Game over

Game over February 27, 2017

I was saddened to hear of Bill Paxton’s death.  I grew up with Mr. Paxton.  Like most, my earliest encounter was with his small, but memorable, role in James Cameron’s Terminator.  Though without realizing it, I had seen him in the strange video for Fish Heads years earlier.

It was as the ever complaining, but ultimately valiant, Private Hudson in Cameron’s Aliens that Paxton first caught the public’s attention.  The phrase ‘Game over man, game over!’ was a favorite quote that year.  IIRC, it even earned a place in an SNL skit at the time.

By the 90s, Paxton came into his own, often playing support in commendable box office hits like Apollo 13 and Cameron’s two misses and a hit Titanic.

In some ways, he was one of those ‘always a bride’s maid, never a bride’ actors.  His films often did better with critics.  My personal favorite was his turn as Dale Dixon in One False Move.

Nonetheless, it’s always rough to hear of the unexpected passing of someone.  Especially one of those figures who was always ‘there’, even if not in the spotlight.  May God give peace and strength to his loved ones during this traumatic time.  Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let the perpetual light shine upon him.


Browse Our Archives