# We have lost our 'Favorite Martian' **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 2, 2001, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130 "2001-01-02T19:53:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/1 "2001-01-02T19:53:01Z")
Actor Ray Walston died yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monster)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/2 "2001-01-02T20:05:03Z")
☹ ---
**Author:** ![Arden\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b487fb/32.png) [@Arden\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arden_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/3 "2001-01-02T20:07:16Z")
Bummer. ☹ I really liked him, even in My Favorite Martin, though I think one of his preformances was as the judge in Picket Fences. A moment of silence… ---
**Author:** ![struuter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@struuter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/struuter)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/4 "2001-01-02T20:07:18Z")
Jason Robards, now this. _sigh_ ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/5 "2001-01-02T20:26:22Z")
Poor guy…even the title of the thread devoted to his memory refers to his Uncle Martin character. I’m sure he’s LOVING that, wherever he is now. I saw him do Moliere at the Cleveland Playhouse back in the '70s. Funnier’n hell. One of the great character actors of our time. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Zero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Saint\_Zero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Zero)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/6 "2001-01-02T20:39:29Z")
Ouch. I even recall seeing “Martin” on TV. Wonderful guy. Heck, he was even in a ST:TNG episode. Ironic that Picard had to come to him for help. Mere janitor saving the universe. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Arden\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b487fb/32.png) [@Arden\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arden_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/7 "2001-01-02T20:52:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Arden\_Ranger \* > \*\*Bummer. ☹ I really liked him, even in My Favorite Martin, though I think one of his preformances was as the judge in Picket Fences. > > A moment of silence… \*\* I’m an idiot. One of my FAVORITE performances of his was as the judge on Picket Fences. Hysterical. I’d completely forgotten about his appearance on ST: TNG, which was also very good. Always made the characters believable. ---
**Author:** ![SwimmingRiddles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SwimmingRiddles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SwimmingRiddles)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/8 "2001-01-02T20:53:53Z")
Ah, dammit. The day keeps getting worse and worse. Robert Altman’s Popeye was an obession for me as a child, at dinner time, I’d sing “Everything is food, food, food!” And Walston plays Popeye’s ornery father at the end. My mother saw him as the devil in Damn Yankees!, and Picket Fences was my favorite show as a tween. Feh. ---
**Author:** ![Kricket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f14d63/32.png) [@Kricket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kricket)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/9 "2001-01-02T21:35:33Z")
This is terrible. I was hoping the thread title didn’t mean what I thought it did. I loved my that show, and I thought it was too cool when he was in the movie. I knew he wasn’t following them to catch them, he just wanted to finally go home. And what about his part in fast times at ridgemont high? This sucks.☹ ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/10 "2001-01-02T21:45:28Z")
Although I’ve never actually **watched** _South Pacific_, I have seen a few scenes. I can’t think about Ray Walston without thinking of how he called a large female islander in that film “Sweaty Pie”. (Not swEEty… swEAty.) I also liked him _Paint Your Wagon_. But as will most of the country, I’ll best remember him for _My Favorite Martian_. I have the theme song going in my head even as I type this. ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/11 "2001-01-02T22:07:56Z")
::sighs:: ☹ I loved him in Picket Fences. ---
**Author:** ![manhattan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manhattan/32/7_2.png) [@manhattan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manhattan)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/12 "2001-01-02T23:05:50Z")
_Aloha_, Mr. Hand. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Cynical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ee59a6/32.png) [@Mr.Cynical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Cynical)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2001, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/13 "2001-01-02T23:17:36Z")
You beat me to it, Manny. Rest assured, Mr. Hand is in heaven, eating Spicoli’s pizza. Here’s to hoping there weren’t any anchovies. ---
**Author:** ![aviddiva](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a88e57/32.png) [@aviddiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aviddiva)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2001, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-have-lost-our-favorite-martian/48130/14 "2001-01-03T18:34:00Z")
“Our Favorite Martian” nothin’. Ray Walston’s role in _The Sting_ will always be my favorite. He was J.J., the card cheating expert and phony race caller on the sting that got Linament–I mean Lonahan–I mean Lonagan (played by Robert Shaw).