Thankyou Ernest...

Each year, in a West Village Mexican restaurant, a dinner is held to proclaim the life, the movies, and the man known as Ernest Borgnine.  Guests sit in decorated booths wearing sailor hats and Ernest masks asking and answering questions about celebrated movies, breathtaking individual and ensemble performances, and about a man who seemed, certainly to outsiders, convincingly larger than life.

Ernest appeared in many films over as many years.  He was often pigeonholed as the gnarled, uncomprehending, at time barely incomprehensible, bully.  In 1953's 'From here to Eternity' he played the brutish James 'Fatso' Judson - a man whose sadism reached its peak in his relentless victimisation of Frank 'Maggio' Sinatra - a masterful performance and, possibly, what influenced Sturges to cast him in such a similarly unprepossessing role in his 1955 masterpiece 'Bad Day at Black Rock.'

Borgnine won an Oscar that year for his portrayal of Marty Piletti in Delbert Mann's film of the same first name.  It was an unusual role for him, but it was played with the same thoughtfulness and intelligence that was to characterise all of his performances.  He deserved his Academy award - despite depriving his friend, and the star of 'Bad day...,' Spencer Tracy, from taking the honours.

Although Ernest continued to act regularly on both the big screen and television, he never reached the heights of his earlier films  - with the possible exception of the part of 'Cabbie' in John Carpenter's marvellous 1981 'Escape from New York.'  Again, as was the case in many of his films, it was a smallish part, not a starring role.  But he brought to it a brusque charm and devilish humour, often stealing the show from his illustrious companions - a role he was to reprise with effortless regularity throughout his career.

We will miss him.