February 23, 2012

Thinking about Mr. Kruger.

My son John was live-blogging the GOP debate last night:
8:08 - Mitt Romney cuts short his own introduction: "As George Costanza would say, when they're applauding, stop." [UPDATE: Jason (the commenter) points out that Romney was referring to this episode of Seinfeld:
At the coffee shop, George laments to Jerry about losing respect at a project meeting led by Mr. Kruger after following a good suggestion with a bad joke. . . . At the next Kruger meeting, George takes Jerry's suggestion and actually leaves the room after a well-received joke.]
Here's something that happened on Monday, but appeared in the news late last night:
[Daniel von Bargen, "best known for his role as Mr. Kruger on 'Seinfeld,'"] was in critical condition Wednesday after shooting himself in the head in an apparent failed suicide attempt.

Paramedics went to the 61-year-old actor’s Cincinnati, Ohio, apartment Monday after he called 911, saying, “I’ve shot myself in the head ... and I need help,”...

9 comments:

traditionalguy said...

That's sad. He was a good actor.

Cherchez la femme.

edutcher said...

Sad about von Bargen - a good actor of the 80s and 90s, often seen.

Hope they can help him.

Wince said...

Actually, the episode is about "going out on a high note" and "leaving them wanting more".

A tribute to his comedic work. But very sad:

Von Bargen, who is a diabetic, told the operator that he has already had one leg amputated and was 'tired,' referring to the procedure scheduled for his other leg.

911 tape at link.

Ann Althouse said...

I would not listen to the 911 recording.

Remember, you can't unhear something.

The Crack Emcee said...

Romney needs to shut up.

People could get hurt.

Ann, you do NOT want to hear my tape collection:

Recording artists keep EVERYTHING,...

DADvocate said...

He sounds remarkably calm during the 911 call. They're playing it on the radio here in Cincinnati.

bagoh20 said...

"Remember, you can't unhear something."

It's not bad. He sounds normal, calm and it's after the shooting. I really liked his work. It's too bad, but being cut away in large chunks is not real motivating to keep you hanging around either. I can understand his desire to go out quickly. An impending, expensive downhill to death is the only reason I find justifiable for suicide.

Brian Brown said...

Coco, Coco, Coco, Coco!!!

ricpic said...

That 911 call feels like torture. Jeebus, the guy's just shot himself. Now he's gotta answer 20 questions? How about "Just lie there, we're on our way?"