Kolchak is gone; RIP Darren McGavin

[pasta]

From his website: It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Darren McGavin at approximately 7:10 A.M. Pacific time today, Saturday Feb 25, 2006. Darren was just three months short of his 84th birthday. While we suspect none of us can imagine a world without the beloved, feisty little red-head, it is time to reflect, give thanks for his life and hold in reverence his memory. Darren is gone, but in many respects he will always be with us: as Carl Kolchak, fighting authority and battling monsters; the grumpy Old Man sending curses over Lake Michigan; as David Ross, the outsider, Grey Holden, captain of the Enterprise, the irascible detective Mike Hammer or any number of memorable guest star appearances, most notably as Joe Bascome on GUNSMOKE and as the washed-up old actor from "Distant Signals."

Please take a moment in your sadness to reflect upon all the ways Darren touched your lives, say a prayer and raise a glass to toast a career which spanned over fifty years and affected us all in ways too numerous to count.

S. L. Kotar and J. E. Gessler

[Aggie87]

Wow...Don Knotts AND Darren McGavin... R.I.P. Darren....the real Kolchak.

And the perfect father figure in Christmas Story too.

[BERIGAN]

Wow...Don Knotts AND Darren McGavin... R.I.P. Darren....the real Kolchak.

And the perfect father figure in Christmas Story too.

Absolutely! Darren McGavin must have been a pretty good actor, I never for a second thought he was too old (60 at the time) to be the father of those two young kids.

While checking IMDB.com to see what else McGavin did, I saw this title...

Am thinking I might have seen this back in 1976.

[chris olivarez]

Wow...Don Knotts AND Darren McGavin... R.I.P. Darren....the real Kolchak.

And the perfect father figure in Christmas Story too.

You said it. R.I.P Darren.

[Harold_Z]

Darren McGavin

It seems like he's always been around. Mike Hammer, Kolchak, Naked City.

Sad news.

[Dave James]

Couldn't let this thread disappear without a quick comment.

I guess as an actor, one of your goals would have to be doing something that will resonate with fans long after your career has ended. With "A Christmas Story" Darren McGavin "penned" a piece of work that fits comfortably into that category. This is a movie that will be watched years from now with the same level of enjoyment and "harken back to a simpler time" enthusiasm that it is watched right now. If that was all he'd ever done, he is to be commended. Fragile...the leg lamp...the Bumphus hounds...the furnace...the flat tire...and a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200 shot Range Model Air Rifle. Saddafinga, indeed.

Up over and out.