Pedro and Pedaled
You Bet, His Death
Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, the Stepin Fetchit of Mexican actors, has died at the age of 80. Dropping out of school at age 7, he remained functionally illiterate throughout his life, learning lines by having his wife read him scripts or improvising at the behest of his directors. “I never learned to speak English too good, but the audience liked it like that,” he boasted. He was art of a performing family, and got his big break on a 1953 episode of You Bet Your Life, joining Tom Selleck and Brian Billick among those whose success started on game shows. Gonzalez Gonzalez, named by Mexican tradition with his mother’s maiden name and his father’s surname, sang and danced for host Groucho Marx, who suggested they go on tour as the Two Tamales. Pedro corrected him and said the act should be Gonzalez Gonzalez and Marx, prompting Groucho to quip, “How do you like that? A two-man act and I get third billing.” Apparently coming off a three-day bender with Ward Bond, John Wayne caught the act and signed Gonzalez Gonzalez to a contract, making him part of the Wayne stock of actors, and he appeared in Rio Bravo, Chisum, McLintock!, Hellfighters and The High and the Mighty. He was derided by some for perpetuating a stereotypical Mexican caricature, but other Latin actors said he was a trailblazer; his grandson, Clifton Collins, Jr., has drawn strong reviews for his recent role as murderer Perry Smith in Capote.
He sleeps with the fishes...
(Props to Craig)
Or
Turn Around Bright Eyes (Or You’ll Get Hit By a Bus)
Or
Bus-ted
Or
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Richard Bright, best known as one of only six actors to appear in all three Godfather movies, was killed after being whacked by a tour bus in Manhattan at the age of 68. With most of his career spent in minor roles as cops and crooks, Bright made the most of his time as Michael Corleone’s right-hand man Al Neri, who killed Don Barzini on the courthouse steps during the baptism scene in The Godfather, then later closed the door in Kay’s face as the minions come to pay their respect to the new godfather. He killed Fredo at the end of The Godfather, Part II and ordered the death of Joey Zasa in The Godfather, Part III.
Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, the Stepin Fetchit of Mexican actors, has died at the age of 80. Dropping out of school at age 7, he remained functionally illiterate throughout his life, learning lines by having his wife read him scripts or improvising at the behest of his directors. “I never learned to speak English too good, but the audience liked it like that,” he boasted. He was art of a performing family, and got his big break on a 1953 episode of You Bet Your Life, joining Tom Selleck and Brian Billick among those whose success started on game shows. Gonzalez Gonzalez, named by Mexican tradition with his mother’s maiden name and his father’s surname, sang and danced for host Groucho Marx, who suggested they go on tour as the Two Tamales. Pedro corrected him and said the act should be Gonzalez Gonzalez and Marx, prompting Groucho to quip, “How do you like that? A two-man act and I get third billing.” Apparently coming off a three-day bender with Ward Bond, John Wayne caught the act and signed Gonzalez Gonzalez to a contract, making him part of the Wayne stock of actors, and he appeared in Rio Bravo, Chisum, McLintock!, Hellfighters and The High and the Mighty. He was derided by some for perpetuating a stereotypical Mexican caricature, but other Latin actors said he was a trailblazer; his grandson, Clifton Collins, Jr., has drawn strong reviews for his recent role as murderer Perry Smith in Capote.
He sleeps with the fishes...
(Props to Craig)
Or
Turn Around Bright Eyes (Or You’ll Get Hit By a Bus)
Or
Bus-ted
Or
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Richard Bright, best known as one of only six actors to appear in all three Godfather movies, was killed after being whacked by a tour bus in Manhattan at the age of 68. With most of his career spent in minor roles as cops and crooks, Bright made the most of his time as Michael Corleone’s right-hand man Al Neri, who killed Don Barzini on the courthouse steps during the baptism scene in The Godfather, then later closed the door in Kay’s face as the minions come to pay their respect to the new godfather. He killed Fredo at the end of The Godfather, Part II and ordered the death of Joey Zasa in The Godfather, Part III.
posted by The Grim Reaper at 10:23 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home