Actor Christopher Lee dies at 93 – CNN.com

Story highlights "You were an icon, and a towering human being," LOTR star Elijah Wood tweets of Lee Lee initially made his name in horror films, playing Count Dracula and Frankenstein's monster More recently, he was Saruman in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and Count Dooku in the "Star Wars" prequels

He played Dracula, the bad guy in the James Bond thriller "The Man with the Golden Gun," the deliciously evil wizard Saruman in the "Lord of the Ring" films, and the dude who fought Yoda with a lightsaber in "Star Wars: Attack of the Clones."

But Sir Christopher Lee, the man, who died this week at the age of 93? Not an ounce of villain to be found, fans and fellow actors alike said Thursday.

"You were an icon, and a towering human being with stories for days," "Lord of the Rings" co-star Elijah Wood tweeted Thursday. "We'll miss you."

Lee died Sunday, a spokesman for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea said.

He had more than 150 film credits to his name, beginning in 1948 and stretching into this decade.

Lee initially made his name in horror films. His first major horror role was as Frankenstein's creature and then the infamous vampire Dracula in a series films for Britain's Hammer Films studios from the 1950s until the 1970s.

He was often quoted as saying he had to be talked into playing in some of the Dracula films. He said he played the character silently in one film -- 1965's "House of Horrors" -- because the lines were so bad.

Later, he took on the role of James Bond's nemesis Francisco Scaramanga in 1974's "The Man with the Golden Gun," and was introduced to a new generation of film-goers in 2001 with "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring."

In it, he played the evil wizard Saruman, former mentor to Gandalf -- the good-guy wizard's role Lee said he once coveted but had grown too old to play.

Link:

Actor Christopher Lee dies at 93 - CNN.com

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero