End of 2011

So I thought I would end the year with a post from TCM with their annual remembrance of all the film industry people who have passed away this year.

Peter Falk (1927-2011)

I’ve been meaning to post this for a week about Peter Falk passing away with complications of Alzheimer’s disease. I loved watching him play Columbo as a child. You the viewer saw the crime take place at the beginning so it was not that you were trying to figure out the murderer, you enjoyed Peter Falk asking the questions and starting to walk off then turn around and say “Oh, there’s just one more thing.” It was priceless watching him needle the who’s who of television stars who were the suspects. Of course he was great in his film roles like Princess Bride and Murder by Death as well. I say that’s pretty good for a guy with only one eye.

Oh, there's just one more thing....

Jamed Arness (1923-2011)

I just found out today that James Arness, of Gunsmoke fame, passed away yesterday at the age of 88. Before he took on the role of Matt Dillion for twenty years (it held the record for the longest running drama TV until last year) he did a few film roles and was hesitant to take on Gunsmoke and be typecast until his friend John Wayne encouraged him to take it. “Go ahead and take it, Jim,” Wayne urged him. “You’re too big for pictures. Guys like Gregory Peck and I don’t want a big lug like you towering over us. Make your mark in television.” Standing 6 feet, 6 inches tall he most defiantly left a mark and he will be missed.

Jane Russell (1921-2011)

It’s always sad to report that another Hollywood legend has passed away. Yesterday we lost Jane Russell to a respiratory-related illness. Russell, known for her roles in Gentleman Prefer Blondes and The Outlaw, brought to the screen a presence of strong beauty. One who could play against men like Robert Mitchum and hold her own. Too bad Howard Hughes controlled her early film contract and limited her opportunities to become a bigger star than she was.

John Barry

Today we lost one of the great film composers, John Barry to a heart attack; he was 77 years old. The five-time Oscar winner worked on eleven Bond scores, Born Free, Out of Africa, and Dances with Wolves.

James MacArthur

I’m sad to report that James MacArthur has passed away from natural causes at the age of 72. I was really hoping he would have been able to make a cameo appearance on the new Hawaii Five-0 since he is the original Danno. Though out of all his film, stage, and TV performances, I will most fondly remember him as Fritz from Swiss Family Robinson.

Stephen J. Cannell

We lost another great today. Stephen J. Cannell producer and writer of such great television series as Rockford Files, A-Team, 21 Jump Street, Greatest American Hero, Hunter and Black Sheep Squadron passed away from complications of Melanoma. I just mentioned a few of his series, but these are the ones I grew up watching and still watch on reruns. What I think is amazing is that he had dyslexia but that did not stop him from being a writer. I will always remember him typing at the typewriter and pulling out the paper to create his logo. He will be missed.

Tony Curtis

Bernard Schwartz aka Tony Curtis (1925–2010)

Today the film icon Tony Curtis passed away from cardiac arrest. It makes me sad that we are quickly losing classic Hollywood. If you have never seen one of his films you should try two of my favorites:

Some Like It Hot (1959)
Starring Tony Curtis and Jack Lemon
When two musicians witness a mob hit, they flee the state in an all female band disguised as women, but further complications set in.

Operation Petticoat (1959)
Starring Tony Curtis and Cary Grant
World War II comedy about a submarine commander (Grant) who finds himself stuck with a decrepit sub, a con-man executive officer (Curtis) and a group of army nurses.


In 2002 I had the opportunity to see Tony Curtis perform live in a touring production of Some Like It Hot but this time around he was Osgood Fielding III and not the young romantic lead.

Goodbye Tony Curtis, I will miss your beautiful blue eyes.

Robert Culp

Yesterday the actor Robert Culp passed away and it made me think of my childhood and how I loved watching The Greatest American Hero. You remember the series of the man who is given the red suit that gives him superhuman powers by aliens but he lost the instruction manual so he is really bad at flying? Culp played the FBI agent Bill Maxwell who helps Ralph Hinckley (played by William Katt) with his magic red suit fight the bad guys. Culp also starred in the original I Spy series with Bill Cosby and made numerous of television appearances on shows like Columbo. He was a true television icon and will be missed.