I have been a
fan of NCIS since it first appeared on television. I especially liked Mark
Harmon although I did have difficulty in the beginning separating him from his previous
role as Ted Bundy (He did an excellent job of portraying that part.). I miss
his presence in NCIS since he went to live in Alaska, but he deserves a wholesome
life after all the years he fought the good fight as Leroy Jethro Gibbs.
Michael
Weatherly as Anthony DiNozzo was also missed by me when he left to become Bull,
although I certainly liked him in that and watched every episode. Then there
was Cote de Pablo who played Ziva. I missed the sexual tension and verbal
sparring between her and DiNozzo when she left. I believe the writers killed
her off and left DiNozzo with their child which was the explanation for his
leaving the series.
Of course, I could never forget
Abby Sciuto played by Pauley Perrette. What a smart and crazy individual with
tattoos, addicted to Caf-Pow and the only cast member I think I ever saw Gibbs
kiss. It made me sad to read she never liked Mark Harmon and was afraid of him (Although that could just be untrue gossip.).
That certainly wasn't reflected in the way they portrayed their roles. I didn’t like having her leave either
and am still having difficulty with her replacement.
David McCallum who played Dr.
Donald “Ducky” Mallard sort of disappeared every now and then, but always
returned. I’ve liked him since he first appeared as Illya Kuryakin in The Man
From U.N.C.L.E. I actually liked Illya much better than Napoleon Solo, played
by Robert Vaughn. Vaughn always seemed to play a bad guy in future roles.
Anyway, it took some time to get
used to the new individuals, but I did; and while I don’t like any of them as
well as I liked those that left, I still faithfully watch the programs. I
appreciated the fact Sean Murray, Brian Dietzen, Rocky Carroll and David
McCallum remained. While it wasn’t exactly the family I’d become used to, it
was still NCIS family.
When I heard David McCallum had
passed away, I wondered how NCIS would handle his permanent absence and found
out on the episode that aired a couple weeks ago. The writers did a wonderful
job of having Ducky die. They didn’t kill him off, but had him die peacefully
in his sleep…I loved that.
Now, you probably wonder why I’m
writing about NCIS and the folks that were and are in that show. It’s because I
found myself in tears as I watched the program depicting the death of Ducky and
its ramifications on his co-workers. Michael Weatherly showed up at the very end;
and while there were clips that included Gibbs and Ziva, I wish they could have
appeared in person as well.
I didn’t really understand why I
was crying, but having mulled this over for a while, I think it was realizing
how much I miss people who have inhabited my life in some form no longer being
a part of it. I’m not talking about John, my parents, or anyone who has been
close to me and a significant part of my life. I’m talking about people like
David McCallum, people who brought some form of joy into my life in some
fashion. There are many many of those people in my seventy-eight years as there
must be in everyone’s.
In recent memory, the one that
hit the hardest, although I didn’t cry then was Jimmy Buffet. I loved his music
and attended a concert in the Gorge with my youngest son when he was a
teenager. I think he was a bit shocked and greatly surprised by the woman who
danced around and sang along. Still, I have Jimmy’s music and can listen to his
songs and sing along whenever I want. I just wish he were still here to
contribute many more songs to his repertoire.
Of course, I could go back
decades and the list of people who added something to my life in small or large
ways would be almost never-ending. There was the Big Bopper, JFK, RFK, Martin
Luther King, Jr., John Lennon, Bob Marley, John Belushi, Gilda Radner,
Hemingway, Tolkien…it really would be never-ending.
In any case, I’m grateful for the
memories each of these musicians, writers, actors, and politicians left behind.
Even though I met few famous people in my life, in some small way, each and every
one of so many talented individuals contributed a treasure of some form to my
life.
Watching that episode of NCIS
made me think about and reflect on all the losses that came before David
McCallum. I had never really thought about those kinds of losses; and undoubtedly,
there will be more to come. I’m truly sorry all those individuals (named and
unnamed) have gone on but their words, be they in speeches, books, songs, or on
film, will continue to enrich whichever day I choose to invite them back into my
life.