Veteran comedic actor, Romanus Uchenna Amuta aka ‘Natty’ who starred in the 1980s cinematic classic ‘New Masquerade’ has passed on.
He reportedly died yesterday morning. The actor was partially paralysed, as a result of stroke.
Before his death, Natty was one of the few surviving cast of the once celebrated comedic flick, New Masquerade.
Cast such as James Iroha (Giringory Akabuogu), Christy Essien-Igbokwe (Apena), Claude Eke (Jegede Shokoya) have died, while Davis Offor (Clarus) is currently blind.
Stroke caught up with Amuta in 2006, and left him bedridden.
However, he regained his steps in 2010 but by then, the right side of his body had gone numb, he could only manage to limp.
Natty in an interview with PUNCH saturday beats, February 2, 2013 said if the government of Nigeria did not help him, he would die soon.
“Will I be poor in New Masquerade and still be poor in real life, and even now that I’m about to die?” he wondered, with tears dropping from his eyes.
“I’m … … so, so, so, so poor that I could not even cure the stroke when it was just starting. Now that it (the stroke) is even worse, there is no money to even enjoy myself, even if na small enjoyment before I quench like my mama wey die a long time ago,” he added.
The ‘New Masquerade’ series that brought Amuta (Natty) into limelight aired on the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) for many years.