Althouse: Goodbye to Ryan O'Neal.

December 9, 2023

Goodbye to Ryan O'Neal.

The actor died yesterday at the age of 82.

23 comments:

The Crack Emcee said...: I can picture him on his deathbed, thinking "I was in a KUBRICK movie!"; 12/9/23, 6:44 AM
William said...: A Celtic trio: Sandra Day O'Connor, Shane McGowan, and Ryan O'Neal. McGowan was hardly the brightest star in that constellation, but he was the only one I connected with.....Ryan O'Neal is like Ben Affleck. There's something unlikable but watchable about his performances....Ambiguity. It's an ambiguous honor for an actor of ambiguous appeal to have his most impressive performance to be that of a jerk. One wonders if playing a jerk was that much of a stretch for Ryan O'Neal. Well, his son whom he occasionally punched out says he mourns the loss of Ryan so who are we to judge.; 12/9/23, 7:24 AM
RideSpaceMountain said...: One of the greatest - and hottest - cinematic scenes of all time. My favorite thing about Thackery's The Life of Barry Lyndon is the final paragraph:

"These people lived and died during the reign of George the III. High or low, rich or poor, they are all equal now."; 12/9/23, 7:46 AM
donald said...: I watched the entire McGowan funeral yesterday William. Nick Cave, who has just never done it for me musically, I have no idea why, cause he’s an awesome dude was amazing. Hell, mesmerizing. It doesn’t get much more fucked up than Shane, but he not only was able to connect Irish folk to punk, he created a standard that nobody else will ever approach. MY DAD loved the Pogues and will tell you that that boy wrote at the greatest of the greatest Irish writers level and damned if he didn’t have the music in him also.; 12/9/23, 7:55 AM
n.n said...: Who wants to live forever... Progressive viability is a common human condition. RIP; 12/9/23, 8:13 AM
mikee said...: Still the best Bible salesman in movies, although John Goodman gave him a good bit of competition.; 12/9/23, 8:35 AM
Amexpat said...: I first saw him in "Love Story". Was baffled by the key cinematic line in the film, where Ali MacGraw profoundly says, "Love means never having to say your sorry". I was 13 at the time and thought that since Ali Mcgraw was dying of cancer she must have had some wisdon I didn't have. Line still doesn't make sense to me.

Ryan was very good in "Paper Moon". His daughter was even better.; 12/9/23, 9:04 AM
Narr said...: "Infamous" candle scene? Anything like an infamous cigar scene? Why not the 'infamous Schubert op. 100' scene?

I wondered for years why Kubrick had O'Neal of all people in the role. Irishness aside, he was a mediocre actor. Turns out the money men told him his star had to be one of the top ten box-office draws of the previous year, and O'Neal was the only one not committed to something else.

That said, he wasn't awful, and BL is one of Kubrick's best, minor anachronisms aside.

Kubrick of course wanted to do a Napoleon epic, but Scott the Kubrick epigone has ruined that story for a few generations.; 12/9/23, 10:33 AM
rcocean said...: Wow, he was 82. In my mind he was still 35. Good actor but limited range. Didn't like him at first in barry lyndon, but he grew on me.

RIP; 12/9/23, 11:15 AM
Joe Smith said...: He was never as big a star as I thought he'd be.

He was good looking, but didn't strike me as a great actor.

But in Hollywood a lot of people get by on looks alone...; 12/9/23, 11:42 AM
Yancey Ward said...: One of my favorite movies, and what I consider to be Kubrick's most under-rated. Seen it at least 5 times in the last 30 years. I thought O'Neal was great in it, too. I also thought he was great in "Love Story" and "Paper Moon". The only thing I remember seeing him in during the 2000s was his recurring role in the television show "Bones".; 12/9/23, 11:45 AM
paminwi said...: O’Neal was great as Temperance Brennan’s father in the TV show Bones.; 12/9/23, 11:52 AM
Tina Trent said...: Kubrick is a pig who should have his artistry rejected on artistic standards decades ago. O'Neill beat women, though the women he beat seemed to like it. Que sera, sera.; 12/9/23, 11:53 AM
rehajm said...: I miss Farrah…; 12/9/23, 1:09 PM
Narr said...: I'm no expert in O'Nealology--I can only clearly recall him in Love Story, BL, and as boy-wonder general James Gavin in A Bridge Too Far. His private life is a black box to me.

Didn't we have a discussion of Thackery's late-life mean streak in a BL thread a few years ago, or am I thinking of another bar?; 12/9/23, 1:45 PM
Yinzer said...: Was that the whole scene? If so, why is it infamous? Given the comment from RSM that it is 'one of the hottest scenes of all time' there certainly must be more to it. No, I dont recall seeing the movie.; 12/9/23, 1:46 PM
Bill Peschel said...: His greatest achievement is that he was one of the greatest cocksmen of Hollywood. In the book "Who's Had Who?" (written by the guy who did Notting Hill and the woman who wrote "Bridget Jones Diary"), they devoted a chapter to all the women O'Neal boinked.; 12/9/23, 2:05 PM
loudogblog said...: He was brilliant in What's Up, Doc?; 12/9/23, 2:49 PM
Chuck said...: A superb choice to eulogize him, Althouse. Well done.; 12/9/23, 3:11 PM
Iman said...: Lyndon is one of my favorite movies. O’Neal sure had a crazy family and escapades over the years, but I hope things got better the last couple of decades.; 12/9/23, 4:28 PM
Spiros said...: Paper Moon was a wonderful movie.; 12/9/23, 4:39 PM
Two-eyed Jack said...: Barry Lyndon -- Paper Moon -- So Fine
RIP; 12/9/23, 7:00 PM
Quaestor said...: Barry Lyndon is my favorite Kubrick flick. Everybody says I'm weird.; 12/10/23, 9:38 AM