Maury Chaykin has died.
His may not be a household name (IMDB listing) - he was a character actor’s character actor, creating quirky oddballs throughout his career. Classic performances include Whale Music, The Adjuster and Nero Wolfe, but he was as well known for his appearances in Hero, My Cousin Vinnie and The Sweet Hereafter. He leaves a massive legacy in the Canadian TV and Film scene, and he will be sorely missed.
Really sorry to hear this. He was a fantastic Nero Wolfe.
For all his many roles, the first thing I think of when I see his name is:
“Mr. Potato Head! MR. POTATO HEAD!” to Eddie Deezen in “War Games.”
Oh, I wholeheartedly agree! There were lots of things not quite right about that series, but Maury Chaykin and Timothy Hutton were wonderful as Nero and Archie.
Well, I don’t think of that when I see his name, 'cause I had no idea that was his name.
But it *is *the first thing I think of when I see him.
Well I will always remember him as the Major who shoots himself in Dances with Wolves.
“I have just pissed in my pants, and nothing can be done about it.”
He played a lawyer in the TV movie Conspiracy of Silence, based on the true story of the murder of a Native Canadian by four white teenagers in The Pas, Manitoba. The movie was shot in Sturgeon Falls, Ontario, where I now live.
He also played Sheriff Cobb in the ‘Eureka’ pilot. The folks at the ‘Eureka’ Writers Blog have put up a nice note.
“Malvin, remember when you told me to tell you when you were acting rudely insensitively? You’re doing it now.”
Geez, the dude did a WONDERFUL Nero Wolfe. (And Timothy Hutton was great as Archie). That show got me to dig into the books.
Hmm, I was wondering what movie I should watch tonight. Maybe WarGames will do.
I went outside today to tell Mr. S that Maury Chaykin had died.
Mr. S: Who’s that again?
Me: “I’m a FAST COOK, I guess!”
Mr. S: Oh yeah, him.
I learned from Mr. Chaykin that no self-respecting Southerner uses instant grits.
He was a great character actor. Only 61. He was great as Nero Wolfe. Sad news indeed.
Chaykin; all over.
I love him in everything I’ve ever seen him in, and I’m going to miss him terribly. He was practically perfect for Nero Wolfe.
Let’s not forget Overdrawn at the Memory Bank.
Let’s DO forget Overdrawn at the Memory Bank, in fact I had, but you had to go and remind me!
Chaykin made a great Nero Wolfe, some of the others who played him just looked sleepy when they sat there Nero Wolfe-style with their eyes half shut and stalked a villain, Chaykin always managed to look like a cat waiting to pounce.
To your journey!
He was in OAtMB? I’ve only seen the version that was on MST3K, so perhaps it was a different one.
Chaykin was in a few B movies, though. (I used to write snarky reviews for them in the website Dante’s Inferno and All Night Video Store. Not sure if the site even exists anymore.)He was one of those guys I always recognized but would forget their name, like the late Brion James. Its too bad…he wasn’t that old.
He played some character called ‘Gondol’. I remember spotting him in the credits of the one on MST, but I couldn’t tell you who Gondol was in the movie.
He was the servant/valet to the fat guy who was the head of Intercorp. (Sorry, I could only find the MST3K version on line, so I watched until I spotted Maury and then stopped.)
There’s something just so Canadian about being stuck in a bad movie with good actors…