When I posted about his death on my FB page, the remarks were divided between nostalgia (childhood for us boomers, MACHINE the wild ride we treasured) and dismissal of his acting ("...if your coffee table is damaged, he's a perfect replacement...") Funny, I never thought about Taylor's acting. He was one of those early 60s screen presences that defined the era, and when you watch him in BIRDS, with some of the most bizarre dynamics -- he has to call his mother, the great Tandy, "dear," and deal with his bitter sexually frustrated about-to-come-out-as lesbian ex-girlfriend, Pleshette, while wooing the brittle flat-voiced manequin in Edith Head mint green, The Tippi -- he is remarkably sturdy. Yeah, like a nice coffee table, not a breakable one. Hitch and Evan Hunter also gave the 32ish Taylor a child sister in that film, making the Freudian brew of ick factors all the more unsettling. Rod, you were the times in which you lived for many of us. And the cheesey "Sunday in New York" was one of those movies that made NYC look like everybody's dream destination in adulthood.
"I'm a comedian, but in my spare time, things bother me." Garry Shandling
Updated On: 1/10/15 at 10:43 AM
.jpg?format=auto&width=365)
