I was very happy when David Strathairn was nominated for an Oscar for his performance in Good Night and Good Luck, as he's an actor I've loved for years in small roles especially in Matewan, A League of Their Own, and Passion Fish (he was a great Cajun in that one).
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000657/
Not exactly a small part but I remember him from "Delores Claiborne." Dirty looking and foul in character, I was very satisfied seeing him go down that well.
I've been watching Bruce Dern this evening, thinking of all the character rolls he's done. The one I'm watching is The Cowboys, in which he brutally murders John Wayne.
He's one cold-hearted bastard in that one. The way he terrorized that boy was just the epitome of wretchedness.
It's been great fun, Boidy, to read about all the great actors and actresses, bringing back good memories.
Another actress who seemed always in the background but who was vital to the whole, was Kathleen Freeman. Here is part of a Wickepedia write up:
Quote:Still other film roles included appearances in the horror film The Fly (1958), the Western spoofs Support Your Local Sheriff! (1969) and Support Your Local Gunfighter (1971), and appearances in a spate of comedies in the 1980s and 1990s.
Freeman played Sister Mary Stigmata in John Landis' The Blues Brothers and Blues Brothers 2000, had cameos in Joe Dante's Innerspace and Gremlins 2 (as tipsy cooking host Microwave Marge in 2), and a Ma Barker type gangster mother in Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult.
Freeman was also a familiar presence on television, from the 1950s until her death, with regular or recurring roles on many sitcoms, including Topper (as Katie the maid), Hogan's Heroes (as Frau Gertrude Linkmeyer, General Burkhalter's sister, who longed to wed Colonel Klink), The Beverly Hillbillies (in a story arc as Flo Shafer, wife of conman Phil Silvers), the short-lived prehistoric sitcom It's About Time (as Mrs. Boss), and as the voice of Peg Bundy's mom, an unseen character on Married... with Children. She played guest roles on countless other shows, from I Love Lucy to Home Improvement.
mac and eoe, Strathairn has the amazing ability to be a terrific guy (Passion Fish) and an SOB (Dolores Claiborne). He's a major talent.
Edgar, when Dern is good, he's very very good. But when he's bad, he's better. (Borrowing from Mae West; couldn't resist.)
Diane, Hiya kid. Thanks for stopping by. And thanks for reminding me of Kathleen Freeman. For some reason, when you mentioned her, I thought of Ethel Merman. Merman's talents weren't geared to movies. Just too big and broad. I think Freeman could pull off the "Merman parts." More of a screen actress.
Jack Black in "High Fidelity".
Mykelti Williams as Bubba in "Forrest Gump".
George Sanders in Rebecca (I'm tempted to add, and in All About Eve, but his part in the latter may be too big to qualify for this thread).
Dooley Wilson in "Casablanca." How could we have forgotten this?
bree wrote:George Sanders in Rebecca (I'm tempted to add, and in All About Eve, but his part in the latter may be too big to qualify for this thread).
Oh but Addison DeWitt was a wonderful character. He deserves a shout out just because he was...
eoe, Sorry to say I didn't see High Fidelity. I've seen Jack Black in some mediocre movies but not in parts small enough to qualify for this thread. He seems to be a talented guy. As for Mykelti Williamson (the shrimp king) in Forrest Gump, he was wonderful. Wasn't he in Waiting to Exhale and the tv movie of 12 Angry Men? I thought he was good in the latter, less so in the former.
bree, Feel free to add All About Eve. I don't think that the part of Addison DeWitt was too big for this thread. And Sanders was superb. The perfect marriage of part and actor. So far the only actor in a smaller role we haven't mentioned from the movie is Gary Merrill. He was good. Not outstanding, though, IMO. Didn't hurt that he was Bette Davis's real-life husband.
Andy, Of course I remember Dooley Wilson from Casablanca. Admit I remember the piano playing and singing more than the acting. Maybe I need to take another look, but I'm not sure I want to see this movie again. (Ducking as people throw things at me.)
Looking up. Is it safe?
Gonna mention Rick Moranis in Ghostbusters. How can someone be an ubernerd and a possessed demon both at the same time? He did it.
Dooley Wilson isn't given very many lines in Casablanca. This kind of limits his acting. But he is just so right in the role, absolutely natural and believable (unlike the ham-it-up role Peter Lorre plays, also an unusually small part for so well-known an actor).
Roberta wrote:As for Mykelti Williamson (the shrimp king) in Forrest Gump, he was wonderful. Wasn't he in Waiting to Exhale and the tv movie of 12 Angry Men? I thought he was good in the latter, less so in the former.
I thought Mykelti was perfect as the druggy louse in "Waiting to Exhale". As for "12 Angry Men", he, along with all of the other actors in that remake, including Tony Danza, were superb. Not a weak performance in the bunch. That was the best remake of any movie I've ever seen.
Has anyone mentioned Edward Norton's first movie appearance (Primal Fear)? His sudden personality change truly frightened me.
Bette Davis and Anne Baxter were the two principal actors in "All About Eve," just about the best ensemble cast ever assembled, so the memorable bit part for me is Marilyn Monroe in the staircase scene just as an event in film history.
Danny Glover in "Witness".
eoe, I barely remembered Mykelti from Waiting to Exhale. Don't know why. My memory of him in the other two movies is vivid. Yup, the remake of 12 Angry Men was a good one--with outstanding performances. And Danny Glover was super in Witness--and The Color Purple.
LW, Forgot about MM in All About Eve. Loved that staircase scene.
Wande, Thought Edward Norton was positively brilliant in Primal Fear. But that was a mighty big part for this thread. However, Frances McDormand was also wonderful in that movie. Of course, she's wonderful in everything she does.
Telly Savalas in the Birdman of Alcatraz. That movie had yet another superb Thelma Ritter performance. And just remembering Neville Brand as Bull.
Lauren Bacall as Babs' mother in "The Mirror Has Two Faces". I loved the scene where they were sitting at the kitchen table, having a serious mother-daughter talk, and Bacall effortlessly worked a toothpick. Kinda like Astaire might work a top hat and tails. Sublime.
