Korean War era Navy Vet James Tolkan , 94, passes

I’m told I’m a little odd – I really don’t worry too much about the stars in a show – but I like to see who the supporting actors are. The character actors, the ones who make everything go ’round so the stars can get up there and shine. RG Armstrong, Ben Johnson, Jack Elam, Bo Hopkins, LQ Jones – to me they are the interesting folks. And we just lost another…probably one of Ed’s favorites, too.

James Tolkan  had a football scholarship at Eastern Arizona when he left to join the Navy where he served aboard the USS Sandoval, which a quick search identifies as an “attack transport”. His Navy time was short, only about a year. before he was medicaled out with a heart condition. After that he turned to acting.

He appeared off-Broadway and on Broadway before transitioning to films and television. Where would you have seen him? Small gigs like in “Serpico”, playing Napoleon in Woody Allen’s “Love and Death”. and you may remember him best from the three “Back to the Future” movies. Mr. Strickland. Did he ever have hair?  And of course the role for Ed was in “Top Gun” as Tom Cruise’s commanding officer on board ship.

He may have single-handedly resurrected the term ‘slacker’, not to mention immortalizing cargo flights out of Hong Kong.

He wasn’t in the service long, he wasn’t a hero – but he went, and didn’t disgrace himself or his service so he’s one of ours.

Category: Korea, We Remember