Rest in Peace

Death comes in threes, so they say. We lost a few good ones this past week:

Dennis Weaver

Not many of us young folk remember McCloud. It was a fish-out-of-water cop show in which Dennis Weaver's McCloud -- a deputy US Marshal -- travels from New Mexico to New York City to fight crime. He ended up fighting crime for seven seasons. I love the scenes of him riding a horse through the streets of alphabet city.

Dennis Weaver was also in one of Steven Spielberg's earliest films, Duel. He plays a haggard commuter who pisses off the wrong truck drive. 90 mintues of terror ensues. It's a pretty cool flick that you should definitely add to your Netflix. The recent movie Joy Ride totally ripped it off.

Darren McGavin

Darren McGavin played the dad in A Christmas Story. He was ancient then, so I was always suprised that everytime I looked him up, he was still alive. Love that scene with the leg lamp.

Darren McGavin was also the original Kolchak on Kolchak: The Night Stalker -- a show which inspired Chris Carter to create The X-Files. If you look at his IMDb page, it's about two miles long. He was in a ton of stuff.

Don Knotts

I knew him as Mr. Furley before I knew him as Barney Fife. Don Knotts was instantly recognizable and the recognition I have of him is pretty much the same recognition I would give to a favorite, older uncle. True to his on-screen presence Don Knotts enlisted in the army and was discharged a few years later, reaching the rank of corporal.

The world is a little quieter place after this week. Rest in peace McCloud, Kochak and Fife.