I just added a Vic Morrow tribute page to my Facebook friend's list.
"Vic who," you might be asking. His heyday was slightly ahead of my time. He had a breakout role in Blackboard Jungle, a 1955 release chronicling the cultural emergence of restless youth and opening the door for a young musical genre called rock n roll. But more about that later.
Vic Morrow's daughter: Jennifer Jason-Leigh
Morrow died in a freak accident in 1982 while on the set of Twilight Zone: the Movie, so he's probably not much of an icon among the twenty-somethings, though his daughter might be. Have you heard of Jennifer Jason-Leigh? Check out her acting versitility in the comedy The Hudsucker Proxy, and the intense drama Rush. I hear that she was also very good in The Last Exit to Brooklyn, although I didn't see that film. Anyway, I digress. Back to Vic.
Vic Morrow as Sgt. Saunders
Long before I appreciated the cultural and historical significance of his role in Blackboard Jungle, I dug Morrow's role as Sgt. Saunders in the World War II television series Combat. He had this nihilistic expression, the poker face of a platoon leader who gambled with his men's lives in the French countryside of 1944 Nazi-occupied Europe. It was a quality drama that still runs in syndications on some cable channels today.
A scene from the Blackboard Jungle
Ah, but the knife-wielding role of Artie West! Now that was true art. Before Artie West, teenage rebellion and juvenile delinquency weren't really a force to be reckoned with. Sure, the Bowery Boys, and maybe young Frankie Sinatra and his legion of benign bobby-soxers pre-dated Vic Morrow's fine performance. No one had begun to appreciate the impact that Elvis Presely would have, let alone fathomed a future shaped by Blackboard Jungle that would spawn the Beastie Boys or Marilyn Manson and his legion of porn starlette fans.
Vic Morrow as Artie West
Artie West, the lugubrious gang leader, the proverbial leader of the pack who holds sway over and intimidates his peers. Artie's hatred for Mr. Dadier or any authority figure is immediate and passionate, sparked by a near rape in the school library. Remember, this was very, very edgy subject matter during President Eisenhower's first term.
Another seminal film dealing with teenage angst, Rebel without a Cause, was also released in 1955. Ah, but Blackboard Jungle featured Bill Haley's hit single, "Rock Around the Clock," a song credited with ushering in the entire rock n roll era. Haley had recorded the tune a year before in 1954, but it was relegated to the B-side of an obscure 45 and really didnt' catch fire until it rolled with Blackboard Jungle's opening credits.
Morrow was able to parlay his youthful tough guy image into numerous roles as robbers and hoodlums including the character "Shark" alongside Elvis Presely in the 1959 film, King Creole. He was a steady television actor throughout the 1960s and 70s before assuming his final role as Bill Connor in Twilight Zone: The Movie.
Vic Morrow in Twilight Zone: The Movie
The film, which was produced by Steven Spielberg and directed by John Landis, included four vignettes. Morrow's character, the embittered Bill Connor, is introduced as an angry bigot in a bar, hurling insults at Jews, blacks and Asians. (Ironically, Morrow himself was Jewish) Connor leaves the bar and steps into a series of scenes, including: Nazi-occupied France where SS troops chase him, mistaking him for a Jew; the Jim Crow Deep South where Ku Klux Klansmen see him as black and try to lynch him; and finally .Vietnam, where he is attacked by American soldiers who think he is the enemy.
It was during the filming of the Vietnam sequence that Morrow was killed in a freak helicopter crash. Morrow stood in a river while film technicians fired off various pyrothechnics. The resulting flames engulfed the chopper, blinding the pilot and sending his vehicle careening out of control. Morrow was subsequently decaptitated by the rotor blade.
Vic Morrow's tombstone
The director, John Landis, delivered an awkward eulogy at Morrow's funeral which was widely criticized as callous and self-serving. According to one account, Landis said "Tragedy can strike in an instant, but film is immortal... This performance must not be lost. It was Vic's last gift to us."
In a sense, I suppose that Landis was right about that.
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