Two acclaimed actors died Monday

Charles Durning

Charlesdurning-2-popupThe New York Times reports, “Charles Durning may not have been a household name, but with his pugnacious features and imposing bulk he was a familiar presence in American movies, television and theater, even if often overshadowed by the headliners.”

That sums up his acting career. While you probably did not know his name, you definitely remember his presence in any film you saw. His sixty year career ended much like his military career. Still working. He was involved in the filming of Scavenger Killers at the time of his death. Wounded in the military during WWII as an Army Ranger, he refused to seek discharge and recovered to resume active duty.

His first acting role was in the 1953 television series You Are There as Colonel John Jameson in The Treason of Benedict Arnold episode. As his career progressed he starred in the short lived The Cop and the Kid television series, which I remember him for. He’s played presidents, captains and king, all the way down to the most corrupt scum you could ever love to hate.

From the “boob tube” to the “silver screen,” he was one of the versatile actors that made “stars” look good. Did he ever have a staring role? In everything he did.

Mr. Durning was 89.


Jack Klugman

jack_klugman_606Jack Klugman also died Monday at 90 years of age. He started acting in 1950 and is best known for his roles in The Twilight Zone, The Odd Couple and Quincy.

He played four roles in The Twilight Zone, but is probably best remembered for In Praise of Pip with Billy Mummy in which he offered his life for that of his son.

He played the sloven Oscar Madison in the Odd Couple opposite the neat and tidy Felix Unger played by Tony Randall. Klugman was ready to give up his career when he lost his voice due to throat cancer, though he taught himself to speak. Randall convinced him to return for The Odd Couple: Together Again in 1993.

In Quincy M.E. he played an unusual role. A coroner who sought the truth rather than headlines. Every week there was some case that people wanted swept under the rug quickly, but Quincy stepped on the rug to ensure that the case was resolved properly.

Although his acting career was mainly television, he played some memorable roles in movies such as Twelve Angry Men and Goodbye, Columbus. He is one of those actors that seemed to perform for the love of the art rather than the love of the paycheck.

SEAL Killed in Rescue Mission Identified

The Pentagon has identified Petty Officer 1st Class Nicolas Checque as the Navy SEAL who died of injuries sustained in the successful rescue of an American doctor from the Taliban over the weekend.

Checque, who hailed from Monroeville, Pa., died of “combat related injuries,” according to a Pentagon release. Though the release only said Checque was assigned to “an East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare unit,” ABC News previously reported the fallen servicemember was a part of the Navy’s elite SEAL Team 6, the same unit that killed Osama bin Laden.

Checque, 28, sustained his mortal injuries while on a nighttime mission Saturday to free Dr. Dilip Joseph, an American doctor who worked for an non-governmental organization based in Kabul. Joseph was kidnapped by the Taliban earlier this month and American officials believed he was in imminent danger.

Read more at ABC News

Eugene Smith, county resident and Tuskegee Airman, passes away

Eugene Smith, famed member of the Tuskegee Airmen who fought for his proper recognition and honor, passed away on Wednesday, November 21st, at the Harrison County Hospital in Cynthiana, Kentucky.

Eugene Smith had lived in Switzerland County for nearly 20 years, retiring to a houseboat moored at Turtle Creek Marina in Florence. He was very active in the community while residing here, including membership at Patriot Baptist Church and was a regular attendee at the Senior Mealsite in Vevay.

Born in Ohio in 1918, he was a 1939 graduate of Withrow High School in Cincinnati; and then earned his bachelor’s degree from Kentucky State University.

When World War II began, Eugene Smith volunteered to serve his country, enlisting in the Army Air Corps to become a pilot.

That’s where his unusual story of heroism begins.

Because his parents were of mixed origin with Native American ancestry, the doctor who delivered Eugene Smith listed on his birth certificate that he was “colored”, even though he was fair skinned. When he was accepted into the Air Corps and was about to begin his flight training, the Army found that his birth certificate listed his race in that way, so the Army declined to send him to flight school with “white” soldiers.

Read more at the Vevay Reveille Enterprise