R.I.P. 1926-2009 Age: 83
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evee700 — 16 years ago(September 16, 2009 11:46 PM)
'Dad,' as we called him, was my grandfather. He past away with grace, very peacefully at his home with his wife and three children beside him.
The man had so many stories to tell; there could be a wiki site devoted to them all. He gave us such an insight into his world of old, and we always listened intently because he was such a great story teller. He would change his voice with inflections here and there, respectfully impersonating the people he came across in his journeys from the flamboyant to the reserved, stout-headed heavy speakers to timid fast talkers I know that myself and siblings all took something from him, whether it be speech, diction, a sense of work ethic, or just an appreciation for life. He had a respect for man-kind and our aspirations as a people. He loved anyone who took their profession seriously and performed to the best of their abilities. He had books upon books and tons of jazz records and CD's. If politics were being spoken at the dinner table you couldn't have had a more understanding man to converse with because he never took sides or angrily voiced opinions. He was always willing to learn about new things. Side note here, he was also an avid barbecuer and loved Argentinian skirt stake, a recipe he perfected with the help of his Argentinian born wife. That just seemed important to comment on. Food can tell a lot about a person, not that I know how to decipher that though.
Ironically, I never really understood his work or appreciated it until very recently, when I started visiting clips of 12-o'clock High and Naked City on youtube, or2000 watching Valley of the Dolls on late night cable. I remember as a young kid when my mom would bring us into the room to watch old black and white footage, I would fall asleep from boredom. Now the footage intrigues me to no end. He brought so much professionalism and a clarity of voice in his work, something that definitely was helped from his theatre experience prior to working in front of a camera.
Dad, I will miss you dearly.
I am so glad that he affected the people that he did, and hopefully will continue to do so. There is material to build on here. Important tasks to do. Shall we all be busy with our passions. That was his dream, I feel.- paul
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amolad-1 — 16 years ago(September 17, 2009 10:51 PM)
They've been playing Naked City and other old shows on a local cable station in Chicago for about a year now.
I'm enjoying watching him, especially.
Many of the episodes still stand up, and it's great watching all the NY theater actors of that time work on television. (There's even an episode with a 20-year-old Christopher Walken.) Then, before cable and VCRs, an actor could re-appear on a series over and over playing a different character every time.
Another thing about Naked City: it was filmed in a New York that doesn't exist anymore.
Paul Burke made his character interesting.
Hard to do when you're doing the same thing week after week.
Solid, straightforward actor. -
bridgetjones12002 — 16 years ago(October 05, 2009 03:34 PM)
Paul, I am sorry for just getting to this. How wonderful to read such a personal post about your "Dad". What an incredible heritage you had. My deepest sympathy to you and your family. He was such a talent and I always knew he would be such a lovely man.
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schappe1 — 16 years ago(December 23, 2009 08:51 PM)
is running it's annual tribute to those in the movie profession who died this year and there were several performers I didn't realize we had lost. Paul Burke was the one that affected me the most. I collect episodes of old TV shows and both Naked City and 12 O'Clock High were among them. He was a forceful and intelligent actor and I couldn't help but like him. I'm glad to hear that he was such a good guy 1ebcoff screen. I'm old fashioned and like my good guys to be good guys.
What gets me is the passage of time, (I'm 56 and working on being 57). I first became aware of things outside our back yard in the 60's and the TV shows of that time are precious to me, (the first always seems to be the best). The lead actors of that, (or any) time were in their 20's, 30's and 40's: all younger than I am now. We just lost Gene Barry who was 39 when he first played Bat Masterson and 44 when he played Amos Burke. He just died at 90. 90! Paul Burke was 34 when he started being "Adam Flint" and 39 when he became Colonel Joe Gallagher. Now I learn he died at 83 three months ago.
The sand is flowing through the glass. -
DoloresHaze-1 — 16 years ago(January 06, 2010 07:36 PM)
I LOVE Paul Burke in those old Naked City episodes. I just discovered them this year and was so curious about what he was really like. There was such a realness in his performances - understated - almost like he became the character - no phony "acting"
Apparently he lived an adventurous and fully realized life!
How nice to have a family member give a little insight into this fascinating man! I just wish he had written an autobiography.."so many stories to tell"