hard-working, James hoped to improve lives in his home country. When away acting, it was to put Antigua on the map. When entering politics, it was to make a difference at home.'Patriot' Rick James remembered , Antigua Observer Newspaper
/ref> In August 1991, James founded the Free and Fair Elections League and served as its secretary up until his death. In 1999, he led the

Antigua Freedom Party The Antigua Freedom Party was a political party in Antigua and Barbuda led by George "Rick" James. The party contested the 1999 general elections with a single candidate, George James, running in the St. Johns Rural East constituency. James g ...

and contested the 1999 general elections but did not win the St. John's Rural East seat, losing to

Lester Bird Sir Lester Bryant Bird KNH (21 February 1938 – 9 August 2021) was an Antigua and Barbuda politician and athlete who served as the second prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda from 1994 to 2004. He was chairman of the Antigua Labour Party (ALP ...

. For years, James, a patriot, was known for pushing the envelope for election reform in his home country. Over the years, he filed numerous election petitions in the High Court with his League conducting mick elections ahead of General Elections in his homeland. His patriotism won him heaps of respect and praise. 2011: Recommended that the Antigua & Barbuda Electoral Commission (ABEC) be dismantled and rebuilt from scratch to restore public confidence in that body.
2016: Loses a lawsuit challenging number of Ministers of Government named to the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party Cabinet.Victory over Rick James in the Court – Caribbean Press Releases
/ref>

Death

On 18 September 2018, James checked himself into Mount St. John's Medical Centre, complaining of feeling unwell. He died less than a week later at 6 am on 24 September 2018, of

multiple organ failure Multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) is altered organ function in an acutely ill patient requiring medical intervention to achieve homeostasis. Although Irwin and Rippe cautioned in 2005 that the use of "multiple organ failure" or "multisy ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Rick 1939 births 2018 deaths Antigua and Barbuda activists Antigua and Barbuda politicians Deaths from multiple organ failure