Thursday, December 14, 2006
Holy Crap :-(
There a couple of actors I can think of who I didn't see in a lot of different roles, but whenever I did see them, I knew I was in for a treat. One of these guys is Peter Boyle, who passed away Tuesday at the age of 71.
Of course we all know Boyle as Frank Barone from Everybody Loves Raymond, through which he'll probably live forever in syndication. Much was made of the fact that he was the only regular not to win an Emmy Award on that show, but in fact he was (I think) the only cast member to have won an Emmy before Raymond. It was in large part his portrayal of Clyde Bruckman on The X-Files that made "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose" the best episode in the entire run of the series. (Don't take my word for it -- TV Guide named it one of the best episodes in the history of television.)
Maybe the best tribute to Boyle's talent is that he managed to win praise for performances in poorly received productions. His role in the movie Joe helped make his career, even though the movie itself was panned by almost everyone.
In reading about Boyle today, I found that he was a real survivor -- he had a nervous breakdown while serving in the Navy, suffered a stroke in 1990, and had a heart attack on the set of Raymond. Also, he was a friend of John Lennon, who was the best man at his wedding.
We'll miss ya, Peter.
Of course we all know Boyle as Frank Barone from Everybody Loves Raymond, through which he'll probably live forever in syndication. Much was made of the fact that he was the only regular not to win an Emmy Award on that show, but in fact he was (I think) the only cast member to have won an Emmy before Raymond. It was in large part his portrayal of Clyde Bruckman on The X-Files that made "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose" the best episode in the entire run of the series. (Don't take my word for it -- TV Guide named it one of the best episodes in the history of television.)
Maybe the best tribute to Boyle's talent is that he managed to win praise for performances in poorly received productions. His role in the movie Joe helped make his career, even though the movie itself was panned by almost everyone.
In reading about Boyle today, I found that he was a real survivor -- he had a nervous breakdown while serving in the Navy, suffered a stroke in 1990, and had a heart attack on the set of Raymond. Also, he was a friend of John Lennon, who was the best man at his wedding.
We'll miss ya, Peter.
