Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Rest in Peace, Alex Karras


This will have to serve; I wish I could have found a clip of Karras in the movie Victor/Victoria, where he played opposite the magnificent Robert Preston.  Both of those actors, so deliciously straight, played incredibly sympathetic gay, very masculine men, and presented incredible insights into how we define gender and sexuality -- and love -- instead of making their roles merely camp.  And of course, James Garner rounded out the trio of leading men in that movie, enlarging their sexuality by playing straight to their gay along a spectrum of shades of gray in human sexuality rather than over-simple either/or.

THAT was acting!  What a shame such a lovely man suffered from dementia as a result of playing football.  I hope what he suffered leads to better protection for current and future athletes.

1 comment:

  1. DG- I assure you that the NFLPA is studying this and trying to come up with solutions. So are independent organizations. However, I do not know what can be done. Football is a violent sport, and we are taught as kids, to put the crown of our helmets right on there numbers, and drive through. I don't know if any improvements on helmet technology can prevent future concussions, but I hope so. We are losing too many great athletes. RIP Mr. Karras.

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