Cliff Robertson Remembered

I’m saddened about the recent passing of Cliff Robertson, one of my favorite actors. Robertson won me over with impressive performances in such films as Gidget, Obsession, Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken, Three Days of the Condor, PT-109, Spider-Man, and Charly. His remarkable acting career spanned over 50 years and included roles in over 100 movies and television shows.

It was my good fortune to meet Robertson several years ago when he came to San Diego Mesa College to accept a special award for his Oscar-winning performance in Charly. As emcee of the program, I became concerned because Robertson went over his allotted time explaining why he wanted to make a sequel to Charly -- so I asked him to sum up in one sentence the movie’s most important message.

“Well, that’s the nicest way I’ve ever been kicked off stage,” he announced to the audience. Of course, everyone laughed. But they all knew I would never kick Cliff Robertson off stage!

Besides being a wonderful actor and a very nice guy, Robertson had a great sense of humor. He will be missed. Thankfully, we can still watch his movies on DVD.