Anyone who has ever watched the TV series Bonanza could not help being fond of Eric “Hoss” Cartwright, played by Dan Blocker. Born Bobby Dan Davis Blocker in Bowie County, Texas, the actor was known as a caring man like his Bonanza character.
The real man, however, was much more intelligent than the character. Blocker earned a Master’s degree and worked as a teacher before starting acting. Wikipedia reports that Blocker, who earned a Purple Heart in the Korean War, also was active in political causes, such as taking a stand against the Vietnam War.
Blocker was best known for his role as the middle son on Bonanza, a role that Blocker tried to infuse with kindness. But Blocker appeared in other roles, and he almost appeared in Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove.
One of his very early roles, though, had him appearing in a Three Stooges short called Outer Space Jitters in 1957 during the era when Joe Besser joined Moe and Larry. Blocker’s role as “The Goon” zombie lacks the endearing qualities we would see in Hoss, but it is still fun to see Blocker on screen with the Stooges.
In this short, Blocker first appears around the 7:45 mark looking very un-Hoss-like. Check it out.
Blocker died at the age of 43 in 1972 of a pulmonary embolism after gall bladder surgery. At the time, Bonanza was about to start filming its final season. Although actor Lorne Greene did not think the show could continue without Blocker, the show completed that season.
The series, of course, had to address the absence of Blocker’s character. So, an episode revealed that Hoss died in an accident. Mental Floss reports the episode as the first time in TV history that a show dealt with the death of an actor and mentioned the death of a character.
What is your favorite Dan Blocker scene? Leave your two cents in the comments.
On November 25, 1940, Woody Woodpecker made his first appearance in an Andy Panda cartoon called “Knock Knock.” As a recent CBS Sunday Morning segment explained, Walter Lantz created the animated bird from inspiration from a woodpecker knocking on his roof.
I loved Woody Woodpecker when I was a kid. When we watched 8mm home movies, my dad had two non-family reels for the projector with one of the Three Stooges and one of Woody Woodpecker. Like home movies back then, they were silent, so we enjoyed the short films without Woody’s famous laugh, which was created by Mel Blanc and later voiced by Lantz’s wife Grace Stafford. I also had a toy where you looked in a viewfinder toward a light source and cranked a little roll of film so you could see part of an episode of a Woody Woodpecker short.
You do not see Woody Woodpecker around so much today, perhaps because Lantz stopped making new cartoons in 1972 or perhaps the abrasive Woody does not teach life lessons as do modern children’s characters. Still, I like to think that Woody did not make me obnoxious, and he gave me a lot of fun.
There have been reports of Woody Woodpecker movies in the works (albeit with a “modernized” version of the character). Update: In 2013, Illumination Entertainment signed animator Bill Kopp to work on a film about Woody Woodpecker, although as of 2016 the status of that possible Woody Woodpecker movie is unclear.
Another Woody Woodpecker movie will be released in October 2017 in Brazil., apparently because many classic cartoons are now more popular in other countries besides the U.S. That film may see some type of DVD release in the U.S.
For now, we will have to be satisfied with the real classic cartoons we can find on the Internet. Check out one below as you celebrate Woody’s birthday.
What is your favorite memory of Woody Woodpecker? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Today is National Pie Day. The holiday was created by the National Pie Council. You may learn more about pies on the council’s website, with facts like: “Pie has been around since the ancient Egyptians,” early crusts were not edible, and most early American pies were meat pies.
I do not understand why pies need representation, but the holiday is a good excuse for some Three Stooges paying tribute to the Egyptian pie founders. [2024 Update: Unfortunately, the video is no longer available.]
In case you have been too busy this week angrily Tweeting about American Airlines because a flight attendant interrupted a game you were playing on your phone, here are some of the pop culture stories you might have missed this week. FYI, see below for a funny video relating to the American Airlines incident. Three of the big stories that were already covered this week in Chimesfreedom were the passings of actor Harry Morgan, singer Dobie Gray, and blues man Hubert Sumlin, so check out those stories too. But here are some of the lesser known reviews and stories from the fields of movies, music, and popular culture.
—— Movies —–
Filmmakers are clashing with each other over access to West Memphis 3 witnesses.
The Hangover III may be set in Los Angeles and may try a new formula.
Billboard named Adele the top artist of 2011 as she makes history.
—– Television —–
In Wookie news, Chewbacca is going to guest star on Glee.
The Mythbusters guys apologized after they accidentally fired a cannonball into a residential area earlier this week.
“Very funny.” — Tonight Show bandleader Kevin Eubanks on the Roots’ controversial entrance song for Michele Bachmann.
Laugh-In star Alan Sues, who also was in the Twilight Zone Episode “The Masks,” passed away this week.
Was it too soon for Saturday Night Live to spoof the Penn State scandal? Colin Quinn thinks so. In other SNL news, Alec Baldwin appeared on the show last night to apologize about the American Airlines incident to . . . Alec Baldwin, “an American treasure.”
—– Other Pop Culture News —–
Manny Ramirez un-retired from baseball. That’s Manny being . . . Brett.
Jerry Robinson, the comic book artist who created Batmans’s The Joker, passed away yesterday. RIP.
In the way that all sci-fi alien horror movies begin. . . NASA just discovered an earth-like planet. Assuming the aliens do not attack us, we will see you with more pop culture stories soon. . .
Anyone who has ever watched the TV series Bonanza could not help being fond of Eric “Hoss” Cartwright, played by Dan Blocker. Born Bobby Dan Davis Blocker in Bowie County, Texas, the actor was known as a caring man like his Bonanza character.
