James Noble passed away yesterday at the age of 94 according to The New York Times. He is best known for playing the lovable Connecticut Governor Gene Gatling on the long running sitcom Benson.
Even though he was born in Dallas, Tx, he died in the state that he governed on TV. Something that brought a smile to my face when I read the sad news. Every morning I wake up and watch Benson on Family Net and this show never gets old. In fact, it only gets better with time. A big part of this show’s sucess was not only the chemistry between the cast, but also the fact that you wanted Governor Gatling to be your Governor. He was fair and he cared, and Noble brought a warmth to him that made you love him even more.
So today let’s honor him by letting him hear our laughter as we watch him do what he does best.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2scOPP5lXgU
Garry Shandling suddenly passed away yesterday and the late night television hosts remember him because he changed that format with his fake TV show The Larry Sanders Show. Conan O’Brien has been doing it the longest now and he remembered his friend on his TBS show last night. Instead of doing a monologue, he shared a story about how Shandling was there for him during a time of need. When Conan’s Tonight Show was cancelled, his wife convinced him to go to Hawaii to get away from it all. As soon as they got there, he got a call and it was from Shandling. The comedian told him there was no way to avoid to him and he spent the rest of the trip with his friend forever. It is a beautiful story that tells you more about than man than just his rich television history.
One that influenced Seth Meyers so much, he had to talk about it at the start of Late Night yesterday. The NBC late night show host said that Johnny Carson, David Letterman and Conan O’Brien, made him want to do a late night show, but Larry Sanders made him not want to do one. Of course he was joking, but you can see how influential he was.
These are just two of the touching tributes that were paid to the legendary man. There are many more on Twitter and you can see how much his presence touched the lives of Judd Apatow, Peter Tolan, Jimmy Kimmel, Bob Newhart and many many more.
In the upcoming weeks, HBO will once again air The Larry Sanders Show and when they do I highly recommend watching it. See why so many greats respect the man for more than just his comedy.
Garry Shandling passed away suddenly today at the age of 66 according to TMZ.
The comedian started out behind the scenes writing on shows like Sanford & Son and Welcome Back Kotter. In between that, he did many stints on late night television before getting the It’s Garry Shandling;s Show on Fox in 1986. Two years after that sitcom ended, he landed his career defining role in The Larry Sanders Show. When it was on the air, everyone wanted to be on it but it was David Duchovny who left the biggest impression as a guest.
Then in the new millennium, he jumped over to the big screen starring in What Planet Are You From?, Town & Country, Iron Man 2 and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Most recently he appeared on Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee by Jerry Seinfeld in January.
Today, don’t remember him with tears, remember him with laughter. You can watch many of his classic standup routines on YouTube. I know it eased my pain over his shocking loss.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d30Y0n1nDH4
Abe Vigoda passed away today at the age of 94 in his sleep according to what his daughter told the AP.
The actor became a star when he accepted a part in The Godfather. A few years later, he landed the role of a lifetime as Fish on Barney Miller, and he got his own spinoff from that lovable police sitcom that still airs in syndication today. He kept on acting and had bit, but memorable roles in Look Who’s Talking, Tales From the Darkside and Good Burger to name a few. Most of the younger generation will remember him best for starring in the hugely popular Snickers Super Bowl commercial with Betty White.
As well known as he was for his acting, in recent years he was also known for is he still alive or dead. Well sadly today, AbeVigoda.com changed their status to dead.
Even though he is no longer with us, let’s keep his spirit alive by watching one of his many roles and smiling as we remember him.
David Bowie passed away yesterday at the age of 69 after an 18 month battle with cancer according to his Facebook page. How do you pay tribute to a hero, who was a hero for more than one day. He was a hero his whole adult life whether he was David Bowie, David Jones or Ziggy Stardust. His music forever changed the face of Rock’n’Roll. If it wasn’t for him we would not have many of the musicians we grew up with. He was inspiration, but he also made it OK to be different. He was the face of Glam Rock that shaped Punk that shaped New Wave and so on. He was also an original and because of that musicians were able to dress however they wanted. He made being androgynous normal in a time when people weren’t ready for it. Then as the music world ushered in music videos, he was there to change that format too. Releasing a 20 minute mini-movie for his song Blue Jean back when MTV was just a baby.
These are just a few examples how he left his stamp on music, but it was voice and the words that came from his lips that truly changed music. No one did music like him, and I am grateful for all the amazing songs we got from him. Including his farewell album Blackstar that was released just 3 days ago on his 69th birthday.
He sang, “But I never wave bye-bye,” in my favorite song Modern Love. So today, don’t wave bye bye, Let’s Dance. Put on your red shows and dance the blues as we remember Major Tom!
