Didn’t Make the Cut

                                                                    Part 1

        You may have (or not) noticed that when a movie personality dies, be it actor, director, writer or producer, his or her life work on the silver screen turns up as a Mr. Movie column. This is absolutely by design. The deceased’s work makes for good columns and is a nice tribute. An admission: when column matter is running low, Mr. Movie just might be wishing for a prominent death! Ouch. Anyway, it may be interesting (I hope) to read about lots of famous movie people that did not make the cut. 

The rule of thumb is that the subject needs to have at least five good movies to his or her credit to make a decent column. A surprising number of famous people do not rise to that level. 

Louise Fletcher had a stunning, Oscar-winning performance as the dreadful Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over The Cukoo’s Nest (1975). Unfortunately, that was about it for Ms. Fletcher. Though she had steady work for many years, Cukoo’s Nest was her only good movie. 

At one time, Michael Constantine seemed to be everywhere. Many TV appearances and a few movies. He had a wonderful part in My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002). He was the father of the bride, famous for recommending Windex for every purpose under the sun. He was in a couple of lame sequels. He had more than  200 TV and movie roles, but the Wedding part was the peak for him. 

Markie Post had a good run as defense attorney Christine Sullivan in the hilarious TV comedy Night Court. Despite her blonde good looks and acting chops that was about the high point for her. She did have an admittedly minor role as Mary’s mother in There’s Something About Mary (1998). That’s about it. 

Arlene Dahl, a gorgeous redhead just couldn’t seem to catch a casting break. . When the high point of your movie career is as Carla in the pretty awfu  Journey To The Center Of The  Earth (1959) that’s just sad. She worked all the time, but not in anything memorable. 

Ed Asner was widely known, and praised, for his TV work. He first impressed as Lou Grant in the long running Mary Tyler Moore Show. He was her curmudgeonly  boss with a heart of gold at the TV station. When Mary moved on he also did, in a show titled by his character. For an actor who won seven Emmys, his movie career is pretty skimpy. He had a great part as Santa Claus in Elf (2003) and was just perfect as the voice of Carl in the wonderful Up (2009). That’s about it movie-wise. 

All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Not so sure about the TV shows. Coming soon: more movie personalities that didn’t make Mr. Movie’s cut.