2021 Reaches Its End

I think I can speak for most people when I say that 2021 was not a good year. Like the year before it, it was dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The creation of vaccines gave some hope, and for a time businesses and theatres reopened. Unfortunately, the Omicron variant emerged and seems to have put us right back where we started. In New York City, Broadway theatres are closed again. In many places restaurants are closing again. As we enter 2022, it sometimes seems like the pandemic will never end.

Personally, I will always remember 2021 as a  year when some of my friends died. I had known Kelly Abbass since the days of MySpace. In August 2018 (have I mentioned how much I hate that month in that year) she was diagnosed with brain cancer. Sadly, this year she lost her battle with the disease. Kelly was an artistic model and she also sang. While she was an artistic model, she was at heart a sweet, small town, Canadian girl. She never missed wishing me a happy birthday, even as she was suffering from cancer. Every year she would post about her husband Steve's birthday and I would tell her to wish him a happy birthday and she said she would. She was perhaps the only person I know who was as big a Cheap Trick fan as I am.

Fellow blogger Steve Bailey of the blog Movie Movie Blog Blog died unexpectedly this year. This took me by surprise, as Steve was only a little older than me, even though he was not in good health. Steve had a wonderful, if twisted, sense of humour and he may well have been the biggest Jane Russell fan I knew. He was also a huge Beatles fan. He was a very active blogger and he participated in many blogathons. He was also a long time member of TCMParty.

Another long time friend who died this year was Channing Thomson. Channing was the king of movie posters and related memorabilia. Indeed, he had been in the movie poster business since 1985. I know only a few people who know more about classic film than Channing did. He was also gifted with a great sense of humour. He was one of the early members of TCMParty as well.

2021 also saw the deaths of many beloved celebrities. Indeed, it seems to have saved the most beloved celebrity for last. Television pioneer and legend Betty White died today at the age of 99. Like many her has shook me. I never met Betty, but I remember her from my earliest days and I always enjoyed seeing her on television and film. Betty White was a true pioneer. At age 18 she appeared on television for the first time, at which point the medium was still experimental. She produced her sitcom Life with Elizabeth, making her one of the few women at the time in total creative control of a TV show. Like nearly everyone, I adored Betty White and it hurts to know she didn't live to see her 100th birthday. I will post a eulogy for her January 3.

Sadly, this month also saw the death of Michael Nesmith, composer, singer, guitarist, movie producer, and Monkee. Anyone who has read this blog knows how much I love The Monkees, and Michael Nesmith was my favourite. I will freely admit that I grieved over Michael Nesmith more than any other celebrity save for John Lennon, George Harrison, and, for obvious reasons, my beloved Vanessa. I never met him, but he was part of my life since my early childhood. I loved his work with The Monkees and his solo work.

The year would see the deaths of other celebrities I love. Jane Powell was always one of my favourite actresses and she starred in some of my favourite movies: Royal Wedding (1951) and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954). In addition to Betty White, we lost two other members of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Ed Asner played Lou Grant on the show, but he played so many other roles and did them all well. Cloris Leachman had a long career before The Mary Tyler Moore Show and a long career afterwards. She was truly a force to be reckoned with when it came to acting. Another great actress to die this year was Jessica Walter. There seemed to be no role she couldn't play. Of course, I am a fan of The Andy Griffith Show, so I was sad when I heard of Betty Lynn's death. She was Barney Fife's one true love, Thelma Lou, and no one could have played her better. Aside from Michael Nesmith, two other music artists close to my heart died this year. Charlie Watts was The Rolling Stones' drummer and a large part of why the band was so great. Don Everly was one half of The Everly Brothers, whose music created entire subgenres of rock. Mary Wilson was always my favourite of The Supremes, and the only one to stay with the group form its beginnings to their break-up in 1977.

Many beloved actors died this year. This is a short list of those who died. I apologize for leaving out anyone's favourites, but so many died this year it was hard to keep track. Among those who died were Barbara Shelley, Deezer D, Cicely Tyson, Hal Holbrook, Christopher Plummer, Yaphet Kotto, George Segal, Gavin MacLeod, Clarence Williams III, Ned Beatty, Frank Bonner, Jane Withers, Markie Post, Pat Hitchcock, Sonny Chiba, Michael Constantine, Willie Garson, Tommy Kirk, Peter Scolari, Dean Stockwell, Arlene Dahl, Eddie Mekka, and Cara Williams. The music world also saw several losses, including Michael Stanley, Jim Steinman, Lloyd Price, ZZ Top bassist Dusty Hill, Moody Blues drummer Graeme Edge, and composer Stephen Sondheim. Among the others who died were comic book writer Dwayne McDuffie, magician Mark Wilson, children's writer Beverly Cleary, and novelist Anne Rice.

Streaming continued to be major news in 2021, although it is still not the dominant way of watching television. According to Nielsen, streaming platforms accounted for 28% of all television viewing. Most of my viewing tends to be older TV shows and movies, but I caught some of the streaming original shows this year. Doom Patrol is still my favourite streaming show and I watched its third season. I watched WandaVision and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is one of the best explorations of grief I have ever seen. I also watched The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and enjoyed it. I also enjoyed Only Murders in the Building, which was a lot of fun.

I can't say much about the movies released this year, as I haven't seen any. I have avoided the theatres this year and I forget to watch them on streaming. I want to see Dune and Passing. Some time I guess I will have to get caught up on them.

Anyhow, I hope that 2022 is a much better year. I hope that we can put this pandemic behind us and that everyone can enjoy peace and joy in the coming year. 2021 has been a rough year for all of us, and I think all of us need a break.