Wow! Now that's what you call longevity! He is not my favorite Hollywood actor, but my father showed me Spartacus when I was a kid, and I was very impressed by his performance.
Not my fave either, but when he's good, he's great. My fave, off the top of my head, are "Ace In The Hole" and "Paths Of Glory". Not a huge fan of "Spartacus" once he leaves the gladiator school, but that first section of the movie is amazing.
Wow, I did not think of that when I posted it, but you are right! Nothing wrong with paying a tribute to excellent artists who are gone, but it is nice also to acknowledge them while they are still breathing! We've been doing a lot of obituaries here on this forum ^_^