This past Friday saw the passing of a truly interesting man who went from type-casted roles to a complete career reinvention at the age of 70. He died of natural causes in his Montecito, CA home at the age of 87.

Palance was known for menacing roles since his debut as a murderer named Blackie in the 1950 Panic in the Streets and went on from there to play a stalker after Joan Crawford (Sudden Fear 1952), which bagged him his first academy award nomination. Subsequent roles involved hard-case military leaders, bad guy gunslingers, hunters, evil doctors, and even as Jack the Ripper (Man in the Attic). Then came the 1991 City Slickers which not only allowed him to reach into comedy (and self-parody), but also won him that Oscar!

When Palance accepted this Oscar for best supporting actor he delighted viewers of the 1992 Academy Awards by dropping to the stage floor and performing one-armed push-ups, showing everyone ‘he still had it’! "That's nothing, really," he said slyly. "As far as two-handed push-ups, you can do that all night, and it doesn't make a difference whether she's there or not." He was a great man with an obvious excellent sense of humor and we’re happy he lived such a healthy long life.