Rex Nettleford performing in 1965; photo by Maria LaYacona

I made the mistake of not getting this out last week, when The Hon. Rex Nettleford, OM, FIJ, OCC passed. For that, I apologize. For those unfamiliar with Rex Nettleford, and the legacy he leaves behind, see the passage below…

Jamaica lost one of its most revered cultural figures last night when Professor Rex Nettleford, vice-chancellor emeritus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) and founder of the National Dance Theatre Company (NDTC), died, just hours before he would have celebrated his 77th birthday…

…”Jamaica and the entire world have lost an intellectual and creative genius, a man whose contribution to shaping and projecting the cultural landscape of the entire Caribbean region is unquestionable,” (Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce )Golding said….

In the time since his death, numerous pieces have come up all over the net, a few of which I’ve compiled below…

• BBC Caribbean: Rex Nettleford: Death of a cultural icon.
• Jamaica Gleaner: Icon lost - Golding, Simpson Miller mourn Nettleford.
• Jamaica Observer: Nettleford ’soars like an eagle’, says former UWI head.
• Yahoo! News: Jamaican scholar, choreographer dies in US at 76.

For more on the life of Mr. Nettleford, see the video below, courtesy of The Jamaica Gleaner…