James Whitmore, RIP
1 comment February 9th, 2009
Actor James Whitmore died Friday at the age of 87. I didn’t get a chance to post anything about him over the weekend, but the man’s passing deserves to be noticed.
He had a long, long career, stretching from a part in 1949’s THE UNDERCOVER MAN all the way to a 2007 episode of CSI. Modern audiences probably remember him best for playing Brooks in THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, and fans of older films might remember him as Gus in John Huston’s crime classic, THE ASPHALT JUNGLE, or the giant ant epic THEM!
He also starred in one of the oddest movies I’ve seen, a 1950 drama called THE NEXT VOICE YOU HEAR. In it, the voice of God (yes, God) is heard all over the world via radio, and James Whitmore plays the main character (no, not God), an average Joe-type through whom we see the strange events of this story take place. It’s a weird attempt at some big screen spiritualism, and though it’s pretty interesting to watch (one clever tricks the filmmakers pull is to never let us hear the big voice — we always come to the scene right after the broadcasts), it never quite overcomes its own message. Whitmore is very good in it, though, playing a guy suddenly facing him big issues (and big fears). His down-to-earth style makes this far-fetched film almost (but not quite) believable. Too bad it’s not on DVD.
