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zombiewhacker
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
USA
1475 Posts |
 Posted - 01/17/2010 : 3:10:04 PM
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So you're having a movie discussion with a friend when the conversation suddenly hits a brick wall. Being a film buff, you naturally know the name of almost every actor in the history of filmdom. Your friend, having more of a life, knows the names of all the big name celebs like Depp and Bullock and Denzel but often gets the names of a lot of "lesser" actors confused, assuming they remember or even know the other actors' names at all.
This becomes painfully obvious when you name-drop a particular character actor who's so obscure that your friend's jaw slacks in disbelief. It's only when you name a famous movie scene the actor was in that your friend finally realizes who you're talking about.
Example:
"David Patrick Kelly, haven't seen him in a while."
"David who?"
"David Patrick Kelly. Remember him? Dunno even if he's still alive."
"Nope, sorry. Don't know him."
"Sure, ya do. That scene in Commando where Arnold's hanging him over a cliff and says, 'I promised to kill you last. I lied.' Then he drops him off the cliff."
"Oh, yeah..."
"Then Arnold goes back and tells Rae Dawn Chong, 'I let him go.'"
"Oh, that guy. I remember him now. What's him name, David what?"
***
Actually, Kelly is somewhat lucky in that he has three such roles to his credit. His death scene in Commando is probably the most "famous," in a B movie sort of way. Additionally, he'll probably be remembered to a certain extent for his "Come out and play-ay" scene from The Warriors and the "What's happening, Luther?" bit from 48 Hrs.
Other examples of the above:
Deliverance
The Dueling Banjos scene is legendary. Ronny Cox is not. We know who he is, and the eagle-eyed, casual viewer might recognize him from the Beverly Hills Cop movies, but for the most part it's safe to say that this busy character has never quite achieved the status of household name. On the other hand, his Q rating is practically in Tom Cruise territory compared to that of his banjo-playing co-star, Billy Redden. Redden would only make a few film appearances after this, one of them being Big Fish. But this was one scene where he definitely made his mark.
The Godfather
Alex Rocco's name should be a familiar enough one to any devoted TV or movie fan. So I found it funny a few years back when Rocco mentioned in an interview that most of his recent acting gigs were a direct result of his having played "that Moe Green guy." These conversations parallelled the one about David Patrick Kelly, except these discussions took place in Hollywood, where one would hope that producers and executives would know better.
"How about Alex Rocco for the part of the manager guy?"
"Alex Rocco, who's he?"
"Remember, Godfather One, Moe Green?"
"(slaps head) Ohhhhhh, that guy. The one who got shot through the eyeglasses. Yeah, he's good. Is he available for the role?"
More scenes like that. Famous sequence. Not-so-famous or unknown actor. |
Edited by - zombiewhacker on 01/27/2010 2:42:07 PM
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BT
Preeminent Apostolic Prelate of the Discipleship of Jabootu
USA
168 Posts |
Posted - 01/26/2010 : 1:57:37 PM
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| Not sure if this fits, but a guy like Stephen Berkoff comes to mind. He was Victor Maitland in Beverly Hills Cop, and also Rambo's main adversary in Rambo 2. |
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Neville
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
Spain
1590 Posts |
Posted - 01/26/2010 : 4:06:58 PM
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I few months ago I ran into three films with Steven Bauer almost at the same time. A third or fourth viewing of Scarface, Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia, an awful DTV action film, and Primal Fear, a courtroom drama starring Richard Gere and the then unknown Edward Norton.
Right now I'm looking at his IMDB page to make sure I didn't get the titles mixed up, and he's been in a lot of stuff, primarily TV work, but I guess he's still being recognised either for Scarface or for having been married with Melanie Griffith at some point. |
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zombiewhacker
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
USA
1475 Posts |
Posted - 01/27/2010 : 2:47:24 PM
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@BT
How about Charles Napier? His "I'm coming to get YOU" conversation from Rambo 2 was probably the most memorable dialogue in that whole movie.
(Awaiting the inevitable "Rambo 2 had dialogue?" crack in 5...4...3...)
@Neville
Steven Bauer, yeah, exactly. Everyone's seen Scarface, but most people probably have forgotten his name, so to them he'll always simply be "that Manny guy." |
Edited by - zombiewhacker on 01/27/2010 2:48:14 PM |
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CDiehl
Holy Cardinal and Five Star General of the Righteous Knighthood of Jabootu
USA
361 Posts |
Posted - 02/01/2010 : 11:21:40 AM
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A more recent example would be Ken Jeong, aka the naked Chinese man with the tire iron in The Hangover. He was also the Spanish professor on Community, and the evil king of the LARP in Role Models.
You know Grand Funk, don't you? The wild, shirtless lyrics of Mark Farner? The bong-rattling bass of Mel Schacher? The ... adequate drumwork of Don Brewer? |
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