In Memoriam, 2015 edition

Writing Simon's birthday posts is always bittersweet, for two reasons. One, he's gone from this life now. Two, the death tribute must be written the very next day.

It's also always hard to know what to say. There isn't a lot of information out there on Simon the person; much of what we know comes from bits and pieces of biographical information (some of which may or may not be entirely correct), a brief interview with Jack Grinnage on our website, and the three or four articles that Crystal and I have discovered over the years. What we know is very positive, and Crystal highlighted some of her discoveries and conclusions in her birthday tribute yesterday.

We would love for someone who actually knew Simon to come forward and bring more information so that we could learn more about this highly talented man and share it with our readers. We would also love for more Simon performances to become available, especially rare gems such as Ready for the People, in which he had a starring role. We would find it epic to witness Simon's violin playing or one of his stage roles. And we would be ecstatic for Simon to be more widely recognized and remembered to the point of even getting a book written about him and perhaps a movie.

Of course, with character actors such things rarely happen. They are remembered fondly, but oftentimes the viewers don't place the name with the person. With the Internet age, hopefully that doesn't happen as much now. But character actors are not the ones who get tributes, biopics, biographies, etc. written about them, except in very rare cases. This is more of a shame than ever since character actors are so incredibly talented that they slip into their parts so totally and completely that they are believable as everything from a callous outlaw to an honest military man. In many cases, they are every bit as talented as the headlining stars, and sometimes even moreso.

This is certainly the case with Simon. Of course, with his humble and unassuming nature, he was probably content to never be in the limelight enough to actually win awards, no matter how deserved. But we still wish he had. Performances such as Frank Epstein on Hawaii 5-O and Captain Beechum on The Twilight Zone are so completely opposite each other yet both are supremely powerful. Frank is a bitter and angry man, and it's hard to fault him for that, after the torture he went through that ruined his life and his friend's apparent betrayal to their captors. Captain Beechum is a stern and no-nonsense commander, but very compassionate and concerned for his men's welfare and also that of strangers he's never seen. Both try to do the right thing throughout their episodes and both are, in the end, good and upright.

Whether aligned with good or ill, Simon's characters were so very human ninety-nine percent of the time. And even the few that did not appear to show any redeeming qualities whatsoever were magnificently played. After all, for such a good person to portray someone as evil as Mel Barnes takes incredible talent.

Crystal and I have a new Simon project this year: a branch of the fansite on Tumblr, where we post weekly pictures and GIFsets and occasionally other material as well. This week it's my turn to do the pictorial tribute and it falls right on the anniversary of Simon's death. I chose to do the tribute on Captain Beechum. http://simonoaklandtribute.tumblr.com/post/127857615598/simon-and-mike-kellin-on-the-twilight-zone

It's hard to believe that this year marks 32 years since Simon left us. But we will continue to remember and celebrate him, and know that the countless people who appreciate Simon's amazing talents are enjoying his performances right along with us.

Even if some of them still haven't put a name to his face.

~Lucky_Ladybug

In Memoriam, 2013 Edition

It’s terrible that it’s been a year since this blog was updated. But even while, as Rose says, we ventured into other fandoms, we never forgot Simon. We never could. And during this bittersweet time, when Simon’s birthday and today, his death day, are here, we had to come and further celebrate this wonderful man with new posts.

Throughout the year, I have remained on the lookout for any and all new Simon footage and have sometimes chanced to re-watch some of my old favorites. And to my happy surprise, I have succeeded in turning up some more things with Simon that I hadn’t previously seen, including some I’d been trying to see for ages.

It’s been just over a year since a MeTV affiliate came to my area. I have been basking in the joy of having so many of the best shows available on broadcast television. And at long last, I was able to catch and record both Simon’s third Daniel Boone episode and his sole Kojak episode.

In both, he plays characters who are relatively good. In Daniel Boone’s Bickford’s Bridge, he is an adversary, strongly opposed to destroying a bridge he and his family built so the British won’t get to it. They have their crops on the other side of the bridge and he can’t bear to ruin the bridge and not have a way to bring in their food, after they slaved so hard to make their unusual home fully habitable. But in the climax, when the British arrive and there’s a battle, he sees Daniel in mortal danger and comes to rescue him. In horror he says that he lost sight of what was really important and was putting the bridge above human life.

On Kojak, he’s an ex-cop-turned-security guard, for a company that’s being targeted by bomb threats. He wants to report it to the police before someone gets hurt, but his boss forbids it on the threat of firing him if he tries. After having lived on the salary of a cop for so many years, and now having moved up to something more luxurious, he can hardly bear to leave it all behind. So he goes along with what the boss wants, amid protests.

While Kojak’s right-hand man Detective Crocker doesn’t like the guy, Kojak himself seems to be willing to give him a break, citing how he hires a lot of retired cops. And when confronted by Kojak and Crocker, he does agree to help them out. At the end, he’s furious over what the criminals have done and says he’s going to yell at his boss for ordering him to keep quiet. Kojak jokes that he bets the guy will really go in and end up saying “Good morning” instead.

This character reminds me a bit of Vern St. Cloud, in that he’s a strange mixture of being a bit spineless and yet will still stand up and do what has to be done. He’s very lovable to that effect, as only Simon can make him.

I also ran across a very disturbing villain, in the Tales of Wells Fargo episode Portrait of Teresa. He’s the former boyfriend of Teresa, and he’s very bitter and possessive about being dropped. He says that he doesn’t mind if other men want to date her, but first he must brand Teresa with his mark so that everyone else will know she was his.

Anyone else would play this character absolutely with no redeeming points whatsoever, and while Simon occasionally does that as well, he doesn’t here. The man is obviously off his rocker. To listen to him speak, to hear his utter desperation and his sincere belief that this is something that has to be done to keep hold of his honor … Simon succeeds in somehow creating a pitiable figure instead of an utter monster. This guy needs help. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get it; he ends up being killed in the climax after he incites a shoot-out.

I have been seeking the Disney film Scandalous John for quite some time and finally obtained it. It’s a Don Quixote-type tale, of a man living in the present who likes to pretend it’s the Old West. Simon plays his antagonist, his archenemy, but by the end of their clashing he has come to respect John and doesn’t want anything to happen to him. It’s a very moving part, and the movie in general, although billed as a comedy, really is more dramatic than humorous. I think it’s the only thing Simon did for Disney, and it is a gem.

And finally, I turned up his Men Into Space episode, Quarantine. It involves two scientists clashing repeatedly, frustrating the other characters. Simon’s character seems to particularly have a bad attitude. When the other scientist mysteriously falls sick, I wondered if they’d have it be that Simon’s character was responsible. But he isn’t, and is honestly concerned for his comrade. It’s largely due to his efforts that they manage to find a cure. And the two end up deciding to try to be friends and work together at the end.

While it’s always exciting to watch Simon in any role, I particularly love the thrill of finding a surprise good guy! His Men Into Space character surprised me the most, although I also wondered how Bickford would turn out.

Rose and I have both been watching some of Simon’s classic performances yesterday and today. As we reflect on a life over far too soon, we will continue to help keep his memory alive by sharing the joy of Simon’s amazing characters and continuing to seek out the performances we haven’t yet seen.

We love you, Simon. And we always will.

~Lucky Ladybug

In Memoriam

It was 28 years ago today, August 29^th, 1983, when the world lost one of its greatest and most versatile character actors.

It seems surreal whenever I actually stop to think about it: Simon died three years before I was even born. (And there are other actors I admire who died many years before that.) He is deeply missed; 68 is far too young to die. Although, no matter whether he passed away in 1983 or 2010, the feeling of having lost someone special would persist.

It’s hard to fully know what to say without sounding trite or silly. But Simon’s memory lives on in every single role he played, every line he spoke, and every look he gave. He appeared in so very many productions through the years, some of them still highly beloved today, that I wouldn’t find it surprising if somewhere in the world, every day, someone is watching a character he brought to life. On any given day, someone could be viewing West Side Story or Psycho or Kolchak: The Night Stalker, or countless other entertainment in which Simon took part. It’s not every actor for which such statements could be made and actually have the chance of being true. But in general, everyone who watches old movies and television shows has a high chance of encountering Simon somewhere along the way. He has appeared at least once in almost every major genre: comedy, drama, Western, adventure, action, horror, musical, war, historical, science-fiction, fantasy, and crime. There’s something for everyone.

All who worked with Simon have described him as a thoroughly professional actor and a wonderful man. He was happily married for forty-plus years and fathered a daughter. And he touched Heaven knows how many lives with his performances, on stage, on film, and on television.

I post now and then on findagrave.com, to Simon’s page and others. For the time being, it is the only way I feel I can leave a message “to” him. But I like to think that someday I will be able to speak with him personally and tell him how much I have enjoyed his work.

You are, and ever will be, remembered and missed, Simon.

~Lucky Ladybug