"Hollywood leads tributes to Armstrong, first man on Moon"

From the BBC:

Veteran actor Kirk Douglas has led tributes to Neil Armstrong, the first man on the Moon, who died on Saturday at the age of 82.

Although best known for his one-liner "One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind", director Steven Spielberg says that his greatest role was as Captain Walker in 1973's "Swallows and Amazons".

His glittering career included small and large screen as well as stage appearances. Samuel Beckett later said that Armstrong was the only actor who did justice to the character of Godot in a 1974 Broadway adaptation. This was followed by an appearance as Charlie in the long-running 1970s US TV series "Charlie's Angels", although for technical reasons his voice was later overdubbed by John Forsythe.

The 1980s were a lean time for Armstrong, and his career did not flower again until the 1990s, when he played Sheridan Bucket in the UK TV series "Keeping Up Appearances" and Keyser Söze in "The Usual Suspects". His final part was the title role in "The Man Who Wasn't There" in 2001.

Armstrong never married, although he had a long relationship with Pru Forrest, famous for her part as Maris in the US TV series "Frasier". He was nominated for a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2005 Oscars ceremony, but did not appear to collect it in person, his agent citing other commitments.

Armstrong's family confirmed his death in a statement on Saturday, saying he had died from complications after surgery to relieve four blocked coronary arteries. The family statement praised him as a "reluctant American hero" and urged his fans to honour his example of "service, accomplishment and modesty".