Sad news--Leslie Nielsen has died

[Patty Winter]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/29/nyregion/29nielsen.html


Patty

[longshanks]

Post by Patty Winter
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/29/nyregion/29nielsen.html

Yeah, bummer.

Do you know what makes me feel old? These young whippersnappers who ask,
"Jeepers (yes, that's what they say), I wonder if Leslie Nielsen can do
serious drama!?" Cripes, serious drama was *all* he did before
"Airplane!", but that was in 1980, and 1980 was *gasp/wheeze* thirty
years ago. Kids today.

Ed Wilson
--
-- Reality is not enough; we need nonsense, too. Drifting into a world
of fantasy is not an escape from reality but a significant education
about the nature of life. And reality is not an escape from nonsense.
Our education goes on everywhere. - Edmund Miller
-- For the best in misanthropic rantings, visit Cottsweb:
http://briancotts.tripod.com/
-- Stories and essays in prose, scripts, video, comics and audio; it's
Fishclock: http://fishclock.ca/
-- Gayleen Froese, Writing and Music: http://www.gayleenfroese.com/

[Patty Winter]

Post by longshanks
Do you know what makes me feel old? These young whippersnappers who ask,
"Jeepers (yes, that's what they say), I wonder if Leslie Nielsen can do
serious drama!?"

Yeah, that is depressing. :-(

They should at least dip into "Forbidden Planet." Then if they like
that, they could go for some of his more traditional dramas (ones
that take place on Earth :-)).


Patty

[Paul Jamison]

Post by Patty Winter

Post by longshanks
Do you know what makes me feel old? These young whippersnappers who ask,
"Jeepers (yes, that's what they say), I wonder if Leslie Nielsen can do
serious drama!?"

Yeah, that is depressing. :-(
They should at least dip into "Forbidden Planet." Then if they like
that, they could go for some of his more traditional dramas (ones
that take place on Earth :-)).

They'd probably dismiss "Forbidden Planet" as a "Star Trek" copy. I wish I
were joking.

Farewell, Mr. Neilsen.

[longshanks]

Post by Paul Jamison
They'd probably dismiss "Forbidden Planet" as a "Star Trek" copy. I wish I
were joking.

Oh, I know you're not joking. I heard of a 13-year-old girl who wrote a
blog to complain about how the new movie version of "The Wolf Man" stole
the idea from "Twilight". It would probably blow her mind to know that
the original "Wolf Man" movie is almost 70 years old and that werewolves
or shapeshifters is an ancient idea.

Ed Wilson
--
-- Reality is not enough; we need nonsense, too. Drifting into a world
of fantasy is not an escape from reality but a significant education
about the nature of life. And reality is not an escape from nonsense.
Our education goes on everywhere. - Edmund Miller
-- For the best in misanthropic rantings, visit Cottsweb:
http://briancotts.tripod.com/
-- Stories and essays in prose, scripts, video, comics and audio; it's
Fishclock: http://fishclock.ca/
-- Gayleen Froese, Writing and Music: http://www.gayleenfroese.com/

[longshanks]

Post by Paul Jamison
They'd probably dismiss "Forbidden Planet" as a "Star Trek" copy. I wish I
were joking.

Oh, I know you're not joking. I heard of a 13-year-old girl who wrote a
blog to complain about how the new movie version of "The Wolf Man" stole
the idea from "Twilight". It would probably blow her mind to know that
the original "Wolf Man" movie is almost 70 years old and that werewolves
or shapeshifters is an ancient idea.

Ed Wilson
--
-- Reality is not enough; we need nonsense, too. Drifting into a world
of fantasy is not an escape from reality but a significant education
about the nature of life. And reality is not an escape from nonsense.
Our education goes on everywhere. - Edmund Miller
-- For the best in misanthropic rantings, visit Cottsweb:
http://briancotts.tripod.com/
-- Stories and essays in prose, scripts, video, comics and audio; it's
Fishclock: http://fishclock.ca/
-- Gayleen Froese, Writing and Music: http://www.gayleenfroese.com/

[longshanks]

Post by Patty Winter

Post by longshanks
Do you know what makes me feel old? These young whippersnappers who ask,
"Jeepers (yes, that's what they say), I wonder if Leslie Nielsen can do
serious drama!?"

Yeah, that is depressing. :-(
They should at least dip into "Forbidden Planet." Then if they like
that, they could go for some of his more traditional dramas (ones
that take place on Earth :-)).

He's in the pilot movie for "Hawaii Five-O" from 1968, to name one.

I remember him turning up constantly in primetime TV dramas all through
the '60s and '70s. Remember the announcer on all those Quinn Martin
shows, gravely listing the guest cast: "Guest starring Hal Holbrook!
Shirley Knight! And special guest star Leslie Nielsen!!!"

And, of course, that's exactly what was being spoofed in the TV show
"Police Squad!" which Leslie starred in, and that led to the "Naked Gun"
movies.

Ed Wilson
--
-- Reality is not enough; we need nonsense, too. Drifting into a world
of fantasy is not an escape from reality but a significant education
about the nature of life. And reality is not an escape from nonsense.
Our education goes on everywhere. - Edmund Miller
-- For the best in misanthropic rantings, visit Cottsweb:
http://briancotts.tripod.com/
-- Stories and essays in prose, scripts, video, comics and audio; it's
Fishclock: http://fishclock.ca/
-- Gayleen Froese, Writing and Music: http://www.gayleenfroese.com/

[Paul Jamison]

Post by longshanks

Post by Patty Winter

Post by longshanks
Do you know what makes me feel old? These young whippersnappers who ask,
"Jeepers (yes, that's what they say), I wonder if Leslie Nielsen can do
serious drama!?"

Yeah, that is depressing. :-(
They should at least dip into "Forbidden Planet." Then if they like
that, they could go for some of his more traditional dramas (ones that
take place on Earth :-)).

He's in the pilot movie for "Hawaii Five-O" from 1968, to name one.
I remember him turning up constantly in primetime TV dramas all through
the '60s and '70s. Remember the announcer on all those Quinn Martin
shows, gravely listing the guest cast: "Guest starring Hal Holbrook!
Shirley Knight! And special guest star Leslie Nielsen!!!"
And, of course, that's exactly what was being spoofed in the TV show
"Police Squad!" which Leslie starred in, and that led to the "Naked Gun"
movies.
Ed Wilson

Here's a bit of irony. Leslie Neilsen himself starred in a couple of police
dramas: "The New Breed" (1961-62) and "The Protectors" (1969-1970). I get
the impression that neither one was memorable and you'll never see them
released on DVD.

Paul

[longshanks]

Post by Paul Jamison
Here's a bit of irony. Leslie Neilsen himself starred in a couple of police
dramas: "The New Breed" (1961-62) and "The Protectors" (1969-1970). I get
the impression that neither one was memorable and you'll never see them
released on DVD.

Yes, I remember "The Protectors". It was one of the rotating segments
of the umbrella series "The Bold Ones". When the series started, there
was "The Protectors", "The Doctors" (or maybe it was called "The New
Doctors"), and "The Lawyers". "The Protectors" lasted only the first
season, and, because it shared its timeslot with two other series, there
are only 6 episodes. As I recall, Leslie played the police chief of a
fictitious city that had huge crime problems. And, just to show that I
remember the oddest things, I think one of the gimmicks on this show was
that it always opened with shots of the city accompanied by the
voiceover of a phone-in radio show. (And, I also have this vague memory
that the police cars were red.)

Ed Wilson
--
-- Reality is not enough; we need nonsense, too. Drifting into a world
of fantasy is not an escape from reality but a significant education
about the nature of life. And reality is not an escape from nonsense.
Our education goes on everywhere. - Edmund Miller
-- For the best in misanthropic rantings, visit Cottsweb:
http://briancotts.tripod.com/
-- Stories and essays in prose, scripts, video, comics and audio; it's
Fishclock: http://fishclock.ca/
-- Gayleen Froese, Writing and Music: http://www.gayleenfroese.com/