Showing posts with label memorial. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memorial. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
A Friend Like Him
Just a quick post today on the death of Robin Williams. Mr. Williams was never my favorite comedian nor actor, and I could only take so much of him at a time before overdose, but I can't deny that the man was talented... and I do have fond memories of watching Disney's Aladdin as a kid. I know that the man had problems due to mental illness and drug addiction, but his departure is still a shock. So it goes. RIP.
Monday, February 24, 2014
It's Always The Quiet Ones
I was really, really bummed to hear today that Harold Ramis died. Even though I didn't know Mr. Ramis personally, I grew up with him constantly in my life... I was a Ghostbusters fanatic as a kid and to this day count the original film among my top favorites. I watched and enjoyed Caddyshack and Groundhog Day, films that he directed. I would say that the world will miss Harold Ramis, but...
it won't. Not really.
Oh sure, his family and personal friends will - as he will no longer personally be in their day-to-day lives. But there is an old saying that goes something like "death is a state of being in which one exists solely in the memories of others" If that's the case then Harold Ramis will exist for a very, very long time.
Because of the medium in which he created. All artists achieve some form of immortality through their works, but for many centuries, an actor's performance died with them... there was no way to record an actor's performance of a play for posterity and the skill and personality of any given thespian only survived in the memories of those who saw them when they were alive. Film and television changed all that. Performances have been recorded and are accessible to all, and the combination of images and sound make for a visceral, *real* experience. Now when we want to watch an actor, noted or not, all we have to do is just watch a movie or TV show that they were in. We just pop a DVD into our computer, or switch on the TV or even just watch a video clip on Youtube and any deceased actor will live again. Whenever I watch The Adventures of Robin Hood, Errol Flynn is alive, even if the movie was made in the 1930s. Whenever I watch Newsradio, Phil Hartmann is living again, just like he was before 1998. It's like he never went away.
And now, whenever I watch Ghostbusters, Harold Ramis will be alive again and always chasing ghosts through the haunted streets of Manhattan. So I guess the hoary old cliche about Hollywood is true - it does make people immortal.
And with the continued popularity of a classic like Ghostbusters, Harold Ramis is now very immortal.
it won't. Not really.
Oh sure, his family and personal friends will - as he will no longer personally be in their day-to-day lives. But there is an old saying that goes something like "death is a state of being in which one exists solely in the memories of others" If that's the case then Harold Ramis will exist for a very, very long time.
Because of the medium in which he created. All artists achieve some form of immortality through their works, but for many centuries, an actor's performance died with them... there was no way to record an actor's performance of a play for posterity and the skill and personality of any given thespian only survived in the memories of those who saw them when they were alive. Film and television changed all that. Performances have been recorded and are accessible to all, and the combination of images and sound make for a visceral, *real* experience. Now when we want to watch an actor, noted or not, all we have to do is just watch a movie or TV show that they were in. We just pop a DVD into our computer, or switch on the TV or even just watch a video clip on Youtube and any deceased actor will live again. Whenever I watch The Adventures of Robin Hood, Errol Flynn is alive, even if the movie was made in the 1930s. Whenever I watch Newsradio, Phil Hartmann is living again, just like he was before 1998. It's like he never went away.
And now, whenever I watch Ghostbusters, Harold Ramis will be alive again and always chasing ghosts through the haunted streets of Manhattan. So I guess the hoary old cliche about Hollywood is true - it does make people immortal.
And with the continued popularity of a classic like Ghostbusters, Harold Ramis is now very immortal.
RIP
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