RIP Dennis Weaver

[bobster]

Wow, they really do seem to come in three's today -- as the inevitable third octagenerian skilled TV character actor, Dennis Weaver known mainly for one TV series passed. All three of these guys were wonderful actors and not to make light of it, but it does sound like the opening of very special "Murder She Wrote."

I actually have my own nostalgic memories of Dennis Weaver as my college film editing class utilized one of Weaver's Gunsmoke scenes. The sound of Weaver screaming out, "Mr. Dillon...Mr. Dillon!" are forever engraved on my cerebral cortex, as is his mondo-bizarro frightened motel employee in Orson Welles' "Touch of Evil." Shockingly, I've never really watched more than a few minutes of "Duel"...

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ ... -apnewyork

Dennis Weaver, who played New York detective in 'McCloud,' dies

By BOB THOMAS
Associated Press Writer

February 27, 2006, 3:56 PM EST


LOS ANGELES -- Dennis Weaver, the diffident deputy Chester Goode in the TV classic western "Gunsmoke" and the canny New Mexico deputy solving New York City crime in "McCloud," has died at age 81.

Weaver died of complications from cancer Friday at his home in Ridgway, in southwestern Colorado, his publicist, Julian Myers, announced Monday.

Burt Reynolds, who played alongside Weaver in "Gunsmoke," said, "He was a wonderful man and a fine actor, and we will all miss him."

Weaver was a struggling actor in Hollywood in 1955, earning $60 a week delivering flowers, when he was offered $300 a week for a role in a new CBS television series, "Gunsmoke." After nine years as Chester, who he played with a stiff-legged gait, he was earning $9,000 a week.

When Weaver first auditioned for the series, he found the character of Chester "inane." He wrote in his 2001 autobiography, "All the World's a Stage," that he said to himself: "With all my Actors Studio training, I'll correct this character by using my own experiences and drawing from myself."

The result was a well-rounded character that appealed to audiences, especially with his drawling, "Mis-ter Dil-lon."

At the end of seven hit seasons, Weaver sought other horizons. He announced his departure, but the failures of pilots for his own series caused him to return to "Gunsmoke" on a limited basis for two more years. The role brought him an Emmy in the 1958-59 season.

In 1966, Weaver starred with a 600-pound black bear in "Gentle Ben," about a family that adopts a bear as a pet. The series was well-received, but after two seasons CBS decided it needed more adult entertainment and canceled it.

Next came the character Sam McCloud, which Weaver called "the most satisfying role of my career."

The "McCloud" series (1970-77) put the no-nonsense lawman from Taos, N.M., onto the crime-ridden streets of New York City. His wild-west tactics, such as riding his horse through Manhattan traffic, drove local policemen crazy, but he always solved the case.

Weaver appeared in several movies, including "Touch of Evil," "Ten Wanted Men," "Gentle Giant," "Seven Angry Men," "Dragnet," "Way ... Way Out" and "The Bridges at Toko-Ri."

He also was an activist for protecting the environment and combating world hunger.

He served as president of Love Is Feeding Everyone, which fed 150,000 needy people a week in Los Angeles County.

Weaver appeared in dozens of TV movies, the most notable being the 1971 "Duel." It was a bravura performance for fledgling director Steven Spielberg and Weaver, who played a driver menaced by a large truck that followed him down a mountain road. The film was released in theaters in 1983, after Spielberg had directed some box-office smashes.

Most recently, Weaver starred last year in ABC Family's "Wildfire" as the eccentric owner of a thoroughbred racing ranch.

[mood swung]

I didn't realize he was on Gentle Ben.