The Late Peter Fonda, Star of ‘Easy Rider' and Icon of Counterculture

Peter Fonda passed yesterday morning at age 79. My deepest and sincerest condolences to the Fonda family and, really, just anyone who got to know this guy — by all the accounts that I’ve heard and read, the man had an incredibly good heart and could light up a room just by his presence alone.

I wasn’t old enough to experience the counter-culture movement that was happening in the U.S. between 1966-1969, but I do know that Fonda played a key role in being its face by way of cinema. There was Roger Corman‘s “The Wild Angels” (’66)/”The Trip” (’67) and then, of course, Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson’s groundbreaking “Easy Rider.” With the latter film, the major studios realized that money could be made from low-budget indie statements made by “hip” new directors. The French New Wave had moved into town and this "post-classical Hollywood" mindset represented the counterculture generation at the movies.

Fonda is also historically significant for inspiring John Lennon to write “She Said She Said", the closing track of the Beatles “Revolver” album The story goes that Lennon overheard Fonda at a party, whilst tripping on acid, saying something to the effect of “I know what it’s like to be dead,” this line ended up being part of the song, but, as Lennon would later state, also represented the origins of the tune.

And, of course, there is Fonda’s mini-comeback in the late ‘90s, which started with his absorbing Oscar-nominated performance in 1997’s “Ulee Gold” and then his mesmerizing turn as Terry Valentine in 1999’s “The Limey.” Fonda’s last notable role was In 2007’s “3:10 to Yuma” starring as a bounty hunter opposite Christian Bale and Russell Crowe.