He was my Disney hero from the first time I saw him in The Love Bug. And Blackbeard's Ghost. A good guy trying to do the right thing. Nice smile. Comforting voice. Not the super-athletic type, just an ordinary guy ... like me. Someone I could relate to.
He disappeared for quite a while, at least from my consciousness. Occasional appearances on the TV, some movies I didn't bother to see (i.e. Beethoven). I heard somewhere he'd been Born Again but didn't know any details.
After the kids came along, we got a copy of That Darn Cat and it became a family favorite. And he became a family favorite. Same sweet guy, same charming smile. I looked him up on the Internet a one point, way back when before it all got monetized, and found he'd done some Christian productions. But they weren't generally available. Yet.
His death made me curious again, and resulted in a YouTube search, revealing what I consider to be his bravura performance. Filmed live in 1986. The VHS is a bit scratchy, but it's a powerful video. Wish I could've seen it live.
But I watched it at lunchtime today. And then again tonight after dinner, with the family. Amazing. The guy had some serious acting chops, far more than those old Disney films give evidence of. And he had a serious passion for Christ. Makes me wish I'd met him before he went home.
I would dearly love to see it performed live by someone who can put as much into the performance as Dean did. Surely there's someone who has done that? Or can do it? Perhaps Kirk Cameron could pick it up.
But I'm not sure if he could ever do it as perfectly as Dean Jones.
YouTube Link: St. John in Exile - Dean Jones
He disappeared for quite a while, at least from my consciousness. Occasional appearances on the TV, some movies I didn't bother to see (i.e. Beethoven). I heard somewhere he'd been Born Again but didn't know any details.
After the kids came along, we got a copy of That Darn Cat and it became a family favorite. And he became a family favorite. Same sweet guy, same charming smile. I looked him up on the Internet a one point, way back when before it all got monetized, and found he'd done some Christian productions. But they weren't generally available. Yet.
His death made me curious again, and resulted in a YouTube search, revealing what I consider to be his bravura performance. Filmed live in 1986. The VHS is a bit scratchy, but it's a powerful video. Wish I could've seen it live.
But I watched it at lunchtime today. And then again tonight after dinner, with the family. Amazing. The guy had some serious acting chops, far more than those old Disney films give evidence of. And he had a serious passion for Christ. Makes me wish I'd met him before he went home.
I would dearly love to see it performed live by someone who can put as much into the performance as Dean did. Surely there's someone who has done that? Or can do it? Perhaps Kirk Cameron could pick it up.
But I'm not sure if he could ever do it as perfectly as Dean Jones.
YouTube Link: St. John in Exile - Dean Jones
No comments:
Post a Comment