Roxanne (1987)

Roxanne from 1987 is a Steve Martin (b. 1945) film based loosely on Cyrano de Bergerac.  It is not one of the greatest comedies of all time, but it has its moments. 

Shelley Duvall (b. 1949) helps with the laughs...but she is very good at everything.  Daryl Hannah (b. 1960) and Rick Rossovich (b. 1957) are less adept at comedy but they do their best.  And how about this?  They are all still alive!  That's unusual for my blog.

Fred Willard (b. 1939) played the mayor and volunteer fireman in the small Colorado town.  Fred has 219 roles listed on IMDb, starting in 1966.  He worked in an interesting and transitional period on TV.  In his early appearances he worked with Burns and Schreiber and Bob Newhart.  He was a regular with Martin Mull (b. 1943) on "Fernwood Tonight" and reprised his role on "America 2-Night."

Willard had his own series called "D.C. Follies" where he worked with puppets in a bar.  He continues on TV in "Roseanne" and has appeared many times on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno."

Willard's movie roles may not have been the best, with titles like Chesty Anderson U.S. Navy (1979) and Elvis is Alive! I Swear I saw Him Eating Ding Dongs Outside the Piggly Wiggly's (1998).  I have never seen either of them. 

Another interesting character actor in Roxanne is Michael J. Pollard (b. 1939) who plays another fireman, and appears to be a little slow.  He has 106 roles listed including many great, early TV series starting in 1959.  Look for him in "The Many Lives of Dobie Gillis," "Route 66," "Gunsmoke," and "Star Trek," among many others.

Pollard starred in a few movies as well.  Little Fauss and Big Halsy (1970) with Robert Redford, and Dirty Little Billy (1972) about Billy the Kid.

Take a look at Roxanne and then read the credits at the end.  I am sure you will appreciate the talents of these Bit Actors and Actresses, but probably not recognize all the names.  The girl who plays Sandy the barmaid (Shandra Beri) has more credits as a costume designer than an actress, but she is pretty and plays the small part well.

And everyone mentioned above is still alive!  10-07-10 Correction.  I mentioned Burns and Schreiber above.  Jack Burns, born in 1933 is still alive but Avery Schreiber (1935 - 2002) is no longer with us.