Obituaries
Entries from July 2012
Chad Everett, who rose to stardom as Dr. Joe Gannon in the popular 1970s TV series Medical Center, has died from cancer at age 75. Everett began guest starring on popular TV series throughout the 1960s including such favorites as Maverick, Hawaiian Eye and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. He gained major stardom through his role on Medical Center which ran from 1969-1976. He earned two Golden Globes and an Emmy nomination for his work on the series. Over the decades, Everett remained a popular fixture on TV, guest-starring on hit shows such as Murder, She Wrote, Melrose Place, Cold Case and Castle. He also had a key role in David Lynch's acclaimed 2001 feature film Mulholland Drive. For more click here
TV legend Sherman Hemsley has died at age 74. Circumstances of his death are still unclear but no foul play is suspected. Hemsley, a former post office worker, drifted into acting in stage productions before he was cast by Norman Lear in the hit sitcom All in the Family. He guest-starred as George Jefferson, an African American version of Carroll O'Connor's Archie Bunker, as both characters were bigots who still maintained admirable traits. The character of George Jefferson, a successful Harlem businessman, was innovative on television in that he channeled much of the black community's frustrations over prejudice and intolerance. Hemsley's performance was so well-received that Lear spun him off into his own sitcom, The Jeffersons, from 1975-1985. On that show, Hemsley's foil was his wise-cracking, no nonsense wife Weezie (Isabele Sanford). Following that show, Hemsley had a five year run in anothet hit sitcom, Amen. He continued to appear in popular TV shows and provided voice overs for many characters. Hemsley was planning on starring in a revival of his first hit play Purlie. For more click here
Writer-director Frank Pierson has died at age 87. Among his screen credits were the screenplays for two acclaimed Sidney Lumet films, The Anderson Tapes and Dog Day Afternoon. He also wrote the screenplays for Presumed Innocent, Cool Hand Luke and the hit 1976 remake of A Star is Born starring Barbra Streisand. Pierson also directed that film. He also earned the respect of the industry by serving as President of the Writers Guild of America, West and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Pierson had also been very active in television with writing credits dating from such classic shows as The Naked City and Have Gun, Will Travel to contemporary shows such as Mad Men and The Good Wife. For more click here
Richard D. Zanuck,the son of one-time 20th Century Fox chairman Darryl F. Zanuck, has died from a heart attack at age 77. Zanuck's life was one of triumph, failure and redemption. He was appointed as head of production for Fox during trying times when his abrasive father had been called back as Chairman in order to save a studio awash in red ink, largely the result of the out-of-control production costs on Cleopatra. The elder Zanuck saved the studio with his 1962 D-Day blockbuster The Longest Day. During the duo's tenure at the studio, there were massive hits including Patton, Planet of the Apes, M*A*S*H, The Sand Pebbles, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and, most profitably, The Sound of Music. There were also missteps such as costly financial disasters like Tora! Tora! Tora!, Hello Dolly! and Star! (The studio favored titles with exclamation points in that era). Under pressure to save the studio once again, the elder Zanuck deflected personal responsibility and in a shocking move, fired his son. The two were estranged for a time but ultimately reconciled. The younger Zanuck had a successful stint at Warner Brothers before teaming with fellow producer David Brown to produce such blockbusters as Jaws and The Sting. Working on his own in later years, Zanuck produced such hits as Driving Miss Daisy, Cocoon and Alice in Wonderland. He also produced Tim Burton's 2001 remake of Planet of the Apes. Despite being reviled by fans, the film was a major hit. His latest movie, Dark Shadows, is currently in release. For more click here
By Lee Pfeiffer
Ernest Borgnine, the Oscar winning star of Marty, has passed away at age 95. His loss is a truly sad one for all movie fans. Borgnine's remarkable talents extended back so many years that virtually anyone in any age bracket could claim him as one of their favorite stars. On a personal level, I met Ernie and his long time manager and friend Harry Flynn in New York in 2008. Ernie was promoting his autobiography and I was invited to interview him in his hotel room. From the moment we met, we seemed to do nothing but laugh. Ernie's laughter could shatter windows and he had a timeless quality about him that belied his true age. I remember thinking of how precious that time was, even while the interview was going on. Here was the last cast member of From Here to Eternity. Here before me was the man I had watched as a kid in McHale's Navy, The Poseidon Adventure, The Dirty Dozen, The Wild Bunch and so many more. I would continue to send Ernie every issue of Cinema Retro, which he and Harry would read voraciously. Only recently Harry told me that they would curse when a new issue would arrive because they both knew they wouldn't get any work done that day since they would read it from cover to cover. I'll never forget Ernie's kindness and generosity. The world is a poorer place now that he is no longer with us, but his legacy will live on as long as there is a movie industry. For more click here
(For the interviews with Ernest Borgnine, see Cinema Retro issues #13 and #14)
His name may not be well-known to international audiences, but UK film and TV fans are mourning the loss of Eric Sykes, who passed away at age 89. Sykes was an original writer, with Spike Milligan, on the classic Goon Show before establishing himself as one of England's most popular and enduring comedic character actors. He also appeared in such diverse feature films as Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, Theatre of Blood and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Despite having to cope with serious health issues and physical handicaps in recent years, Sykes continued to perform regularly. He had been awarded both an OBE and CBE over the years. For more click here
By Lee Pfeiffer
Fox News has reported that Andy Griffith, an icon of American comedy and television, has passed away at age 86. Griffith gained fame in the 1950s with hit comedy albums based on naive hillbilly characters. Before long, he was a Broadway and TV star. In 1960, he spun off a character introduced on a Danny Thomas TV episode and starred in The Andy Griffith Show. Griffith played Sheriff Andy Taylor of the small town of Mayberry. He was surrounded by a lovable group of eccentric country characters including his bumbling deputy Barney Fife, played by Griffith's old friend Don Knotts (who won five Emmys for his performance in the role). Griffith also produced successful TV series, notably Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C, a major hit starring Jim Nabors in the role he created on The Andy Griffith Show. Griffith's series was a ratings-topper for eight years on CBS before he left the show to pursue other ventures. It was spun off as the successful series Mayberry R.F.D. Griffith tried to emulate Knotts' success in family-oriented feature films, but found the landscape had changed radically. By the time he did his first post-TV series movie, Angel in My Pocket in 1969, audiences were gravitating to the likes of Midnight Cowboy, Easy Rider and The Wild Bunch. Still, Griffith worked consistently. He returned to TV periodically but didn't find a successful series until the 1980s when Matlock proved to be a smash hit that ran for many years. Griffith played a shrewd country lawyer who hid his detective skills behind a disarming and genial personality. Don Knotts occasionally guest starred on the series. Griffith also periodically reminded audiences that he could be a powerful dramatic actor. He received an Emmy nomination for the mini-series Fatal Vision, and lived to see his 1958 feature film A Face in the Crowd re-evaluated as a classic. At the time of its release, the film flopped despite being written by Budd Schulberg and directed by Elia Kazan. Griffith gave one of the most dynamic performances by a leading man during that era, playing a country singer who gains fame and fortune at the expense of his soul.
For this writer, Griffith's loss is personal. I had authored The Official Andy Griffith Show Scrapbook back in the early 1990s. My publisher said there would be no audience for the book but I convinced him he was thinking like a Madison Avenue snob. He eventually published the book and it was a major success, despite the fact that I had personally loathed it because of design problems on the finished version. (I haven't opened it again since the book came out in 1993). In researching the book, I interviewed everyone associated with the show from Don Knotts to Jim Nabors and Ron Howard, who evolved from a child actor to an Oscar-winning film director. I was told by Viacom that Griffith approved the book, but wouldn't give me an interview. One day the phone rang, and an instantly recognizable voice said, "This is Andy Griffith. I changed my mind". I had a delightful conversation with his legendary story-teller. He said he was very proud of his show's legacy, but attributed all the success to his writers and co-stars. He pointed out that people still want to know how they can visit the fictitious town of Mayberry. He said the town's mythical status in America was a tribute to the skills of a bunch of Jewish writers who barely ever left Beverly Hills! Don Knotts pointed out to me that, early in the series, Griffith felt that Knotts was funnier than he was, so he voluntarily morphed his own character into that of a straight man and allowed Knotts to get most of the laughs. Knotts said he had never witnessed such generosity from another actor.
Griffith saw the TV series that bears his name increase in popularity over the decades. Even today, there are still licensed products produced for the show and its characters are immortal. (Just this weekend I saw couple wearing T shirts bearing the likeness of Mayberry's Floyd the Barber). The iconic show's main theme song by Earl Hagen can still be heard all over in pop culture and even on the street, as fans continue to emulate the famous whistling accompaniment to the tune.
Perhaps the most significant tribute to Andy Griffith came when we was invited to the White House in 2007 to be awarded the Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush. I can't get into the President's mind, but it's known that the first President Bush is a major Griffith fan and I have to think some of that rubbed off on his son. Griffith was true icon of American television and pop culture. We won't see his like again.
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