REMEMBERING KELLY PRESTON: THE FILMS WE LOVE

"It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer," posted John Travolta, after his wife of 28 years, Kelly Preston, passed away on Sunday, aged 57. The mother of Ellie, 20, Ben, 9, and Jett, who passed away aged 16, kept the diagnosis and the details of her treatment private; her final hours were spent at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Los Angeles. Born Kelly Kamalelehua Smith on October 13, 1962, in Honolulu and having studied at University of Southern California, Preston would go on to captivate audiences with her natural charm, rare beauty and often underappreciated range on screen.

While she never attained A-list status, Kelly Preston was one of Hollywood’s most reliable and engaging ensemble players, invaluable to co-stars such as Robin Williams, Kevin Bacon, Ray Romano, Mike Myers, Gwyneth Paltrow, Michael Keaton and Eddie Murphy.  In honour of the late actress, we recall six of her performances that will forever remain etched in the mind of movie-goers. 

MISCHIEF (Dir: Mel Damski, with Doug Mckeown, Catherine Mary Stewart, Jami Gertz; 1985) Under the name ‘Kelly Palzis’, Preston guested on TV staples (Hawaii Five-O; Quincy M.E.; CHiPS) and earned her stripes in thankless movie roles (10 to Midnight, opposite Charles Bronson; the C-grade, 3D sci-fier Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn) before announcing herself to Hollywood in John Carpenter’s 1983 Stephen King adaptation, Christine. Her true worth was established in her follow-up film, the bawdy teen romp Mischief, in which she turned her lusted-after, dream-teen ‘Marilyn’ into a far more nuanced and complex character than Mel Damski’s film perhaps deserved (then did it again in her next film, the otherwise forgettable C. Thomas Howel vehicle, Secret Admirer).

SPACECAMP (Dir: Harry Winer, with Lea Thompson, Kate Capshaw, Leaf Phoenix; 1986) Unsalvageable as a commercial prospect coming in the wake of the Challenger disaster, the teen adventure SpaceCamp is remembered by a very specific group of 80s teenagers for the thrill it provided at some very base levels. Preston shone in an unusually strong cast, exhibiting great chemistry with co-stars Lea Thompson and Kate Capshaw, though some dire dialogue and the pall cast by NASA’s darkest hour stymied her leading lady status at just the wrong time in her career.

TWINS (Dir: Ivan Reitman, with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny DeVito, Chloe Webb; 1988) There is no denying that a huge part of Kelly Preston’s acting legacy will be the lightning bolt of supporting-part energy she provided a slew of comedies - Only You (1992), with Andrew McCarthy; Nothing to Lose (1997), with Tim Robbins; Holy Man (1998), with Murphy and Jeff Goldblum; View from the Top (2003), with Paltrow. It all began with hard yards she put into bolstering Ivan Reitman’s Twins with an adorable performance that drew the ‘lovably funny’ out of ‘The Austrian Oak’ himself.

JERRY MAGUIRE (Dir: Cameron Crowe, with Tom Cruise, Renee Zellwegger, Cuba Gooding Jr.; 1993) Crowe, Cruise and Zellwegger got all the nominations, but the handful of scenes that Preston played as ‘Jerry’s ultra-ambitious, dangerously sexed-up fiancee ‘Avery Bishop’. She is the ‘romantic’ reflection of the cynical, heartless corporate culture that Jerry is fleeing; with no Avery, there'd be no Dorothy. Kelly Preston, as the ‘anti-Dorothy, is unforgettable. 

SKY HIGH (Dir: Mike Mitchell, with Kurt Russell, Michael Angarano, Danielle Panabaker; 100 mins) Kelly Preston always made being an actress look like capital-F Fun. Whether it was baring all in the camp horror pic Spellbinder (1988), goofing off in the period comedy Love at Stake (1987) or just positively glowing as Kevin Costner’s love interest in Sam raimi’s For the Love of the Game (1999), Preston looked like she was loving every minute of making movies. This is nowhere more apparent than in her spirited turn as ‘Josie Stronghold, aka Jetstream’ in Disney’s superhero romp, Sky High. Alongside Kurt Russell’s ‘The Commander’, Preston was the most perfect mom/wife/superhero archetype this side of Helen Parr/Elastigirl.    

GOTTI (Dir: Kevin Connelly, with John Travolta, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Stacy Keach; 2018) Her films with husband John are not considered Hollywood’s finest. The 2000 science-fiction epic Battlefield Earth is, in fact, considered one of Hollywood’s all-time worst. The film they met on, Dave Thomas’ 1989 cold-war comedy dud The Experts, has long since been forgotten (but was actually pretty funny). Their 2009 pairing, opposite Robin Williams in Walt Becker’s Old Dogs, was a tough watch. By the time they got together for Kevin Connelly’s pilloried 2018 hagiography of brutal crime boss John Gotti, it’s fair to say their collaboration offscreen had proven far more profound and ultimately immortal than their efforts in front of the camera.

DICK MILLER & HIS DIRECTORS: LIFE AS HOLLYWOOD'S MOST WANTED CHARACTER ACTOR

He was the ultimate “Oh, it’s that guy!” actor. Dick Miller, who took a handful of small but vivid character turns and forged an indelible career that will clock in at 182 credits, has passed away at age 90. He leaves behind an adoring fan base dating back nearly six decades, a period that has seen him work with most of the great American directors of his generation. For a man who never found above-the-title fame, Dick Miller was a beloved presence on-set for some of the great cinematic visionaries… 

His Career with Roger Corman: The legendary B-movie maven gave a 26-year-old Miller his first credit in the 1955 western, Apache Woman, opposite Lloyd Bridges. Low-budget oaters were staples for Corman, who would use Miller again in The Oklahoma Woman (1956), Gunslinger (1956) and A Time for Killing (1967). Miller remained a working actor in Corman’s ensemble for over a decade, the actor willing to work across all genres, including science-fiction (Not of This Earth, 1957; War of The Satellites, 1958); horror (The Undead, 1957; A Bucket of Blood,1959; The Little Shop of Horrors, 1960, pictured right; Premature Burial, 1962; The Terror, 1963; X: The Man With the X-Ray Eyes,1963); rock’n’roll teen dramas  (Rock All Night, 1957; Sorority Girl, 1957; Carnival Rock, 1957); historical epics (Atlas, 1961); bad boy biker pics (the iconic The Wild Angels, 1966, opposite Peter Fonda); and the LSD-romp, The Trip (1967).

The Great American Directors of the 1970s: The gruff old master Robert Aldrich bolstered his support cast with Miller on 1968s The Legend of Lylah Clare, but the old school studio directors were making way for the ‘movie brats’ of new Hollywood. And many of those filmmakers had grown up with, and were often schooled by Roger Corman. Miller had a foot in the door with Corman-alumni Barbara Peeters, with whom he made Summer School Teachers (1974) and Starhops (1978); Paul Bartel, who cast him in Death Race 2000 (1975); Allan Arkush, who bolstered Heartbeeps (1981) and Get Crazy (1983) with Miller; and, not least, Martin Scorsese, who cast the actor in New York, New York (1977) and memorably in After Hours (1985). Miller was at the forefront of the new industry forces, and was soon finding parts in films by ‘wunderkind’ auteurs Robert Zemeckis (I Wanna Hold Your Hand, 1978; Used Cars, 1980); Steven Spielberg (1941, 1979);and,  Jonathan Demme (Swing Shift, 1984) and James Cameron (The Terminator, 1984), both trained under Corman's guidance. Ironically, Miller saw out the decade featuring in one of the final films of an old Hollywood heavyweight – Samuel Fuller’s White Dog (1982).

The Films of Jonathan Kaplan: Kaplan and Miller had grown close working at Corman’s New World Pictures. Kaplan (who would direct Jodie Foster to Oscar glory with The Accused, 1988) turned to Miller not only for his acting skills but a shared work ethic, one that had been refined on Corman’s often unrefined low-budget shoots. They would work together on such grindhouse/drive-in programmers as Night Call Nurses (1972), The Student Teachers (1973), The Slams (1973) and Truck Turner (1974; pictured, right). More mainstream fare followed, with White Line Fever (1975) and Mr Billion (1977). After a short time apart, Kaplan reconnected with Miller for his acclaimed drama Heart Like a Wheel (1983), starring Bonnie Bedelia, and they worked together well into the new decade, on Project X (1987) and Unlawful Entry, (1992). Kaplan also earned Miller his only music-video credit, on the Rod Stewart dance hit, Infatuation , in 1988.

Working with Joe Dante: Another Corman graduate, Joe Dante, like Kaplan and Allan Arkush, had worked the tough shoots with Miller through their formative years. The bond that Dante and Miller formed is one of the most prominent and profound in Hollywood history. Alongside co-director Arkush, Dante and Miller first worked together on Hollywood Boulevard (1976) and Rock’n’Roll High School (1979, on which Dante contributed uncredited). The Miller/Dante pairing would last four decades on Piranha (1978); The Howling (1981); Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983; pictured, right); Gremlins (1984), for which Miller received a Best Supporting Actor nomination from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films; Explorers (1985); his 1986 episode ‘The Greibble’ of the Spielberg-produced TV anthology Amazing Stories; Innerspace (1987); The ‘Burbs (1989); Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990); Matinee (1993); The Second Civil War (1997); Small Soldiers (1998); Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003); Trapped Ashes (segment: Wraparound; 2006); The Hole (2009); and, Burying the Ex (2014). In a statement on his Facebook page, Dante said, “I’m devastated.” “We hit it off and every script thereafter I always looked for a role for Dick,” said Dante, “not just because he was my friend but because I loved watching him act.”

In 2014, the actor's life and work was celebrated in Elijah Drenner's documentary, That Guy Dick Miller.

THE BURT REYNOLDS 'COLD STREAK'

Burt had one of the all-time great (bad?) 'cold streaks' – films that either disappointed or plain out underperformed. Guest coloumnist STEPHEN VAGG ponders, "What happened...?"

In 1982 Burt Reynolds was flying high. He’d been the number one box office attraction in the US for five years running. He was big enough to turn director (Gator) and stay director (The End; Sharky’s Machine), he had a powerful franchise behind him (Smokey and the Bandit), he was branching out into romantic comedies (Best Friends, Paternity) and musicals (The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas). It seemed the public would follow him anywhere.

Within a few years it was over – he’d ceased to be a major star. By the late 1980s, Burt was back to being a TV star again on B.L. Stryker; a few years after that he was mostly to be found in straight-to-video flicks. Until the end of Burt’s life people would talk about him having a “comeback” – but while there were great moments (Citizen Ruth, Boogie Nights), he never regained his former status.

Now these things happen in every actor’s career – indeed Burt survived a large number of turkeys and disasters before he became a huge star: big budget flops (Lucky Lady, At Long Last Love), films where directors were fired during production (Rough Cut) or people died during production (The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing, Shark!, pictured above). He’d always managed to bounce back. But from 1983 onwards, he didn’t.

Let’s look at the films in question:

Stroker Ace (1983; pictured, top) – Burt famously turned down a role in Terms of Endearment to do this; Jack Nicholson stepped in, and won a Best Supporting Oscar, while Stroker Ace flopped. In Burt’s defence, this would’ve seemed the surer commercial bet – it was an action comedy involving cars directed by Hal Needham, a combination which had been successful four times previously (Smokey and the Bandit I & II, Hooper, The Cannonball Run). Not this time, though. Burt’s luck had changed.

The Man Who Loved Women (1983) – this would have seemed a safe-ish bet. A remake of the 1977 Francois Truffaut film, directed by Blake Edwards, who was coming off Victor-Victoria and many other acclaimed romantic comedies. But critics were mean and the public stayed away in droves.

Cannonball Run II (1984; pictured, right) – another seemingly safe choice, an all-star sequel to one of Burt’s biggest hits. And it wasn’t an out-and-out flop at the box office but it was a disappointment, making half of what the original did.  Like Stroker Ace, Cannonball II simply wasn’t a very good film – it felt lazy and greedy. The original Smokey and Cannonball films had a good heart – this doesn’t. The public sensed it and stayed away. So Burt decided to go into something even more sure-fire…

City Heat (1984) – what could be more successful than teaming Burt with Clint Eastwood in an action buddy comedy? And indeed the film made some money… but not as much as everyone thought it would. Production was plagued with difficulties – original director (and writer) Blake Edwards was forced off the project by Clint, and Burt was injured during filming, causing him to lose a lot of weight and rumours to start that the actor had AIDS.

Stick (1985) –Burt returned to directing, and picked some strong source material, an Elmore Leonard novel. Burt liked what he did with his rough cut but says Universal forced him to reshoot the second half. The resulting film flopped commercially and critically. Burt would go on to direct three more movies, but none with much acclaim.

Heat (1986) – Based on another strong source material – a novel and script by William Goldman – and Burt is genuinely good in the lead role. If original director Robert Altman had stayed on the project who knows what might have happened? But Altman quit after disagreements with Goldman; he was replaced by Dick Richards, who Burt ended up punching out, and was replaced in turn by Jarry Jameson. Two more directors worked on the film (or three, depending on your sources). The resulting film was a mess and flopped. It was remade with Jason Statham as Wild Card.

Malone (1987; pictured, right) – Burt does more action, in this so-so thriller directed by someone called Harley Cokeliss. In an era of Arnie, Sly, Jean Claude and Seagal, no one cared. The failure of this film may explain why Burt turned down Die Hard – because who knew that Die Hard was going to turn into, well, Die Hard?

Rent-a-Cop (1987) – Burt teams with another 70s legend, Liza Minnelli, in a comedy crime film. Another flop which no one seems to like.

Switching Channels (1988) – a lot of people thought this would turn things around for Burt. A good director (Ted Kotcheff), excellent source material (The Front Page by Hecht and MacArthur), superb co stars (Kathleen Turner and Christopher Reeve). And Burt received some good reviews. But he feuded with Turner, and the resulting film was a box office disappointment.

Physical Evidence (1989) – this was originally written to be a sequel to Jagged Edge with Glenn Close and Robert Loggia but was rewritten – Burt stepped into the part originally meant for Loggia and Theresa Russell was a version of Glenn Close. For some reason they picked Michael Crichton to direct, despite it not being based on one of his novels or having any sci fi/technical angle. Burt actually isn’t bad but he has nil chemistry with Russell and the film was little seen.

Breaking In (1989) – Burt has a strong director (Bill Forsyth), excellent script (by John Sayles) and gives a very good performance as a small time crook which earned him some of his best ever reviews… and it’s a really sweet movie… but no one turned up to see it. (Pictured, below; co-star Casey Siemaszko, l, and director Bill Forsyth with Reynolds)

The scary thing about these films is you can see why Burt made them. They would’ve seemed safe bets on paper: remakes, sequels, buddy comedies, scripts by William Goldman and John Sayles, adaptations of Elmore Leonard novels, directors with strong commercial track records. None of the projects were crazy, weird, artistic choices – they were aimed at being broad crowd pleasers. And crowds weren’t pleased because, as Goldman once wrote at the peak of Burt’s fame, “no one knows anything”.

Maybe Burt could’ve turned it around with Terms of Endearment. It’s a shame he didn’t do The Emerald Forest with John Boorman – the two men had worked together magnificently in Deliverance, and Burt would’ve been perfect in the lead role. (Editor's Note: in addition to Die Hard, he also admits to passing on 'James Bond' as Sean Connery's replacement, M*A*S*H, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, Star Wars and Pretty Woman.)  

Mind you, there is the possibility that Burt didn’t have much taste. After Boogie Nights he turned down a role in Magnolia because he didn’t like PT Anderson. His financial demands led to the premature cancellation of his hit sitcom, Evening Shade. He surely could’ve picked better projects in the last thirty years of his life.

Still, it was an admirable career. Anyone whose credits include Deliverance, Sharky’s Machine, Boogie Nights and Hooper, just for starers, deserves our admiration and respect.

R.I.P. Burt.

STEPHEN VAGG is a scriptwriter, journalist and commentator who divides his professional time between Los Angeles, Sydney and Brisbane. He graduated from the Australian Film Television and Radio School with a Masters Degree in Screenwriting and has worked for FremantleMedia, Network 7 and Network 10. His feature film screenplays All My Frends Are Leaving Brisbane (2007) and Jucy (2010) were directed by his wife, Louise Alston. In 2010, his book Rod Taylor: An Aussie in Hollywood was published. 

REMEMBERING BILL PAXTON

Bill Paxton had the kind of star quality that Hollywood was never able to entirely utilise. When his popularity soared on the back of standout bit parts (The Lords of Discipline, 1983; Streets of Fire, 1984; The Terminator, 1985) and movie-stealing support characters (Weird Science, 1985; Aliens, 1986; Near Dark, 1987), the studio suits shoehorned him into leading man parts that failed to do his unique talent justice. We are grateful for his blockbuster hits, but no one will cite Twister (1996), Titanic (1997) or Mighty Joe Young (1998) as the films that capture what was engagingly ‘wild’ about ‘Wild’ Bill Paxton.

Having passed away at the age of 61, the always-in-demand actor was working up until his death. The cult success of his HBO drama Big Love and the role of Randall McCoy opposite Kevin Costner in the mini-series Hatfield & McCoys ensured that he was always welcome on the small-screen; his latest role was the lead in the series, Training Day. As an industry that respected and a fan base that adored him begins to mourn their loss, we recall his fearless, soaring, often unhinged big-screen performances...

Private Hudson in ALIENS (Dir: James Cameron; 1986)
Cameron met Paxton when they were both working for pennies on the set of a Roger Corman shoot over three decades ago. The director gave the manic young Paxton an on-screen shot as the nameless punk who incurs the merciless wrath of Schwarzenegger’s killing machine in The Terminator (1984). The young actor earned enough industry credibility to secure the role of Chet, the hilariously unhinged militaristic older brother in John Hughes’ Weird Science (1985). When Cameron was casting his sequel to Alien, he called upon his friend to drop the comedic ‘bigness’ of Chet and give full flight to the ‘unhinged military’ side. Paxton stole every scene as Private Hudson, the tough-talking but increasingly terrified marine whose on-screen meltdown and last defiant act of heroism gives the classic sci-fi action-thriller a crucial and soulful human warmth, as well as some of genre cinema's most quoted lines ("Game over, man"; "Stop your grinnin' and drop your linen"; "Why don't you put her in charge!?"; "Hey Vasquez, have you ever been mistaken for a man?"). The director and the actor would remain lifelong friends, working together on True Lies (1994), in which Paxton gives one of his funniest performances as the con-man Simon, and as salvage expert Brock Lovett in Titanic (1997). In a statement released overnight, Cameron said of his late friend, “"It was a friendship of laughter, adventure, love of cinema, and mutual respect. He was a good man, a great actor, and a creative dynamo.” (Pictured, above; Paxton, with co-star Michael Biehn, in Aliens)

Severen in NEAR DARK (Dir: Kathryn Bigelow; 1987)
Bigelow and Cameron were romantically linked at the time; she had seen the character work that Paxton had put into creating Hudson and the audience empathy his presence engendered. When casting her modern-western/vampire-noir horror film Near Dark, Bigelow realised his ballsy swagger and imposing masculinity was perfect for the role of sadistic predator Severen, the most heartless of the roaming band of bloodsuckers. She also knew that the chemistry between the Aliens cast was something special, casting Paxton’s co-stars Jenette Goldstein and Lance Henriksen. The film failed to catch on at the box office (it was late to the party in terms of cool vampire pics, with The Lost Boys premiering only two weeks prior), but quickly became a must-watch VHS favourite and remains a cult classic. The bar room bloodbath, during which Paxton utters the line, “I hate it when they don’t shave,” as he feasts on the jugular of an unkempt cowpoke, is unforgettable.    

Gus in THE DARK BACKWARD (Dir: Adam Rifkin; 1991)
Adam Rifkin’s putrid, magnificent take on celebrity culture could not have come at a worse time for Bill Paxton. In the four years since the industry buzz generated off Aliens, he had starred in critically acclaimed work that no one had seen (Near Dark; Pass the Ammo, 1988) and commercial efforts that had underperformed (Slipstream, 1989; Next of Kin, 1989; Navy Seals, 1990; Predator 2, 1990). In hindsight, an occasionally sickening but inspired satire co-starring Judd Nelson as a man who grows a third man out of his back only to be exploited for fame by Paxton’s slimy, grimy garbage man was not the most thought-through career move. But fans of the film (including yours truly, who penned a wordy appreciation in 2014) cite it as the stuff of legend and absolutely crucial to one’s understanding of the appeal of Paxton as an actor. From his Fellini-esque romp with obese prostitutes to his devouring of a rotten chicken leg to his amorous nuzzling of a garbage tip corpse, Paxton is mesmerizingly disgusting yet entirely sympathetic.

Dale ‘Hurricane’ Dixon in ONE FALSE MOVE (Dir: Carl Franklin; 1992)
Hank in A SIMPLE PLAN (Dir: Sam Raimi; 1998)
Dad Meiks in FRAILTY (Dir: Bill Paxton, 2001)
Paxton was a born-and-bred Texan and, as this trilogy of films connected by their rural settings reveal, he never shied away from representing the darkly shaded complexities of life on the land. In Carl Franklin’s indie crime thriller One False Move, Paxton played Sheriff Dale Dixon, the Arkansas lawman whose thrill at working with LAPD investigators is muted when secrets from his past merge with revelations about the case. In A Simple Plan, Sam Raimi’s snowbound tale of mistrust and doublecrosses, Paxton plays the outwardly decent man Hank, whose crumbling morality and descent into a life of compromised principles represents one of the actor’s best roles. By the time he directed and co-starred with Matthew McConnaughey in the chilling religious-themed Frailty in 2001, Paxton was deep inside the minds and hearts of country folk and the angels and demons that occasionally drive them to unforgivable acts of devotion. Roger Ebert recognised Paxton as “a gifted director”, calling Frailty “a complex film that grips us with the intensity of a simple one.”

Astronaut Fred Haise in APOLLO 13 (Dir: Ron Howard; 1995)
Perhaps because his most beloved and successful roles were slightly off-center or perhaps because he just never actively sought them out, Bill Paxton rarely got to play the ‘everyman’ (one exception was Jan de Bont’s blockbuster Twister, though his performance suggests he was a bit disinterested in the thinly-drawn lead role).  When afforded the opportunity by Ron Howard to play the beaming young astronaut Fred Haise in Apollo 13, Paxton revealed a glowing goodness of character and sturdiness of spirit that came to represent the inherent heroism celebrated in the film. If Tom Hanks’ Jim Lovell was the embodiment of good ol’ USA derring-do and Kevin Bacon’s Jack Swigert was the square-jawed non-doubter of the new technology, Paxton was the rest of us, the one for whom space travel was a mystical, soul-enriching journey to the heavens. Not for the first time in his film career, Paxton was the perfect conduit for viewer empathy and engagement. Howard recognised that the actor possessed that rare quality that instantly ingratiated him to audiences. It was an asset that probably cost him A-list fame – stars need to construct an air of mystery and ambiguity about their true character – but it ensured he was and will remain much loved.

TWELVE DAYS OF CINE-MAS: TEN SOARING SPIRITS

TWELVE DAYS OF CINE-MAS
A traditional festive countdown, reflecting upon my 2016 movie-watching moments...

TEN SOARING SPIRITS
In a year that saw the passing of so many greats from the world of cinema, there were many more who weren’t afforded the farewell they richly deserve…

ALICE DRUMMOND, Actress (pictured, above; with Awakenings co-star Robin Williams); died November 30, aged 88.
Alice Drummond’s most beloved bigscreen moment amounted to barely 3 minutes of screen time, most of which was spent pushing a trolley around the basement archives of the New York Public Library. But Alice Drummond’s encounter with the vaporous apparition that kicks off Ghostbusters sets the tone for what would become the biggest comedy of all time. Her character didn’t even have a name in Dan Aykroyd’s and Harold Ramis’ script, so Bill Murray, as Dr Venkman, improvised, “Alice, I’m going to ask you a couple of standard questions, okay…?” From her debut in Carl Reiner’s Where’s Poppa? (1970), she carved an invaluable character actor niche for herself, which also included roles in Hide in Plain Sight (1980), Eyewitness (1981), The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982), Awakenings (1990) and Ace Ventura Pet Detective (1994).
We’ll never forget… her deadpan delivery, turning lines like “My uncle thought he was Saint Jerome” (in Ghostbusters) or “Dan Marino should die of gonorrhoea and rot in hell” (in Ace Ventura Pet Detective) into pure gems.

DON CALFA, Actor; died December 1, aged 76.
With his distinctive looks and great character actor presence, Don Calfa spent a career stealing scenes, however small, from some of Hollywood’s biggest stars. The Brooklyn native quit high school to acquire his SAG card and began a career in front of the camera with 1968 underground oddity No More Excuses for director Robert Downey Sr. It was the first of 88 film and TV credits, working with directors such as Peter Bogdanovich (Nickelodeon, 1976), Martin Scorsese (New York New York, 1977), Blake Edwards (10, 1979), Steven Spielberg (1941, 1979) and Warren Beatty (Bugsy, 1991).
We’ll never forget… the two vividly realised comedic roles that became fan favourites - bumbling hitman Paulie in Weekend at Bernies (1989) and mortician Ernie Kaltenbrunner in Return of The Living Dead (1985).

PAUL SYLBERT, Production Designer; died November 19, aged 88.
Some of the most beautifully composed frames in Hollywood film history have been the work of Paul Sylbert, the New Yorker who designed and dressed sets during the early days of television before a distinguished film career. Following active service in Korea, he relocated to Los Angeles and was soon crafting the visual texture of such films as One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), Kramer Vs Kramer (1979), Blow Out (1981), Ishtar (1987) and Biloxi Blues (1988). His beautiful work was twice recognised by the Academy; he won his only Oscar in 1978 for Heaven Can Wait then, 13 years later, earned a nomination for The Prince of Tides (1991).
We’ll never forget… the combined body of work left by Paul and his twin brother, the late Richard Sylbert, also one of Hollywood’s greatest ever production designers (Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; Shampoo; Chinatown; Reds; The Cotton Club).

SONIA BORG, Scriptwriter, Producer; died February 4, aged 85.
Many hours of great drama during the formative years of Australian television can be credited to Sonia Borg. The Viennese immigrant landed at Crawford Productions after her Shakespearean touring troupe had brought The Bard’s work to Hong Kong, India and beyond; once in Melbourne, she produced, directed and acted in such landmark series as Homicide, Division 4, Matlock, Rush, Power Without Glory and I Can Jump Puddles (pictured, right; with actor Leonard Teale). The Australian film industry will always remember her as the writer of the classic film adaptation Storm Boy, family pics Blue Fin and Dusty and, exhibiting her versatility, the Tarantino-endorsed killer-croc pic Dark Age.
We’ll never forget… “Birds like him, never die.”

MARGARET WHITTON Actress; died December 4, aged 67.
In an acting ensemble that included Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger and Wesley Snipes, somehow the ballsiest cast member of them all was Margaret Whitton, as hardbitten club owner Rachel Phelps in David S. Wards’ Major League. So indelible was her impact on the testosterone-fuelled comedy, it would be the role that defined her character actor career, despite years spent on stage (she debuted on Broadway in Neil Dunn’s acclaimed  Steaming) and television (The Doctors; Miami Vice). An inauspicious debut in 1975’s Teenage Hitchhikers led to a Hollywood career that included The Best of Times (1986), 9½ Weeks (1986), The Secret of My Success (1987), Ironweed (1987) and Man Without a Face (1993).
We’ll never forget… that locker-room cool; her sexy, steel-willed persona that brought a sweaty, sweary bunch of manly men to their knees.

ALBERTO SEIXAS SANTOS, Director; died December 10, aged 80.
One of Portugal’s most respected filmmakers, Santos was elected President of the Portuguese Film Institute in 1976 at the age of 40. Beginning his career as a film critic, he studied film production in Paris and London before becoming an integral creative force in the ‘Novo Cinema’ movement of the late 60s. His first feature, the politically-charged drama Brandos Costumes, screened at the Berlin Film Festival. A committed advocate of his native film industry, he formed the film collective Grupo Zero, which encouraged free-spirited and socially conscious works.
We’ll never forget… his divisive 1999 drama Mal (Evil), a multi-strand narrative that examines gender roles and social ills in contemporary Lisbon; a Best Film winner at Coimbra Caminhos do Cinema Português and Golden Lion nominee at the Venice Film Festival.

TADEUSZ CHMIELEWSKI, Director; died December 4, aged 89.
Considered the godfather of post-war Polish comedy and one his nation’s most accomplished filmmakers, Chmielewski was shooting his breakout hit Ewa chce spac (Eva Wants to Sleep) only two years after graduating from the prestigious National Film School in 1954. When it earned Film and Screenplay honours at San Sebastian, Chmielewski became a national celebrity and outspoken advocate for his film industry peers. When not directing his own hits (Walet Pikowy, 1960; Pieczone golabki, 1960; How I Unleashed World War II, 1970), he would write for the likes of Andrzej Czekalski (Pelnia nad glowani, 1983) and Jacek Bromski (U Pana Boga za piecem, 1998). He was recognised for his unified approach to the national cinema when elected as Vice President of Polish Filmmaker’s Association (1983-1987) and was given the Medal for Merit to Culture in 2010.
We’ll never forget… his active service with the National Armed Forces during and after World War II while still in his teens.

DAVID HAMILTON, Director; died November 25, aged 83.
Ailing health and the sordid details of an alleged sexual assault kept British filmmaker and photographer David Hamilton a virtual recluse in his final years; he died from an apparent suicide in his Paris apartment. At the height of his fame, his controversial portraits of naked, often pre-teenage girls and young women were both celebrated and reviled by the mid-70s cognoscenti. Graduating from stills to film, he maintained his grainy, soft-focus aesthetic and artistic obsession with the nubile female form and blossoming sensuality. His narrative feature debut, Bilitis (1977) was an arthouse sensation; the follow-up, Laura (1979) a worldwide hit. Subsequent works Tendres Cousine (1980), A Summer in St Tropez (1983) and First Desires (1983) were more of the same and dwindled in popularity.
We’ll never forget… how he defined his subject matter when questioned in 1995: ““Nudity and purity, sensuality and innocence, grace and spontaneity; we made contradictions of them. I try to harmonize them, and that’s my secret and the reason for my success.”

SULABHA DESHPANDE, Actress; died June 4, 2016, age 79.
One of India’s most beloved character actresses, Sulabha Deshpande featured in over 73 Bollywood films and countless hours of television since her debut Silence! The Court is in Session in 1971. Much of her film work was to support her philanthropic arts, which included the groundbreaking experimental theatre group Rangayan and the establishment of new Marathi and Hindi theatre groups throughout the 70s and 80s. Her key film roles were in Arvind Desai Ki Ajeeb Dastaan (1978), Gaman (1978), Bazaar (1982), Ijaazat (1987) and English Vinglish (2012).
We’ll never forget… her undertaking to introduce children to the joys of live theatre, a goal that led to the establishment of the junior theatre company Chandrashala in the mid 70s.

FAN HO, Director; died June 19, aged 78.
Considered one of China’s most acclaimed photographers, Fan Ho graduated to feature directing in 1970 with the hit film Mei (Lost). He was oon signed to the Shaw Brothers stable, where he delivered such artistically pleasing and wildly popular works The Girl With The Long Hair (1975), Innocent Lust (1977) and Notorious Frame Up (1978). A split from the giant studio led to a lean period until, in 1982, he returned with the evocative works Expensive Tastes (1982), Two for the Road (1984) and Smile Again (1985). Late in his career, his tastes became increasingly provocative; his final films were the tasteful if fleshy I Desire (1987), Brief Encounter (1988), Erotic Nights (1989) aand Temptation Summary (1990).
We’ll never forget… that five of his films have been selected for preservation status, earning a spot in the ‘Permanent Collection’ of the National Film Archives of Taiwan and Hong Kong.