The “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot” is dead.
May 18, 2024 8:47 AM Subscribe
NPR reporting that actor Dabney Coleman is dead at 92. Dabney Coleman was practically ubiquitous in the early to mid 80’s by appearing in films like 9 to 5, Tootsie, Cloak and Dagger, On Golden Pond, and War Games.
The 1982 film Tootsie has what is arguably one of the funniest scenes in cinema history at its end. Most of the action is focused on Dustin Hoffman, but it is Mr. Coleman who bookends everything with two lines that me belly laugh out loud.
“Uh oh.”
“I KNEW there was a reason she didn’t like me!”
The 1982 film Tootsie has what is arguably one of the funniest scenes in cinema history at its end. Most of the action is focused on Dustin Hoffman, but it is Mr. Coleman who bookends everything with two lines that me belly laugh out loud.
“Uh oh.”
“I KNEW there was a reason she didn’t like me!”
A solid actor, who played the roles that we all loved to hate. I watched a lot of TV and movies in the 70's and 80's, and I knew I'd be in for a good time when I saw him appear on screen. Don't know anything about his personal life or beliefs and I don't want to know; I just know that he was a solid professional actor who did a great job in a lot of good movies and TV shows.
Thanks for being the perfect smarmy foil, Dabney.
posted by fuzzy.little.sock at 8:55 AM on May 18 [12 favorites]
Thanks for being the perfect smarmy foil, Dabney.
posted by fuzzy.little.sock at 8:55 AM on May 18 [12 favorites]
I read in his obit. that he once said he liked playing these smarmy characters because they are so well-defined. I thought that was an interesting take, and probably true! I doubt he ever had to turn to the director to ask what the character's motivation was.
I think also it speaks to his acting ability that I really, really, really never liked him at all - because he always played gross, terrible people - well!
Kudos to him for a successful and long career and what seemed like a really nice life.
posted by Toddles at 8:57 AM on May 18 [7 favorites]
I think also it speaks to his acting ability that I really, really, really never liked him at all - because he always played gross, terrible people - well!
Kudos to him for a successful and long career and what seemed like a really nice life.
posted by Toddles at 8:57 AM on May 18 [7 favorites]
He played despicable men when that was not really a thing. He held up a mirror showing men their worst sides. Good on him.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 9:03 AM on May 18 [11 favorites]
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 9:03 AM on May 18 [11 favorites]
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If you want to watch Dolly Parton going femdom on Dabney in a marijuana dream, 9 to 5 is fun.
posted by constraint at 9:20 AM on May 18 [13 favorites]
If you want to watch Dolly Parton going femdom on Dabney in a marijuana dream, 9 to 5 is fun.
posted by constraint at 9:20 AM on May 18 [13 favorites]
Knew irl. Funny guy.
posted by Ideefixe at 9:24 AM on May 18 [20 favorites]
posted by Ideefixe at 9:24 AM on May 18 [20 favorites]
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posted by Smart Dalek at 9:35 AM on May 18
posted by Smart Dalek at 9:35 AM on May 18
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posted by Token Meme at 9:37 AM on May 18
posted by Token Meme at 9:37 AM on May 18
I spent a summer working in my town's only video rental store and I always played family films during the day. I had no idea what Cloak & Dagger was but it did have Dabney Coleman in it so I played it. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it and every customer that came into the store got sucked into it as well and watched it to the end.
posted by NoMich at 9:45 AM on May 18 [11 favorites]
posted by NoMich at 9:45 AM on May 18 [11 favorites]
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posted by Joey Michaels at 9:51 AM on May 18
posted by Joey Michaels at 9:51 AM on May 18
I remember watching a few episodes of Buffalo Bill back in the day, and he was super-obnoxious in that role. Great foil in Joanna Cassidy, as I recall, along with Geena Davis in only her second? role. But always the director in Tootsie, impatiently lighting and smoking cigarettes while sparring with "Dorothy Michaels."
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posted by the sobsister at 10:00 AM on May 18 [3 favorites]
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posted by the sobsister at 10:00 AM on May 18 [3 favorites]
Just a quick note in case you, like me, got the mustaches confused. Dabney Coleman WAS in Cloak and Dagger like you thought, he was NOT the voice of Kitt, nor was he in Boy vs World, that's William Daniels. Regardless, RIP to a great.
posted by symbioid at 10:06 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
posted by symbioid at 10:06 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
Sobsister > “Oh God, here come the terms.” Lol 😂
posted by zooropa at 10:07 AM on May 18 [5 favorites]
posted by zooropa at 10:07 AM on May 18 [5 favorites]
Jennifer: He wasn't very old.
David Lightman: No, he was pretty old. He was 41.
Jennifer: Oh yeah? Oh, that's old.
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posted by credulous at 10:09 AM on May 18 [3 favorites]
David Lightman: No, he was pretty old. He was 41.
Jennifer: Oh yeah? Oh, that's old.
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posted by credulous at 10:09 AM on May 18 [3 favorites]
Truly an iconic performer, with a mustache for the ages!
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posted by Saxon Kane at 10:10 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
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posted by Saxon Kane at 10:10 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
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Positively inescapable during my childhood. I had a brief moment of panic reading the headline and worrying that he'd Milkshake Ducked.
(Also, noted at the bottom of that link that Bernard Hill just died, so RIP Madgett as well.)
posted by phooky at 10:24 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
Positively inescapable during my childhood. I had a brief moment of panic reading the headline and worrying that he'd Milkshake Ducked.
(Also, noted at the bottom of that link that Bernard Hill just died, so RIP Madgett as well.)
posted by phooky at 10:24 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
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Zooropa, yes -- "Oh god, here come the terms" has been cracking me up for decades.
posted by BlahLaLa at 10:24 AM on May 18 [8 favorites]
Zooropa, yes -- "Oh god, here come the terms" has been cracking me up for decades.
posted by BlahLaLa at 10:24 AM on May 18 [8 favorites]
Buffalo Bill, lying on the floor after getting punched: “Why didn’t you tell me about your wife’s hysterectomy BEFORE I told the joke?”
posted by 1970s Antihero at 10:36 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
posted by 1970s Antihero at 10:36 AM on May 18 [1 favorite]
He hasn’t died, he’s gone to Brazil, but he’ll never be seen again.
“Brazil?”
posted by azpenguin at 10:42 AM on May 18 [6 favorites]
“Brazil?”
posted by azpenguin at 10:42 AM on May 18 [6 favorites]
I was in 6th grade in Cambridge, MA in 1980. We did a women’s unit and were required to go see 9 to 5. Then we had to answer questions such as “Name three ways the boss was sexist.”
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posted by Melismata at 10:57 AM on May 18 [6 favorites]
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posted by Melismata at 10:57 AM on May 18 [6 favorites]
He came to my attention as a child, when I couldn’t get around the name Dabney, so I always took an interest when he was on screen. It’s probably best that the name didn’t catch on, because those kids would have had it so hard from “scoundrel by proxy.”
posted by GenjiandProust at 10:59 AM on May 18 [2 favorites]
posted by GenjiandProust at 10:59 AM on May 18 [2 favorites]
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posted by JustSayNoDawg at 11:07 AM on May 18
posted by JustSayNoDawg at 11:07 AM on May 18
Dabney Coleman walked so Stephen Root could run. RIP!
posted by praemunire at 11:15 AM on May 18 [10 favorites]
posted by praemunire at 11:15 AM on May 18 [10 favorites]
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posted by Ignorantsavage at 11:16 AM on May 18
posted by Ignorantsavage at 11:16 AM on May 18
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posted by dannyboybell at 11:23 AM on May 18
posted by dannyboybell at 11:23 AM on May 18
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posted by gentlyepigrams at 11:59 AM on May 18
posted by gentlyepigrams at 11:59 AM on May 18
The Man with One Red Shoe
posted by j_curiouser at 12:03 PM on May 18 [2 favorites]
posted by j_curiouser at 12:03 PM on May 18 [2 favorites]
Drexells Class!
posted by lkc at 12:24 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
posted by lkc at 12:24 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
🥸
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 12:28 PM on May 18 [2 favorites]
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 12:28 PM on May 18 [2 favorites]
“I was extremely small, just a little guy who was there, the kid who created no trouble. I was attracted to fantasy, and I created games for myself."
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posted by Flight Hardware, do not touch at 1:02 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
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posted by Flight Hardware, do not touch at 1:02 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
I read in his obit. that he once said he liked playing these smarmy characters because they are so well-defined. I thought that was an interesting take, and probably true! I doubt he ever had to turn to the director to ask what the character's motivation was.
Dabney Coleman should have starred in an American remake of "Fawlty Towers" in the 80s. He would have been the only actor who understood how to play an American Basil Fawlty.
posted by stannate at 1:47 PM on May 18 [20 favorites]
Dabney Coleman should have starred in an American remake of "Fawlty Towers" in the 80s. He would have been the only actor who understood how to play an American Basil Fawlty.
posted by stannate at 1:47 PM on May 18 [20 favorites]
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He was always "that guy" who played the straight man McKittrick to Barry Corbin's General Beringer in War Games to me every time I saw him in something.
Jennifer: He wasn't very old.
David Lightman: No, he was pretty old. He was 41.
Jennifer: Oh yeah? Oh, that's old.
They are talking about Stephen Falken here played by John Wood.
posted by Mitheral at 2:47 PM on May 18 [4 favorites]
He was always "that guy" who played the straight man McKittrick to Barry Corbin's General Beringer in War Games to me every time I saw him in something.
Jennifer: He wasn't very old.
David Lightman: No, he was pretty old. He was 41.
Jennifer: Oh yeah? Oh, that's old.
They are talking about Stephen Falken here played by John Wood.
posted by Mitheral at 2:47 PM on May 18 [4 favorites]
He did an excellent job in 9 to 5. Especially chained up and gagged.
posted by jenfullmoon at 3:17 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
posted by jenfullmoon at 3:17 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
Short Time. Love all of his classics but that's probably my favorite.
posted by Cyrano at 5:27 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
posted by Cyrano at 5:27 PM on May 18 [1 favorite]
"Burt! Your yogurt!"
posted by edward_5000 at 6:02 PM on May 18
posted by edward_5000 at 6:02 PM on May 18
I have a couple of writer friends who have known him for years and say he is the opposite of the guy we see on screen, just a genuinely good guy.
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posted by martin q blank at 7:01 PM on May 18 [8 favorites]
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posted by martin q blank at 7:01 PM on May 18 [8 favorites]
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He did play a lot of horrible men, but yeah, I remember him most in Cloak & Dagger which I watched probably 20 times as a kid, where he's a hero. Two of them. I had a real sad moment yesterday when I heard he was gone.
posted by verbminx at 8:27 PM on May 18 [2 favorites]
He did play a lot of horrible men, but yeah, I remember him most in Cloak & Dagger which I watched probably 20 times as a kid, where he's a hero. Two of them. I had a real sad moment yesterday when I heard he was gone.
posted by verbminx at 8:27 PM on May 18 [2 favorites]
One time I saw him standing around outside a theater on Broadway. My cousin pointed him out. We saw three celebs that trip: Tom Bosley and somebody else I forget, and Dabney Coleman, who was the most New York chic of them all. He was all dressed up in what I'm remembering was a tuxedo and lit beautifully. I think he just went out to chat with his friends and maybe have a cigarette at intermission or something and we just happened to be riding by in a cab at the exact right moment and my cousin saw him and poked me and we felt like we were really there.
posted by Don Pepino at 9:38 PM on May 18 [5 favorites]
posted by Don Pepino at 9:38 PM on May 18 [5 favorites]
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posted by exlotuseater at 3:48 PM on May 19
posted by exlotuseater at 3:48 PM on May 19
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman blew my young mind—the characters were all so strangely, vividly warped. Coleman as Merle Jeeter, promoting his talentless but passionate singer (a note-perfect Mary Kay Place) was my intro to Coleman and I enjoyed everything he brought to the character.
Loved to hate? No… somehow, Coleman kept just enough humanity in his sleazy, egotistical portrayals that I could never actually hate him.
The scene in Tootsie where Hoffman-as-Dorothy observes to Ron Carlisle (Coleman) “I understand you better than you think,” Coleman’s confused “You do?” is a brilliantly funny little moment and nobody could have played it better.
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posted by kinnakeet at 10:07 AM on May 20 [1 favorite]
Loved to hate? No… somehow, Coleman kept just enough humanity in his sleazy, egotistical portrayals that I could never actually hate him.
The scene in Tootsie where Hoffman-as-Dorothy observes to Ron Carlisle (Coleman) “I understand you better than you think,” Coleman’s confused “You do?” is a brilliantly funny little moment and nobody could have played it better.
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posted by kinnakeet at 10:07 AM on May 20 [1 favorite]
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