HAPPY PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE DAY 2025 (12/28)

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2025, ADDAMS STYLE

 

FAREWELL, JAMES RANSONE

Most know you as Ziggy Sobolka from The Wire, but you also engaged in other edgy, pulpy and intense fare, all of which helped to fortify your fanbase. 

You starred in Sinister, Sinister 2, It Chapter Two, The Black Phone, The Black Phone II, Prom Night 2008, V/H/S/85, In a Valley of Violence, Generation Kill, Inside Man, Ken Park, Low Winter Sun, Treme, How to Make It in America, The American Astronaut, Bosch, Puccini for Beginners, The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll, The Lie, Mr. Right, The Son of No One, Broken City, Empire State, Captive State, Oldboy, Starlet, Red Hook Summer, Electric Slide, Cymbeline, Kristy, Tangerine, The Timber, Bloomin Mud Shuffle, Year of the Rat, It Happened in L.A., Write When You Get Work, What We Found, Small Engine Repair ... and Family Blood. 

Because of your prevalent depth and versatility, your passing surprised many, Mr. Ransone, and the lament and confusion stirred from such cannot be understated. For whatever anguish you endured, we can only trust that it has been eased, and for those of us who carry on, know full well that your work will never cease to resonate.

I SAW THE HOUSEMAID

The Housemaid, directed by Paul (Last Christmas) Feig and adapted by Rebecca Sonnenshine from Frieda McFadden's novel, is part of a tried-and-true, psycho-thriller subgenre, where terror strikes from an unassuming setting (often involving a babysitter, neighbor or coworker, whether the person is revealed as the recipient or administrator of the inevitable torment) with slow-burn angst stretched throughout, capped by a cataclysmic climax. 

The movie's effective headliners are the sexy-as-sin Sydney Sweeney as Millie Calloway, the titular servant, who just so happens to have a criminal past; Amanda Seyfried as Nina Winchester, the abrasive, Long Island resident who employees her; and Brandon Skelnar as Nina's suave, affluent husband, Andrew. To add to the flavor, Indiana Elle plays Cecella, the Winchesters' privileged daughter; Elizabeth Perkins plays Evelyn, Andrew's demanding mother; and Michele Morrone plays Enzo, the estate's enigmatic, Italian gardener.  

Millie does her best to please, doing all that's required of her and then some, but it's never enough to satisfy Nina. Nina is, for all of her surface value, a variant of California's gubernatorial candidate, Katie Porter (or any number of callous and/or clueless bosses one may have encountered over the years), but what can Millie do under the stressful circumstances if she wishes to keep her lucrative job (and in the process, avoid breaking her parole)? At least, Mr. Winchester comes across as a pretty decent guy, but even there, the charm (and subsequent, sexual tension) only goes so far to mollify the trouble. Also, for Andrew's part, one soon learns that all that glitters isn't gold (pardon the cliche). 

Seyfried has a tour de force playing her demented bully, and that she resembles Sweeney's Miller gives their contrasting personalities an implied, Jekyll/Hyde (two-sides-of-the-same-coin) dynamic. (The two could have portrayed sisters, in all honesty, and maybe that would have been better for the story's ultimate overlap.) In any event, one participant pulls for sympathy, while the other draws dislike, but are the extremes what they appear to be? There comes a point when things go big-time topsy-turvy, and it's a matter of whether Millie will succumb to the encroaching madness or seize some semblance of stability.  

The Housemaid will be identifiable to anyone who's experienced any sort of toxic relationship, whether at home, work or wherever people congregate for whatever "casual" cause. That one may tap a ruthless chain of events is always a possibility in life, and The Housemaid epitomizes the prospect, even if on exaggerated, multiple-ending terms. Again, it's one of those tales that could happen to any of us in the wrong place at the wrong time, all due to the intrinsic monsters we feed.

FAREWELL, BOB BURNS

As a collector, you possessed some of the best in science fiction, horror and fantasy, paving the way for others (like myself) to build our own special museums. 

In addition to collaborating with the prolific monster-maker, Paul Blaisdell, you proved yourself a fine actor, particularly in the gorilla-suit realm, making the Mighty Kogar the stuff of legend, while turning Tracy into a beloved icon for Saturday morning's The Ghost Busters. 

Your fun also influenced annual, Halloween stage events, where you reenacted scenes from Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, The Exorcist, Frankenstein, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Thing from Another World, Forbidden Planet, Alien, The War of the Worlds and The Time Machine. (And for the latter, you featured the titular prop from George Pal's 1960, classic adaptation, which you refurbished through pure, tender loving care.)  

Above all, you made it a point to be friendly to your fans, whether in person or on the phone, and in truth, you were a stalwart friend to even those who never had the pleasure to meet you in person. That's how warm and open your personality was.

May you now assume the position of Grand Celestial Curator, Mr. Burns, displaying our celluloid memories (and all the imprints of all their coveted collectibles) beyond Heaven's gates ... beyond Heaven's stars. 

GODSPEED, GIL GERARD

You were an indisputable hero to me, and it commenced when my friend, Scott, and I played hooky from school to catch Buck Rogers in the 25th Century in Spring 1979.

My admiration for you then spread into the weekly Glen A. Larson series, which gave me substantial escape every Thursday night from the frightful pangs of school, where I watched you engage with top-tier guest stars, alien creatures and a perpetual spree of gorgeous gals. 

Before and after Buck Rogers, you made the rounds, sharing your skills in Little House on the Prairie, which impressed Michael Landon enough to give you the lead in The Killing Stone. You also got on board Airport '77, International Airport, Hear No Evil, Star Trek: Phase II, Hawaii Five-O, Man on a Swing, Nightingales, Hooch, Some of My Best Friends Are, Fugitive Mind, Air Rage, Looking for Bruce, Psycho Hillbilly Massacre!, Stormin' Home, Ransom for Alice, Dire Wolf, Mom Can I Keep Her?, Fish Police, Boldly Gone, Fury to Freedom, Soldier's Fortune, The Nice Guys, Not Just Another Affair, Surge of Power II: The Sequel, Blood Fare, Monsters Madmen & Machines, Final Notice, Johnny Blue, The Big Easy, Help Wanted: Male, For Love or Money, Brotherly Love, Pacific Blue, Days of Our Lives and carried on as a regular for Sidekicks and E.A.R.T.H. Force. You also acted as a superb host for Fox's Code 3 and were the stellar subject of Discovery's Action Hero Makeover. You even entered the experimental, web realm for Buck Rogers Begins, reteaming with your dear costar and friend, Erin Gray, and reunited with her as well for the movie, Nuclear Hurricane.   

You set an ideal blueprint for virility and justice in your portrayals, Mr. Gerard. For many of us, that was important, if not essential, during our developmental years and still stands as an important catalyst for getting any job done. You meant a lot to us, in other words, and always will. Godspeed, my adventurous, guiding friend!