When I was hanging around the Murphy Brown set about ten years ago, I remember there was an episode that featured the veteran comic actor, Phil Leeds. Director Peter Bonerz brought him out onto the sound stage and introduced him as "the man you all met on your first day in show business."
If Phil Leeds was there on the first day, Charles Lane was there on the day before. He died the other day at the age of 102. This concludes an amazing career, which he apparently kept going until last year, when he did the narration for some sort of Christmas cartoon. If you look at his IMDB file, his film and screen credits total over 400 and they go back to the early 30s. He was on virtually every TV comedy show, including every incarnation of a Lucille Ball vehicle. I remember seeing him in a St. Elsewhere episode where he amazingly portrayed an old man who was spending his last hours on earth with a hospital orderly. He looked ancient then, and that was almost 20 years ago! Nevertheless, while never a star, Charles Lane was the epitome of a working character actor.
On the occasion of his 100th birthday, TV Land produced the following tribute at one of their nutty award ceremonies.
About the time Charles hit 100, the Aero Theater in Santa Monica did a one-day retrospective of his film work. They were going to feature one of my favorite all-time films, "The Music Man", in which Mr. Lane played the River City sheriff. They brought him in for what I have been told was an amazing question and answer period after the film. I couldn't go. I regret that today.
Dinner last night: meatloaf and knockwurst platter at Kate Mantillini prior to the Ahmanson production of "Jersey Boys."
1 comment:
I love Phil Leeds. Even his commercials were funny. Where are the great character actors of today? Harry Dean Stanton still works but doesn't look too healthy.
Post a Comment