Friday, August 16, 2024

GOODBYE, GENA ROWLANDS

Your indie work was pulpy, raw ... realistic, thanks to that Cassavetes touch, which translated well to the noir, television series, Johnny Staccato (based on Frank Boyd's popular persona), in which both you and John starred. 

Your legacy holds as much Cassavetes weight (and well beyond) among your many features: A Woman Under the Influence (for which you earned an Oscar nomination), Faces, Shadows, A Child is Waiting, The Notebook (directed by your son, Nick), Opening NightThe Brink's Job, Machine Gun McCain, Tony Rome, The Skeleton Key, The Incredible Mrs. RitchieMontanaLonely are the Brave, Tempest, What if God were the Sun?Love Stream, Two-Minute Warning, The Spiral Road, Taking Lives, Playing by Heart, Once Around, Hope Floats, Hysterical BlindnessMinnie and Moskowitz, Ted & Venus, The Betty Ford Story, An Early FrostThe Mighty, Light of Day, Night on Earth, Persepolis, Parallel LivesParts Per Billion, Broken English, Crazy in LoveYellow, Paulie, Another Woman, Grace and Glorie, Wild Iris, The Color of Love: Jacey's Story, Best Friends for LifeFace of a StrangerStrangers: A Story of Mother and DaughterSix Dance Lessons in Six Weeks, Hollywood Mavericks, Anything for John and I'm Almost Not Crazy: John Cassavetes, a Man and His Work

And on television, you carried a load of special-guest spots, including Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Circle of Fear, Faerie Tale Theatre, Kraft Suspense Theater, Robert Montgomery Presents, Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre, The Dick Powell Theatre, The Lloyd Bridges Show, The Tab Hunter ShowThe United States Steel Hour, General Electric Theater, Bonanza, Laramie, The Virginian, Riverboat, 77 Sunset StripMonk, 87th PrecinctNCIS, Numb3rs, Burke's Law, Markham, Columbo, Dr. Kildare, Marcus Welby M.D., Medial Center, Breaking Point, The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., Garrison's Gorillas and for a walloping, thirty-nine episodes, Peyton Place

However, of all your portrayals, your creme de la creme remains Gloria, written/directed by John, in which you seize utter command, protecting a boy from the mob. A pure, pulp classic, pure and simple.

When all is said and done, you were beautiful, skillful ... worthy of the same ranking as Crawford, Davis and Taylor. 

Performers of your sort don't surface often, Ms. Rowlands, but that you blessed our lives is something that we should (and will) always appreciate. Beyond debate, you were (and will remain) cinematic royalty. 

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