Quiet, Please. . .

Over the last year or so, I've trash-talked Deborah Kerr for her perfect posture, her ridiculous casting in From Here to Eternity, and her general annoying Deborah-Kerrness. I also predicted she didn't have long to live and wouldn't make it through the year. Not a bet anyone would be willing to counter: Kerr had suffered from Parkinson's disease for years and was 86 years old when she died this week.

Now that she's gone, I feel a little bit guilty for choosing her as the target of my celluloid venom. She is less of an anonymous actress I've never met and more of a real human being, and she seemed like a nice lady at that. I'm sorry she's gone.

You were a worthy adversary, Deborah Kerr, even though you never knew I existed.

TCM will no doubt run a day's worth of programming in her honor, as they have many of her movies in their library. I especially recommend Tea and Sympathy (in spite of its homophobic flaws), Black Narcissus, and The King and I.

P.S. I did not kill Joey Bishop.