canyonwalker: Sullivan, a male golden eagle at UC Davis Raptor Center (Golden Eagle)
canyonwalker ([personal profile] canyonwalker) wrote2023-10-29 07:59 pm
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Three Actors We Lost this Week

This past week three actors from film and TV passed away.

On Tuesday Richard Roundtree succumbed to pancreatic cancer at age 81. He died in bed surrounded by family. Roundtree is most famous for playing the title character of 1971's Shaft. It was not just a classic movie but the kick-start of an entire genre. While that genre is customarily called Blaxploitation, a term that connotes poor treatment of Black people, it was actually a boon for Black people in film. It brought many more Black actors and actresses in front of cameras... and many talented Black photographers, producers, artists, and technicians into roles behind the camera.

On Sunday Matthew Perry, co-star in the ensemble cast of Friends, died. He was 54. Circumstances of his death are being investigated further as he was found in a hot tub in his own home, dead of drowning. Friends aired for 10 seasons from 1994-2004 and is one of the most successful TV series of all time. Oddly, though, I never watched it. It began at a time when I was watching very little TV so it never caught on with me. And by the time it was big news and everyone was watching it... well, I didn't find it entertaining. I felt the characters were all unrealistic for the fancy, urbanite lifestyles they led while working menial jobs. I mean, I was in the age demographic they portrayed, and it all rang false with me. I was like, "Yeah, no. No way does being in your 20s work like this." None of that is on Matthew Perry, though. I found his work as an actor in other shows and movies to be consistently funny.

On Thursday Richard Moll died at his home in Big Bear Lake, California. He was 80. Moll was best known for portraying the character Bull Shannon, a gruff but humorous bailiff on the TV comedy show Night Court, which ran for 9 seasons from 1984-1992. While Friends was a show I never watched, Night Court was one I watched regularly for half of its run. That's because back then I was a teen living in my parents' house, and Night Court was family-friendly TV. Moll was not the star of the series, but as an imposing 6'8" man wearing a bald cap his character Bull Shannon was memorable. Plus, Moll was gifted at playing the comedic straight man while stars Richard Anderson and John Larroquette chewed the scenery. Moll had a number of minor roles after Night Court as he struggled (but never really succeeded) to avoid being typecast for comedy.

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