So I wake up unusually early on my welcomed, not to mention out of the ordinary, day off, it’s 7am and I can’t seem to go back to sleep. Finally I realize it’s because it is pouring rain and I can hear the sloshing of cars driving by and roll of thunder in the distance. Argh. Unless it clears up in the next few hours, I don’t think this hike is going to happen.
You see, I had decided that I would stay this extra day in Prairie du Chien so I could hike up to view the Effigy Mounds. I’d been talking a lot about them to my co-worker and he decided to stay the weekend so he could do some of the hikes. I had already planned on leaving Thursday night to head up to St. Paul, but since I may never be back in this area again I thought I would spend today hiking and then drive up to St. Paul tonight. Alas, it’s a veritable downpour out there.
But since I was up, I went out to have some of the not-so-bad breakfast for an Americinn. I grabbed some eggs, made a little waffle, and a glass of milk then plopped myself down in front of the TV in the lobby only to have “Good Morning America” inform me that today is a sad day. John Ritter and Johnny Cash died.
Now Cash was 71 and I’m not as surprised to hear this, especially since his wife passed away earlier this year, but Ritter? Good ol’ John? Jack Tripper? He was only 54! And I loved him! You may think my love for him is all because of Three’s Company, but it’s not. That’s where it started, but as time went by he earned my respect with some of the characters chose to play. In “Sling Blade” he played a gay store manager and on Felicity {I watched one episode of that show} he seemed to play some ones alcoholic father? Of course, those who knew me in my early college years know we loved to make fun of the Monday Night Movies and “The Colony” was one of our favorites where John Ritter moves his family into a private neighborhood that ends up being like a commune they can’t escape from. Then of course was the time he played the police chief in “Bride of Chucky.” But I think I loved him most of all when he decided to play a robot on Buffy who dates her mother and turns evil.
Not to overshadow Johnny Cash of course who has wowed us with his renditions of favorites such as “Rusty Cage” and “Hurt.” It sort of tickles me to think Cash and Ritter spent the morning taking that walk towards who knows where and maybe they bumped into each other and discovered they really like each other. I can see this being the making of a great “Monday Night Movie” already.
I share in your sadness for both of these great men. Sounds like someone somewhere needed to laugh and enjoy the music.
Hey, I took all those pictures currently in the right side column! You and Maddy do look crazy, btw. (Look?)
Ok, in no way, shape, or form do I mean to besmirch the memory of John Ritter, but you can’t be suggesting that he belongs on the same American Cultural Icon level as Johnny Cash.
aaron steals from my brain.. he is right as rain.
Wasn’t JR (John Ritter, not Cash, as his real name is JR and not Johnny) also in “IT” that crazy Stephen King movie/book? “Come on down Billy, we all float down here!” I always get a kick out of that clown. Both will be missed. I Walk the Line and sing the Folsom Prison Blues with a Boy Named Sue.
Didn’t JR play a minister in some movie…maybe even an episode of that christian show about angels? What the heck is the name of that show?! Anyway, I, too, loved JR, although in a very distinctly different way than my love for the Man in Black (which he first donned at the Grand Ole Oprey at the young age of 25).
I’m not afraid to admit I was more moved by John Ritter’s death. I tapped my toes as much as anyone when a Johnny Cash song came on but I was never a true fan. Maybe if PGH radio stations had played something besides Def Leppard and Eddie Money I’d know better…
My favorite JR moment was the glow in the dark condom cock fight in “Skin Deep”. I love 3’s company but Johnny Cash will forever be the man. As Rancid says in the title track of their new album “through music you will live forever” same is true about film.
Reading all of the comments above, I am reminded of some idiot DJ asking rhetorically on the air whose death was more newsworthy. It bothered me greatly, and I immediately changed the station. It’s not like comparing apples to oranges, as they are both huge entertainers, yet we could say it is like comparing Granny Smiths to Fujis, right? Each have their own great chracteristics (and one is better for baking). Okay, so I’m not great at analogies…but you get my drift, no?
I will at least have a piece of John Ritter history….I own an authentic Cosby Show script..the one that John guest starred on. Oh how we will miss you so down at our ron de’vou… or was that dom on on a vou?? RIP Jack…we shall all salute you with a “stiff one” at the Regal Begal.
Wow! A lot of comments about this. And Max! I totally forgot about IT which I loved! That clown, jesus…need I explain my fear of clowns to anyone now?