R.I.P. Ian Holm

R.I.P. to actor Sir Ian Holm, who died June 19 at age eighty eight. Sad, but that's a pretty good run.

Holm was a world-class actor and a member of the Royal Shakespeare company. He won numerous award during his long career, including the Laurence Olivier Award, a Tony and a BAFTA. He was also nominated for an Academy Award for his role in Chariots Of Fire.

Although Holm was in over a hundred movies, I was unfamiliar with his work until his role as the twitchy, villainous Ash in 1979's ALIEN. 

He then starred in a whole slew of sci-fi and fantasy films, including Time Bandits, Brazil, The Fifth Element, Naked Lunch, Mary Shelly's Frankenstein and eXistenZ.

Holm's probably best known though for playing Bilbo Baggins in The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit trilogies.

As most fans know, Peter Jackson shot both Tolkien trilogies in the far off land of New Zealand, which is about as far away as you can get from anywhere. When he agreed to film The Hobbit movies, he desperately wanted Ian Holm to return as Old Bilbo in a flashback sequence.

Unfortunately Holm had to tell Jackson he couldn't appear in the movies, as his health prevented him from making the grueling flight from the UK to New Zealand.

Determined to cast him no matter what, Jackson packed up his crew, built a Bag End set in London and filmed all of Holm's scenes there in the UK! Cool!

Fun Fact: At one point Holm was married to actress Penelope Wilton, aka Shaun's mom in Shaun Of The Dead!

R.I.P. Kurt Thomas

R.I.P. Kurt Thomas, who died this week at the much-too-young age of 64. Thomas was a male gymnast extraordinaire, who set the record for most medals won (six) at a single event at the 1979 World Championship.

Thomas was all set to compete in the 1980 Olympics, but was robbed of the chance when President Ronald Reagan decided to boycott the Games that year. By the time 1984 rolled around, Thomas had become a professional and was barred from any further Olympics. Darn.

He invented two brand new moves— the Thomas Flair and the Thomas Salto— which quickly became a standard part of every gymnast's repertoire.

Thomas attended Indiana State University around the same time I did, and I remember he was a HUGE celebrity in my home town.

Of course Kurt Thomas' crowning achievement was his starring role in the 1985 action film Gymkata, his first— and only— foray into Hollywood.

If you've not seen the film, it's definitely worth a look. The US Government wants to build a missile launch site in the tiny country of Parmistan (try finding THAT on a map!). In order to do so, they need a champion who can win "The Game"— a brutal endurance contest in which losing means literal death. The winner of The Game is granted any wish.

Johnathan Cabot (played by Kurt Thomas) is a gymnast (natch!) who's recruited by the US to infiltrate Parmistan and enter The Game. If he wins, his wish will be to allow the US to build their missile base, and everyone will be happy.

If that synopsis seems nonsensical to you, know that it's far more coherent than the actual movie!

Gymkata was released by MGM, and was a blatant attempt to cash in on Thomas' fame. Apparently the producers thought it was a simple matter to take his gymnastic skills and parlay them into an action movie.

Thomas spends a good part of the film swinging from conveniently— and bafflingly— placed parallel bars around the city, which allow him to face-kick the armies of baddies chasing after him.

The highlight of the film is when Johnathan finds himself in Crazytown, surrounded by hundreds of insane, bloodthirsty citizens. Luckily for him he inexplicably finds a pommel horse in the middle of the town square, and twirls around on it and knocks out the inhabitants— who are all polite enough to wait their turn and attack him one at a time.

Naturally Johnathan manages to survive, wins The Game, finds the father he thought was dead, gets the girl, has his wish granted and the US gets their missile base. A happy ending all around!

R.I.P. Jerry Stiller

Darn. 

Actor/comedian Jerry Stiller died today, of natural causes (gotta put that in obits these days, so people don't think someone died of the 'rona). He was 92. Sad, but I guess that's a pretty good run.

In 1953, Stiller met fellow comedian Anne Meara. They were married in 1953, and in 1961 began performing together as "Stiller And Meara." Their act was incredibly popular, and they appeared in nightclubs and on every variety show on TV all through the 1960s and early 1970s.

Although their joint career eventually waned, their relationship never did. They were married for a whopping 62 years, until Anne Meara's death in 2015.

Stiller's career experienced a major resurgence when he was cast as Frank Costanza (father of George) on Seinfeld. He was paired with Estelle Harris (as George's shrill mother, also named Estelle) and together the two were comedy gold. Stiller's portrayal of the easily infuriated Frank was the highlight of the series, and he was nominated for an Emmy.

Amazingly, Stiller didn't join the series until its fifth season! His first appearance was in The Puffy Shirt, which was the second episode of Season 5.* That seems unbelievable to me, as it feels like he was there from the start.

Even more incredible, he was only in 29 of the show's 180 episodes! Again, that seems impossible. Such was the power of Stiller's portrayal, that it feels like he was in FAR more episodes than that.

After Seinfeld ended, Stiller planned on retiring but eventually joined the cast of The King Of Queens. Although it was nice to have Stiller back on TV, Queens' Arthur Spooner character couldn't hold a candle to Frank Costanza.

Stiller's survived by his two children, actor Ben Stiller and Amy Stiller.

SERENITY NOW!

*Frank Costanza first appeared in Season 4's The Handicap Spot. At that time he was played by actor John Randolph. After the episode aired, series creators Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David decided Randolph wasn't right for the part, and recast the role with Jerry Stiller. David then reshot all of Frank Costanza's scenes with Stiller, and edited them into The Handicap Spot episode when it was syndicated. So even though Stiller didn't join the cast until Season 5, technically his first appearance is in Season 4. Confused yet?

R.I.P. Florence Henderson

Actress Florence Henderson died yesterday Thanksgiving Day!) at the age of eighty two.

That does it, 2016. Enough is enough. I've had more than enough of your antics, and you are now officially the Worst Year Ever. Don't let the door hit you in you in the ass on the way out.

Naturally we all remember Henderson as America's Mom Carol Brady. But did you know she was also the first female guest host on The Tonight Show in 1962? It's true! She hosted the show right after Jack Paar's infamous meltdown, and right before Johnny Carson started his decades long stint. Pretty cool!

R.I.P. Robert Z'Dar

I've been trying to cut down on celebrity death posts lately, lest my blog turn into the Obituary Page. I'm making an exception for this one though, since I've not seen a lot of news about it around the internet.

Robert Z'Dar died March 30, 2015 at age 64.

You may not know his name, but if you're a fan of offbeat cinema, you'll likely recognize that face. Z'Dar was largely unknown to the general public, but was a favorite among cult movie fans, appearing in over one hundred films and TV shows, usually playing a villain.

Z'Dar began experiencing chest pains while attending the Pensacon comic book convention in Pensacola, Florida. He was rushed to the hospital where he went into cardiac arrest and died.

He was probably best known for his role as Matt Cordell, the murderous supernatural police officer in the Maniac Cop film trilogy.

Born Robert Zdarsky in Chicago, he studied acting at Arizona State, where he also played football. Before his film career Z'Dar worked as a police officer (!), a singer/guitarist in the band Nova Express, a jingle writer, and amazingly, a Chippendale dancer.

His massive jaw was the result of a genetic disorder called cherubism, which causes abnormal growth in the lower portion of the face.

I met Mr. Z'Dar a couple of times over the years. The first time was at WizardWorld in Chicago, circa 1999. That me being strangled by him above, back when my hair was all one color. He was very friendly and accommodating to his fans, which is always a plus.

I met him again at a HorrorHound convention in Indianapolis, probably around 2010. He was surrounded by fans and fellow celebrities alike, laughing and telling stories and having a grand old time. Part of that may have been due to the "special ingredient" in his drink. Hey, whatever gets you through the show!

Z'Dar was still active in the film industry, and was shooting Samurai Cop 2 at the time of his death.