RIP John Spencer and Vincent Shiavelli

[bobster]

As a big fan of that army of great working characters, this hasn't been a very good holiday season, because we lost two of the best and most memorable.

John Spencer most of us know as Leo, the Chief of Staff, from "West Wing" and for his role on "L.A. Law" (which I only vaguely recall...I think his character came on after I stopped watching it) but he'd been doing good work for decades before that. If you listened to "Fresh Air", you know his first big gig was the boyfriend of the British Patty Duke on the "The Patty Duke Show" -- looking him up on IMDB, however, it's interesting that he apparently got almost no TV or movie work between then and the early eighties...very tough business, though I assume he was doing a lot of stage stuff during at least some of that time. It looks like the start of his movie carerr was as one of the two guys in the missile silo in that memorable opening sequence of "War Games."

http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/200 ... obit_x.htm

And probably one entertainment most memorable faces, Vincent Schiavelli. It's not nice to call people "ugly", but by the usual standards, well, he certainly wasn't pretty. On the other hand, sometimes being out and out strange looking can actually be better than just looking ordinary and boy did he make use of that memorably visage. From all accounts he was a very good guy (of course, all really ugly people are always nice, unless they're named Charles Krauthammer) and he was apparently a first-rate Italian cook and wrote about it. (There was a Fresh Air interview of him too, which I imagine might be repeated this week.)

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/movies/artic ... 0000000001

The article doesn't mention it, but I knew some P.A.s on "Moonlighting" and he was married to Alyce Beasley at the time, who played Cybill Shepard's assistant on the show. They had nothing but nice stuff to say about the both of them. In any case, RIP.

[martinfoyle]

John Spencers passing will make viewing of West West, which is due to start its run here in the new year, uncomfortable viewing. It reminds me of watching the last series of Fr Ted, when Dermot Morgan died the day after the last episode was shot. Still, both there works were so good one will get beyond that and enjoy it.

[El Vez]

Wonderful actors both. I think Spencer did mostly concentrate on stage work in NY till the movie roles started coming in again while Vincent Shiavelli pretty much worked steady in the movies from One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest up to his death. I was particularly fond of Shiavelli in Fast Times At Ridemont High as well as his turn on Buffy as Jenny Calendar's gypsy uncle. Very sad to lose these guys.

[bobster]

I KNEW Vez was going to bring up the "Buffy" connection there...just knew it. Vez has fallen into my diabolical geek trap.

[selfmademug]

Just saw this. Shucks I loved John Spencer. He was a sexy bastard, I always thought.

[oily slick]

if ned beatty's 4 minutes in network were nominatable for best supporting actor then shiavelli should have gotten a look for ghost. what a great bit similarly over the top.