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Harold Ramis dies aged 69
- hmart 13y agoSad news. He directed one of my favourite movies Groundhog Day. RIP.
- pravda 13y agoAs I understand it, on his deathbed, he received total consciousness.
- tunap 13y agoWhich is nice.
- spodek 13y agoYou left out that he has that going for him.
- tunap 13y ago"So I jump ship in Hong Kong and make my way over to Tibet..." Now I have to commence a Ramis Remembrance Week. He provided me many laughs over the decades for which I gladly give him a mulligan for Caddyshack II. RIP, funny man! [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Ramis#Writing https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Ramis#Writing
- atomicfiredoll 13y agoI think I want to cry. As Egon, he was an idol for me when I was a kid--some kind of amazing nerd superhero. I wanted to be that smart and cool. RIP.
- madsushi 13y agoHis character in Ghostbusters 2 was a tech role model for me too. The idea that science and engineering could solve practical problems was eye-opening as a kid.
- jackgavigan 13y agoI reckon Harold Ramis is one of those guys where it's okay to make jokes about his death because doing so is actually a better way of remembering him than being all sad and miserable. So... I'm looking forward to Ghostbusters 3 even more now! One question, though: Are ghost actors eligible for Oscars nominations?
- agumonkey 13y agoHell they have to chase him as a ghost cameo.
- danellis 13y agoLet it go, man. He's gone to the great laser containment grid in the sky.
- unclebucknasty 13y agoYeah, but to really honor him, the jokes should be funny.
- jader201 13y agoI actually laughed out loud.
- mjklin 13y agoThis reminds me of the time you tried to drill a hole through your head
- skywhopper 13y agoGhostbusters and Groundhog Day are both truly great films with an astonishing influence on American culture. He'll be missed, but never forgotten.
- ChuckMcM 13y agoThis makes me sad, Harold made me laugh so very hard and I will always remember him for that.
- homersapien 13y agoPlease join me in straightening a Slinky in honor of a truly great actor and director.
- dctoedt 13y agoNear the end of the article, it said that Ramis was visited recently by Bill Murray, from whom he'd been estranged for years. I wonder what that was all about, given their history together?
- tomelders 13y agoThere was some animosity as a result of Groundhog day I think. Creative difference I believe.
- eli 13y agoOffscreen, Ramis and Bill Murray were trapped in a cycle of personal strains. Murray’s marriage was breaking up, and he was behaving erratically—the whirling, unpredictable personality that Dan Aykroyd calls “the Murricane.” Ramis sent Rubin to New York to work with Murray on the script, because he was tired of taking his star’s 2 a.m. calls. Rubin says that when Ramis phoned him to check in, Murray would shake his head and mouth the words “I’m not here.” “They were like two brothers who weren’t getting along,” Rubin says. “And they were pretty far apart on what the movie was about—Bill wanted it to be more philosophical, and Harold kept reminding him it was a comedy.” “At times, Bill was just really irrationally mean and unavailable; he was constantly late on set,” Ramis says. “What I’d want to say to him is just what we tell our children: ‘You don’t have to throw tantrums to get what you want. Just say what you want.’ ” After the film wrapped, Murray stopped speaking to Ramis. Some of the pair’s friends believe that Murray resents how large a role Ramis had in creating the Murray persona. Michael Shamberg, a Hollywood producer who has known Ramis since college and who used to let Murray sleep on his couch, says, “Bill owes everything to Harold, and he probably has a thimbleful of gratitude.” From the New Yorker profile of Ramis, which is worth reading in its entirety: http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/04/19/040419fa_fact3?currentPage=all http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/04/19/040419fa_fact3?c...
- paul_f 13y agoIt would be interesting to see a remake of Groundhog Day, but as a dark drama instead of a comedy.
- sreyaNotfilc 13y agoThis man was a legend! He wrote/directed/produced/started in some of the most icon comedy films every (love me some Stripes). Its strange that he was able to slip under the radar. I think he liked it that way. Harold seemed like a great guy. Always smiling. Always willing to give the funny lines to everyone else. I hope he gets the coverage that he deserves. He truly was one of the greats! I know this sounds a bit selfish of me, but I kinda wish there was a third Ghostbusters movie (ya ya ya, the game was the "3rd" movie). It would've been great to see him in a suit again and to be praised for the amazing films he brought to us. R.I.P. Mr. Ramis http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igfRYtwpQyU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igfRYtwpQyU
- joedevon 13y agoHe did fly under the radar. He was one of my favorites. I'd always talk about him, but few knew who he was. But seeing the memorials on twitter and the net, I see many others recognized him. RIP Russell Ziskey. You will be sorely missed.
- debt 13y agoA while back I read an article using Groundhog Day as an example how we can never have perfect information in an economic system. "The movie Groundhog Day (1993) illustrates the importance of the Mises-Hayek paradigm as an alternative to equilibrium economics by illustrating the unreal nature of equilibrium theorizing." http://archive.mises.org/5546/the-economics-of-groundhog-day/ http://archive.mises.org/5546/the-economics-of-groundhog-day...
- vanderZwan 13y ago> The ability of this fictional character to relive a single day points to vital issues in economics. Perfectly competitive equilibrium requires perfect information. Ignorance leads to errors that put the ideal state of equilibrium out of reach. Ignorance and error exist due to perpetual change. In a world where everything stays the same — except our knowledge of previous days — we can approach perfection. And it makes sense too! I mean, I already knew that practically every religion out there somehow manages to turn it into an example of teaching X or scripture Y, but if even economists can relate it to their field you know you have something special.
- acjohnson55 13y agoWhat a bummer. It's nearly impossible to overstate his impact on modern Hollywood comedy. Groundhog Day blew my mind. There was something so dark about the idea that Bill Murray's character couldn't even kill himself to escape the cycle, and also the idea of how lonely it would be to have eternity but no one to share it with. I can't think of another comedy that was so thought provoking.
- skywhopper 13y agoAgreed 100%. Not just comedy, but culture. It's amazing to me that "Groundhog Day" has entered American English as an idiom meaning something unpleasant repeating itself from this movie. An incredible accomplishment by Ramis, Murray, and everyone else involved in the film.
- Byliner 13y agoLeft this in another thread, but here's the definitive profile of Ramis, by Tad Friend of The New Yorker. It examines the how and why Ramis's movies have stayed so funny for so many years. The author has unlocked it for the next 24 hours: https://www.byliner.com/tad-friend/stories/comedy-first?AFID=273784&share=243720620f3aaa8a0e9e8308f0f067d0 https://www.byliner.com/tad-friend/stories/comedy-first?AFID...
- quickpost 13y agoHere as well, unlocked indefinitely: http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/04/19/040419fa_fact3?currentPage=all http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/04/19/040419fa_fact3?c...
- macrael 13y agoGroundhog Day is one of my favorite films of all time. I think it's really Important that when trapped in his lonely cycle Murray finally settles on taking care of others as perfectly as he can. Beautiful.
- logical42 13y agoI could literally watch that movie over and over and over..
- jstalin 13y agoAs a little kid, Egon was my hero. RIP.
- skylan_q 13y agoGhostbusters and Groundhog Day, sure... but he was great on SCTV as well. I won't forget Harold.
- pasbesoin 13y agoHughes. Ramis. We are starting to lose what might be, for all its diversity, be called a significant "generation" of filmmakers. Certainly significant for the generation that grew up with and a bit on their work, and for the generations of filmmakers who have followed them. Feels like a transition -- or the defining final notes for such transition.
- mjt0229 13y agoDr. Spengler was my favorite ghostbuster when I was a kid and when I watched the movie last weekend.
- RexRollman 13y agoHe was involved in some of my favorite movies: Animal House, Caddy Shack, and Groundhog Day. He will be missed.
- barlescabbage 13y agoLEGEND
- kfcm 13y agoHorrible news. Today's passing of Ramis added to the passing of John Hughes in '09, means the two powerhouses of the Golden Age of cinematic comedy (70's, 80's and early 90's) are gone. Thanks for the laughs, Harold.
- kripy 13y agoKids: we need to talk about Stripes!