Monday, May 05, 2008

A TRIBUTE TO MY GRANDFATHER



Here's a tribute to my grandfather, one of the best men I've ever known. He certainly wasn't easy to get along with, and he had no time for me, but he was a stand-up guy who deserves to be remembered.


Thinking about my grandfather always brings to mind Dickens' "Great Expectations." In that story a poor kid had a mysterious benefactor whose help allowed him to go to good schools and become a gentlemen. Late in the story the kid, now grown up, discovers that his benefactor was no less than the coarse, grungy, escaped convict that he helped as a boy. It's a story that means a lot to me because my own life unfolded in a similar way, and I also had a coarse, grungy benefactor whose identity was hidden from me.


Just a couple of corrections to the video: The Peter Sellers song I excerpted this time was "Ukulele Lady," not "Hula Hands," and "Days of Wine and Roses" was not a horrible film, rather it was a good film about a horrifying subject. The video above lasts 8 1/2 minutes. Sorry about the length.

22 comments:

Nico said...

A fascinating story Eddie. He didn't have to, he didn't want to, he didn't like it, but he did it anyway. Thanks for sharing this with us.

And I can't even imagine Uncle Eddie was once Surly Teenager Eddie!

Trevor Thompson said...

Don't apologize! We need longer Eddie Fitzgerald Theatre programs!

( The Fitzgerald Theatre in Minnesota is where they broadcast 'A Prairie Home Companion' )

It's good to honor your family. My dad's kinda ashamed of the fact that my granddad was in the war in England ( WWI ) and went AWOL, changing his last name to Thompson. I'm immensely proud of him, being anti-war myself.

Also Eddie, what did you think of the film version of 'Great Expectations' with DeNiro and Gwyneth Paltrow? I liked it enough, plus they filmed part of it locally here in Sarasota, FL, so I got to visit the set a few times during production.

Good times.

- trevor.

Matt Jones said...

Ralph Bakshi is your Grandpa?!!

Vincent Waller said...

It took till my 22nd birthday to get around to thanking my mom for not suffocating me in my sleep. I too was a terrible teen.
Great post Eddie, always an enjoyable talk.

Anonymous said...

I just can't imagine you as a surly teenager...

Anyways, thanks for the story. And don't apologize about the length. The longer the better!

Andrew said...

Thanks fo sharing, Eddie.

pappy d said...

That was a wonderful post. It sometimes takes a long time to sympathise with your parent. I love my kid, but I do enjoy having him out of the house. He still pops by with his laundry at the most awkward moments, but he's also beginning to appreciate that I'm not a total jerk & an idiot.

Once you could start to look forward to life after childrearing yourself, you could see his perspective.

I always felt that my dad loved me, but that being a child, I had nothing to contribute to conversation. I was an ill-timed, unplanned pregnancy myself, but I never understood what that's like for a man until it happened to me. Even in the best case, kids are fools whom we suffer gladly.

Bitter Animator said...

Great video as always but also very touching. Following on from what Pappy D says, I found having a child of my own made me re-examine the parent/child (and grandparent) relationships. I don't think I ever gave them credit for the work put into raising a child. But then I also wonder if they missed some of the connection that shoudl have been there.

I only met one of my grandfathers and he was a very quiet, gentle man. By all accounts my other grandfather was a loud, racist pain in the ass. I think I'd like to have met him just to find out for myself.

Bob said...

So back in your grandpa's day if you didn't do your duties you were considered a bum. crap, anyways your grandpa sounded like a man of integrity and this idea of duty is interesting especially when you showed randi's videos before of him cracking down people who are considers frauds and hustlers. I've been dooped before and I felt like the dumbest person in the world, much like that women who bought popoff's "miracle water" which was just tap water and idozed salt. I think this post is interesting because there is so much crap in the world that often times we miss what is important and when we find people that do their duties than we respect them because they are doing things for people besides themselves. Anyways I got to hit the hay and finish my finals so that i won't PO' my folks at home.

Max Ward said...

I enjoy this post but pleaseeee post the note Spielberg gave you about your storyboards on tiny toons. Make a video about it.

Jennifer said...

Don't worry about the length, Uncle Eddie!

That was a wonderful story - very touching and bittersweet. I agree with the others - I can't picture you as a surly teen. Class clown who gets into mischief - that I can picture! :)

Your honesty really took my breath away. Throughout that story, I was smiling and ready to cry at the same time. It was touching that you were able to appreciate what your grandfather has done, even if he wasn't the most affectionate person.

Are you getting any more attention from your YouTube posts...maybe attention from radio or TV execs?

El Chongo said...

Dear Uncle Eddie
Im the oldest of ten cause my mom felt it was her duty to adopt and give back to the community. i never understood why and its been a burden on all of us especially her and she still does foster care at the same time. i used to think of it like a gambling addiction or a need to be needed cause she seems miserable. but its admirable like you said to take on what you dont want just because you feel its right. And i know i should be less of a brat to her.
But your so right about duty in that generation. most people today spend all there time trying to pussyfoot around every little responsibility that doesnt benefit them. people in back in the day like my great grandpa faced everything head on nomatter what it meant they had to sacrifice for it or why they had to. they just did it.

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Boo: I fell in love with Paltrow after seeing Shakespeare in Love but I have to admit that she's been in a lot of bad films. She was good in Iron Man. I only saw the beginning of her Great Expectations and didn't like it. If you still recommend it maybe I'll give it another chance.

Max: The Spielberg letter? I might have it somewhere around here. I'll look.

Jennifer: Thanks for the kind words! I only heard from one executive as a result of things I posted here and on YouTube. Nothing came of it but I appreciated the attention. I'm between jobs now so if there's any sympathetic executives out there, PLEASE CALL ME!!!!

Anonymous said...

"I fell in love with Paltrow after seeing Shakespeare in Love but I have to admit that she's been in a lot of bad films. She was good in Iron Man. I only saw the beginning of her Great Expectations and didn't like it. If you still recommend it maybe I'll give it another chance."

Heh, that's weird, I was just telling my friend Tim my Paltrow theories the other day after having seen Iron Man, (which was AMAZING, by the way.)

Have you ever seen Sky Captain and the World Of Tomorrow? If not, rent it, I bet you'd like it. Anyway, that film stars the three actors I hate the most: Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie, and yet I love it!

Anonymous said...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=OqJQbOS3zu0
This clip (above not yours which was great) is about as far as a human can sink.

I used to be really obsessive about video games and stuff like that but the internet has been something of a ghost of christmas future for what that can lead to.

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Anon: I kinda like the idea that guys like that are on the net. Physics lectures, acoholism discussions, comedy and porn all on the same medium...this really is Dodge City where almost anything goes.

Katie said...

Hi Eddie, I really liked this video a lot...it makes me think a lot...and also reminded me of a recent situation I had with my mom. While it's not as interesting as your story it reminded me all the same. Maybe someday I'll see you in person again and I can tell you!

Thanks for putting in all this effort for your blog, I know I don't comment all the time but I love your posts and listen to/read each one!

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Katie: Thanks for the nice words! I'll remind you about the story!

Anonymous said...

That was beautiful.
You nailed what true love is on the head; it's a deliberate decision. All that warmth and affection can be nice if it's a result of that decision to sacrifice for another but all that warmth and affection can also be hollow and at the giver's convenience. Thanks for sharing. I hope I can be strong as your grandad...especially with surly teens. :)

Lester Hunt said...

Eddie, What you said about duty was true of the WWII generation as well, I think. When my mother died ten yrs. ago, I, as a maniacal foodie, inherited her cookbooks. I soon realized that she had basically stopped cooking when the last of her children moved out to get married, almost thirty years before. She learned cooking and became a master of the kitchen arts, not because she liked it (like me) but because she thought that's what moms are supposed to do. When she didn't have to do it any more, she turned to doing things that she really liked (like traveling and watching TV). Now, with the advent of more individualistic and egoistic ways of thinking (like feminism) women -- and men! -- don't think that way anymore. As a hippie and, later, an ethics professor, I participated in that transition, but I don't mind admitting that we have lost something in the process.

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Lester: You were a hippie? What got you out of it? We should compare notes.

Anonymous said...

!!!!!

Eddie, you were a hippy?!?!

I know John was a mod, but I never figured you for a hippy!!!