We got to see him in Salt Lake City. His manager came out first to apologize for Professor Schickele being late, because he was giving a lecture down at Loretta Young University.
Dad was a HUGE fan!
This came out after Dad died, I think. It’s one of my faves.
It would be wrong to not highlight one of his serious works.
I wasn’t very familiar with his work, but he had incredible talent.
His acting in the Mandalorian wasn’t objectively very good, but it still was somehow perfect.
I’ve watched a lot of film, and I’ve come to the conclusion that at least half of being on-screen depends on one’s appearance. Then maybe 1/4 goes to physical and emotional projection. And at least 1/4 is remembering one’s lines.
He so much has a great look in this, and I’ve never watched a bit of it. No, really! I’m old!
Being on camera is a really weird skill. I’ve coached a lot of performances from behind the camera. You have to project a lot of energy on camera. Many of the people who are very good at it are not that smart and/or don’t have a filter. They are comfortable being free in front of the camera and don’t censor themselves. In person, people who are good on camera can be tiring to be around.
At the on campus group I was part of, one of my friends, Jesse, did a lot of our VJ work for the music video show. He was pretty manic in person, always cracking jokes. He was one of our best people on camera.
People who are intelligent usually struggle a lot with how different being on camera is than being in person. You are talking to an empty room. Even an actor, to catch the recording, everyone else has to be quiet. There’s not the usual interaction. You have to fill all the space all by yourself.
Some people are born with incredible charisma. They just sparkle on screen. George Clooney, Brad Pitt…they glow. They are born with some kind of magic. Yes, they work at it, but also, they have that lightning in a bottle quality where they light the screen up. That’s why those people make the big bucks, because it is so expensive to put together a production, and having someone who can show up day after day and turn on the charm on every take is extremely valuable.
We had a debate series at Tulane that the campus video group I worked with had exclusive rights to record. One year we had presidents Carter and Ford debating, with John McLaughlin as moderator. The camera absolutely loved President Carter’s face. He wasn’t objectively a beautiful man, but for whatever reason, he is surprisingly photogenic. Ford, who I would say is a more typically good looking man, was very flat on camera. I remember vividly how different they were in person and on camera, because I was in the recording booth during their debate, but also had to mic them up and got to be very close to them. (and John McLaughlin was a giant of a man - 6’ 6" I think. He was terribly imposing).
In spite of some his his rah rah, pro military, go USA music, he was a lifelong Democrat and not a total asshole.