Bye, Jack
Posted by admin, Fri Nov 10 13:28:23 UTC 2006
CBC.ca Arts – Hollywood tough guy Jack Palance dies
Square-jawed actor Jack Palance, who won an Oscar late in his career in the comedy City Slickers, died Friday. He was 87.
I was reminded of a strange little incident that occurred one night, at the townhouse condo where I lived for 7 years. Late one Friday night, around midnight or so, I had just gone to bed, and was drowsing, almost asleep. Through my open window I heard my next door neighbour, who shared my front steps, come home with a group of people. My neighbour, Chad, enjoyed entertaining, and frequently brought people home for a few after dinner drinks. Not too surprising. But this evening, as the people walked up the front steps, casually chatting, something nagged at me. I recognised a voice, but half asleep, I couldn’t quite place it. Then, just as Chad’s front door closed, shutting off the voices, it hit me. That voice that sounded so familiar was Jack Palance. Suddenly I was wide awake. Cool.
Did I mention that Chad, is actually Chad Oakes, movie producer, of Nomadic Pictures? That must have been when they were filming Ebenezer. Movie producer or not, Chad was the best next-door neighbour I ever had. I know that he really liked Jack, and thought of him as a friend. I hope you had a chance to say goodbye, Chad.