Justus Esiri (20 November 1942 – 19 February 2013) was a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

, generally considered to be one of the pillars of Nollywood with an acting career that goes way back to the 1960s. He came into prominence for his role in the popular

Nigerian Television Authority The Nigerian Television Authority or NTA is a Nigerian government-owned and partly commercial broadcast station. Originally known as Nigerian Television (NTV), it was inaugurated in 1977 with a monopoly on national television broadcasting, after ...

TV-series '' The Village Headmaster'' and the film adaptation of

Chinua Achebe Chinua Achebe (; born Albert Chinụalụmọgụ Achebe; 16 November 1930 – 21 March 2013) was a Nigerian novelist, poet, and critic who is regarded as a central figure of modern African literature. His first novel ''Things Fall Apart'' ( ...

's book ''

Things Fall Apart ''Things Fall Apart'' is a 1958 novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. It is Achebe's debut novel and was written when he was working at the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation. The novel was first published in London by Heinemann (publisher), ...

'' where he played the role of Obierika. He won Best Actor award at the 9th Africa Movie Academy Awards post-humously for his role in ''Assassins Practice'' and was also honored as the inaugural recipient of the "

Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to former military head of state General Muhammadu Buhari and ...

Lifetime Achievement Award" at the 2013

Nollywood Movies Awards The Nolly Awards, formerly the Nollywood Movies Awards, is an annual Nigerian film award presented by the Nollywood Movies TV to honour outstanding achievement in the Nigerian film industry. The inaugural edition was held at the Civic Center, L ...

. The Nigerian government honored him with several National honors with the highest being an Officer of the

Order of the Niger The Order of the Niger (OON) is the second highest Award, national award in Nigeria. It was instituted in 1963 and is junior to the Order of the Federal Republic, the highest order of merit in the country. Award The two highest honours, the Gr ...

, OON for his contribution to the development of Film-Making in Nigeria. He is the father of

Mavin Records Mavin Records (also known as the Supreme Mavin Dynasty) is a Nigerian corporation and record label founded by record producer and recording artist Don Jazzy on 8 May 2012. The label's inception came to fruition following the closure of Mo' Hits R ...

musician Dr Sid.

Early life and career

Justus was born in Oria-Abraka,

Delta State Delta is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South (Nigeria), South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1 ...

on November 20, 1942. He then proceeded to Effurun and attended Urhobo College, in the then

Bendel State The Mid-Western Region was a division of Nigeria from 1963 to 1991, from 1976 being known as the Bendel state. It was formed in June 1963 from Benin and Delta provinces of the Western Region, and its capital was Benin City. It was renamed a pro ...

. He left Nigeria for

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

for his higher education. Institutions he attended in Germany included Maximillan University, Munich, German (1964), Prof. Weners Institute of Engineering, West Berlin (1967) and the Ahrens School of Performing Arts (1968). While in Europe, he began his acting career. He was working as a German translator for the voice of Nigeria in Germany when he received an invitation home from the Nigerian Government to star in "The Village Headmaster" which he accepted.

Death and legacy

Esiri died in an hospital in Lagos on 19 February 2013 from complications of diabetes. A tribute night, organized by the Actors Guild of Nigeria, was held at the National Stadium on 8 April 2013. Mass was at St. Jude Catholic Church in Mafoluku,

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

, on 9 April 2013, and a Service of Songs was conducted in Warri the following day. His body was then taken to its final resting place in his hometown of Abraka. Several government officials and entertainment personalities were present at his funeral.

Filmography

He has appeared in several Nollywood and TV productions including *'' No limit'' *''Wasted Years (2000)'' *''Forever (1997)'' *''The Prize (1999) as Mr. Peters'' *''Six Demons (2005) as Chief Marshall Adelabu'' *''Corridors of Power (2005) as Otunba Damijo'' *''The Last Knight (2005)'' *''The Tyrant (2005)'' *''The Investigation'' *''The Ghost (2005) as Anderson'' *''

Sitanda ''Sitanda'' is a 2006 Nigerian adventure / drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, ...

'' (2006) *''The Assassin's Practice (2013) as Eviano'' *'' Doctor Bello (2013)'' *''Twin Sword (2012)'' *''Keep my Will (2007) as Dike'' *''Invasion 1897''

References

External links

Justus Esiri
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Esiri, Justus 1942 births 2013 deaths Best Actor Africa Movie Academy Award winners Male actors from Delta State 20th-century Nigerian male actors Best Supporting Actor Africa Movie Academy Award winners Members of the Order of the Niger 21st-century Nigerian male actors Officers of the Order of the Niger Diabetes-related deaths Nigerian male television actors Actors from Delta State Nigerian male film actors