Tag Archives: RIP

RIP, Popcorn Sutton

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Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton, moonshiner, has taken his own life to avoid Federal prison. He had been sentenced to 18 months for moonshining and firearms violations1, and preferred death to the federal pen.

I can’t say I blame him; his crimes were against the tax code, not other property or people. An overly aggressive federal prosecutor wanted to “make an exdample” of him.

In Popcorn’s memory, a short video:

You can get a DVD of Popcorn’s likker makin’ from Sucker Punch Pictures. I just may do that; slices of America such as Popcorn’s life are rare.

-k-

1 He’d been convicted of moonshining previously; convicted felons can’t posess firearms.

RIP, Reverend Hal Marchman

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Reverend Hal Marchman, who for decades delivered the invocation before the races at Daytona International Speedway, has passed away.

NASCAR races start with the presentation of colors, an invocation and prayer, the National Anthem, and usually, a flyover of military aircraft. From the inaugural Daytona 500 in 1959 to the 46th running in 2004, Rev. Marchman delivered the invocation and prayer. He had been in poor health for the last several years; his death, however, was sudden.

Thanks, Rev. Marchman. You’ve been missed through your years of poor health, and are most sorely missed now.

In my own little tribute, I’ll conclude this post with words I’ve heard him utter many times:

“Shalom and amen.”

-k-
More about Rev. Hal here.

RIP, James Whitmore

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James Whitmore, stage, screen and TV actor, has passed away at age 87.

I am always somewhat disconcerted when I pay tribute to those such as James Whitmore; invariably, their careers spanned far beyond the limits of my narrow world view.

I’m no movie buff, and heaven knows that live theater is far outside my sphere. I’m Joe Sixpack, remote in hand, who remembers old black and white episodes of Gunsmoke, The Twilight Zone, and other such shows that were a staple. And that’s how I remember James Whitmore.

I looked up his filmography, and realized that I’ve missed most of his acting performances. Should that disqualify me from commenting on his passing? Far from it, as I see it; he was an actor whose performances were memorable, even on the small TV screens of my youth.

Thanks, James, for the least of your performances. Those were the ones I saw through the limited lens of teevee.

-k-

RIP, Dewey Martin

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Dewey Martin, drummer for Buffalo Springfield, one of my all-time favorite bands, has passed away at age 68. Buffalo Springfield, or “Buffy” as some 60′s DJs used to call them, had only a 3 record long discography. But what records they were. The news reports of Martin’s passing referred to “Buffy” as rock pioneers, folk rock, and country rock. And those descriptions all fit. I suppose that Steven Stills, Neil Young, and Richie Furay all having their roots in Buffalo Springfield, and then going on to successful careers, both solo and in other groups, doesn’t hurt that analysis.

My favorite rock and roll song of all time is Rock and Roll Woman. Here you go; is that Flip Wilson introducing the band? Looks like it to me:

RIP, Dewey Martin.

-k-

50 Years Ago Today

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Charles Hardin Holley: September 17, 1936 – February 3, 1959.
Richard Steven Valenzuela: May 13, 1941 – February 3, 1959.
Jiles Perry Richardson, Jr.: October 24, 1930 – February 3, 1959.

Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper all taken from us in an instant. I was alive when it happened, but too young to appreciate the music or who these people actually were at that time.

I never understood how American Pie ever presumed to encapsulate the events of February 3, 1959; it’s a good song and all, but the events of that cold Iowa night are best remembered by the influence each of these three musicians has had on the evolution of music.

So, I’ll leave y’all with one of these classic performers, on another classic show of the day:

-k-

RIP, Patrick McGoohan

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Patrick McGoohan, of Secret Agent and The Prisoner fame, has passed away at age 80.

I was a Secret Agent fan back in my long, long ago youthful years. I’ve never watched The Prisoner, however. Coincidentally, I read some chatter about The Prisoner in my FriendFeed channel earlier in the month. This series is 17 episodes in all; the people chatting about it loved the show.

I think I owe myself a trip to Amazon to acquire the DVD set.

-k-

RIP, Ricardo Montalban

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Ricardo Montalban, silver screen and teevee actor, has passed away at age 88. Frankly, the Fantasy Island fanfare didn’t impress me overly in its heyday. To me, the phrase Fine Corinthian Leather, from the car ads, endeared him forever.

I always have trouble writing these RIP posts; I remember a man with a life, love, and an entertainment career that started 60+ years ago by a single phrase that has stuck with me. In reading the stories about his passing, I read this little snippet, about his thoughts on Fantasy Island:

“What is appealing is the idea of attaining the unattainable and learning from it. Once you obtain a fantasy, it becomes a reality, and that reality is not as exciting as your fantasy. Through the fantasies you learn to appreciate your own realities.”

Lotta’ meaning there.

RIP, Señor Montalban.

-k-

RIP, Bozo(Larry Harmon)

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Larry Harmon, who made clowning a business, has passed away at age 83. Mr. Harmon wasn’t the original Bozo, but entertained a generation of kids by licensing the Bozo name and likeness to local TV stations nationwide. Now, 50+ years later, Bozo is still a national icon.

So, RIP, Bozo. Rest in the knowledge that through your efforts, the name Bozo lives on. I deal with Bozos every day, none of whom wear clown suits. More’s the pity.

-k-

RIP, Scott Kalitta

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Scott Kalitta, two-time NHRA Top Fuel Champion, was killed in a qualifying accident yesterday.

I love racing, and always am sad when someone loses his life in any form of the sport. Scott’s father is the legendary racer Connie Kalitta, who I recollect from pictures in drugstore-bought racing magazines from years ago. Television coverage of racing was practically nil in those days, but I remember the magazines.

I suppose there will be pundits opining how dangerous racing is, about how there should be some form of regulation. Racers are born to race, and it is an inherently dangerous sport. I saw the replay of the accident; the car exploded just past the finish line, the parachute was wadded up when it deployed, the car went straight, with no signs of slowing down, when it hit a jersey barrier at track’s end, and exploded into a huge fireball. I wonder why there is not a large sand trap at track’s end, to slow down runaway cars. The shutdown area in this case was all asphalt, until an extremely short dirt area immediately berfore the barrier. Maybe he was unconscious after the initial explosion; my surmising about that would just be idle speculation. I do think that with a better and longer shutdown area, that this accident may not have resulted in such a tragic outcome.

Winning, even being a champion, is a tremendous accomplishment. Being a member of an iconic drag racing family perhaps added to Scott’s following. Save for the memories, none of that matters now. Talking about what track reconfigurations may have prevented this, is just talk right now. To the Kalitta family, and the legion of NHRA fans, my condolences.

Later today, Scott’s competitors will dedicate the funny car bracket to him. And they will deal with their grief, at least for today, in the way racers do; they will strap themselves into their cars, and with heavy hearts, they will race.

-k-
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