Ace of Spades HQ

August 01, 2011

"That Guy" Open Thread. [krak]
— Open Blogger

You know him. The one that always plays the sleazy two-bit con-man who always has the one piece of information that breaks the case wide open?

UPDATED for being too specific. Include any character actor. The town drunk, the sappy boyfriend, the eternal sidekick...

I have a bunch of favorites. Harry Dean Stanton never fails to deliver a performance that makes you feel at least a little sorry for his character.

My all time favorite is probably M. Emmet Walsh, who uttered one of my favorite movie lines in a movie full of great movie lines.

No, not that mother-scratcher! Bill Parker. Anyway, we're approaching the wreck, and there's this spherical object a restin' in the highway. And it's not a piece of the car.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 08:14 AM | Comments (93)
Post contains 133 words, total size 1 kb.

1 5 LETTERS DESCRIBES MY TV 24/7 -

M..S..N..B..C!

KID KNOWS HELL DIE IF HE EVER CHANGES THE CHANNIL!

SPIT!

Posted by: KayInMaine at August 01, 2011 08:16 AM (g7xmg)

"He fell on a knife, four times."

"Calling all cars! UFO sighted on Michigan Avenue!"

Posted by: Joey Pants in 'Running Scared' at August 01, 2011 08:16 AM (0QZM8)

3 God. Now you made me think of Paris, Texas. I was already depressed, dammit.

Posted by: BlackOrchid at August 01, 2011 08:19 AM (SB0V2)

4 Wow. Such amazing blog post makes me so lucky to read. I will get it tattooed on my chest tomorrow.

Posted by: Amazon Audiobooks at August 01, 2011 08:20 AM (l04LX)

5 Harry Dean Stanton and M. Emmett Walsh have both appeared in some funky flicks, e.g., Wild at Heart and Blood Simple, respectively.

Posted by: joncelli at August 01, 2011 08:21 AM (RD7QR)

6 The first 10 minutes of Raising Arizona actually raised the bar too high, and the rest of the film couldn't match it.

A classic anyway...

Posted by: Lyford at August 01, 2011 08:21 AM (KS9sG)

7 "I'll take theseHuggies and whatever you have in that cash register there."

Posted by: H.I. McDonough at August 01, 2011 08:23 AM (hbAPu)

Wilfred Brimley, Absence of Malice: You had a leak? You call what's goin' on around here a leak? Boy, the last time there was a leak like this, Noah built hisself a boat.

Posted by: keninnorcal at August 01, 2011 08:24 AM (DnNn/)

9 (although Brimley was the Asst DA, not the sleazy guy)

Posted by: keninnorcal at August 01, 2011 08:24 AM (DnNn/)

10 "...the rest of the film couldn't match it."

Son, you've got a panty on your head.

Posted by: VA Gator at August 01, 2011 08:24 AM (ZZiTD)

11 I loved how Wilford Brimley was calling subpoenas "supp-ee-nees".

Posted by: joncelli at August 01, 2011 08:25 AM (RD7QR)

12 Oh, I get it. GOP can't take the heat so a little payola and badda bing badda boom you change the subject to Harry Dean Stanton?!?! At least you could distract with a cheerleader or something?

Posted by: blaster at August 01, 2011 08:25 AM (p99bP)

13 Kay - you really need to see a doctor.

Posted by: IreneFingIrene at August 01, 2011 08:25 AM (JKe0g)

14 Wait, there's payola? I'll get a cheerleader pic in exchange for some of that.

Posted by: joncelli at August 01, 2011 08:26 AM (RD7QR)

15 Where's Captain Kickass? I didn't see a picture of that guy, you know, the one that always pistol-whips republicans into squeaking out a shallow victory?

Posted by: Fritz at August 01, 2011 08:27 AM (/ZZCn)

Kay has kids? May God have mercy on them...

Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 01, 2011 08:28 AM (9hSKh)

17 William Fichner in about every damn thing he appears in.

You may remember him as the manager of the mob bank in The Dark Knight who pulls a shotgun on the Joker gang or as the agent of Satan in Drive Angry who has to chase down Nic Cage and bring him back to Hell.

Posted by: Brandon In Baton Rouge at August 01, 2011 08:28 AM (JqpkY)

18 Good to see "Booger" made the list.

And Kay has a child? Who in their right mind would bang that slob?

Posted by: Wyatt Earp at August 01, 2011 08:29 AM (ONvgl)

19 The world is full o' complainers. An' the fact is, nothin' comes with a guarantee. Now I don't care if you're the pope of Rome, President of the United States or Man of the Year; somethin' can all go wrong. Now go on ahead, y'know, complain, tell your problems to your neighbor, ask for help, 'n watch him fly. Now, in Russia, they got it mapped out so that everyone pulls for everyone else... that's the theory, anyway. But what I know about is Texas, an' down here... you're on your own.

Posted by: WalrusRex at August 01, 2011 08:29 AM (Hx5uv)

20 As far as Stanton goes...

"You said 'Only an asshole gets killed over a car."!"
"You calling me an asshole, kid?"

Posted by: Brandon In Baton Rouge at August 01, 2011 08:29 AM (JqpkY)

21 OOPS I CRAPPED MY PANTS

Posted by: KAY INSANE at August 01, 2011 08:30 AM (pLTLS)

22 Hate to be racist, but there is only one black guy on the list. BTW, where is Angel from the Rockford files? Would not have added Sam Elliot to the list. Shit he is a required image on any western.

Posted by: Jay Carney at August 01, 2011 08:30 AM (3JtF1)

Posted by: Mallamutt, RINO President for Life at August 01, 2011 12:28 PM (OWjjx)

Not a big fan of cheerleaders or their pics, but you guys might like this:

Top of the bods: Kelly Brook beats Jennifer Lopez and Pippa Middleton to best bikini body

Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 01, 2011 08:31 AM (9hSKh)

Jack Elam Forever!!!

A lot of the guys on that page showed up either as heavies of the week in ST:TOS or in the original Twilight Zone.

Posted by: Tom Servo at August 01, 2011 08:31 AM (T1boi)

25 MY VA-JAY-JAY HAS COBWEBS INSIDE!

Posted by: Not Okay In Maine at August 01, 2011 08:31 AM (ONvgl)

26 5 LETTERS DESCRIBES MY TV 24/7 -

M..S..N..B..C!

That much is painfully obvious..

Not to us but to your mom..

Posted by: Dave C at August 01, 2011 08:32 AM (+VWrC)

Posted by: Wyatt Earp at August 01, 2011 12:29 PM (ONvgl)

And Kay has a child? Who in their right mind would bang that slob?

Alcohol? Desperation? A bit of both?

Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 01, 2011 08:32 AM (9hSKh)

28 I always thought Joe Don Baker was a That Guy but he's not on this list.

Posted by: tachyonshuggy at August 01, 2011 08:33 AM (DZcRU)

29 Richard Carlson!!!! is That Guy.

Posted by: Dr. Frank Baxter at August 01, 2011 08:33 AM (hbAPu)

30 Alcohol? Desperation? A bit of both?

C.

Posted by: Wyatt Earp at August 01, 2011 08:33 AM (ONvgl)

31 Angel, "Rockford Files".

Posted by: james at August 01, 2011 08:33 AM (6Vesa)

32 William Forsythe is one of those guys. He's been in a lot of forgettable movies, and he mostly plays a bad guy. He was the other escaped con in Raising Arizona.

Posted by: huerfano at August 01, 2011 08:34 AM (aZLY2)

33 I always liked Jack Elam, Strother Martin, Stuart Margolin.

Posted by: WalrusRex at August 01, 2011 08:35 AM (Hx5uv)

What.... no Alan Rickman? One of the best bad guys in Modern Cinema?

"I'll cut his heart out with a SPOON!"

"A spoon? why a Spoon?"

"Because it will take longer!"

Posted by: Romeo13 at August 01, 2011 08:36 AM (NtXW4)

35 Hey , I think we found Cenk's viewer.

Posted by: nickless at August 01, 2011 08:38 AM (MMC8r)

36 36

What.... no Alan Rickman? One of the best bad guys in Modern Cinema?

Alan Rickman is a great bad guy, but he's not a nameless presence in films.

Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 01, 2011 08:39 AM (9hSKh)

37 sad to think she has a child.
where facing mayhem might only be a click away?

Posted by: willow at August 01, 2011 08:40 AM (h+qn8)

38 Strother Martin

What... we got here is... FAILURE to communicate.

Posted by: Brandon In Baton Rouge at August 01, 2011 08:40 AM (JqpkY)

5 LETTERS DESCRIBES MY VD 24/7 -

B..U..R..N..S!

Posted by: KAYinPAIN! at August 01, 2011 08:40 AM (0QZM8)

Had one of those moments last night when B'Gal and I were watching the original True Grit. We looked at the stable owner and both said at the same time, "There's that guy."

He was a classic character actor whose name escaped both of us until the credits rolled by, Strother Martin.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy at August 01, 2011 08:40 AM (d0Tfm)

41 Kratos, He was the sheriff in nottingham?

Posted by: willow at August 01, 2011 08:41 AM (h+qn8)

Alan Rickman is a great bad guy, but he's not a nameless presence in films.

Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 01, 2011 12:39 PM (9hSKh)

But he is one of those faces, that people know the face, but not the name...

Posted by: Romeo13 at August 01, 2011 08:41 AM (NtXW4)

43 43 Kratos, He was the sheriff in nottingham? Yes, Alan Rickman was the Sheriff in Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. It was either in this movie or Die Hard where I first became acquainted with Alan Rickman.

Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 01, 2011 08:42 AM (9hSKh)

44 ooh yes He was, oooo lala

Posted by: willow at August 01, 2011 08:42 AM (h+qn8)

45 William Forsythe is one of those guys. He's been in a lot of forgettable movies, and he mostly plays a bad guy

Or the jaded, veteran cop..

Posted by: Dave C at August 01, 2011 08:43 AM (+VWrC)

46 42

Had one of those moments last night when B'Gal and I were watching the original True Grit. We looked at the stable owner and both said at the same time, "There's that guy."

He was a classic character actor whose name escaped both of us until the credits rolled by, Strother Martin.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy at August 01, 2011 12:40 PM (d0Tfm)

LOL... check out the supporting cast in the Mel Gibson version of "Maverick".... its a running montage of "those guys"...

Posted by: Romeo13 at August 01, 2011 08:43 AM (NtXW4)

47 Kratos I'd thought I'd hate that flic. but He made it worth it for me.

Posted by: willow at August 01, 2011 08:44 AM (h+qn8)

48 49 Kratos I'd thought I'd hate that flic. but He made it worth it for me.

Posted by: willow at August 01, 2011 12:44 PM (h+qn

"and bring a freind!"

Posted by: Romeo13 at August 01, 2011 08:45 AM (NtXW4)

49 Romeo ,haha

Posted by: willow at August 01, 2011 08:45 AM (h+qn8)

50 More "Hey, It's That Guy":

http://tinyurl.com/yanjpq

Posted by: Dr. Varno at August 01, 2011 08:45 AM (QMtmy)

51 I thought James Cromwell was pretty well known..

At least he has moved on from 'that guy' to 'The Farmer from Babe'

Posted by: Dave C at August 01, 2011 08:45 AM (+VWrC)

52 I notice that the market is down 114 at this point ... looks like "the deal" is spooking them ...

Posted by: Jeff at August 01, 2011 08:46 AM (A3tpD)

53 Johnathan Banks is a great That Guy, and is still pretty damn menacing as Mike in Breaking Bad

Posted by: weew at August 01, 2011 08:46 AM (7RbIF)

54 There are a few great asian 'Those Guys' whose names I do not know. 'Big Trouble in Little China' has a couple of them.

Posted by: garrett at August 01, 2011 08:47 AM (0QZM8)

55 53 I thought James Cromwell was pretty well known..

At least he has moved on from 'that guy' to 'The Farmer from Babe'

Depends on your POV.

I think of him as "the police captain from LA Confidential", while Trekkers think of him as Zeb Cochrane from ST: First Contact.

Posted by: Brandon In Baton Rouge at August 01, 2011 08:48 AM (JqpkY)

56 I don't think I would have included Sam Elliot in that list. He has starred and co-starred in so many movies and TV shows that I don't think he fits the mold of "unknown character actor".

Posted by: Vic at August 01, 2011 08:49 AM (M9Ie6)

57 49 Kratos I'd thought I'd hate that flic. but He made it worth it for me. Rickman's and Freeman's performance made that Robin Hood movie passable. Interestingly, Costner didn't even attempt a British accent in that film. However, the "true" Robin Hood flick will always be, for me, Robin Hood: Men in Tights!

Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 01, 2011 08:49 AM (9hSKh)

58 ooh yeah, Men in Tights was good.

Posted by: willow at August 01, 2011 08:50 AM (h+qn8)

59 Gabby Hayes was the greatest of "that guy" stars. His usual character was recognized immediately. And he's been imitated by countless other "that guys".

Posted by: Soona at August 01, 2011 08:50 AM (l5xDa)

60 56 There are a few great asian 'Those Guys' whose names I do not know. 'Big Trouble in Little China' has a couple of them.

Yeah, the one with the skullet and big Fu Manchu mustache definitely appeared in Die Hard and some other action flicks.

Posted by: Brandon In Baton Rouge at August 01, 2011 08:50 AM (JqpkY)

61 You got a good Sarsparilla?

Posted by: Sam Elliot at August 01, 2011 08:51 AM (0QZM8)

Isn't Fred Thompson one of''those guys'?

Posted by: Ma Bell at August 01, 2011 08:51 AM (7tG/4)

63 the one with the skullet +++++++++ Skullet! I forgot that word or I would have described him just as you did. He's in EVERYTHING!

Posted by: garrett at August 01, 2011 08:52 AM (0QZM8)

64 Yeah, the one with the skullet and big Fu Manchu mustache definitely appeared in Die Hard and some other action flicks.

He was waiting for the cops to bust into the lobby behind the snack counter.. then notices the candy bars and helps himself to them..

I LOLed at 'Skullet' though..

Posted by: Dave C at August 01, 2011 08:54 AM (+VWrC)

Isn't Fred Thompson one of''those guys'?

Posted by: Ma Bell at August 01, 2011 12:51 PM

Only when running for President.

Posted by: huerfano at August 01, 2011 08:55 AM (aZLY2)

66 Then there's the big guy with the always-scraggly beard who consistantly plays a biker and/or one of the henchmen gunners. I have never seen him play a good-guy part. I've even seen him in some advertisements, always a negative character. Wish I knew his name. He's been in a lot of movies.

Posted by: Soona at August 01, 2011 09:00 AM (l5xDa)

re: Alan Rickman: But he is one of those faces, that people know the face, but not the name...

Only if they're STOOPID.

Posted by: Tom Servo at August 01, 2011 09:10 AM (T1boi)

68 #68 He played a role in one of the last episodes of Justified. His name is Mickey Jones.

Posted by: Quilly Mammoth at August 01, 2011 09:11 AM (gF+ch)

69 There should be a separate category when one THAT GUY (Bill McKinney) ass rapes another THAT GUY(Ned Beatty).

Posted by: Larry Dickman at August 01, 2011 09:12 AM (O0Wa5)

70 Little known fact: James Rebhorn, Donald Moffat, and James Cromwell are all three the same actor. They just play the same role so much that like Stephen King / Richard Bachman, they use aliases so as not to over-expose themselves.

Posted by: Nicholas Kronos at August 01, 2011 09:15 AM (ak08F)

71 M icro-
S copic
N eilsens
B ring the
C razy

Posted by: nickless at August 01, 2011 09:15 AM (MMC8r)

72 How about Michael Wincott?

Plays a hell of a baddy. Tall, dark and that gravelly voice from hell. Top Dollar from The Crow. Guy of Gisborne from Robin Hood.

You wouldn't want to clean up after him, but you'd love to party with him.

Posted by: krakatoa at August 01, 2011 09:17 AM (raxYt)

73 Dub Taylor's son, Buck Taylor is one of those guys. He's been in a ton of movies and tv shows, mostly westerns.

Posted by: huerfano at August 01, 2011 09:17 AM (aZLY2)

74 72

Same thing for Hugh Marlowe and Richard Carlson.

Posted by: nickless at August 01, 2011 09:18 AM (MMC8r)

75 Top Dollar from The Crow.

"I lit the first fires in this town. Know what they've got now? Devil's Night greeting cards! I'm a goddamn institution here!"

Posted by: Brandon In Baton Rouge at August 01, 2011 09:18 AM (JqpkY)

76 One who seems forgotten so far is John Carpenter regular Keith David, who was in The Thing and They Live, amongst other films, along with being a big contributor on the voice-acting scene.

Posted by: Brandon In Baton Rouge at August 01, 2011 09:26 AM (JqpkY)

77 For anybody who didn't follow the link: you gotta go read to the end. The last line is hilarious.

Posted by: Jaynie59 at August 01, 2011 09:27 AM (4zKCA)

What, no mention of Danny Trejo? Somebody has to play the menacing Mexican or Native American.

Posted by: rabidsquirrel at August 01, 2011 09:38 AM (RuF8n)

79 William Fichner in about every damn thing he appears in.

You may remember him as the manager of the mob bank in The Dark Knight who pulls a shotgun on the Joker gang or as the agent of Satan in Drive Angry who has to chase down Nic Cage and bring him back to Hell.

Yes, and he also plays crab-boat captain Sig Hansen on the TV show "Deadliest Catch".

Okay, not really. But damn, they could be twins!

Posted by: Rod Rescueman at August 01, 2011 09:52 AM (HwE/1)

80 Best wasted work lunch in a while. The IMDb on some of those guys...wow. Childhood nostalgia boners everywhere. Needs to be a "That Gal" page (p'rolly is, but I'm eating a sammich + I'm too lazy to look).

I vote for the silver haired lady that was the Senator in GI Jane. She also mentored a Fonda (the hot one) in that movie where the Fonda was a psycho crackhead turned sexy ginger haired assassin who humped Dirty Steve, argued with Dean Keaton, and ran The Wolf over in a Mustang. And it had that song that I like that that once fat, now skinny cuz Weight watchers American Idol singer girl does pretty good.

Oh! And that creepy little old lady that played Shadatt Mapes in Dune & was the principal in Kindergarten Cop. She's been in a lot of stuff.

Posted by: Lamontyoubigdummy at August 01, 2011 09:55 AM (n7Yi9)

81 Yeah, the one with the skullet and big Fu Manchu mustache definitely appeared in Die Hard and some other action flicks.

LOL. Al Leong. Show's up in just about everything 80's. He was also "Endo", the guy who tortures Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon.

Posted by: Rod Rescueman at August 01, 2011 09:55 AM (HwE/1)

True story: Wilford Brimley was a friend of my now deceased uncle Bill, and both came to my house in California when I was 11 (in 1974) for Thanksgiving Dinner. I recall almost choking to death on dinner that day. Good times, good times. Brimley and Bill grew up together in Wyoming and used to go whorin' and drinkin' together, according to my uncle, who has long since died.

Fun fact about Brimley: He looked as old as he does now back then; he's just a little bit grayer now.

Posted by: Sharkman at August 01, 2011 10:10 AM (wMsKw)

83 Steve Buscemi, you retards.

Posted by: JorgXMcKie at August 01, 2011 10:22 AM (290l2)

84 Or am I being obtuse?

Posted by: The Schwalbe : © at August 01, 2011 10:36 AM (UU0OF)

85 WARREN OATES.

Posted by: KirkCameronLeftMeBehind at August 01, 2011 10:50 AM (iZ6fL)

86 Justin Tarr as Eddy http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsT/54746.gif

Posted by: Johnny Ross at August 01, 2011 11:13 AM (NLDaf)

87 Hey, I'm a 'That Guy'! I didn't even make the list, which pretty much proves my point.

Posted by: John Turturro at August 01, 2011 01:08 PM (GIrbZ)

88 Bruce Spence is a 'That Guy'. Bruce Dern is a 'Thar Guy'.

Posted by: Hey, We Know That Guy From Somewhere Else at August 01, 2011 01:16 PM (GIrbZ)

89 It is amazing to me how many of those actors have appeared on the old Twilight Zone. Some of them on more than one episode.

Posted by: Ken in Kansas at August 01, 2011 01:53 PM (jl8Yn)

90 The recently deceased and fellow-okie GD Spradlin...hello?

Posted by: ron at August 01, 2011 02:41 PM (rrtwV)

91 Ahhhhh, C. Emmet Walsh had some great lines!

From Blood Simple: the last lines in the movie
Abby: [after shooting Visser] I'm not afraid o' you, Marty.
Private Detective Visser: [laughing hysterically] Well, ma'am, if I see him, I'll sure give him the message.

It is also entertaining to wait for the water droplet to fall from the pipes over Visser's head, as he dies.

Posted by: mikee at August 01, 2011 05:02 PM (SA3Yu)

92 Robert Loggia.

Posted by: Joe R. at August 02, 2011 12:33 PM (DR8vb)

93 GHD UK Chiang kai-shek is the marriage before the eyes of the cast in pursuit of dr. Sun yat-sen's widow soong ching ling, GHD Iv Styler just on the first lady was greeted by the severity of the soong ching ling later, just turn and refused to song meiling married. In March 1925, dr. Sun yat-sen, GHD Styler died in China at that time is just beginning to some progress of the kuomintang influence quickly differentiated into several factions, which recently served as President of the huangpu military academy, GHD Straighteners UK

Posted by: GHD at August 14, 2011 02:20 AM (UDaJ+)

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