RIP David Huddleston

RIP David Huddleston

Memory is weird.  Has there ever been an actor or actress you were familiar with who appeared in dozens, maybe hundreds of TV and movie roles, yet your best memory of them is in something that time has completely forgotten?  That is my experience upon hearing about the death of David Huddleston.

According to IMDB Huddleston had 145 acting credits, including iconic roles in The Big Lebowski (as the title character) and Blazing Saddles.  He received an Emmy nomination for playing Kevin’s grandfather on The Wonder Years.  He played the title character in the movie Santa Claus.  He was one of those character actors who seemingly popped up on every major (or minor) TV series in the 1970’s, ‘80’s and ‘90’s, from Star Trek: The Next Generation to The West Wing to Blansky’s Beauties. 

Yet I remember him from what I have long described as the single worst television show ever committed to the airwaves, a short-lived (7 episodes) NBC comedy from 1979 called Hizzonner.  The IMDB page is woefully absent of details, but if I recall correctly the show featured not only Huddleston’s acting ability, but also his writing, singing and dancing chops.  If I am correct, this information is sorely lacking from both the IMDB synopsis and the show’s Wikipedia entry.

The show was about a genial small town mayor, played by Huddleston.  Again, my recollection is that Huddleston had a hand in creating the show and writing for it (IMDB has no writing credits for Huddleston, so I could be wrong).  I recall in one episode Huddleston broke into a song and dance as if it were a musical (a very small, low budget musical).

The IMDB entry says it co-starred Diana Muldaur (a veteran TV actress from the original Star Trek and LA Law) and Gina Hecht (later on Mork & Mindy).  I remember nothing of them.  I do recall Huddleston’s co-star Don Galloway, hot off his supporting turn on Ironside.  All I remember of Galloway was that, as a comedic actor, he was stiffer than a block of wood.

I don’t mean any of this as denigrating Huddleston’s talent.  He had a long, successful career as a character actor, and even if Hizzoner was a bad show, it was good enough to get on the air at a time when there were only 3 networks.  You have to be really good to make the worst show on television.

So while everyone fondly recalls David Huddleston from The Big Lebowski (I love the Coen Brothers, but I don’t get that movie), I think of an all-but-forgotten sitcom that he put his unique stamp on.  I won’t be lobbying for a release of the complete Hizzoner on DVD (assuming the tapes of the show were preserved somewhere), but if it was on Netflix I’d check it out.

Alas, it seems like the only surviving traces of Hizzoner exist in my fading memories.