SO LONG, SID HAIG...

You were the living blueprint for any character actor to follow, with a list of varied roles to make one's head spin.

There was good ol' "Spider Baby" (with good ol' Lon Chaney Jr); "Blood Bath"; "The Host"; "Pit Stop"; "Foxy Brown"; "Coffy"; "The Big Bird Cage"; "The Big Doll House"; (all of the latter for director Jack Hill); "Black Mama, White Mama"; "Savage Sisters"; "Beyond Atlantis" (the latter three for Eddie Romero); "THX 1138"; "Diamonds are Forever"; "Galaxy of Terror"; "The Hell with Heroes"; "C.C. and Company"; "The Firebrand"; "It's a Bikini World"; "Beach Ball"; "Point Blank '67"; "Emperor of the North Pole"; "The No Mercy Man"; "The Don is Dead"; "Swashbuckler"; "Return of the World's Greatest Detective"; "Boris and Natasha"; "Death Car on the Freeway"; "Death House"; "Dead Man's Hand"; "Dark Moon Rising"; "Bone Tomahawk"; "Hatchet 3"; "The Aftermath"; "Wizards of the Lost Kingdom II"; "Warlords"; "Creature '11"; "Beware! The Blob"; "Kill Bill, Vol 2"; "Jackie Brown"; "House of the Dead 2"; "Night of the Living Dead 3D"; "Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead"; "Devil in My Ride"; "Wonder Woman '73"; "Brotherhood of Blood"; "Lords of Salem" and "Halloween '07" (the latter two for Rob Zombie).  

On television, you were a ongoing presence as Dragos on "Jason of Star Command", but also took time to visit "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century"; "Star Trek"; "Batman '66"; "Automan"; "Get Smart"; "Charlie's Angels"; "The Fall Guy"; "The A-Team"; "MacGyver"; "Gunsmoke"; and for eight, special appearances as eight different villains, "Mission: Impossible". 

However, for fans of modern horror, you redefined it all as Captain Spaulding  in Rob Zombie's "House of 1000 Corpses"; "The Devil's Rejects"; "3 From Hell"; and "The Haunted World of El Superbeasto", giving us a "clown" who was as dangerous as he was...well (despite the immense carnage), funny. 

Your best role (and again, in greasepaint) remains Seymour Smiles in Ward Roberts' "Little Big Top": an underrated gem that demands (re)discovery. (You should have earned an Oscar for that one, if only such matters were done fairly.)

You gave gave an enormity of entertainment for fans to relish, Mr. Haig, and impacted our lives through pathos, fear and just being an all-around, good guy. We'll dearly miss you, my friend, and won't soon forget your giddy and idiosyncratic, one-of-a-kind ways.

SO LONG, SHANE RIMMER...

To fans of Gerry Anderson's "Thunderbirds" , you were the voice of Scott Tracy, a marionette of sophistication and exemplary diligence. (You also generously granted vocalizations to Anderson's "Joe 90", "The Secret Service" and "Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons".)

In the sphere of spy hi jinks, you had a more visible touch, starring in such Bond endeavors as "You Only Live Twice"; "Diamonds are Forever"; "Live and Let Die"; and "The Spy Who Loved Me". In related espionage, you appeared in "The Holcroft Covenant"; "The Billion Dollar Bubble"; "The Bourne Identity '89"; "Twilight's Last Gleaming"; "Return of the Saint"; "A Very British Coup"; "Silver Bears"; "S*P*Y*S"; "Spy Game"; and "Dr. Strangelove or How I Stopped Worrying and Love the Bomb". 

In science-fiction, fantasy and action/adventure productions (whether for the large or small screen), you visited such submissions as "Superman: the Movie"; "Superman II"; "Superman III"; "Batman Begins"; "Warlords of Atlantis"; "The People That Time Forgot"; "Rollerball '75"; "Dark Shadows '12"; "Crusoe"; "Dreamchild"; "A Kid in King Arthur's Court"; "Doctor Who"; "The Protectors"; "The Persuaders!"; "Space Truckers"; "Space Police"; "Space: 1999"; "UFO"; "Star Wars: A New Hope"; "Morons from Outer Space"; "The Arabian Adventure"; "Day of the Comet"; "Alien Autopsy"; "The Hunger"; "Hammer House of Mystery"; "Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected"; "Baffled!"; "Flaming Frontier". "Dogs of War"; "A Dangerous Age"; and "A Kiss Before Dying". 

Alas, actors of your varied caliber don't always get the recognition they deserve, but you, Mr. Rimmer, were one to remember and appreciate, no matter what the content or context. 

Thanks for the long line of impressive work and all the imaginative memories...