Online Community Commemorates Late Gordon Tootoosis, One Year Since Passing.
by Armand LaPlante for Indigenous Times News
Today marked one year since the passing of renowned actor and First Nations icon Gordon Tootoosis (25 October 1941 – 5 July 2011). Thousands of online social media users have expressed their condolences and commemorated the late Tootoosis on Facebook posts and memorial pages. Tootoosis was much loved; he was influential in the First Nations community and he will continue to live on through memory and through his craft.
Reprinted from Indigenous Times Newspaper:
Many remember Gordon Tootoosis from seeing him on the screen in many movies and tv shows including North of 60, Hank Williams First Nation and APTN’s Blackstone. Although Gordon was very humble about his fame and achievements, he was in fact a celebrity and everyone knew it when he was in the room.
Gordon Tootoosis (25 October 1941 – 5 July 2011) was an actor of Cree and Stoney descent from the Poundmaker First Nation. Tootoosis descended from Yellow Mud Blanket, brother of the famous Cree leader Pitikwahanapiwiyin (or Chief Poundmaker) who served a pivotal role in defending the First Nations and Métis people during the 1885 Batoche Resistance.
After showing interest in the arts and pursuing his talents, Gordon Tootoosis got his first role as Almighty Voice in the movie Alien Thunder in 1972. The movie co-starred Donald Sutherland. Gordon has also appeared on movies with such stars as Ben Afflick in Reindeer Games (2000) and Brad Pitt in Legends of the Fall (1994). Gordon was a veteran actor appearing in productions in both Canada and the United States but Gordon always linked his identity to his Cree culture. Gordon was proud of his culture and used his successes to inspire his people and tell their stories on a grand scale. On October 29, 2004, Gordon was awarded membership in the Order of Canada. His citation recognizes him as an inspirational role model for Aboriginal youth.
Gordon Tootoosis served as a founding member of the board of directors of the Saskatchewan Native Theatre Company. Tootoosis believed in empowering our youth and believed that theatre could accomplish this. Throughout Gordon’s life he displayed a sincere commitment to helping and empowering First Nations youth. May that commitment continue to strive in us all. Gordon Tootoosis was a true hero to First Nations people.
