Peter Boyle
I was bummed out when I learned that Peter Boyle had died at age 71. The veteran character actor from Philly, a former monk in the Christian Brothers order, was probably best known for being Ray Barone's cantankerous Dad on Everybody Loves Raymond. However, when I think of Mr. Boyle, three movie roles come immediately to mind.
For comic genius you can't beat Boyle as "the Monster" in Mel Brooks' hilarious Young Frankenstein. In sharp contrast are two of his dramatic roles: his mentor/cabbie to Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver, and the title role in Joe, a drama about a desperate, right wing-leaning racist who looks to mess up some drug-dealing hippies while helping a man find his wayward strung-out daughter (Susan Sarandon). Another great performance can be seen in the political satire The Candidate, playing a savvy political kingmaker to the first time candidate played by Robert Redford. Another favorite is his role as a company man in the underrated sci-fi actioner Outland opposite Sean Connery.
In a cool bit of trivia, John Lennon was best man at his wedding to former Rolling Stone reporter Loraine Alterman.
For a look at his extensive credits check out the IMDB http://imdb.com/name/nm0001967/