Monday, August 20, 2012

RIP Tony Scott, Scott McKenzie, William Windom.

Was an extra for 2 weeks worth of THE LAST BOY SCOUT when it filmed at the L.A. Coliseum. Re the few glimpses I got of Tony Scott, my impression was that he was colorful, larger-than-life and enjoyed being co-ringmaster (along with Joel Silver) of the gridiron circus staged for the film. RIP. Now I have to catch up with THE HUNGER and
 REVENGE.--Reposting my comment from the HOLLYWOOD ELSEWHERE site.
Scott McKenzie, whose passing was also reported Sunday, had a gigantic hit in 1967 called "San Francisco (be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair").  The song, written by John Phillips of The Mamas And The Papas, popularized the ethos of gentle hippie Utopia for AM-radio listeners.  McKenzie also co-wrote another massive hit from 1988--The Beach Boys' "Kokomo."
I best remember William Windom as the genial star of MY WORLD (AND WELCOME TO IT); Windom's cartoonist/humorist character was a fictionalized version of James Thurber.  The series combined adaptations of Thurber material with more conventional family comedy, but was too out-of-the-box for TV in 1969-1970, running a single season on NBC--plus being rerun as a summer replacement two or three years later on CBS.

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