The arts and entertainment sector is in mourning as news of the passing of legendary columnist, broadcaster, and arts and film critic Barry Ronge, 74, spreads.
In an interview with eNCA, Bridget van Oerle, The BUZ Factor publicist, confirmed he passed away from natural causes last Sunday.
She said: “Barry wanted the news of his death to be released a few days after his death and that is what we have done. He was with his life partner Albertus van Dyk.”
Born Barry Johann Ronge in Hillbrow, Johannesburg, he started his career as a teacher at St John’s College after completing his studies at the University of Witwatersrand.
His strides in the industry included becoming the first male journalist to write for the Women’s Page of “The Star” newspaper. He was also an editor of the acclaimed Star Tonight, an entertainment supplement to “The Star”.
Van Oerle also mentioned: “He was one of the most loved arts journalists and a former arts editor for the ‘Sunday Times’. He wrote under a pseudonym as a restaurant reviewer in the 1980s and he published ‘Spit 'n polish’.”
She also mentioned his well-known 702 radio slot on Sundays.
His unparalleled knowledge of film saw him feature on “Front Row”, M-Net’s “Revue Plus” and “Cinemagic with Barry Ronge and SABC3’s “Screenplay”.
While you may not have agreed with his rating, it was hard to forget those “scintillating 7” scores.
Although Ronge retired in 2014, the Sunday Times renamed its prize for South African literature to the Barry Ronge Fiction Prize in 2015.
In a statement issued by Videovision Entertainment’s Anant Singh, he said: “It is with deep sadness that I learnt earlier this evening of Barry Ronge’s passing a week ago.
“I first met Barry in the 1980s when he reviewed films I distributed in South Africa. When I ventured into film production, Barry understood the struggles I endured in those early days and supported my endeavours.
“Whilst not all of his reviews over the years were favourable, he was always honest in his critique. For me, I appreciated the fact that even if he didn’t like a film, he would write his reviews in a manner that was inoffensive.
“Barry attended the South African premiere of ‘Mandela – Long Walk to Freedom”, which took place shortly before he retired in 2014. I was touched when he called to congratulate me on how the film turned out.
“He was particularly complimentary about the authenticity of the film, including the sets we built on the back lot of Cape Town Film Studios.
“Barry was a passionate lover of films, in any language, from all over the world, and believed in the power of film. There are many talented film critics in South Africa, but Barry was in a class of his own. He is no doubt a legend and he set the bar for film critics in the country.”
Of course, many industry colleagues and fans remembered Ronge in their social media posts.
@DoreenMorris wrote: “Barry Ronge was a brilliant man, generous mentor, a gifted storyteller who could keep one spellbound for hours. As his co-anchor of many years on Revue Plus he regaled me with history, folklore and pop culture hot off the press. Wordly and refined he was unpretentious ...”
Barry Ronge was a brilliant man, generous mentor, a gifted storyteller who could keep one spellbound for hours. As his co-anchor of many years on Revue Plus he regaled me with history, folklore and pop culture hot off the press. Wordly and refined he was unpretentious … pic.twitter.com/q18BBpWvPW
— @Doreen Morris🇿🇦🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸 (@DoreenMorris) July 9, 2022