Firstly, when you said Eric Braeden had been on The Young and the Restless since 1980 I thought you were joking. However, I looked it up and sure enough he has! That's incredible. These pretentious actors always talk about challenging themselves in the lofty artistic pursuit of the exploration of the human condition, but Braeden seems quite content to just job it playing the same character for forty-fucking-five years! Wow. And secondly, he looks amazing for 83. I just watched a clip of him near tears, lamenting his lost home and I swear you just need to dye his hair black and he'd easily pass for 60.
Anyway, to the point of your article, I love that Braeden campaigned against leaf blowers then the whole thing blew up (pun, sorry) in his face. We do always find those delicious, don't we?
Meanwhile, Mel Gibson lost his house last week that had, in his words, "lots of cool stuff" in it, and he couldn't stop smiling. In fact he was filming the Joe Rogan podcast when the Palisades was on fire last week and even said to Rogan at the time, "My house is probably gone." And he just shrugged -- and I believe him. Of course he had more money and won't be homeless, but I tend to think Gibson for all his faults wouldn't shed a single tear if he lost all his money and worldly possessions. Perhaps that has to do with his strict Catholic beliefs, I don't know.
Yes, it's one of the benefits of being as deep and committed in faith as Gibson is. That said, it also helps to be worth a billion dollars.
And you'd be surprised how many actors would do what Braeden did - cling to a good-paying job forever. That's why when actors leave a steady role for artistic reasons, it's rare and impressive. Case in point: on M.A.S.H., Larry Linville left because he felt there was no room for the doltish Frank Burns character to grow; he became bored with the one-note role (he was a real-life renaissance man, built and flew his own planes, so he hated being stuck in a nowhere job, even if the income was good). Conversely, McLean Stevenson left M.A.S.H. because he got a big head and wanted his OWN show. Terrible decision, and it ended poorly for him.
But think about these affluent people in this most affluent neighborhood in the nation. When you see all those Pawn Stars-Antiques Roadshow type TV programs who do you think are the ones collecting and keeping these very important pieces of history? I bet a lot of priceless items got destroyed. Hopefully a lot of these thing you see at auction like the "lightsaber" from Star Wars, the Superman Suit Christopher Reeve wore, etc are kept in bank vaults. But I still suspect a lot of historic stuff got burned up.
My best friend runs the auctions at one of the most prestigious movie memorabilia auction houses in the world (I was there when the Reeve Superman suit sold). Most of these items go to museums/nonprofits, as opposed to private collections. One time a private bidder won Olivia Newton John's leather jacket from Grease (profits went to her cancer charity), but only so he could give it back to her (that way her charity got the money but she got to keep the jacket).
I took a drive down to the Ohio River in May 2020 during the whole scamdemic and in Metropolis IL there was a Superman Museum that is supposed to have a lot of memorabilia but unfortunately the Fatso Democrat Governor who is proud instead of shamed of his autogynephille brother who prances around in women's clothes had everything shut down so I didn't get inside to see it. I wonder if they have stuff like that suit in there? I was seven when that movie came out and it defined my image of Superman, Reeve was the character to me. I also came away from that 1978 Superman movie with the strange impression that "muggers" were all middle aged white guys in leisure suits. I remember Mr. Rodgers made a whole controversy out of it saying all these little kids were going to see it and jump out of the window thinking they can fly. I remember my mom taking his advice and warning my little brother how it was "make believe" and not to try to fly.
I agree with you: Eric Braeden looks a great 83 (interestingly, we share the same April 3rd birth date). And, as with you, I also like him even more for his campaigning against gas-powered leaf blowers. When living in Brussels, I was often awoken by the sound gas-powered leaf blowers the Moroccan city workers used in the park across the street - and I slept with earplugs.
I saw that Mel Gibson/Joe Rogan interview two weeks ago. It looked like Mel was on some sort of body-hyping drug(s). Or maybe he's normally goofy/hyper like that. He definitely was extremely cavalier about the loss of his home in Malibu.
What I remember the most about the Mel-Joe interview was Mel's humility in the movie he's finished the screenplay for and is soon to make. The movie starts (I believe) at the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and continues through to the death of his last Apostle. Mel said something along the lines: "This is going to be a very, very, tough movie to make. I don't know if I'll be able to pull it off. I'll do my very best."
Very kind gesture on that actor's part. Headshots can be the bane of a young actor's existence. Thankfully it's a little better these days with digital. Back when you paid by roll of film, it was murderous.
No actor wants to go back to film. Expensive, time-consuming (developing, proofs, loupes), and hard to retouch. It's all digital now. Only "artistes" still use film, not headshot photographers.
I saw a program about the making of that new Twin Peaks sequel series last year. It was a dark, weird series as usual from Lynch but he was pretty spot on in his portrayal of the current state of the country, endless strung out addicts and broken homes. The Bobby and Shelly affair from the original show didn't work out and they have a fatherless daughter drifting into drugs. Strangely, who'd know that Dana Ashbrooke would deliver one of the better performances of the new show after his B level work on the original. But in the making documentary I was shocked to see Lynch was still smoking like a chimney at his age so was not too surprised that he didn't live to be going into space at 91 like William Shatner.
With smoking, I look at it from the perspective of an alcoholic. I LIKE to drink. If I could, I'd never stop. But, I have to take sabbaticals because I don't want to die. But some people are just too addicted to their vice of choice. Lynch ended up needing constant oxygen from a tank. I'm certain the stress of the fires, having to evacuate, and the toxic air quality (deadly to people with emphysema) contributed to his passing.
I can't believe Eric Braeden is still around. He played the scientist who created the AI supercomputer called Colossus that took over the world (1970 film). And the bastard shot Cornelius and Zira!
Colossus is hard to find today - I have it on Blu-ray and it wasn't cheap. Holds up nicely, if you sub China for the Soviets.
Yes! Braeden played Dr. Otto Hasslein, who shot Zira in the back while she was holding a baby ape (in Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1973), my fave by far of the first five films).
Because Colossus was designed as a DoD nuclear war decision making system, it had multiple independent sources of power - any given power source would be difficult to turn off, but it would be impossible to deactivate the whole system. Colossus continuously threatened to launch nuclear missiles if any of its commands were disobeyed or if any attempt was made to sabotage. It had the ability to launch missiles without human intervention, which is what made it so dangerous.
Oy, your TREES! Oy, they’re invading my yard. OY, it’s TREEblinka, I’m being Holocausted! It’s BABI YARD! It’s BARK in Belsen! OYYYYYY!"... This is genius!!
BTW Dave-- your weeks that perished have been hysterically funny of late! I started writing to compliment you on your brilliant rebuttal to Vivek's insulting comments on America's contribution to culture, but I kept getting interrupted and losing my thread! I hate to say it, but maybe dry January suits you?
Thank you, Kate! I REALLY appreciate that. I think it's just that the news has been sending me so many stories that inspire the best ridicule. So I credit the general ridiculousness of the moment.
The subject of portrayals of Germans post WWII reminded me of a hilarious story from pro wrestling in the mid 2000's: at a WWE writers meeting someone actually pitched the idea of having a huge hulking blonde wrestler named John Heidenrich introduced as having been a cryogenic frozen nazi supersoldier recently unthawed. Everyone in the room's jaw bounced right off the ground right after hearing this idea, and the writer was soon fired. Funny enough a short while earlier they planned on introducing a Japanese wrestler named Kenzo Suzuki as Hirohito. It actually got so far as a video introducing the character/gimmick being aired on Raw before people in the company were able to explain just how horribly offensive people in Japan (where they planned on running) would find it.
The first thing that popped into my head when I read "Soap Star Clout", was the episode of Seinfeld, when George tried to pick-up on some girl by telling her that he "writes for a TV sitcom", and she laughs, and turns to her friend and shrieks "He's a TV writer! And he tried to use it to pick me up!"
Speaking of directorial deaths, I just saw at Wiki that Jim Abrahams died in November 2024, I've been enjoying Hot Shots! (1991) which features Valeria Golino's sizzling belly.
That was in the 60's. He settled down in Texas and became a God fearing Christian American hero, which ended up being one of the most incredible and horrific stories imaginable. In the words of the only survivor of 5 brothers Kevin Von Erich (technically 6 as one died as a toddler being electrocuted in a swimming pool in the early 60's), 3 of whom took their own lives and one who died of an overdose: "I had 5 brothers and now I'm not even a brother".
Great post, Dave! Very entertaining and informative! As someone who suffers from insomnia and rarely gets to sleep before 4 AM, I hate those fucking gas-powered leaf blowers! In a momentary bout of insanity, I often contemplate shoving one of those blowers up their ass at full power! Lol!
Even worse than the jet engine level noise, the non-English speaking and clueless beans point the blower at almost full power at the base of my door, which has gaps due to the age of the building, thus blanketing my apartment in dust and potentially Valley Fever Fungus, which almost killed my brother a few years ago during record fires near his home in CA.
I've repeatedly notified management of this issue and the fact that I'm on disability with a compromised immune system, yet RACISM is the only plausible reason for my complaint. Perhaps I should tell them my closest friendships, 45 years and counting, are all beans, and I spent much of my childhood in the hood surrounded by beans, but I doubt that would change their minds.
My bedroom's in the back of my house, so the only yard where I hear the noise is the one with the Howitzer bean. Dude CLEARLY pads his bill by blowing way longer than he needs to. It's not so bad in the summer, when the leaves aren't falling. But fall/winter, with the high winds, this dude doesn't stop for an HOUR. So yesterday was a blessing. I'm glad at least HE followed the edict.
I go to sleep with a 'white noise' machine and my bedroom is on the second floor of my humble home, so I don't hear the leaf blowers - of course, I'm usually up by 7 anyway.
Funny enough, at around 8 AM Friday morning, I heard a whirring sound outside the window from my home office. I took my dog out into the backyard, and sure enough, some fucker working next door had his gas blower on max and it was loud as hell. So, I went into my room to see if it would have been enough to wake me up, but between the curtains and the gentle white noise, although I could hear it, it wasn't sharp enough to have woken me up.
Still, it ought to be outlawed in genteel Beverly Hills. In Texas, the proper etiquette is to challenge the offender to a duel if it bothers you enough.
Funny enough, my oygenflaygin neighbor who ignored the blower ban on Wednesday followed it up on Thursday at 7am having 20 beans blow his entire roof, kicking up a dust and particle storm that blanketed every nearby house the entire day.
Doubly eye catching headline. Who else could start with WWII and actors, end with taking video of the neighbor's gardener using a leaf blower and have it all make sense? That was great. Except for the part about David Lynch. That part sucks. I don't know how I missed that news today. I usually read through your stuff more than once and I have to admit that Axel Foliage went right past me the first time. Now I can't stop laughing at it. And sometimes it pays to be a dick. Probably more than just sometimes.
Eric Braeden is a dead ringer for Tom Selleck, at least in that picture. It's interesting that he found employment as Captain Hans Dietrich in Rat Patrol in the 1960s.
Firstly, when you said Eric Braeden had been on The Young and the Restless since 1980 I thought you were joking. However, I looked it up and sure enough he has! That's incredible. These pretentious actors always talk about challenging themselves in the lofty artistic pursuit of the exploration of the human condition, but Braeden seems quite content to just job it playing the same character for forty-fucking-five years! Wow. And secondly, he looks amazing for 83. I just watched a clip of him near tears, lamenting his lost home and I swear you just need to dye his hair black and he'd easily pass for 60.
Anyway, to the point of your article, I love that Braeden campaigned against leaf blowers then the whole thing blew up (pun, sorry) in his face. We do always find those delicious, don't we?
Meanwhile, Mel Gibson lost his house last week that had, in his words, "lots of cool stuff" in it, and he couldn't stop smiling. In fact he was filming the Joe Rogan podcast when the Palisades was on fire last week and even said to Rogan at the time, "My house is probably gone." And he just shrugged -- and I believe him. Of course he had more money and won't be homeless, but I tend to think Gibson for all his faults wouldn't shed a single tear if he lost all his money and worldly possessions. Perhaps that has to do with his strict Catholic beliefs, I don't know.
Yes, it's one of the benefits of being as deep and committed in faith as Gibson is. That said, it also helps to be worth a billion dollars.
And you'd be surprised how many actors would do what Braeden did - cling to a good-paying job forever. That's why when actors leave a steady role for artistic reasons, it's rare and impressive. Case in point: on M.A.S.H., Larry Linville left because he felt there was no room for the doltish Frank Burns character to grow; he became bored with the one-note role (he was a real-life renaissance man, built and flew his own planes, so he hated being stuck in a nowhere job, even if the income was good). Conversely, McLean Stevenson left M.A.S.H. because he got a big head and wanted his OWN show. Terrible decision, and it ended poorly for him.
I really thought McLean Stevenson was a good actor.
Shit happens.
His famous quote following his third post-M.A.S.H. flop: "I thought they (the audience) loved me, but they actually loved Henry Blake."
But think about these affluent people in this most affluent neighborhood in the nation. When you see all those Pawn Stars-Antiques Roadshow type TV programs who do you think are the ones collecting and keeping these very important pieces of history? I bet a lot of priceless items got destroyed. Hopefully a lot of these thing you see at auction like the "lightsaber" from Star Wars, the Superman Suit Christopher Reeve wore, etc are kept in bank vaults. But I still suspect a lot of historic stuff got burned up.
My best friend runs the auctions at one of the most prestigious movie memorabilia auction houses in the world (I was there when the Reeve Superman suit sold). Most of these items go to museums/nonprofits, as opposed to private collections. One time a private bidder won Olivia Newton John's leather jacket from Grease (profits went to her cancer charity), but only so he could give it back to her (that way her charity got the money but she got to keep the jacket).
I took a drive down to the Ohio River in May 2020 during the whole scamdemic and in Metropolis IL there was a Superman Museum that is supposed to have a lot of memorabilia but unfortunately the Fatso Democrat Governor who is proud instead of shamed of his autogynephille brother who prances around in women's clothes had everything shut down so I didn't get inside to see it. I wonder if they have stuff like that suit in there? I was seven when that movie came out and it defined my image of Superman, Reeve was the character to me. I also came away from that 1978 Superman movie with the strange impression that "muggers" were all middle aged white guys in leisure suits. I remember Mr. Rodgers made a whole controversy out of it saying all these little kids were going to see it and jump out of the window thinking they can fly. I remember my mom taking his advice and warning my little brother how it was "make believe" and not to try to fly.
I agree with you: Eric Braeden looks a great 83 (interestingly, we share the same April 3rd birth date). And, as with you, I also like him even more for his campaigning against gas-powered leaf blowers. When living in Brussels, I was often awoken by the sound gas-powered leaf blowers the Moroccan city workers used in the park across the street - and I slept with earplugs.
I saw that Mel Gibson/Joe Rogan interview two weeks ago. It looked like Mel was on some sort of body-hyping drug(s). Or maybe he's normally goofy/hyper like that. He definitely was extremely cavalier about the loss of his home in Malibu.
What I remember the most about the Mel-Joe interview was Mel's humility in the movie he's finished the screenplay for and is soon to make. The movie starts (I believe) at the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and continues through to the death of his last Apostle. Mel said something along the lines: "This is going to be a very, very, tough movie to make. I don't know if I'll be able to pull it off. I'll do my very best."
Very kind gesture on that actor's part. Headshots can be the bane of a young actor's existence. Thankfully it's a little better these days with digital. Back when you paid by roll of film, it was murderous.
No actor wants to go back to film. Expensive, time-consuming (developing, proofs, loupes), and hard to retouch. It's all digital now. Only "artistes" still use film, not headshot photographers.
Now there is some true wisdom.
Herr Herman Bing was one of the NICE, roly-poly Germans, and it cost him his life. Maybe there’s a lesson in that, maybe not
What a way to spring the news of David Lynch (PBUH) on me!
RIP, Mr Lynch
Yeah, I added that last-minute.
At least Leaf Garrote is still with us, right?
Yes, I heard it here first too!
I saw a program about the making of that new Twin Peaks sequel series last year. It was a dark, weird series as usual from Lynch but he was pretty spot on in his portrayal of the current state of the country, endless strung out addicts and broken homes. The Bobby and Shelly affair from the original show didn't work out and they have a fatherless daughter drifting into drugs. Strangely, who'd know that Dana Ashbrooke would deliver one of the better performances of the new show after his B level work on the original. But in the making documentary I was shocked to see Lynch was still smoking like a chimney at his age so was not too surprised that he didn't live to be going into space at 91 like William Shatner.
Agreed about the Twin Peaks sequel.
With smoking, I look at it from the perspective of an alcoholic. I LIKE to drink. If I could, I'd never stop. But, I have to take sabbaticals because I don't want to die. But some people are just too addicted to their vice of choice. Lynch ended up needing constant oxygen from a tank. I'm certain the stress of the fires, having to evacuate, and the toxic air quality (deadly to people with emphysema) contributed to his passing.
I can't believe Eric Braeden is still around. He played the scientist who created the AI supercomputer called Colossus that took over the world (1970 film). And the bastard shot Cornelius and Zira!
Colossus is hard to find today - I have it on Blu-ray and it wasn't cheap. Holds up nicely, if you sub China for the Soviets.
He shot Cornelius and Zira?? Well there you go- only the good die young! That bastard will bury us all!!
Braeden played a lot of villains! His Apes character is referred to in the first film, but shown for the first time in the third.
Yes! Braeden played Dr. Otto Hasslein, who shot Zira in the back while she was holding a baby ape (in Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1973), my fave by far of the first five films).
It's that hearty German stock! As long as they're not starting wars, they live a long time.
Because Colossus was designed as a DoD nuclear war decision making system, it had multiple independent sources of power - any given power source would be difficult to turn off, but it would be impossible to deactivate the whole system. Colossus continuously threatened to launch nuclear missiles if any of its commands were disobeyed or if any attempt was made to sabotage. It had the ability to launch missiles without human intervention, which is what made it so dangerous.
So this is sort of where they got the idea for Wargames with Matthew Broderick and that WOPR computer that was going rogue to blow up the world?
Cray II, AKA Cray Cray
Oy, your TREES! Oy, they’re invading my yard. OY, it’s TREEblinka, I’m being Holocausted! It’s BABI YARD! It’s BARK in Belsen! OYYYYYY!"... This is genius!!
Thank you!
BTW Dave-- your weeks that perished have been hysterically funny of late! I started writing to compliment you on your brilliant rebuttal to Vivek's insulting comments on America's contribution to culture, but I kept getting interrupted and losing my thread! I hate to say it, but maybe dry January suits you?
Thank you, Kate! I REALLY appreciate that. I think it's just that the news has been sending me so many stories that inspire the best ridicule. So I credit the general ridiculousness of the moment.
The subject of portrayals of Germans post WWII reminded me of a hilarious story from pro wrestling in the mid 2000's: at a WWE writers meeting someone actually pitched the idea of having a huge hulking blonde wrestler named John Heidenrich introduced as having been a cryogenic frozen nazi supersoldier recently unthawed. Everyone in the room's jaw bounced right off the ground right after hearing this idea, and the writer was soon fired. Funny enough a short while earlier they planned on introducing a Japanese wrestler named Kenzo Suzuki as Hirohito. It actually got so far as a video introducing the character/gimmick being aired on Raw before people in the company were able to explain just how horribly offensive people in Japan (where they planned on running) would find it.
Damn, that's hilarious!
I love the idea of the frozen Nazi villainous wrestler! I can't believe it didn't fly!!
Haven't those fuckers ever heard of the notorious wrestler Fritz Von Erick?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fritz_Von_Erich
He did the Evil German thing in the 1980's in Texas.
Bob Mould's post-Husker Du gig was as a writer for WWE; I like to think it was him.
When you said about the neighbour complaining about the trees, all I could hear was George Costanza impersonating his mother.
LOL!!!! That sums it up well.
It's funny you should say that...
The first thing that popped into my head when I read "Soap Star Clout", was the episode of Seinfeld, when George tried to pick-up on some girl by telling her that he "writes for a TV sitcom", and she laughs, and turns to her friend and shrieks "He's a TV writer! And he tried to use it to pick me up!"
It was awesome!
I hate puns. Fucking loathe them.
But I love Dave puns. Treeblinka, you clever bastard.
Thank you. I try my worst!
*wurst
LOL!
TREE...YARD...BARK
That was fucking Epic! (Not Epun, that's an Indonesian YouTuber)
Sneak into your neighbors house at night time and place a leaf blower head under the bed sheets...he'll get it.
LOL!!!!
Speaking of directorial deaths, I just saw at Wiki that Jim Abrahams died in November 2024, I've been enjoying Hot Shots! (1991) which features Valeria Golino's sizzling belly.
That was in the 60's. He settled down in Texas and became a God fearing Christian American hero, which ended up being one of the most incredible and horrific stories imaginable. In the words of the only survivor of 5 brothers Kevin Von Erich (technically 6 as one died as a toddler being electrocuted in a swimming pool in the early 60's), 3 of whom took their own lives and one who died of an overdose: "I had 5 brothers and now I'm not even a brother".
Unreal the tragedies that family had. However, the croud would go nuts when he put the old 'iron claw' on the bad guys and blood came dripping out!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5YTUECrFRs
Why the fuck did they wear those faggoty outfits?
Here is the famous Irv Muchnick article on the Von Erichs from Penthouse Magazine in 1987:
https://concussioninc.net/?p=15414
Great post, Dave! Very entertaining and informative! As someone who suffers from insomnia and rarely gets to sleep before 4 AM, I hate those fucking gas-powered leaf blowers! In a momentary bout of insanity, I often contemplate shoving one of those blowers up their ass at full power! Lol!
Even worse than the jet engine level noise, the non-English speaking and clueless beans point the blower at almost full power at the base of my door, which has gaps due to the age of the building, thus blanketing my apartment in dust and potentially Valley Fever Fungus, which almost killed my brother a few years ago during record fires near his home in CA.
I've repeatedly notified management of this issue and the fact that I'm on disability with a compromised immune system, yet RACISM is the only plausible reason for my complaint. Perhaps I should tell them my closest friendships, 45 years and counting, are all beans, and I spent much of my childhood in the hood surrounded by beans, but I doubt that would change their minds.
My bedroom's in the back of my house, so the only yard where I hear the noise is the one with the Howitzer bean. Dude CLEARLY pads his bill by blowing way longer than he needs to. It's not so bad in the summer, when the leaves aren't falling. But fall/winter, with the high winds, this dude doesn't stop for an HOUR. So yesterday was a blessing. I'm glad at least HE followed the edict.
I go to sleep with a 'white noise' machine and my bedroom is on the second floor of my humble home, so I don't hear the leaf blowers - of course, I'm usually up by 7 anyway.
Funny enough, at around 8 AM Friday morning, I heard a whirring sound outside the window from my home office. I took my dog out into the backyard, and sure enough, some fucker working next door had his gas blower on max and it was loud as hell. So, I went into my room to see if it would have been enough to wake me up, but between the curtains and the gentle white noise, although I could hear it, it wasn't sharp enough to have woken me up.
Still, it ought to be outlawed in genteel Beverly Hills. In Texas, the proper etiquette is to challenge the offender to a duel if it bothers you enough.
Funny enough, my oygenflaygin neighbor who ignored the blower ban on Wednesday followed it up on Thursday at 7am having 20 beans blow his entire roof, kicking up a dust and particle storm that blanketed every nearby house the entire day.
Invite him over to judge if you have a good bottle of Amontillado.
Doubly eye catching headline. Who else could start with WWII and actors, end with taking video of the neighbor's gardener using a leaf blower and have it all make sense? That was great. Except for the part about David Lynch. That part sucks. I don't know how I missed that news today. I usually read through your stuff more than once and I have to admit that Axel Foliage went right past me the first time. Now I can't stop laughing at it. And sometimes it pays to be a dick. Probably more than just sometimes.
Love the comment, Sandy! Thanks!
In lesser hands it would have been a mess. The whole thing just segued beautifully.
I love hearing that! Makes my day.
And I like hearing that. Thank you.
Eric Braeden is a dead ringer for Tom Selleck, at least in that picture. It's interesting that he found employment as Captain Hans Dietrich in Rat Patrol in the 1960s.
“Soap Star Clout”… if we’re not in some kind of Truman Show Matrix Hologram… well, I just don’t know how to explain our universe anymore!
Cheers David! (Although I advised you to tell the neighbor to “go fuck himself”, but I’m much less patient than you!)