Robert Culp

I don't mind saying that I am really struggling with this one. I think we all know Robert Culp. He's been in so many things and he is so much of a part of the small screen, you can't really pin him down to anything in particular. The popular obituary press really makes a big deal about I Spy. But I never really saw that show. I did watch Greatest American Hero quite a bit, but I don't have any specific recollections of Mr. Culp per se.

So, what do you do when your entire blog is about personal relevance, and there's nothing in particular that really moves you about the individual? You make something up.

I met Robert Culp while I was in college. Robert was in LA filming "Perry Mason:  The Case of the Defiant Daughter." He was blitzed out of his mind at a bar right around the corner from the studio. At the time, "Hold On" by Wilson Phillips was a huge hit. I remember Robert sang the Carnie Wilson part, I sang the Chyna Phillips part, and Ray Burr came rolling in -- which is really weird because "Ironside" had long since been canceled -- and he sang the Wendy Wilson part. It was a real hoot. Then, Robert puked all over himself, and things sort of wound down from there.

I think we'll all miss Robert. I certainly know I will, although my memories of him are a bit hazy. Best of luck to you Robert in your new role.

What do you want from me? It's Friday.

Alex Chilton

First off, thanks Charles for letting me contribute here again.

Wow. Alex Chilton, a talented songwriter, musician, sub-genre progenitor and cult hero, is gone. You’ve heard and enjoyed his music (or his influence at least), I guarantee it. In his teens, he was in the Box Tops, with huge hit The Letter.

Later, over the course of a handful of years, his band Big Star created some of the most memorable, inspirational power pop ever recorded. Not inspirational in the can-I-get-an-Amen way, but a sound that musicians loved and copied to no end. Big Star helped shape music from the ‘70s right through the ‘90s. Cheap Trick. REM. Jeff Buckley. Beck. Wilco. Ryan Adams and Whiskeytown. They, and who knows how many others, followed Alex’s blueprint of honest lyrics and lush arrangements.

He wrote In the Street, which was used as the theme song to That '70s Show. Big Star's first three albums were all named to Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. If Rolling Stone meant anything anymore, this would really mean something.

So it's not accurate to say he was under appreciated, because he was appreciated by plenty. It's just that after the Box Tops, he never had huge commercial success (by P. Diddy standards). But Alex Chilton and Big Star were essential in furthering the cause for beautifully humble, intelligent rock and roll. Heartfelt, without taking themselves too seriously, despite the band’s name and the title of their first album, #1 Record.

Truly wonderful stuff. Here, give September Gurls a listen (yeah, the Bangles covered it).

The Replacements honored him on their 1987 album Pleased To Meet Me in a song called, coincidentally, Alex Chilton. So while I never saw Big Star or Alex perform live, I did have the opportunity to see the Replacements open for Tom Petty at Lake Compounce, an amusement park in Bristol, CT in 1990. It was near the end of the Replacements existence and also the last time I was at the park. For that matter, I haven’t really seen the two friends I went to the show with either in a long, long time. Avery Woron, Keith Siglinger – you guys out there?

The suspected cause of Alex’s death was a heart attack. He hadn’t been feeling well, but by the time he made it to the hospital, it was too late. He was only 59. That's just tragic.

Since no one here is getting any younger and in an effort to make an effort, why not take a second to make sure your heart is in good shape?

Peter Graves

Peter Graves is another one who was tailor made for Celebituary. There's the camp seventies / eighties thing. There's his name. And, of course, the whole Captain Over persona, an even more ironic name, eh?

So, looking at this picture here, it really does make you wonder...why do we laugh at Captain Over and "Jimmy," while we cringe at Michael Jackson and his young friend? I suppose it's as simple as fiction vs. fact -- or alleged fact. Either way, I'm just not sure a movie like Airplane gets made in this day and age, or certainly, if it does, I'm not sure it has the same mass appeal.

I am proud to say I saw Airplane in the theater and laughed my ass off. Can't remember who I went with, but it was great and I'm pretty sure I went back. This was a PG movie before there was such a thing as PG-13 -- it was probably one of the reasons PG-13 came to be.

So, anyhow, Peter Graves. I really think it begins and ends with Airplane. Why really bother ourselves with anything else? To that point, I am going to break my own rule and add a video to this post.

So, without further ado, I give you the original Airplane Trailer. There was something much better a couple days ago. 10 minutes of nothing but Captain Over. But I guess it got pulled.

Original Airplane Trailer

Merlin Olson. It was always good to have a true Norsman on the sports page every week. He was sort of the large Scandinavian uncle I never had. My frame of reference aren't the popular ones -- which makes this more special.

My Merin Olsen wasn't really a lineman (pre-dated me). Nor was he Father Dowling. Shows like "Little House" were for girls. My Merlin was the sporetscaster who got pulled in for all the big time games. If Merlin was on a game, you know it was a big deal. Stoic. Detached. Able to throw on a helmet at a moment's notice and whup some ass. That was my Merlin.

It's funny. People in the public eye morph into so many roles and personas over the years, it really does feel like we live multiple lives. For Merlin, there were the three public lives that we know so well (player, sportscaster, actor), but you wonder about his less public existence.What were his middle school years like? How has the last year been?

Celebrities like Merlin are by subscription only. You get the public stuff free, but you need much better access to receive unlimited Merlin.

Merlin appeared to be a good man and certainly played some endearing roles. For my money,the one I will miss the most was his sportscaster.

Corey Haim

Corey Haim is pretty much who Celebituary was invented for. So, let's take a moment and reflect on one of the "Two Corey's" for a moment.

For starters, I am beginning to realize how out-of-touch I am with pop culture these days, and this is not a good thing. Growing up, I couldn't have been more plugged in to the relatively small universe. MTV made it easy. There was no reality programming to speak of. The "Big Three" networks were well defined. Everybody had the Farrah Fawcett poster. Etc.

I say all this, because the fact that there was even a show known as "The Two Corey's" on A&E completely escaped me. So now I am worried that I am missing out on all sorts of has-been celebrity entertainment. For some reason, "Celebrity Fit Club" is not one of them. You know how some shows just seem to find you, no matter where you are or what you are doing? I have that thing going with Celebrity Fit Club 7, where it always just seems to be in my face. But, see, I don't even KNOW all of those so-called "celebrities. I mean there's K-Fed and Bobby Brown, and Sebastian Bach. But, some of these people, I don't know 'em, which is bad, because then I can't honor them as I might like to. Gotta watch more TV, I guess.

You want to know how much pop culture there is? To wit, Corey Haim was voted 8th -- that's right 8th -- favorite Canadian on a TV series for his work in "The Two Corey's."

But, why worry about the present, when there is the more idealistic past to dwell on. For me and Corey it pretty much starts and ends with "The Lost Boys." I gotta believe I saw "License to Drive," but it doesn't resonate with me whatsoever. But Lost Boys, wow. For starters, I never knew why that song, "Cry Little Sister" was not a hit -- maybe it was too soundtracky. But, I put the Lost Boys soundtrack right up there with "Pretty in Pink," it's got some great moments.

I saw this movie with some odd configuration of high school friends at The Cordova Mall in Pensacola, FL. I think Ed was probably there. Ed? For some reason, I think Maria Yeo was there. I even think Paige Vance was there. It was in the "new" theater at Cordova Mall, where I also saw Dirty Dancing. Lost Boys was remarkable in that it was the first Rated R movie that I could remember going to with a group of friends with 100% legal compliance. We were all legit "adults" going to see an "adult" film and boy did it feel good!

I worked at Cordova Mall at the time. I worked at Morrison's Cafeteria slinging vegetables for a miserable alcoholic boss who fired me, no lie, for attending a debate tournament instead of working the Saturday lunch shift. The fucker.

So Corey Haim? He played the role well. And the hair? It was the perfect late eighties quaff. The whole movie was great and I'm glad I had the privilege of seeing it in its original glory.

So I watched the whole "molested" conversation between the two Corey's and the whole thing is just sad and pathetic. When you add in the Michael Jackson component, it just gets stranger and even more ironic.

One other sad and pathetic point. Corey Haim is well acknowledged as a "has-been" and he is two years younger than me. Hmmmm....