While growing up, there were plenty of actors out there that had my attention.  Some were “stars” and carried whatever movie/TV show they were in.  Sometimes, like in the case of Humphrey Bogart or James Dean they took over the feature they were in, sometimes to the detriment of others around them, so charismatic were they.

There is one actor, though, that seemed to always appear here and there, both in movies and television, and always seemed to be good in whatever role he was playing.  At first, these roles were predominantly the “heavy”…and he brought a growling menace to whatever bad-guy role he played.

And then something changed, most likely his bad-guy turned good role in Cool Hand Luke (a role that won him an Oscar) and, suddenly, he became equally good -perhaps even better!- in roles in which he played an at times exasperated good-guy.  He would go on to play the same role in all four Airport movies, that of Joe Patroni, mechanic and trouble solver.

And then, when you think you have him pegged, he broke out as Ed Hocken in the hilarious -and supremely silly- Naked Gun movies.

Of course I’m talking about George Kennedy.  Today’s audiences, especially those without much knowledge of movies or tv shows from ten years before, may not recognize him, but here he is in Cool Hand Luke:

And here he is in, I’m guessing, Airport 79, the last -and silliest- of the Airport films:

And of course, here he is in one of may favorite clips from The Naked Gun films, this one from the second feature.  The clip is a little long because it first sets up the George Kennedy joke to come.  Though Mr. Kennedy arrives at the 1:30 mark, its worth seeing the entire clip:

When I told my wife yesterday Mr. Kennedy had died and even though she doesn’t have the same trivia-filled mind like mine, she nonetheless instantly said: “I’m just John Q. Public now,” the line Mr. Kennedy states in the clip above, and we both laughed at the memory.

George Kennedy may not have ever risen to the ranks of a Humphrey Bogart or James Dean or Marlon Brando, but he always seemed to give it his all and, even when the film around him might have been complete shit (I’m looking at you, Airport 79), you could count on his professionalism.

Rest in peace, big fellow.  You’ve given me countless hours of wonderful entertainment.