# RIP James Garner **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 20, 2014, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591 "2014-07-20T07:42:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/21 "2014-07-20T14:14:20Z")
i enjoyed the rockford files very much. the cookie jar was fantastic! ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/22 "2014-07-20T14:24:13Z")
Great actor, had a helluva run. And he always said that he only became an actor because a woman pulled out of a parking place in front of an agent’s office and he turned in on a whim. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/23 "2014-07-20T14:29:12Z")
RIP, Rockfish. Dammit. First Dietrich, now Rockford. Alex Reiger is the only one of my adult-personality tripod left. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/24 "2014-07-20T14:31:24Z")
Another one of the greats passes. RIP, James. You were one of the good ones. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/25 "2014-07-20T14:37:40Z")
I remember reading an interview with him. The reporter met him in a coffee shop, and noted that a lot of people were checking Garner out. As the reporter sat down, Garner picked up his coffee, looked at it, and gave that classic Garner frown at it. People all around them began examining their coffee. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Lorene89095](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@Lorene89095](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lorene89095)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/26 "2014-07-20T14:40:02Z")
This has made me uncommonly sad… I mean I didn’t know him really,but I loved all the rolls he played. Maveric,Rockford,Murphy’s Romance(if any of y’all want pointers on how to treat a woman,watch this) ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/27 "2014-07-20T14:46:01Z")
[Driving a gold Firebird somewhere…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tHUW_3FMkY) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/28 "2014-07-20T14:47:58Z")
Tom Selleck said he [learned something](http://variety.com/2014/tv/columns/james-garner-gracefully-bore-the-weight-of-stardom-1201265377/) from James Garner > [@](#): > > Tom Selleck is fond of saying that every actor should take “star lessons” from James Garner. Having worked with Garner on “The Rockford Files” very early in his career, Selleck noticed that Garner realized the star’s demeanor had a ripple effect on the set, establishing a tone for everyone else’s behavior. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/29 "2014-07-20T14:48:53Z")
There’s a thread already over here Lorene: > **[RIP James Garner](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=728958)** > > James Garner has died: http://www.tmz.com/2014/07/19/james-garner-dead-dies-maverick-rockford-files/ I always really liked him. One of my favorite actors from that generation. But I agree, he was such a likeable actor 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/30 "2014-07-20T14:53:54Z")
> [@Lorene89095](#): > > This has made me uncommonly sad… I mean I didn’t know him really, **but I loved all the rolls he played.** Maveric,Rockford,Murphy’s Romance(if any of y’all want pointers on how to treat a woman,watch this) French, Kaiser, Hoagie. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/31 "2014-07-20T14:55:23Z")
A few years ago, The Atlantic Monthly had a nice article about Garner. Some folks here might be interested to read it: [The Rockford Style: Eastwood? McQueen? Why James Garner is the real star of his era](http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/12/the-rockford-style/308715/) I don’t think you need to be a subscriber to read the article. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/32 "2014-07-20T15:05:50Z")
Well shit. I’m on the record in the past here as being a huge Rockford Files fan. 'Tis a sad day. Good night Jim. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/33 "2014-07-20T15:41:21Z")
He WAS the coolest of the Maverick brothers. RIP Jim. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/34 "2014-07-20T15:42:28Z")
Also loved _Rockford Files_: it was genius to set him up as living in a trailer, keeping his gun in a cookie jar, taking a beating nearly every episode, all that jazz. Best opening sequence of any TV show ever, too, IMO. He was also memorably good in _Victor/Victoria_; and given also how well he came across in those Polaroid commercials, it’s surprising he didn’t do more leading man roles in romance type films. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/35 "2014-07-20T15:46:08Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > A few years ago, The Atlantic Monthly had a nice article about Garner. Some folks here might be interested to read it: > > [The Rockford Style: Eastwood? McQueen? Why James Garner is the real star of his era](http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/12/the-rockford-style/308715/) > > I don’t think you need to be a subscriber to read the article. Thanks. Well-written homage. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/36 "2014-07-20T15:49:42Z")
I’ve always thought if I were going to have a successful career in acting, I’d like it to be like some of these character actors who have steady work but aren’t recognizable enough to suffer the everyday, real-life hassles of stardom. But if I did end up becoming a star, I’d want to be James Garner. RIP, James. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/37 "2014-07-20T15:57:23Z")
:(:(☹ Probably my favorite actor going back to watching Maverick, Grand Prix, The Americanization of Emily, Rockford, and on and on. An American treasure and by what I’ve read and heard, a decent guy who stood up for what he believed in and took care of friends, family and the people he worked with. One of my favorite interviews, with Tom Snyder: [http://youtu.be/ANbaE2L026s](http://youtu.be/ANbaE2L026s) ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/38 "2014-07-20T16:20:49Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > Every week, we hoped the episode of _Maverick_ would focus on Bret–played by James Garner. No offense to the other brother, but Bret was much cooler & funnier… > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > He WAS the coolest of the Maverick brothers. RIP Jim. ☹ Amen! ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/39 "2014-07-20T16:39:40Z")
Bret is in that poker game in the far beyond. ---
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2014, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591/40 "2014-07-20T16:50:58Z")
Dated somebody who (claimed to have) worked with Garner on _Maverick_. Said that Garner was the nicest star he’d ever worked with. Too bad it didn’t wear off. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-james-garner/693591.md?page=3)