Last fall, Mr. Beasley scaled a private peak as a stage actor with a distinguished position because the older incarnation of Noah, the love-struck male protagonist, in a musical adaptation of the 1996 Nicholas Sparks novel “The Notebook,” and the 2004 movie primarily based on it, on the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. He died earlier than the manufacturing might make its anticipated transfer to Broadway.
John Beasley was born on June 26, 1943, in Omaha, the oldest of five sons of John Wilfred Beasley, who owned {an electrical} provide enterprise, and Grace (Triplett) Beasley.
He was energetic in theater in highschool, and after graduating he briefly studied the topic on the University of Nebraska Omaha earlier than dropping out to hitch the Army.
After being discharged, he married Judy Garner. She survives him. In addition to his son Michael, Mr. Beasley can also be survived by one other son, Tyrone; his brothers Gary, Steven and Leon; and 6 grandchildren, together with the basketball participant Malik Beasley.
By 1968, he had grew to become energetic within the civil rights motion, and he ended up shifting his household to Philadelphia due to threats he confronted after taking part in protests of policing practices in Omaha’s Black group.
After returning together with his household to Omaha within the early Seventies, he stored his appearing desires alive by showing in industrial movies and stage productions, honing his expertise domestically earlier than being forged in regional theater roles in Minneapolis, Chicago and Atlanta. Through all of it, nonetheless, he stayed centered on his residence life — and on Omaha.
“We have been going by some ups and downs early in our relationship, my spouse and I,” Mr. Beasley mentioned in an interview final 12 months with American Theatre magazine. “There have been issues to work by — and we did. I felt it might be higher for me to remain right here with my spouse and household. It turned out to be the perfect resolution I made.”
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