With all the current craziness, the war, the election, the Grammy’s, the writer’s strike, the latest debacles in the life of fallen pop-princesses, it’s easy to overlook the passing of a phenomenal actor, Roy Scheider. Though he didn’t always pick the most outstanding projects (such as 1964’s The Curse of the Living Corpse), his work in the 70’s inspired many future independent filmmakers, including myself. In the span of five years, Scheider starred in such classic films as Klute, Jaws, Marathon Man, and The French Connection, and was twice nominated for Oscars (for The French Connection, and All That Jazz).

Thanks for the memories, Roy. I guess you got that bigger boat now.

Click here to read his full obituary.