Yeti Hideout

Fiona Lewis (1946- ) This red-headed English beauty popped up on my television a lot during my childhood. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, growing up in front of the television – specifically with HBO – inadvertently educated me with an early recognition and fondness for unusual performers and background personalities. One film from this period that has been etched in my mind is the 1983 oddity, Strange Invaders . An homage to 1950s science fiction movies, Fiona Lewis played an alien undercover in human form. As she put it, “I played an alien who, daintily disguised as an Avon lady, preys upon the residents of a small town, a current of molten green lava bubbling beneath my replicant skin, which before the film’s denouement spectacularly exploded, a geyser of ooze, as I screamed myself to sci-fi death.”* A pretty memorable scene made all the more interesting by Fiona’s elegance: a gorgeous juxtaposition of large, icy blue eyes and thick auburn hair. The ...

Ernest Borgnine (1917-2012) Ernest Borgnine is an important example of a character actor who had the opportunity to play not just supporting parts but also leading roles. In Marty (1955), a film that won him an Oscar for Best Actor, you had a film where the character actor was promoted to a starring role. Here was an actor who looked like a typical, everyday guy and he was the lead for a major Hollywood film. B orgnine had a wildly varied career that ranged to all points of the spectrum, from starring on television series like "McHale’s Navy" and "Airwolf" to voice-over work on animated films like All Dogs Go to Heaven 2 (1996) and Joe Dante’s Small Soldiers (1998) (a film in which he voiced an action figure alongside his Dirty Dozen co-stars George Kennedy, Jim Brown and Clint Walker) to classics like Johnny Guitar (1954), Ice Station Zebra (1968), The Wild Bunch (1969) and, what is probably his most famous role, that of Mike Rogo in Th...

About five years ago I started profiling different character actors that I was particularly fascinated with. It was a fun project, but I quickly stopped after a few entries. I decided to pick the idea back up again and write some new thoughts about my favorite performers. Glenn Shadix (1952-2010)   I first noticed Glenn (as I'm sure most people did) in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice (1988), where he played Otho, the snotty interior designer. It was a funny and memorable role and he got to deliver some great lines. The famous quote, "Don't mind her. She's still upset because somebody dropped a house on her sister", was his own and he was thrilled that Burton let him use it in the famous "Day-O" dinner scene. Soon after, I began seeing him in more films, like his bits in Heathers (1989), Meet the Applegates (1991), Sleepwalkers (1992) and his second most well-known role, as Associate Bob in Demolition Man (1993). I loved his role...

I'm still reading through all of the old diaries and journals that I kept as a teenager - I have stacks of spiral-bound notebooks that range from the years 1987 to the early 1990s. There are some interesting sketches and drawings, a lot of angst and some wild fantasies. For a long time I wanted to be a film director. A filmmaker that specialized in horror films. Even at such a young age I was already becoming obsessed with character actors and influenced by 1970s horror films, John Waters and Tim Burton. I would get so bored and impatient with myself that I would write reviews for the films that I hadn't even made yet. I found a few of those capsule reviews. Sadly, most of my "stars" have since passed away. Another sad thought is the fact that these excited aspirations have since died as well.

Not only was yesterday (February 26) William Frawley's birthday, but it was also the 97th birthday of another favorite curmudgeon - Jackie Gleason! I'll share with you an article I wrote devoted to Jackie from 2010 that originally appeared on my friend Less Lee Moore's terrific website, Popshifter . My Heart Belongs to Jackie

Part four of my series on unforgettable actors and actresses. A Cornucopia of Character: Strother Martin, Borgnine and Jack Elam in Hannie Caulder (1971) Ernest Borgnine is an important example of a character actor who had the opportunity to play not just supporting parts but also leading roles. In  Marty (1955), a film that won him an Oscar for Best Actor, you had a film where the “character actor” was promoted to a leading role. Here was an actor who looked like a typical, everyday guy and he was the star of a major Hollywood film.  Borgnine has had a wildly varied career that ranged to all points of the spectrum – from starring on television series like "McHale’s Navy" and "Airwolf" to voice over work on animated films like All Dogs Go to Heaven 2 and Joe Dante’s Small Soldiers (a film in which he voiced an action figure alongside his Dirty Dozen co-stars George Kennedy, Jim Brown and Clint Walker) to classics like Johnny Guitar , Ice Station Zebra ...

Part three of my series devoted to memorable and favorite character actors from over the years. Greenwood in a photo from Picture Show Annual, 1952 This is an actress I first noticed on the British sitcom, “Girls on Top” (1985-1986) - a sort of all-female version of "The Young Ones" which was created by and starred Jennifer Saunders and Dawn French. Joan played Lady Chloe Carlton, the bizarre landlady to the four main female characters. Lady Carlton was a romance novelist who appeared to live in her own world and was kept company by her beloved and stuffed pet dog. The thing that struck me the most about her was her smoky voice and slow articulation - very reminiscent of Carrie Nye (who, in my opinion, has The Greatest Voice of All Time). I did some further research on Joan and discovered that she was in a film that I absolutely adored; Ealing Studios’ 1949 revenge comedy, Kind Hearts and Coronets . I rewatched the film specifically to see her and was captivated b...

Continuing my series on character actor appreciation, here are a couple of additional people I would like to showcase. Ottiano with Lionel Barrymore in The Devil-Doll (1936) The second I saw this actress appear in Tod Browning's impressive The Devil-Doll , I fell hopelessly in love. Playing Malita, the damaged assistant to Lionel Barrymore's revenge-seeking, escaped convict Paul Lavond (who, in his effort to elude the authorities, disguises himself as an old woman), Ottiano's first appearance is a bit startling. Sporting a shock of unruly hair that includes an artistically arranged white streak (perhaps inspired by the Bride of Frankenstein?) and hobbling around on one crutch, I was reminded of two current actresses that I also admired - Grace Zabriskie and Diane Salinger. Perhaps a bit too stylized in an attempt to let the viewer know that she was the villain of the piece, her performance is fun and her facial reactions and wild eyes are put to great effect in ...

character - adjective Theater a. ( of a part or role) representing a personality type, esp. by emphasizing distinctive traits, as language, mannerisms, physical makeup, etc. b. (of an actor or actress) acting or specializing in such roles. Earlier this week saw the sudden passing of actor Glenn Shadix. Len and I were totally shocked and deeply saddened by the news as we had previously corresponded with him at various points over the past couple of years. Glenn came across as an extremely friendly and generous man with great style and a terrific sense of humor. In early 2009, he had invited us to a housewarming party he was planning on having when he moved into his new home in Birmingham, Alabama. For whatever reason we were unable to go, but the very notion of him inviting us was a sweet and kind gesture on his part. He seemed like such a great guy and I'm terribly sad that Len and I never had the opportunity to get to meet him in person and share some time wi...