Fooling

In the course of an hour of Smallville tonight, I saw both the demise of the character I was hoping would perish in the 100th episode, as well as that of the one I was expecting and dreading would be leaving. The wonderful thing about fiction, though often abused, is the ability to make us care about characters that aren't real, and mourn when they're gone. Anyone who's ever watched a soap opera, or anything Joss Whedon or J.J. Abrams were involved with, knows exactly what I'm talking about. Sometimes death is a cheap ratings stunt, and on shows with a more supernatural bent it may not even be permanent. I've read more than my share of comic books, and characters are rarely gone forever. Real life is different though. After the show ended, we called my mom in to the kitchen to blow out the candles on her cake. She joked about this being her last birthday, as parents often do, but the truth is that every year could be our last. My dad is in his mid-70s. My mom is in her mid-60s. All we can do is enjoy every day and not think about what tomorrow might bring.

Age is meaningless, though. My dad's been saying things like, “Yep, guess I'll be dying soon” ever since he started getting his first aches and pains in his ‘40s. Hard work hasn't knocked him down though, and I think it's only made him stronger. Twelve years ago a doctor noted the severity of his clogged arteries and gave him less than a year to live without a bypass operation. A radical change in a bad diet, Chelation therapy, and our family's trademark stubbornness keep him kicking. Death will never come when we expect it. It's been a little over a year now since my mom lost her younger cousin. Every day the news is filled with tragic loss, be it a freak accident while playing with a dog or a horrific crash claiming young lives. I was stunned yesterday to learn of Chris Penn's untimely demise, first at Darrell's then over at Sean's.

No cause of death has been found at the time of this writing. The most recent role I saw him in was Starsky & Hutch, and I remember thinking at the time that he'd let himself go, gained a little more weight. I know him best from Reservoir Dogs, as well as True Romance. He had a very distinctive voice and like Brian Doyle-Murray, another character actor with a more famous sibling, you'd recognize him the second he spoke, even if you couldn't see him. Looking at his resume I'm amazed at how many things I've seen him in: Seinfeld. Short Cuts. Mulholland Falls. Rush Hour. No, I haven't seen Footloose, nor did I know he was in it. After reading about his involvement at Darrell's, I'm going to rent it as well as At Close Range, another film Darrell cited.

One interesting thing I came across while researching his career, was a piece entitled Who Do You think You're Fooling, which explores the (blatantly obvious) similarities between Reservoir Dogs and City on Fire, with Chow Yun-Fat. I confess to seeing Reservoir Dogs first, and not even being aware of the Hong Kong version until I saw a showing of it with a far more culturally-aware college friend. This wouldn't be the first time I explored the differences between an American remake and its original. What I find intriguing about the documentary description is something I've either forgotten, or never realized. Apparently, while the stories are nearly identical, Quentin Tarantino denied any connection, rather than admit that one was done in homage to the other. Either way, Chris Penn's performance was great, and he'll definitely be missed. As for Smallville, I won't spoil tonight's episode for those that watch on DVD, but I wish they had fooled me. They certainly tried.