This is my annual blog where I talk about the actors who died this past year, and if there’s one thing I like, it’s talking about actors. You should get comfortable.
Adam Yauch. Because he was such a brilliant guy in so many ways, everybody was bummed when he passed away. (I loathe the Mets, but it was awesome that every hitter in their lineup used Beastie Boys songs as their walk-up music the day after Adam died.) Also super impressive: Adam founded the film production company that distributed the great documentary Exit Through the Giftshop.
Andy Griffith. Comedian Dana Gould summed it up much better than I can: “Not long into the first season of ‘The Andy Griffith Show,’ Andy realized that, with super funny Don Knotts at his side, Sheriff Taylor was now the straight man. Instead of panicking and firing everyone and revamping the show to soothe his ego, Andy relaxed into the role and allowed Don Knotts to get all the laughs, wisely realizing that what mattered was how funny the show itself was, not just his performance.”
Richard Dawson. Besides hosting “Family Feud” for ten years, he was a regular on “Hogan’s Heroes,” his first film was The Longest Day and his last was The Running Man. That is a damn good career.
Ernest Borgnine. He won an Oscar in 1955, and then worked nonstop (including doing a voice on “Spongebob Squarepants” for ten years), all the way until he died. And it was surprising when he did die, because even in his 90s he was the craziest, most energetic guy. Here he is at 91 sharing his secret to long life.
Sherman Hemsley. I watched an interview with him in which he explained the famous George Jefferson strut from “The Jeffersons” opening credits. He said that growing up in Philly, because he was undersized, that was the way he walked through tough neighborhoods. The day he shot the opening credits, he was so excited to have his own TV show that he strutted during one take. That was the take they used, and it became his thing.
Michael Clarke Duncan. He didn’t start getting acting jobs until he was 38, and then started doing five films a year. He could do anything – comedy, drama and action, and he landed himself an Oscar nomination. Good thing he loved acting, because even though he was 6’5”, 315 lbs., his mother never let him play football.
Larry Hagman. My friend Jeff sent me this amazing first-hand account of Larry, who apparently was the nicest man ever.
Jack Klugman. To me, he’s a god for his work on “The Odd Couple,” and I loved that he became best friends with Tony Randall in real life. Also cool: my older cousin’s wife kept Jack’s books for many years, and she really liked him.
Charles Durning. Before he died last week, Charles was the most decorated war veteran alive. As for his acting, I’ve always loved this scene with Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, when Charles’ character, pissed that he’d fallen for Dorothy Michaels and not realized she was Hoffman in drag, says, “I’m seeing a really nice woman now. Think I didn’t check her out?”
