R.I.P. Jack Palance

[Ed, Ego and Superego]

http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Movies/11/10/palance.death/index.html
-Ed

[ulthar]

Wow.  RIP to a Legend.

[trekgeezer]

Yes the rugged star of movies both good and bad passed away today of natural causes. It's funny that Andrew had just posted about Jack's military service the other day. His face was crushed when he bailed out of that burning B-24 and the reconstructive surgery left him with his trade mark face.

Jack will live on through his many films.

Check out this article http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/11/10/entertainment/e154229S48.DTL

[Scott]

A very interesting actor. First remember him in SHANE when he gets off the horse so carefully.

[raj]

RIP, indeed.
According to IMDB, he never watched his movies.

[Andrew]

In everything he did, he left a mark.  Good movies, bad movies, and Ripley's Believe It or Not - he was always an actor I noticed and he could brighten my day.  I think he was underused for animation voices, but that might not have been his style.

The best part of "Cyborg 2" (besides Jolie naked) had to be Palance as Mercy, the warrior/poet/cyborg.  "If you want to dine with the devil...you'll need a long spoon."

[Doc Daneeka]

Quote: RIP, indeed.
According to IMDB, he never watched his movies.

Well, he certainly didn't know what he was missing, sad now he never will, unless there is film in Heaven of course (something I've always wondered )

[peter johnson]

Films and dogs and cats are in heaven, otherwise it contradicts its own definition --
An old joke:
Martin Scorscese dies and goes to Heaven.  He's met by St. Peter, of course.  St. Peter says to him:
"Oh, we're so glad you're here, Marty!!  God has this wonderful film planned:  Leonardo DaVinci is doing the effects, William Shakespeare has done the script, Mozart has written the music, we have Laurence Olivier and John Barrymore for the leads! . . . ", and he goes on and on, naming immortal artist after artist involved with the production.
"Thankyou God!", Scorscese says, looking heavenward, "This is wonderful! There really IS a heaven after all!!"
St. Peter leans in:  "There's just one thing, though . . .  You see, God has this girlfriend who sings . . ."
* * *
If you have any connection to showbiz at all, you get this joke . . .
love
peter johnson/denny crane

[Yaddo 42]

An underappreciated talent (until late in his career) who will truly be missed. He seems to be the only one who couldn't or wouldn't watch Jack Palance on screen. Whether it was a classic like Shane, a personal favorite like The Professionals, a paycheck flick like Mr. Scarface, playing over the top host of Ripley's Believe it or Not, or even a cheesy fun episode of Buck Rogers - he was always worth watching. Yet it was sweet in a weird sort of way that when he would appear on talk shows to plug films he would literally turn away when it was time to play the clip, so uncomfortable with watching himself. And it never felt like a put on, he came off as genuinely embarassed that people were going to watch him.

Also a notoriously hard interview. People like Larry King have cited him as the one guest they had the worst time with, not from being rude, but because he gave such brief and unhelpful answers. More of his modesty or just an unwillingness to suffer fools gladly and play a part of the game he didn't like. I think on one of those E! True Hollywood Story episodes about Hollywood Squares, they said he even fell asleep during a taping.

As a kid I loved Ripley's as much for Jack as for the odd material, he could tell a tale with such gusto for the strange and macabre. When it went away, my Sunday nights felt incomplete, and I kept hoping for a couple of years it would come back.

When City Slickers came out and he was back in the mainstream's attention, I remember thinking, "Where have all you people been?" ONly a great movie tough guy like him or Lee Marvin could take a line like, "Day ain't over yet." and get menace and laughs out of it.

I need to see him again in films likeAttack! ( an underappreicated war film where he speaks little if at all IIRC) and Alone in the Dark (classic scenery chewing horror role for him). He could even add fun moments to stuff like Solar Crisis.

[RCMerchant]

Whatta bummer. Jack Palance was great. "Happy....trails....''(ALONE IN THE DARK).

[Ed, Ego and Superego]

I agree, Jack Palance on Ripley's was a high point of my childhood.  I awlays watched it.
-Ed

[Ash]

I'll always remember him for his "Skin Bracer" aftershave commercials.

[Yaddo 42]

Damn, I had forgotten about those until you mentioned them. Then bits began to come back. The things that clutter up your memory or lay hidden and forgotten until cued by soemthing like this.

Those ads and the Robert Conrad battery commericals - "Go ahead, I dare you...." - that Johnny Carson used to spoof.