Arguably, there’s only one Philadelphia Son (hah? PJ), who could be said to have equalled El Sid’s influence and historical significance in a particular media (teevee)
und that
would haveta be
“Bill Cosby is TV’sJackie Robinson.” – Variety.
[ “We are free to ad-lib a lot. We will ad-lib at the drop of a hat. Especially when we forget our lines.” ] – Bill Cosby
[“If my material is without race, maybe I can promote equalty better. After all, if something applies equally to Black and White, the underlying assumption is the sameness of both. I’ll tell you this – I don’t miss ‘Amos ‘n Andy’. You can’t trade on racialism till you cut out out bigotry. That’s got to come first.”]
Previously unbeknowest to us, it was Joan who first brought to our attention the fact Mr. Cosby had the class to acknowledge his seminally-pivotal co-star upon winning his first of three consecutive Emmies for Best Actor in that series. He did so thusly:
"I extend my hand to Robert Culp. The guy took a comedian who couldn’t do anything as far as acting is concerned, and he lost this (award) – because he helped me.
That’s the greatest thing a human being can ever do.”
And the charismatic Culp-Cosby first memorable reunion:
wif one of our all-tyme favorite KOOLEST posters evah!!!
Then came the un-sitcom that resurrected a network with its revolutionary impact:
Then there are individual vignettes noteworthy for spotlighting general talent in a specifically unique circumstance that showcases them in an entirely new light. Such was so with Sammy Davis Jr.’s impressive appearance on this ep of “The Rifleman” from a taut and tense script from Calvin Clements Sr. and ably helmed by director Arnold Laven.
What’s noteworthy even now with these half-hour shows is the quality of the writing that went into them, encapsulated within a framework one wouldn’t ordinarily imagine could accommodate the type of miniature mature characterization Levy-Gardner-Laven specialized in.
Not only do they stand the test of time, they testify to series like these and their titled timbre.
[ “I had Three Rules in Hollywood that they didn’t want to adhere to.
1. You can’t kill me.
2. I have to win all my fights.
3. I get the girl at the end of the movie …
IF I want her.
So they would not adhere to these Three Rules, so, fine – I go make my own movie, and you can be damn sureAll Three of these things are gonna happen in MY movie.” ]
Re ‘blaxploitation’:
“It came,
it died,
it went.
before it really had a chance to grow.
Black Hollywood?!? Yeah, right
Sure, in somebody’s mind, maybe. But it don’t exist, man, no. Nooooo.”
[ “We needed somebody to stand up and say, ‘When the smoke clears and the guns are all fired, we’re the ones left standing.
Don’t kill me, and go have him – Stallone – avenge my death. KILL STALLONE –
This is one of the most arresting acting sequences in years. Now most everyone 'round these parts can immediately recite with their eyes closed who the stars and director are, but few give a good goldang to be interested enuff - even with their eyes open - to identify the gent who makes the whole thing fly (but betcha they can name every scantily-clad nubile nitwit around in his non-colorful place )
Your telepathic abilities are scary--on my way to work I thought of a Sidney performance I think is overlooked.
In the so-so remake THE JACKAL, Sidney plays a US intelligence agent with such cool authority I kept hoping Richard Gere and Bruce Willis would get blown up or something so he and Diane Venora would continue on as the movie's main characters.
Someone once suggested the concept (with which we completely concur) there's no real way to determine who's truly the 'Best Actor' unless they've all played the same role and you can compare the cumulative effect of how powerful their overall portrait is and the layers of the character thus revealed.
A fascinating instance of this is how Messers. Jones & Washington tackled the following:
Seeing the photos you posted, I'd forgotten the scene on the docks, where we see Venora can handle a gun.
In the last day, I've been thinking about my little fantasy version of the movie. Now I'd add: keep Willis, dump Gere (maybe even kill him early on, to throw the audience!). Then it'd be Poitier and Venora vs. Willis, and by movie logic we'd have REAL suspense--who's gonna win, the big-name star, or the better actors?
RON 
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Yeah, right 
