Paulo Autran | Brazilian actor, 85

Brazilian actor Paulo Autran, 85, whose work earned him the moniker "lord of the stage," died Friday in a Sao Paulo hospital of complications from lung cancer.

Mr. Autran's final film was The Year My Parents Went on Vacation, Brazil's Oscar entry this year in the foreign film category.

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Mr. Autran had studied law and planned to become a diplomat before his work in amateur theater led him to the professional stage.

He appeared in his first professional play in 1949 and went on to act in more than 90 stage productions, six telenovelas, or soap operas, and nine films, including the 1967 classic Earth in Trance. - AP