Brett Goldin

Brett Goldin (21 October 1977 – 16 April 2006) was a South African actor and part of the Crazy Monkey comedy troupe. Goldin was murdered in Cape Town in 2006 alongside friend Richard Bloom, a fashion designer who was a label manager for the Maze clothing company in Cape Town.[1][2][3]

Brett Goldin
Born(1977-10-21)21 October 1977
Died16 April 2006(2006-04-16) (aged 28)
Cape Town, South Africa
NationalitySouth African
EducationKing David School
Crawford College, Sandton
University of Cape Town
OccupationActor
Parent(s)Peter and Denise Goldin

Early life

Goldin was the son of Peter and Denise Goldin and had one sibling, his sister Samantha.[1][2]

He was educated at the King David School in Victory Park, Johannesburg and at Crawford College, Sandton.[4] He was a student of the University of Cape Town Drama Department from 1997 to 2000. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Drama, and subsequently completed a Performer's Diploma in Speech and Drama.[2][5][6]

Career

Goldin began performing professionally at the age of eleven and had extensive experience in television, film and theatre.[2][6][7]

Television

Goldin, along with Trevor Clarence, Brendan Jack and Gavin Williams, performed stunts in the popular Crazy Monkey series of comedy inserts aired between music videos by MTV.[3][8][9]

He starred in commercials for Pepsi and CNA.[3]

His television acting roles include Terry Schachter in the science fiction drama series Charlie Jade,[10] Michael Krauss in the 2003 television film drama Citizen Verdict,[11] and Dylan in Season 3 of the South African drama series Yizo Yizo.[12]

Film

Goldin's film roles include Carl in the 2002 horror film Slash,[13] Lourens in the 2003 romantic drama Proteus,[14] and B-Dog in Crazy Monkey's 2005 comedy feature film Straight Outta Benoni.[8][9][15]

Theatre

In 2004 Goldin wrote and acted in his first stage play, a one-man show titled Bad Apple, which examined what would happen if a Columbine-style killing spree were to occur at a wealthy public school in Johannesburg. The production opened in August 2004 at the Intimate Theatre at the University of Cape Town, directed by Matthew Wild. The production received excellent reviews from the local press.[6][16][17][18]

At the time of his death, Goldin was playing the role of Guildenstern in Hamlet at the Baxter Theatre and was set to go to the United Kingdom as part of the South African production to be performed in Stratford-upon-Avon.[1][3][6][19]

Murder

Goldin was murdered alongside a friend, Richard Bloom, in the early hours of Sunday 16 April 2006. They were killed with two shots each to the back of the head in Mowbray, Cape Town, after they had left a party in Camps Bay. They had been hijacked and shot execution-style.[20]

Police and family members were alerted that the men were missing after police patrolling Camps Bay in the early hours of Sunday morning stopped a car being driven recklessly and suspiciously and found Goldin's credit card in the possession of men in the vehicle. The men were questioned by the police and eventually pointed out the location of the bodies of the deceased.[1][8]

Reportedly found naked except for their socks in the veld next to the M5 freeway early on Monday 17 April 2006, some media coverage of the murders was deemed "particularly disturbing and highly insensitive".[1][8][21] Both men killed were gay,[22] and members of the local gay community were traumatised by their violent deaths.[21]

Eleven suspects were initially arrested for the murders. In May 2007, 25-year-old Shavaan Marlie and 23-year-old Clinton Davids pleaded guilty to the murders of Goldin and Bloom and several other related charges. Marlie and Davids received an effective 28-year prison sentence each in terms of a plea bargain agreement.[20] Four other men had been sentenced for related charges the previous year in terms of plea bargain agreements requiring them to testify against Marlie and Davids.[23]

Television documentaries

In 2007 Antony Sher presented a Channel 4 crime documentary directed by Jon Blair about the murders, titled Murder Most Foul.[24][25][26]

In July 2012, the murders were covered in the first episode of the M-Net Crimes Uncovered crime docu-drama television series titled When Two Worlds Collide: The Brett Goldin and Richard Bloom Story.[27][28][29]

Brett Goldin Bursary Fund

Shortly after Goldin's murder, the Baxter Theatre Centre in Cape Town, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Actors Centre in Johannesburg founded the Brett Goldin Bursary Fund in his memory.[30]

Filmography

Film
  • Slash (2002), Carl
  • Proteus (2003), Lourens
  • Adrenaline (2003), Eddy
  • Blast (2004), Brett
  • Straight Outta Benoni (2005), Brett "B-Dog"
  • Racing Stripes (2005), Ticket Vendor

Television
  • Cavegirl: Pigball (2002), Pigball Star Player
  • Citizen Verdict (2003), Michael Krauss
  • The Rose Grower (2004), Hotel Manager
  • Yizo Yizo (2004), Dylan
  • Fela's TV (2004)
  • Charlie Jade: Identity (2005), Terry Schachter
  • Charlie Jade: Flesh (2005), Scrawny Bouncer

References
  1. Maughan, Karyn; Dolley, Caryn (18 April 2006). "Double murder leaves arts community in tears". IOL. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  2. Hofmeyr, Kathy (25 April 2006). "Brett Goldin remembered". iafrica.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2012. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  3. Van Marsh, Alphonso (3 July 2006). "'Leave' is no answer to violence". CNN. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  4. "2008 Good Schools Report" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 August 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  5. Hyland, Geoff (25 April 2006). "Brett Goldin - 1977-2006". UCT. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  6. Ansdell, Caroline (25 April 2006). "African Hamlet Opens at RSC after Actor's Murder". Whatsonstage. Archived from the original on 12 April 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  7. Baxter Theatre Centre (24 April 2007). "Brett Goldin remembered". Artslink.co.za. Retrieved 17 March 2013. Includes Brett Goldin biography.
  8. Evans, Jenni (17 April 2006). "Police probe murder of Crazy Monkey actor". IOL. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  9. "Welcome to Benoniwood!". SouthAfrica.info. 30 September 2005. Archived from the original on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  10. Charlie Jade at IMDb
  11. Citizen Verdict at IMDb
  12. "Yizo Yizo Season 3". TVSA. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  13. Slash at IMDb
  14. Proteus at IMDb
  15. Crazy Monkey Presents Straight Outta Benoni at IMDb
  16. "Research 2004". UCT. Archived from the original on 22 April 2013. Retrieved 17 March 2013. Bad Apple by Brett Goldin. Aug 09 - Aug 21 2004. Directed by Matthew Wilde, The Intimate, UCT.
  17. "Bad Apple". Matthew Wild. Archived from the original on 22 April 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  18. Botha, Danie (17 August 2004). "'n Verdiende staande ovasie". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). Archived from the original on 10 April 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  19. Dolley, Caryn (19 April 2006). "Bodies of slain actor and designer flown home". IOL. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  20. "Goldin, Bloom: Plea spells out executions". IOL. 21 May 2007. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  21. van der Fort, Fouzia (21 April 2006). "Counselling for gays rocked by killings". IOL. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  22. Slier, Lionel (1 May 2006). "Double murder stuns South African Jewish community". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 22 June 2014. The fact that the victims were gay has led many to speculate that they were victims of homophobia.
  23. Nel, Carryn-Ann (29 May 2006). "Goldin, Bloom's last hours ..." Die Burger. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  24. South Africa: Murder Most Foul at IMDb
  25. "Murder Most Foul". Channel4.com.
  26. Dolley, Caryn (27 July 2007). "Documentary changed Cape a bit for me". IOL. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  27. "Crimes Uncovered on M-Net". M-Net. 29 June 2012. Archived from the original on 8 July 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  28. "Crimes Uncovered". TVSA. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  29. Ndlovu, Andile (2 July 2012). "Show to air as killers bid for parole". TIMES Live. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  30. "First Brett Goldin Bursary Fund Awarded". The British Theatre Guide. 25 April 2007. Archived from the original on 12 November 2012. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
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