Richard Deacon King of the Straight Men

Some people are always cast as the straight man. Sometimes the straight man roles can make you a star. One of the most famous straight men on 1960's and 1970's television was Richard Deacon. He is most famous for playing the stoic and unflappable Mel Cooley on the "Dick Van Dyke Show". He was also cast as the always unpleasant Fred Rutherford on "Leave it to Beaver" 

Deacon was born and raised in Philadelphia and attended Bennington College. His career took him to Hollywood where he played a series of smaller roles in some very funny movies. He was a comedian but he did it through deadpan looks. His dour appeal made him even funnier than if he had the gag line. He was always the but of Morey Amesterdam's joke on "The Dick Van Dyke Show". He also appeared on "The Lucy Show" playing Tallulah Bankhead's butler. Deacon also appeared on Broadway in "Hello Dolly" along the side of Phyllis Diller.
Richard Deacon was also a gourmet cook. He did infact near the end of his life host a cooking show on Canadian TV. It was based on his own cookbook. his cookbook was all about microwave cooking.  He was very social and entertained frequently in his Beverly Hills home. He was very friendly with the likes of Paul Lynde and Nancy Walker. He was also a very quiet gay man and life long bachelor.
Deacon died of heart attack in his home at the age of 62.

Don't Hate Him, He's Just an Actor

Sometimes actors do their job so well the audience forgets that they are acting. The actor has actually become the character in the audience's mind. This was the case for an American character actor named David Dukes. Dukes was an accomplished film television and Broadway actor when he was cast in a role that for a time changed his life. Dukes was cast in a two part episode of "All in the Family" that aired on October 16, 1977. The role he played was that of a character called Lambert who masquerades as a cop in search of a neighborhood rapist. He appears the the episode titled "Edith's 50th Birthday" as the cop he gains access to the Bunker home where Edith is home alone awaiting to go to her surprise birthday party next door. It turns out that Lambert is not a cop but the rapist and attempts to rape the beloved character of Edith played by Jean Stapleton. 

In the course of the episode Duke's character threatens Edith with a gun and ties her hands with a necktie. He makes several attempts to rape Edith only to be foiled and finally getting hit with a burning birthday cake and pushed from the house.
The episode was both funny and moving at the same time. It was the first time on American television let alone on a sitcom where an attempted rape is shown. The character of Edith was so loved by the American viewing public that audiences truly believed in her and thus believed that Dukes really did attempt to assault Edith. Dukes received hate mail and death threats because of the episode and the audiences belief that it was Dukes not his character that attempted to rape Edith Bunker. 

The Ornery Boss

Edward Andrews had an amazing career. He was always the ornery boss or crabby father or the slight untrustworthy executive.  He worked a lot once hit his 40's until that time he managed to get by but when he came to his age he rocketed to character actor stardom. 
Edward Andrews was born in Georgia in 1914 to an Episcopal minster and moved many times throughout his childhood. After studying at the University of Virginia Andres made his Broadway debut in 1935 at the age of 21. He toiled in the New York theater scene until he was in his 40's and made the move to Hollywood. Andrews appeared in films such as "Send Me No Flowers" with Rock Hudson and Doris Day, "Elmer Gantry", "How to Frame a Figg", "Tora,Tora,Tora" the list goes on and on.
Andrews also did lots of television. He was a constant on sitcoms and in dramas. He also had reoccurring roles including a regular role in the 60's drama Broadside on ABC. He once played a drug dealing mortician on "Mod Squad".  One of his last roles was Jack Tripper's grandfather on "Threes Company".
Edward Andrews died in 1985 from a heart attack. He was 70 years old.

David Groh

There was a time in the late 1970's when one of the hottest stars on television was David Groh. He was on one of the hottest shows of the 70's "Rhoda". David Groh played Joe Gerard the husband to Valerie Harper's character Rhoda. Joe Gerard owned a building demolition company in New York. In the 7th episode of the first season Joe and Rhoda were married in one of the highest rated television episodes ever.
Groh played the character for three seasons before the character was written off the show. he and Harper remained good friends.
Groh was born in brooklyn and educated at Brown University where he graduated phi beta kappa. He moved to England and studied acting at LCMDA eventually moving back to New York to study at the Actor's Studio.
He fame in Rhoda came fast. After Rhoda Groh had his own short live TV sitcom "Another Day". He went on to make his Broadway debut in Neil Simon's "Chapet Two".
For two years in the 1980's Groh was on the soap opera General Hospital. He also continued to work in Hollywood in guest star roles.
David Groh died of kidney cancer in 2008, he was 68 years old.

Peter Falk Gets A Star

The Hollywood Walk of Fame will get a new star today, its 2,503rd and this one is a posthumous star. Today's star is dedicated to Peter Falk. Falk's star is located at 6654 Hollywood Blvd near Cherokee just steps from the Go-Go's star. Peter Falk best known for his portrayal of the LAPD detective Columbo.
Falk was born in New York in 1927 and started his career in 1956 in Broadway and off Braodway plays. Columbo started in 1968 as the made for TV movie "Prescription: Murder". The role had originally been offered to Bing Crosby who turned it down. Falk played the character of Columbo until 2003. Peter Falk died in 2011.

Mr. Milquetoast

Wally Cox will always be remembered as the nerdy little man with a goofy voice and thick lensed glasses. Those were the roles he played and played brilliantly. He was in reality a manly kind of guy, a man's man. One of his best friends since childhood was actor Marlon Brando. It was Brando in fact that encouraged Cox to study at the Stella Adler school when they were room mates in New York.
The milquetoast character that he created was his bread and butter though. He started his career on radio in the 1940's and moved onto nightclubs. His big break came on the Arthur Godfrey show where he sang in high pitched yodel. In 1952 he was given the starring role in the television series Mr. Peepers. Cox played Mr. Peepers a nerdy junior high science teacher. This show lead him to appear in guest star roles in many television sitcoms through out the 50's, 60's and 70's. It was game shows where Wally Cox would really shine as a performer. His quick dry wit made him a very popular guest. He is mostly remembered for appearing in the upper left corner of Hollywood Squares. Wally Cox also did a lot of voice over work including the voice of "Underdog".
Wally Cox died after having a heart attack in his Hollywood home in 1978. He was 48 years old. He was remembered shortly after by his good friend Robert Blake when he was appearing on The Tonight Show. His ashes were in the possession of Marlon Brando until he scattered them in Tahiti.

RIP Lumpy Rutherford

The actor Frank Bank died last month in Los Angeles at the age of 71. Who the hell is Frank Bank you are probably asking yourself. Frank Bank played the character of Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford on "Leave it to Beaver". Bank played the character of Lumpy who along with Eddie Haskell were Wally Cleaver's best friends. Lumpy's father was played by Richard Deacon (Mel Cooley). After "Leave it to Beaver" went off the air Bank tried to get more work but the Lumpy character kept getting in his way. He was supposed to play Archie in a live action version of the comic book but the sponsor said he was too "Lumpy".
What did Frank Bank do? He became a stock broker and a damned good one. He was The Beaver and June Cleaver's stock broker. He also lead a rather wild life for a time in the 70's claiming in his autobiography that he had slept with over a 1,000 women.
In the 1980's he took up playing the character of Lumpy again when "The New Leave it to Beaver" had its cable television run.

Rats!

The actor who voiced the iconic character of Charlie Brown has been sentenced to a year in prison for stalking his ex-girlfriend and her plastic surgeon. Peter Robbins 56, the actor in some of the most famous animated Peanuts television specials (A Charlie Brown Christmas, The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown) pleaded guilty to the charges. He was accused of calling his ex-girlfriend over 30 times in 24 hours and stalking her plastic surgeon leaving threatening notes at her office and calling her home.
The Superior Court Judge Dwayne Moring told Robbins "Don't be a blockhead". Quoting Charlie Brown's nemesis Lucille Van Pelt.

The Sardonic Master Vincent Price

The Yale educated son of a wealthy St. Louis family Vincent Price will always be remembered for being creepy. In real life the man was charming, funny and rather elegant but he knew how to make your skin crawl on film. Price played a wide variety of characters in his multitude of films but it is his role in the horror genre where he stands out. His first real horror film was 1939's "Tower of London" followed by the title role in "The Invisible Man Returns". He was cast as villains in noir films through out the 1940's and 1950's. By the mid to late 50's Mr. Price was the king of horror films. His films included "House of Wax", "The Fly", and "The House on Haunted Hill" He worked with the famed horror-thriller director William Castle known as much for his gimmicks as he was for his films.
Price was also very funny and many of his roles were comic as well as creepy. He was cast in the mid-60's as Egghead on TV's camp classic "Batman" as well as a series of silly films including "Dr Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine" and "Dr Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs". He became a true household name when he was part of the cast of "Hollywood Squares" where he was able to display his quick wit and sardonic humor.

Both Alice Cooper and Michael Jackson used Price's voice in their music classics "Welcome to My Nightmare" and "Thriller". It was during this time he was recording classic Poe stories and doing a BBC Radio's horror series "The Price of Fear". He turned to the stage in the 70's performing as Oscar Wilde in the play "Diversions and Delights". It is considered one of the best performances of his life. He continued working through out the 70's and 80's making guest appearances on television and acting as host for 8 years on PBS's series "Mystery".
Vincent Price was also an art collector and gourmet cook. His art collection was enormous and is now housed in The Vincent Price Museum in East Los Angeles.
The last significant film Price made was Tim Burton's "Edward Scissorhands". He was ill during the shooting of the film and his schedule had to be curtailed due to his health issues. During this time he was working with Burton on a documentary to be titled "Conversations With Vincent" that has never been released.
Vincent Price died on October 25, 1993. He was 82 years old.

Who Wants To Die For Art?

Sixty-seven years ago today Harris Glenn Milstead was born in Baltimore Maryland. He was raised in the home of well to do conservative parents in the suburb of Lutherville. In the mid 60's he became friends with John Waters who gave him the name he would become know for, Divine.
Divine was a spoiled only child who's parents paid for his elaborate lifestyle. After high school Divine went to beauty school where he excelled creating "beehive" style up-do's. In 1964 his was at one time considered the chief suspect in the murder of a friend but was cleared when a serial killers was apprehended.
After high school Divine and John Waters would hang out in a Baltimore "beatnik" bar. It was during this time Divine started dressing in drag. He liked to dress as Elizabeth Taylor.  Waters started making films and Divine became his star. Divine's first film was "Roman Candles" in this film he played a smoking nun. Waters' films used a group of actors called the "Dreamlanders" made up of Divine, Mink Stole, David Lochary, Mary Vivian Pearce along with several others.
Divine along with the Dreamlanders performed on Sunday's in Waters' films Divine normally in drag played characters like Jackie Kennedy (Eat Your Make-up), Diane Linkletter (The Diane Linkletter Story) and Divine (Mondo Trasho).
Divine moved from Baltimore to Provencetown, MA in 1970 and opened a vintage clothing store. He didn't actually get a permit so he was shut down. When he shut down he sold off all of the stock as well as the furniture from his rented furnished apartment causing the land lady to obtain a warrant for his arrest. Divine escaped arrest by fleeing to San Francisco.

While he lived in San Francisco Divine starred in Waters' next film "Multiple Maniacs". This was the first of their films to get any significant recognition. This film was followed by "Pink Flamingos". Divine once again is the star playing Babs Johnson "The Filthiest Person Alive". "Pink Flamingos" found success in the underground late night film circuit. The final scene of the film depicts Divine eating dog feces. The scene made Divine famous but proved to be a torture to him for the rest of his life.
After filming of "Pink Flamingos" wrapped Divine and Mink Stole moved to San Francisco where they became involved with the legendary "Cockettes". Divine starred in several shows including "Divine Save the World" ad "The Heartbreak of Psoriasis". Divine returned to Baltimore in 1974 to star in "Female Trouble" as Dawn Davenport. This film gave Divine a chance to play two roles. He plays a character not in drag who picks up a hitch hiking Dawn Davenport and impregnates her. Divine literally fucks himself in this film. "Female Trouble" would always be Divine's favorite movie.
Divine was unable to star in the next John Waters film as he was the star of the play "Women Behind Bars" and was performing in New York and eventually in London. While in London Divine appeared in the film "Alternative Miss World" which went on to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival.  Divine's success in "Women Behind Bars" led to another starring stage role this time it was playing Flash Storm, a Baltimore strip club owner in "The Neon Woman". The play was a success in both San Francisco and New York. Divine settled down in New York for a while where he was a frequently seen at Studio 54.
In the late 70's Divine started performing a nightclub act in gay clubs that involved singing and getting into fist fights on stage with other drag queens. He released a single "Born to be Cheap". After performing the club circuit Divine went back to film work with the role of Francine Fishpaw in "Polyester". Her love interest in this film was Tab Hunter and there was tabloid gossip that the two were an actual couple. Both denied the allegations. Divine and Hunter were reunited in the film "Lust in the Dust". This was Divine's first real film not directed by John Waters. Divine followed this a role in "Trouble in Mind" playing Hilly Blue a male character.
John Waters then cast Divine in "Hairspray". Divine again played two characters one male and one female,  Arvin Hodgepile and Edna Turnblad. This would utimately be Divine's most successful and last film with John Waters. Divine's last film role was a cameo in a low budget horror/comedy "Out of the Dark". "Hairspray" is considered her last major role.
Three weeks after the release of "Hairspray" Divine was in Los Angeles working on an episode of "Married With Children" when he was discovered dead in his hotel room on March 7, 1988. He was 42 years old.
"I think I've always been respectable. What I do onstage is not what I do in my private life… It's an act… It's how I make my living. People laugh, and it's not hurting anyone." -Divine

The George Jefferson Door Slam

Sherman Hemsley has died! George Jefferson has gone to meet Wezzie. Hemsley was 74 years old when he died in his home in El Paso, Texas. He will forever be remembered as Geroge Jefferson dry cleaning magnate from Queens who moved on up to a Dee-Luxe apartment in the sky. He was discovered in 1971 by ground breaking sitcom producer Norman Lear and cast as the ying toArchie Bunker's yang on "All in the Family" before being give the lead in his own sitcom "The Jeffersons". Sherman Hemsley and Isable Sanford moved on up to the east side as George and Louise (Wezzie) Jefferson for 11 seasons. He then went on to play and equally bombastic character in the sitcom Amen in the mid-80's. Mr. Hemsley and Ms Sanford were paired again in a series of ads for Old Navy until Isabel Sanford died.
George Jefferson will always be remembered as the man who perfect the door slam. Be it in his neighbor's or his maid Florence's face. His character was also the perfect foil to Archie Bunker's dislike of other races.
Sherman Hemsley was an iconic actor and had received both Emmy and Golden Globe awards for his comic performances. He was living in El Paso when he died of natural causes. George has gone off to meet Wezzie in that deluxe apaprtment in the sky