It was 25 years ago today that one of the great Doctors passed away. I remember the news like it was yesterday and could not believe it. I had met him about a half year before at the Armory in Minneapolis and found him a wonderful, gentle man. He took time with his fans, even making a personal effort to hear and answer a mentally handicapped lad's question personally during a public Q&A. His eyes alive and a spring in his step. That was why the news hit so hard when I heard - He seemed immortal.
About half his work on Doctor Who is lost, gone, destroyed. Missing are his gems that kept English kids hiding behind their couches with a giggle as he faced the greatest evils of the universe with impish glee. You could tell there was more to his character then his outward clownish image showed.
He had the hard job of taking over for the original, the one people saw from the beginning. Hard shoes to fill, so he threw them away and brought his own. He cut his own image and made the role his own. There was no looking back anymore, just heading forward. Week after week like a pied piper children and adults tuned in to see what new adventures he faced with a gleam in his eye.
When it was time for him to leave he was the one with the big shoes to fill and, like him, the one to follow threw them away to bring his own. Both were good friends and it showed when they appeared together for the tenth anniversary of the show, then again for the twentieth. He made one last appearance on the show about two years before his passing with another actor that had the role and his magic returned that had been missing for so long.
With the new generation of Doctor Who so many now do not really know him, or care. Why watch these old, cheesy black and white stories when we have this young man in a bow tie with great CGI effects they seem to say. But if it was not for him they would not have that. The show would have died LONG before their birth, and maybe even their parents birth. He was the clown before the clowns. He was the mystery before the mysteries. He was the first to be called Time Lord. He was the first to bring us to his home planet and face his people. He was the first to wear a bow tie! He was the first to so many children introduced to Doctor Who.
It was at Magnum Opus Con II in Georgia when he fell asleep doing what he loved best, entertaining. He embraced the fans in his latter years and found them a source of joy. I still remember that March day in 1987, just a few days after his 67th birthday. That was the day that Patrick Troughton left us.
Eirik Farwanderer
28 March, 2012 Anno Domini
About half his work on Doctor Who is lost, gone, destroyed. Missing are his gems that kept English kids hiding behind their couches with a giggle as he faced the greatest evils of the universe with impish glee. You could tell there was more to his character then his outward clownish image showed.
He had the hard job of taking over for the original, the one people saw from the beginning. Hard shoes to fill, so he threw them away and brought his own. He cut his own image and made the role his own. There was no looking back anymore, just heading forward. Week after week like a pied piper children and adults tuned in to see what new adventures he faced with a gleam in his eye.
When it was time for him to leave he was the one with the big shoes to fill and, like him, the one to follow threw them away to bring his own. Both were good friends and it showed when they appeared together for the tenth anniversary of the show, then again for the twentieth. He made one last appearance on the show about two years before his passing with another actor that had the role and his magic returned that had been missing for so long.
With the new generation of Doctor Who so many now do not really know him, or care. Why watch these old, cheesy black and white stories when we have this young man in a bow tie with great CGI effects they seem to say. But if it was not for him they would not have that. The show would have died LONG before their birth, and maybe even their parents birth. He was the clown before the clowns. He was the mystery before the mysteries. He was the first to be called Time Lord. He was the first to bring us to his home planet and face his people. He was the first to wear a bow tie! He was the first to so many children introduced to Doctor Who.
It was at Magnum Opus Con II in Georgia when he fell asleep doing what he loved best, entertaining. He embraced the fans in his latter years and found them a source of joy. I still remember that March day in 1987, just a few days after his 67th birthday. That was the day that Patrick Troughton left us.
Eirik Farwanderer
28 March, 2012 Anno Domini
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