Father Geek here performing a duty I've put off way TOO long; talking to you about how I feel about several prominent deaths that occurred during the last half of this summer. During this same time period I have been extremely busy; a week at the San Diego Comic Convention, 2 days on the set of Pearl Harbor, a week in Madrid Spain, a week in Mexico City, and 10 days at Tarantino's Film Fest here in Austin, plus I became a Grand Dad with all that that entails too. I'm sorry this is long over due.

We have lost some true greats in the last few weeks; writer/artist CARL BARKS, writer/director CURT SIODMAK, actress LORETTA YOUNG, actor/icon ALEC GUINNESS, and the dancing giant HAROLD NICHOLAS.

CARL BARKS...

In the beginning... Donald was just a duck, a silly, stupid duck. He had little personality, charm, or character. He had no family, no nemesii, no past, no future. Then came Carl Barks... and Donald became world famous. Carl's DONALD DUCK COMICBOOKS sold over 3,000,000 copies each throughout the late 1940's and the 1950's, and had an estimated 10,000,000 diehard readers every month. Donald got a girlfriend, nephews, and a very very famous uncle. There was Grandma Duck, Gyrogeargoose, and the Beagle Boys. Carl Barks gave Donald a world to live and have adventures in, and in so doing he gave the real world a way to escape it's problems and worries. The BOMB took a backseat and Carl spoke to that little kid deep inside us all. And ol' Father Geek loved him for it!

What did Carl Barks do for the motion picture industry you may ask? Well, for starts he wrote well over 30 duck cartoons for Disney between 1937 and 44 including 1937's MODERN INVENTIONS, 38's SELF-CONTROL and GOOD SCOUTS, 40's WINDOW CLEANERS and BONE TROUBLE, 41's TRUANT OFFICER DONALD and OLD MacDONALD DUCK, 42's DONALD GETS DRAFTED and THE VANISHING PRIVATE, 43's HOME DEFENSE, and 44's TROMBONE TROUBLE. He also worked as an animator. Remember 1936's phantastic classic THRU THE MIRROR... yep, that was Carl's work. And more recently at the age of 89 he created the character designs, and worked with the storyboard artists and production designers on 1990's DUCK TALES THE MOVIE - TREASURE OF THE LOST LAMP.

Father Geek counts himself lucky to have met Carl Barks twice in my life, to have introduced my 3 year old son to him. On the wall of my bedroom is a color autographed photo of the Disney legend at his canvas, paint brush in hand, a smile spreading broad across his face. Its been hanging somewhere in my home for over a quarter of a century. It will never come down.

When Barks set out on the long road thru his life's work comicbooks were considered by most to be hack work, he continued to work during the period when philistine censors and government witch hunters condemned him and his co-workers as the devil's agents. Barks and his ducks have outlived the world's mood swings, and while he died a man of modest means (Disney would never repay him what they owed), his children, millions of them across the globe, will never forget him.

"I am pleased to see reprints of my works, especially as I thought the ducks and their adventures to be mere blips on the radar screen of human forgetfulness."CARL BARKS

Hey folks, Harry here briefly... Carl Barks gave me so much through his stories and his paintings. But more than anything he made 123321, 321123 and 123123 mean something to me.

CURT SIODMAK...

As Father Geek sits here at his keyboard above my left shoulder hanging on the wall is the original release insert movie poster for 1943's FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN with Lon Chaney, Bela Lugosi, and Patrick Knowles. This classic Universal Horror film (the favorite of many) was written by none other than CURT SIODMAK.

He was born in Dresden, Germany in 1902 and he worked as a newspaper reporter before turning to novels and motion pictures, He fled Hitler's version of his home land, 1st to England were he wrote TRANSATLANTIC TUNNEL, then to Hollywood. And we're all the richer for it.

This giant of silver screen prose gave us many genre classics including; 1940's BLACK FRIDAY, THE INVISIBLE MAN RETURNS, THE APE, and THE INVISIBLE WOMAN. In 1941 he wrote the iconic THE WOLF MAN for Universal. Then in 42 he turned out THE INVISIBLE AGENT. Then the next year we got I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE, SON OF DRACULA, and FMTWM. 1944 saw him write HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN, THE LADY AND THE MONSTER, and Karloff's THE CLIMAX. He penned THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS in 46 and TARZAN'S MAGIC FOUNTAIN in 1949. 51 saw BRIDE OF THE GORILLA, 53 THE MAGNETIC MONSTER and the great DONOVAN'S BRAIN, 55 had the appearance of THE CREATURE WITH THE ATOM BRAIN, and in 1956 he gave the world one of the best ever alien invasion flicks with EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS. 1961 was the year of THE DEVIL'S MESSENGER, and in 64 it was THE BRAIN, and in 1970 we got HAUSER'S MEMORY. Several of these were adapted from his novels. Further in addition to writing over 50 produced screenplays in 40 years Curt directed another 8 films including 51's BRIDE OF THE GORILLA, 53's MAGNETIC MONSTER, 56's CURUCU BEAST OF THE AMAZON, 58's TALES OF FRANKENSTEIN, and 61's DEVIL'S MESSENGER. He also Produced, acted, and served on film crews during his long career in the motion picture industry.

Father Geek can't say he'll miss CURT SIODMAK, geek headquarters has several posters of his work scattered about in different rooms, and we have ALL his genre work on either Video, DVD, Laserdisc, or 16mm film. Curt had a long productive life. Without necessarily meaning to he turned 10's of thousands of people into hopeless Horror/Sci-Fi/Fantasy geeks. He helped to mold my personality and that of my son and daughter. He opened our minds to many strange and unusual possibilities. For all of that... Thanks Curt!!! We won't miss you... because we will NEVER forget you.

Harry here briefly. There are things that are forever engrained in my conciousness because of this man. Without Curt Siodmak.... "ATTENTION... PEOPLE OF EARTH... ATTENTION" would mean nothing. And when I look at the moon.. my first thought, my only thought is... "Even a man who is pure at heart, and says his prayers at night, may become a wolf when the wolfsbane blooms, and the autumn moon is bright" I've known that little stanza of poetry since the age of 3. Curt contributed to my earliest geek thoughts... bless him.

HAROLD NICHOLAS...

HAROLD NICHOLAS was one half of perhaps the GREATEST dance team in the history of motion pictures. Once seen... you will NEVER forget his high flying cartwheels landing in full splits. How about those leaps over other dancers onto drum after drum, each landing in ball bursting perfectly timed to the music splits(no wire work here, just great skill), and all those incredibile tap numbers beyond human indurance.

Born in the south of 1921, Harold danced his way to the top of Hollywood and then RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and The White House. Once married to the equally famous Dorothy Dandridge he proved too skinny to go to WWII, but he astounded us repeatedly with his superior athletic skills in dozens of motion pictures. Films like PIE PIE BLACKBIRD, EMPEROR JONES, KID MILLIONS, TIN PAN ALLEY, RECKLESS AGE, THE PIRATE, UPTOWN SATURDAY NIGHT, THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT, TAP, THE FIVE HEARTBEATS, FUNNYBONES, and the true masterwork STORMY WEATHER. Harold sang and danced his way into the hearts of the world with an unbelievable body of beautiful work. Search it out... you will not regret the effort, he will blow your mind.

Harold died July 3rd, Father Geek can see him now... all decked out in a white tux... tapping up those stairs all the way to the pearly gates, flying high, and landing in those amazing splits of his. Heaven will have to be a little more Heavenly with HAROLD NICHOLAS in attendance.

Oh my god... Until Father Geek wrote this... I had no idea that he had passed on. I first saw Harold Nicholas dance about the age of 5. I remember him and his brother seemingly attempting the dancing form of suicide. They danced with abandon and joy... as though they were human hummingbirds. I get tired merely thinking of their routines. Harold has earned his rest like few others.

LORETTA YOUNG...

Most of our readers are probably not familar with the work of LORETTA YOUNG because she retired in 1961. Further she successfully fought to keep her award winning TV show from ever having reruns, Buuuuuuut Father Geek remembers her. My mother had the family watch everyone of her great TV shows in the years when families had only one TV in the house.

Loretta Young is one of the very last of her kind. A great super star from the era of great Hollywood studios with stables of great directors, actors and actresses. Starting in pictures in 1917 she appeared in THE SHEIK with Valentino, KISMET, PLATINUM BLONDE, BORN TO BE BAD, CALL OF THE WILD, SUEZ, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, ALONG CAME JONES, THE STRANGER, THE ACCUSED, and over 100 more major motion pictures. She won an Academy Award for best actress for 1947's THE FARMER'S DAUGHTER and was nominated for another for COME TO THE STABLE in 1950.

"The Loretta Young Show" ran in prime time on NBC from 1953 till 1961. She won Emmy's for best actress in a dramatic series in 1955, 57, and 59. She was nominated for 5 others in 54, 56, 58, 60, and 1961. She won a Golden Globe in 1959, and another in 1987 for her come out of retirement Christmas Special.

One of the screen's great beauties, in an era when it just wasn't done she had Clark Gable's daughter out of wedlock. Her 3rd husband was Academy Award winning costume designer Jean Louis who dressed Loretta in fantastic gowns for the opening of all of her TV shows, a different gown each week. She was a symbol of serenity, beauty, and grace for millions of women throughout the 40's, and 50's. Women like my mother who was struck deeply by he passing last month.

Harry here, I think of Loretta Young instantly when I hear TITANIC spoken aloud.... Kate Winslet comes second.

SIR ALEC GUINNESS...

Father Geek was in Spain when Obi-wan died... I was walking down a narrow street in Madrid when I over heard a young Spanard and his girlfriend discussing in Spanish the great lost to the film world by the death of Alec Guinness. I headed to one of the nearby street stands selling newspapers. And there it was, "Muere Alec Guinness, Maestro del juego teatral" screamed the headline. "El versatil actor ingles interpreto 'El puente sobre el rio Kwai' a second headline proclaimed. Yet another stated,"La modestia y la disciplina claves de un gran artista." Here I was in Spain and they devoted 2 full pages of the Madrid newspaper to this English actor's passing, with articles by 5 different writers. And NO headline reference to STAR WARS. Sir Alec would have been so happy. There were several photos; "Guinness, como Coronel Nicholson" and there were shots from HOTEL PARAISO, a performance of MACBETH, and with an Academy Award.

This is the way he would have wanted it. Praise for a career, not a single role. This heavily honored actor was so much more than Obi-wan. He was the winner of 2 NY Film critic circle awards, 2 National Board of Review awards, 2 BAFTA's, a golden globe, a Berlin Golden Bear, and 2 oscars; none of these for anything to do with STAR WARS.

In a 70 film career stretching from 1934 to 1996 Sir Alec stunned and delighted us with a variety of great characters on the screen. From Fagan to Jacob Marley's Ghost to Professor Godbole, from Holland to Gulley Jimson, from Pope Innocent III to Juilus Caesar to Ben Kenobi he gave us a world of people we'll never forget... that the world will never forget. EL PAIS de Martes 8 de Agosto de 2000 taught me that.

Harry here, I have tried to not think about Alec Guinness' passing. I can't do it. When I think about it... I get sad. I think of him as light blue and glowing... that warm voice of his... that gleam in his eye and sly smile. But at the same time... because I first met Alec in STAR WARS... I was sort of numb to hearing of his death... But still... I haven't put on the original trilogy since his death. I am almost afraid to. As a matter of fact, I've avoided all of his films since his death. I need more distance before I can watch them, and even when I do... I will realize that the person I'm looking at... this is the first time I'm watching him alive when he isn't. Jimmy Stewart and Gene Kelly nearly emotionally destroyed me when I heard of their deaths. I was on the plane headed to Amsterdam when Dad flashed the newspaper headline at me. I was numb. Like a hole opened up in me. Like a voice died in my head. I get way to melodramatic about this sort of thing... But I'm a very emotional person. And Alec Guinness was one of those people that I cared for deeply... cinematically speaking. Sigh...