Sunday, August 2, 2015

RIP, Rowdy Roddy Piper

It saddens me to report that wrestling star, sci-fi legend and all-around bringer of joy Roddy Piper passed away on Friday

Despite usually playing a heavy in the wrestling ring (and in Cyndi Lauper's "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough" long-form music video!), I'll remember him best as a scrappy and endearing everyman––i.e., "Nada" in John Carpenter's THEY LIVE, one of my all time favorite movies.  As an actor, he always took the craft seriously, but never took himself too seriously, which resulted in some of the goofiest yet most sincere performances I've ever seen, from the aforementioned THEY LIVE to HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN.

"I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass..."

He was an athlete, a jokester, and an entertainer in every sense of the word––in fact, just seeing the man puts a smile on my face.  You're dearly missed, Roddy.