Carl Weathers, the actor best known as Apollo Creed in the Rocky Movies, has passed away at 76 years old. He remained active in films like Happy Gilmore and Predator, and most recently in Disney’s Star Wars offshoot The Mandalorian. I very recently watched the first two Rocky films and was every bit as moved and emotionally affected and I’ve always been by them. They are among the greatest, if not thee greatest, sports movies ever made.
In occasional Pencil Storm fashion, we’ll leave the lengthy tributes to bigger outlets, but here’s a couple not-so-popular roles Carl played that were among my favorites. Haven’t seen these mentioned anywhere, so here’s for kids from the 70s like me.
Carl Weathers as Weaver in Force 10 from Navarone
This late-70s WWII adventure movie had this kid’s full attention, let me tell you. All it took was lead actors HAN SOLO and QUINT and I was all in. Weaver escaped from the MPs and joined up with Han and Quint to blow up a dam in this loosely-plotted sequel to the Guns of Navarone. It’s no Saving Private Ryan or Apocalypse Now, but I love it.
Carl Weathers as Chief Hampton Forbes in In the Heat of the Night (TV Series)
In The Heat of the Night was a TV series that ran from 1988-1995 based on the great 1967 movie starring Rod Steiger and Sidney Poitier. The show starred Carol O’Connor as Chief Gillespie, the Steiger role, and a surrounding cast of cops, politicians, crooks, and yokels all struggling against classic foes like money, drugs, poverty, infidelity, and always…crime in the very southern town of Sparta, Mississippi.
When the majority-racist city council ousts Gillespie from his position as sheriff after his long-term relationship with an African-American councilwoman becomes public, Carl Weathers (ironically) steps in as Chief Forbes to fill the shoes of the beloved Gillespie, who’s now the county sheriff. It wasn’t the “Jump the Shark” moment that it sounds like (though the show had at least a couple of those) as Weathers was fantastic in the role, and the always-great O’Connor remained a key character.
Rest easy Apollo, Weaver, and Forbes. Say hi to Mickey for us.
Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos. Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit.
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