Dead at the age of 86 in his Los Angeles home. I was too young for "Maverick" but in our home "The Rockford Files" was must see tv in the 1970s. I have a lot of regard for actors who do their own stunts and in the case of Garner, his own stunt driving. And he and my dad were about the same age.
I can only repeat what I said in the other thread. Garner is the greatest TV actor. The Rockford Files is great. The character is epic.
From what I've read of him, he was not only talented but humble about his accomplishments. May not be a trait I share, but it's one I admire. and vaya con Dios to Mr. Garner. 86 years is a good run, and it seems he acquitted himself well by it.
One of the best TV detective characters ever! I watched The Rockford Files all the time - cool theme song too! RIP
Isn't the reverse "J-turn" known as "The Rockford" in courses for tactical driving? Seems I remember hearing it referred to as that in a military/law enforcement magazine when they are answering questions about driving out of ambushes in soe African country.
Every set that man worked on, he was loved by the crew. On the Rockford files, if he found out the crew was close to getting their overtime, he would trow a tantrum on the set over something, a flubbed line maybe, and then hole up in his trailer for a while ensuring that the shoot went past the overtime mark. He was a great guy, a wonderful actor, and he will be missed. RIP.
I've always heard it referred to as a "bootlegger turn". EDIT: Nope, I'm wrong, that's a standard "J-turn" that's sometimes called the "bootleg" or "bootlegger" turn.
I'm pretty sure he's never appeared in anything I didn't really like just because he was in it. I rank Rockford and Maverick among my all time favorites. Absolutely among my all time favorite actors.
It is weird in a way. It seems like he always played similar characters yet it really worked in a variety of settings. From "The Great Escape" to "Move Over Darling" to "Murphy's Romance". I loved him as the Bill Clintonish former president in "My Fellow Americans".
We keep the television in my office tuned to MeTV most of the time because most of the photogs love to see the old shows (nearly all of which aired before most of the guys were born ). Sitting here with The Rockford Files on, I have to say that the show open is one of the best ever. Very much of its time, but somehow "current" at the same time.
It feels "current" because it feels real. The character of Rockford never once comes close to feeling like some invincible superman or cartoonish cut out. and the entire "Answering machine" opening (which lasted duration of the show) was classic. Not a one of those messages was EVER about anything really important or related to the plot of the upcoming episode. They were irrelevant as almost all phone calls (or more modern texts).
I'm not talking about the Rockford charcter. I'm talking about the look and style of the open. It's of its time...yet not. If longer show intros hadn't fallen out of fashion (why waste time with something like that when you can cram in a couple more commercials?) I could see a modern show using a similar style.
