RIP Tim Curry

Rough week - first Dolly Parton, then we find out Tim Curry also died Tuesday, and like Parton, also at the age of 80. 

 

Probably most famous as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Curry made his mark not only in film but also on stage and television, and in music, voice over work, and books on tape. He received three Tony nominations and two Olivier and Drama Desk nominations, as well as single nominations for the Grammy and Primetime Emmys. He was nominated for two Daytime Emmys, winning in 1991 for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series for his voice work as Captain Hook in Peter Pan and the Pirates. 

 

Curry was an amazingly versatile actor. Take a look at his credits - not only the sheer volume of them, but the variety. He did comedy (including a classic appearance on Psych as Nigel St. Nigel, at parody of Simon Cowell type talent show hosts), drama (including an episode of Poirot), horror (Pennywise in IT), and numerous children's shows. And this list doesn't even include his vast body of theater work. Just mind-boggling how talented he was.

 

Curry suffered a stroke in 2012 and was confined to a wheelchair thereafter. However he was able to continue with voice work and even made an appearance in a 2016 TV remake of The Rocky Horror Picture Show as the Narrator/Criminologist.

 

Tough loss, especially for those of us who headed to Hollywood in the 80's for midnight showings of Rocky Horror. We would dash down in front of the screen to do The Time Warp, and knew exactly what to yell at the screen during the film. For that alone Curry was a huge part of life in that most wonderful decade. 

 

RIP Tim and congratulations on an amazing life well lived.

 

Elementary, my dear taxman...

Snicked from here.

Happy 45th Birthday to MTV

This popped up on my Facebook feed today, the 45th anniversary of the launch of MTV. As someone who witnessed the birth of MTV, the coolest thing in its time, I got a kick out of analyzing this. 

 

A few observations:

• Rod Stewart was the first artist to be shown twice (#3 "She Won't Dance with Me" and #15 "Sailing"). He was seen twice more in the first 50 (#26 "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" and #37 "Passion").
• Other artists featured more than once in the first 50 videos: Pat Benatar, The Who, Cliff Richard, Pretenders, REO Speedwagon, Styx, Split Enz, Iron Maiden, and Lee Ritenour. Stevie Nicks appeared twice, once with Fleetwood Mac and once with Tom Petty.
• The fact that so many artists appear more than once probably says a lot about how few were doing music videos at the time. Soon, it became pretty much standard to do a video for songs being released as singles.
• One artist notably missing is Michael Jackson. In fact, in its early days MTV received a lot of criticism for how few black artists were featured. Ironically, Jackson would add to his legendary musical status with some of the most popular music videos of the era, including "Billie Jean", "Beat It", and of course, "Thriller".

Happy birthday, MTV! You were such a big part of what made life so wonderful in the glorious 1980's.  

H/T to Charlie's 80s Attic Radio Station on FB.

 

Recent reading: "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd"

 

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie 

 

I'm still behind on #ReadChristie2026 and haven't been reading much the past couple of weeks, but I finally finished The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (June). 

 

Poirot has retired to the village of King's Abbott to grow vegetables and live in anonymity,  but the murder of a wealthy local brings him back to the detecting business. His next door neighbor, Dr. Sheppard, a personal friend of Ackroyd's, helps out due to his knowledge of the players and fills the Hastings role, as Poirot admits to missing his long-time friend, now living in Argentina. But Dr. Sheppard is no Hastings, and not only is Poirot's revelation of who killed Roger Ackroyd a shocker, but so is how he treats the guilty party. As usual, it's a treat to learn how Poirot unravels the mystery.

 

I first read this years ago, and knowing the identity of the guilty party made for a different experience than the first read. Once you find out, you'll want to go back and re-read it to see how Christie sprinkled hints and issues that lead the legendary Hercule Poirot to the killer. The book is rightly famed for its twist ending.

 

I do remember that when this story was produced for Poirot, for some reason the producers felt the need to turn the quiet, confessional ending into a chase that could not have been further from how Christie resolved the story, and it was quite a disappointment. So it was nice to go back and read this again. Just one of the best mysteries ever.

 

From the book:

 

Poirot, too, was smiling, and at the same time shaking an eloquent finger at me. "Have I not told you at leasst thirty-six times that it is useless to conceal things from Hercule Poirot?" he demanded. "That in such a case he finds out?"

  

Hollyweird and how to survive it

The other day I posted about The God of the Woods and looking at the casting for the upcoming Netflix series. Because it takes place at a kid's summer camp, there are by necessity child actors involved and as always I wondered why people put their kids in show biz. It's a tough business for adults; I wonder how many kids have to be ruined by it for people to keep theirs out of it. And it's not just children, apparently.

 

Billy Bob Thornton was discussing life in LaLa Land and what got me was the last sentence in this conversation (bold mine):

 

Billy Bob Thornton says a Hollywood party conversation made him realize he was truly an outsider in Los Angeles. A woman found out he was from Arkansas and asked...

 

But she said it was fascinating to me, and she goes, "And you came out here from, what is it, Alabama or something like that?" And I said, "Arkansas." She goes, "Arkansas." And with a straight face, said to me, "What do you people do down there?" 

 

"Well..." (Joe Rogan continues laughing) ...and I said, thinking she would get the joke, I said, "Uh, we mostly lay around on the porch with our hound dog and swat flies." She goes, "Oh, interesting, interesting."

 

"...but that was one of the moments where I realized that I really was an outsider out there, you know? And people ask me about my longevity in this business, and I always say it's because I stay out of it.”

 

Fascinating indeed. The difference between working in Hollywood and surviving Hollywood is not living in it.

June Words of Wisdom

To be good, and to do good, is the whole duty of man comprised in a few words. (Abigail Adams) 

 

The life of the nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful, and virtuous. (Frederick Douglass)

 

Being hated by idiots is the price you pay for not being one of them. (Jean Cocteau) 

 

Nothing but this gaunt quiet. (H.G. Wells, The War of the Worlds)

 

I like being at home. My life is very simple. I read a lot of books. I watch a lot of movies, listen to a lot of music, walk the dog. Cook with my family. I am boring. (Cillian Murphy) (Note: Sounds like a good time to me!) 

 

 

RIP Daveigh Chase

Today brought some totally unexpected news: Actress Daveigh Chase, who as a child star had a very eclectic career, has died at the age of 35 due to complications of meningitis.

 

Chase had a number of notable roles, including voicing the young Hawaiian girl Lilo who adopts an alien as a pet in Lilo & Stitch. But for me, her performances in The Ring (one of the all-time great horror films IMO) and Donnie Darko were what put her on the map. She was also in a Season 4 episode of CSI.

 

As Samara Morgan in The Ring, Chase's acting chops and offbeat appearance served her well as a child inhabited by an evil that perpetuates itself long after her death. In Donnie Darko she was Donnie's stone-faced baby sister Samantha, whose participation in the dance act Sparkle Motion was partially a catalyst for Donnie's bizarre death by airplane engine, not to mention it made great use of the Duran Duran song "Notorious". 

 

Daveigh's last acting credit was in 2016 and I don't know what she'd been doing since or what led to her illness, but her premature death is just tragic. It reminds me of when I learned that Jessica Campbell, whose performance as Tammy Metzler in Election should have led to a solid career, but whose last acting credit was in 2002, died in 2020 at the age of 38 (cause undisclosed). 

 

RIP Daveigh, and thanks for the fantastic performances. You deserved better, or at least longer.

 

Crazy talented kid. Godspeed, Daveigh.

Update 6/18/26: This story just got sadder. "...had long struggled with drug addiction and homelessness." "Daveigh was the sweetest girl who mixed up with the wrong crowd." People, keep your kids out of showbiz.

 

Update #2 6/18/26: This story just keeps getting worse. I had no idea she'd fallen so low. What a waste of someone who had so much going for her.  

 

Utterly classless

Late night host buffoon Jimmy Kimmel apparently thought it would be fun to mock someone whose house burned to the ground because he doesn't like the guy's politics. This is a perfect example of why late night shows are dying. 

 

Spencer Pratt ran for mayor of Los Angeles and was hugely embraced across demographics. The videos he ran on social media were off the charts amazing and should be studied by future candidates. Whether or not Pratt lost the vote legitimately is another conversation. For now I'll just say California never had these issues when we voted in person. Both California and Los Angeles politics are absolutely corrupt and like many here, I have little to no faith in the security of our elections these days. I do think it would have been interesting to have seen what Pratt could have accomplished in the role of mayor. A lot of people seem unaware of this, but he has a degree in political science from USC, so he's not as unqualified as many seem to have assumed or claimed.

 

Pratt has said he'd leave the city if he lost the election and I have to say I don't blame the guy. After all, it isn't like he has a house to come home to here now. It burned to the ground in the Palisades Fire, which is a whole other issue in terms of if that had to be as bad as it was, and who might bear responsibility for that.

 

But the point is that Jimmy Kimmel, his producers, and his writing staff thought this would be hilarious:

 

“I know things might be tight right now, especially with the out-of-state donation money running out,” Kimmel said during his monologue. “Moving is expensive, so to help you out we rented you a U-Haul. Our staff spent the whole day decorating for you, and everybody will notice you and wave goodbye as you leave.” 

 

The image shared by Kimmel shows Pratt appearing to cry, plastered across a U-Haul with the phrase, “Just defeated.” 

 

This is what passes for "comedy" on network TV these days. But what Kimmel and company forgot in their cruel glee is that Spencer doesn't need a U-Haul to move. Why? Oh, yeah...

 

 

Oh right, the thing that prompted Pratt to get involved in local politics in the first place - he lost his home in the Palisades Fire! It wasn't that long ago, Jimmy. Nobody local has forgotten about it. It hasn't faded into the past. Heck, there's a family who lost their home in the Palisades now living just a couple doors down from my apartment. They're all over the place. And Jimmy Kimmel thought it was acceptable to poke fun at these victims. I wonder if he'd volunteer to provide U-Haul's for the other 6,836 families that lost their homes. Also, twelve people died in this fire. I'm sure Jimmy will eventually get around to making them fodder for his "comedy".  Maybe his staff could mockingly decorate some hearses for them.

 

Honestly, if I ran ABC, I'd yank him off the air for this and not let him back on until he made a sincere, on-camera apology. The 2025 Palisades and Altadena fires and the lack of rebuilding support has traumatized not just the victims in those communities, but all of Los Angeles and it's not a wound that's going to heal anytime soon. Kimmel's mockery of a victim of this is just disgusting.

 

Full California Post article is here.

Recent reading: "The Kids in the Hall: One Dumb Guy"

 

The Kids in the Hall: One Dumb Guy

by Paul Myers

 

This is a terrific biography of the legendary Canadian comedy troupe of Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Mark McKinney, and Scott Thompson. It goes back to their early comedy roots (McCulloch and McKinney in Calgary, Foley, McDonald, and Thompson in Toronto) and traces their hard-fought rise through the ranks, culminating in their popular sketch comedy TV show and beyond. It also looks at their often traumatic childhoods and how these experiences shaped them personally and in how they used comedy to move beyond these upbringings.

 

There were two major things I took away from this book: One, these guys worked incredibly hard to become successful. They never waited around for fate to choose them. They were constantly writing, performing, and hustling. They earned everything they eventually achieved, and even after the show, when their tours easily brought out adoring hordes who would have been happy to just revel in classic sketches and characters, they continued to write new material and mixed it with the old. Two, I was impressed by the absolute admiration with which their comedic peers express for the Kids. They are uniformly held in high regard by other comedians as well as generations that came after them and viewed them as inspirational.

 

Author Myers takes us through their rise in clubs, through the five seasons of the Lorne Michaels-produced TV show that made them famous, the brutal Brain Candy days (when the troupe was at its most fractured), and through the touring years that served not only to promote them, but also to heal the rifts that had formed. He also looks at their non-KITH projects, including NewsRadio (Foley), McKinney's Slings & Arrows (an absolutely hilarious look at theatre people and a personal favorite), and Thompson's ground-breaking role (described as openly gay and openly Canadian) on Garry Shandling's The Larry Sanders Show. We also get a look at the production of Death Comes to Town (which I loved), a difficult period as this is when Thompson was receiving treatment for lymphoma. 

 

Myers also devotes a lot of time to the behind-the-scenes crew that helped propel the Kids to immortality. When staffing their show, the guys enlisted a number of people they had come up through the ranks with and many of those excelled beyond the Kids in the Hall - Norm Hiscock in particular - as well as the band Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, whose instrumental "Having an Average Weekend" became the show's theme music. We also get to learn how many of the popular sketches and characters were developed. 

 

Because the book was published in 2018, it doesn't include their 2022 "sixth season", but it is still the definitive history of the Kids in the Hall. Required reading if you're a fan. 

 

The book's subtitle comes from McDonald's comment, "I always say that individually, we're all smart guys, but collectively, we're really just one dumb guy."

 

A quick look at some KITH sketches: 

 

 

And now I'm off to just watch a bunch of videos.

 

Famous (and not so famous) idiots in the news

Hollywood people are so full of themselves.

 

Andrew Garfield - Dude, relax. No one in the real world cares what you watch. Watch something, don't watch it, we don't care. It doesn't affect us. It's yours. We have ours. The whole reason for this story is he doesn't want to be canceled in the industry for watching something by an author that the so-called tolerant industry hate right now because she won't walk in lockstep with their beliefs and won't be silenced. Which leads us to...

 

Josh Duhamel - "Because I respect their views on things but I'm not going to preach to them." Holy moly, this guy gets it. But wait, there's more! "They can believe what they want to believe. I'm just here to, you know, make cool stuff." Nailed it, but I wonder how much of a backlash he's going to get within the industry for not sticking to the script. 

 

Going back to Garfield, referring to J.K. Rowling - author of the Harry Potter series and one of the most successful authors in the world - as "she who shall remain nameless" isn't as clever as he thinks it is. How about this take, Andrew: Are you not saying her name because of her opinions on certain topics (which, whether or not you agree, she's entitled to have)? Or are you belittling a woman? Are you a misogynist? Down with your patriarchy! 

 

Or are you dismissing the writer as beneath you because you're a big Hollywood star and don't have to acknowledge the little people? Are writers just schmucks with Underwoods to you, big shot?

 

Also, did Hollywood ever give back the billions of dollars they made off Rowling's creations? Come on, show up how outraged you really are about her opinions and cleanse yourself of her filthy money! 

 

Laura Benanti (Who? Yeah, me too) makes an ass of herself when a group of teen theater kids didn't recognize her on a plane flight. Apparently she's trying to walk it back as down to earth self-mocking, but if she's such a great actress wouldn't that have come across in the first place? In her defense, she's a successful (if not recognizable) actress, with tons of credits and a Tony Award. Unfortunately, it's now her performance as a big shot who gets pissy over not being hailed by the little people is what a whole lot of people find the most memorable.

  

There have been a lot of memorable responses to the original video, but this was my favorite:

 

March Words of Wisdom

The wisdom, its numbers are dwindling... 

 

But oh my, this is a noisy world. (Mr. Fred Rogers) 

 

We're developing a new citizenry. One that will be very selective about cereals and automobiles, but won't be able to think. (Rod Serling)

 

Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. (Aldous Huxley) 

 

Common sense is not a gift, it's a punishment because you have to deal with everyone who doesn't have it. (George Bernard Shaw) 

NOTE: I love this one because my Dad once told me some of the best advice he'd ever been given (by a teacher) was that, "You'd be surprise how uncommon common sense is." Yup.

 

Ask me to show you poetry in motion and I will show you a horse. (Unknown)  

 

Submitted for your approval...

The Twilight Zone ("It's a Good Life") meets Calvin and Hobbes.

 

Love it. Snicked from Rod Serling Memorial Foundation on FB.

 

This one hurts: RIP Robert Duvall

Prolific Oscar-winning actor Robert Duvall has died at the age of 95. 

 

The man's resume is just staggering. Here's just a few:

• To Kill a Mockingbird (as Boo Radley) 
• M*A*S*H (as Frank Burns)
• THX 1138 (pre-American Graffiti and pre-Star Wars George Lucas film)
• The Godfather and The Godfather Part II (as Tom Hagen)
• The Seven-Per-Cent Solution (as Dr. Watson)
• Network (as ruthless executive Frank Hackett)
• Apocalypse Now (as Lt. Colonel Kilgore, who brought us the famous line, "I love the smell of napalm in the morning.")
• The Great Santini (Oscar nominated)
• Tender Mercies (for which he won the Best Actor Oscar)
• Lonesome Dove (miniseries, as aging Texas Ranger Gus McCrae) 
• Sling Blade (Karl's father)
• The Apostle (Oscar nominated for the title role)
• A number of television guest spots early in his career, including Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Naked City (4 episodes), The Untouchables, Route 66, The Outer Limits (3 episodes), The Wild Wild West, Mod Squad, and one of the more popular episodes of The Twilight Zone ("Miniature")  

To Kill a Mockingbird

Duvall was nominated for the Academy Award seven times (winning once), three BAFTA's (winning once), five Emmys (winning twice) and seven Golden Globes (winning four times).  

 

The Twilight Zone

One one hand when someone has had such full life and lives to such a ripe old age passes, it's hard to feel like we should ask for more. But Duvall was gifted and unique, and both the entertainment industry and the world has suffered a great loss. A great life and a great body of work. RIP, sir.

 

Lonesome Dove

RIP Bud Cort, and a rough couple of weeks for Hollywood

Bud Cort, immortalized as the death-obsessed Harold Chasen in the classic Harold and Maude, passed away today at the age of 77. This longtime cult classic has been a favorite of mine forever. Cort wasn't the last remaining of the three main stars: the wonderful Ruth Gordon (Maude) passed away in 1985, but the hilarious Vivian Pickles (Harold's deadpan mother) is still with us at 94.

 

 

According to imdb's trivia page, Cort ad-libbed both this fourth wall-breaking side eye, as well as the ferocious middle finger he gave his mother after her reaction to his hybrid Jaguar/hearse.

 

Earlier today the death of Dawson's Creek star James Van Der Beek was announced. Van Der Beek, only 48, had been battling colorectal cancer.

 

In addition, beloved comedy star Catherine O'Hara passed away on January 30. She had also been suffering from rectal cancer, although the primary cause of death was a pulmonary embolism.

 

There's the idea that in Hollywood they die in threes, and after O'Hara, I wondered who was going to be numbers two and three. Today brought that sad answer.

 

RIP everyone. 

 

Recent reading: "Future Boy"

Future Boy: Back to the Future and My Journey Through the Space-Time Continuum

by Michael J. Fox and Nelle Fortenberry

 

This slim (150 pages) volume is a brief but exciting memoir of how Michael J. Fox famously juggled two full-time acting jobs and ended up as the star of one of the most beloved films of all time. By day he portrayed Alex P. Keaton on the hit TV show Family Ties, while by night he was Marty McFly, the time-traveling teen of Back to the Future. 

 

Fox goes briefly into how his early Canadian acting success led him to Los Angeles at the age of eighteen and how a few years later, when he was on the verge of having to give up on Hollywood and return to Canada, he scored the role that made him famous. Family Ties was filming its third season when his boss, the show's creator, Gary David Goldberg, refused to make him available for BTTF because Fox couldn't be spared...without informing Fox of the offer. Some months later the film's producers tried again when Eric Stoltz as Marty wasn't working out. This time Goldberg was ready to work with them and a crazy plan to replace Stoltz and reshoot the film with Fox while he continued his work on Family Ties was hatched.

 

Fox was twenty-three at the time, so a lot of what got him through the punishing schedule was both youthful energy and an intense dedication to both projects. A driver would pick him up in the morning and deliver him to Paramount for Family Ties. Once he was done for the day, another driver would pick him up at Paramount and deliver him to Universal Studios (or filming locations, including the Puente Hills Mall) where he would work through most of the night. His driver would then drop him off at home for a few hours sleep, then it was rinse and repeat. 

 

Some interesting points:

• Per Lea Thompson, Stoltz viewed Marty's return to 1985 as having a tragic quality - although things had turned out so much better for his family, there was now an entire, revised family history that Marty had no memory of. Interesting take, but the Bobs (writer Bob Gale and writer/director Bob Zemeckis) wanted a comedy, not a tragedy. Fox had high praise for Thompson in their first scene together, the one where Marty wakes up in 1955 and meets his mother as a teenager, especially because of how well she adjusted to the difference between how he played the role compared to Stoltz.
• Crispin Glover had made a guest appearance in an earlier episode of Family Ties. He played one of two friends who take Alex out to celebrate his eighteenth birthday. Fox has high praise for Glover's comedic ability.
• Because of how he was thrown into production without any rehearsal time with his castmates, Fox says he didn't really get to know Christopher Lloyd until the sequel, making the onscreen bond between Marty and Doc Brown all the more impressive. 
• The story of how Fox's stunt double got his job on the film is insane. It sounds like something out of a movie. Just read the book.
• The guitar Fox played in the "Johnny B. Good" performance at the Enchantment Under the Sea dance went missing and hasn't been seen since. Fox estimates that if it were to resurface, it "...could easily fetch in excess of seven figures."
• In preparation for the book Fox contacted Eric Stoltz, who has always maintained complete silence on the subject of his tenure as Marty McFly. The two got together and seem to have bonded, although at Stoltz's request whatever was discussed about the film stays private. I would love for Stoltz to someday write a book about his BTTF experience - I don't know if it's a sore spot he won't revisit, but if he did I would buy that book.

This was a quick, energetic read but if you want an extremely comprehensive look at the making of BTTF, I highly recommend We Don't Need Roads: The Making of the Back to the Future Trilogy by Caseen Gaines. 

 

From the book:

Any awkwardness in this meeting was immediately dispelled by Eric's grace. He entered with a smile, and we quickly acknowledged that neither of us had an issue with the other. What transpired on Back to the Future had not made us enemies or fated rivals; we were just two dedicated actors who had poured equal amounts of energy into the same role.  

 

December Words of Wisdom

I am still under the impression that there is nothing alive quite so beautiful as a horse. (John Galsworthy) 

 

Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go. (Oscar Wilde)

 

Don't waste time on anything that doesn't thrill you or bring you love. (Gil Gerard, RIP) 

 

I still remember the days of sitting at book signings, playing with my pen when no one would come, and still I even then thought I was living the dream, because I had a book out. (Harlan Coben) 

 

The bigger the issue, the smaller you write. Remember that. You don't write about the horrors of war. No. You write about a kid's burnt socks lying on the road. You pick the smallest imaginable thing, and you work off the resonance. (Richard Price) 

 

 

Recent reading: "We Did OK, Kid"

 

We Did OK, Kid: A Memoir

by Anthony Hopkins

 

This is a wonderful memoir of Sir Anthony Hopkins's life and times, as well as his career as an Oscar-winning actor. He was an only child whose parents despaired of what his future held as he was a middling, disinterested student and didn't seem to have any particular talent or ambition. In fact, at one point he announced he wanted to be a hobo when he grew up. But love of film, literature, poetry, and an innate gift for reading material out loud eventually led him to the theatre.

 

We Did OK, Kid takes us through Hopkins's childhood in Wales, into his acting career in film, television and theatre, and how he honed his skills to become one of the greatest actors of his generation. We see his early exposure to legendary actors like Richard Burton and Laurence Olivier and how they molded him. On the personal side Hopkins doesn't shy away from the disasters that his first two marriages devolved into and of course there's his battle with alcohol (he's been sober for decades and often speaks eloquently on the subject on social media).

 

Hopkins also spends time explaining how he crafted what is probably his most famous performance, Dr. Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs. It says a lot about his preparation that even during the table read he managed to frighten co-star Jodie Foster. It's a fascinating behind the scenes look at what is considered by many to be the embodiment of one of the greatest villains in film history.

 

Hopkins managed to eventually settle into a happy third marriage in 2003. His only child is a daughter named Abigail from his first marriage. When he left that unhappy union, he walked away completely feeling it was best for everyone involved, resulting in estrangement from Abigail and he admits that he wishes he could have had a better relationship with her. But of all the ups and downs Hopkins has experienced over his long life (he'll be 88 on New Year's Eve) he seems to have made his peace with it all and now appears to live a happy, examined life with regrets accepted and dealt with.

 

I cannot recommend this memoir highly enough. I expected Hopkins to be fascinating based on what I'd seen of him on film and social media, and We Did OK, Kid didn't disappoint. 

 

Even Kermit is leaving Hollywood

For years the entertainment industry has been fleeing Hollywood. Vancouver, Toronto, North Carolina, New Mexico and Georgia are just a few of the places that have benefited from this exodus, mainly due to the vastly lower cost of doing business outside of California.

 

And now Kermit the Frog is departing Tinseltown. The Kermit-as-Little-Tramp statue that has graced the main gate of The Jim Henson Company on La Brea for so long has been gifted by Henson's family to The Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta. 

 

The lot, originally Charlie Chaplin Studios and later A&M Records, was sold last year so that may be the reason for this move, although if I bought the place I would have tried to include Kermit's statue as part of the deal. 

 

I think the gate is going to look sadly naked without it as another part of Hollywood history moves on. I haven't been to that part of town in ages, but I may need to drive by so Kermit's nod to the lot's founder can make me smile one last time.

 

Farewell!!! (*sniffles*)

 

UPDATE 1/2/26: Looks like there is some good news - John Mayer and McG, who bought the Henson lot, have renamed it for Chaplin and intend to preserve its history. Note: If you want to read the entire article linked in that post, you'll need a subscription to the L.A. Times.

 

Happy Turkey Day!!!

Hope it's a fun one!!!

 

 

Awesome old guys being awesome

Sir Anthony Hopkins has an autobiography coming out on November 4. I will be at my local Barnes & Noble with my credit card at the ready to snag my copy of We Did OK, Kid. In addition to being one of the all-time great actors, he is a total class act and his social media is an absolute joy. Really looking forward to this.

 

 

Happy 80th birthday to Hugh Fraser, wonderful portrayer of the sweet-natured Captain Hastings in the Poirot series. Fraser is also a novelist in his own right and has done the audio recordings for a number of the Poirot books. Hearing him mimicking David Suchet's Hercule Poirot is both impressive and hilarious.  Just love him.