Three Down
Lot of celebrity deaths lately. The big shocker is well-regarded director Tony Scott committing suicide. He was known for his big action films like Top Gun, Crimson Tide and Man On Fire. I always found him a bit over the top, but when he had a good script (like True Romance) he knew how to deliver.
Then there's Phyllis Diller. In the 50s, she developed her character as a housewife full of one-liners about her bizarre life, often bringing up never-seen husband "Fang." She started appearing on TV, such as Groucho Marx's You Bet Your Life and the The Jack Paar Tonight Show, and, with her distinct looks and laugh, soon became one of the top comics in the business. Her material was often self-deprecating--a common source of material for early female stand-ups--but that didn't stop her from being a great inspiration for modern female comedians.
And let's not forget William Windom, a great character actor who appeared in hundreds of TV shows from the 50's until a few years ago. He won an Emmy for his lead role in the Thurberesque My World And Welcome To It and was a regular on Murder, She Wrote. But I think he may be best-remembered as Commodore Matt Decker in the Star Trek episode "The Doomsday Machine."
posted by LAGuy @ 12:10 AM
4 Comments:
In the 70s it seemed that william Windom showed up on everything. I wonder if he has the record for one-time supporting parts on the most TV series (pre-cable)
Windom reprised his role as Commodore Decker about 5 years ago in a fan made Start Trek Movie that you can see on YouTube - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STZlRdagCEM&feature=related
I've watched it - I sort of like these fan made films - the production isn't top notch, but it's as good as classic Dr. Who. And many of them have original actors from the series show up, like Decker. I've seen some with Chekov, Uhura, and also actors from the later series (Tuvok from Voyage, for example).
Anyway, The Doomsday Machine is one of my favorites of the original series, and I mourn Windom's passing. I think the episode worked because it contrasted a captain much like Kirk, yet pushed past the edge. They did a great job of building suspense, not showing you the monster till half way through the episode. By that time, the fact that it looked like a dark cotton candy tube didn't matter.
Ah, a precursor to Jaws. I wonder if that's where Spielberg learned it.
I do wonder whether he's actually remembered for Star Trek or Murder, She Wrote. Star Trek seems to have the culture behind it, but Murder SW was the culture and many millions of viewers, at least some of whom must still be alive.
The average age of the Murder She Wrote viewer was so old I'd go with Star Trek.
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