• last year
After landing a role on the prime time sitcom "Phyllis," Barbara Colby's star seemed set to rise — until she was shockingly gunned down in the street.

Category

😹
Fun
Transcript
00:00After landing a role on the primetime sitcom Phyllis, Barbara Colby's star seemed set to
00:05rise — until she was shockingly gunned down in the street.
00:08Zach Branigan
00:09Zach Branigan might be one of the most popular characters on Futurama.
00:12The brash, Captain Kirk caricature has been played by Billy West, who also voices Philip
00:17Fry, among others, since the show's inception in 1999.
00:21But West wasn't actually the first person cast in the role.
00:23Originally, the part of Branigan was created specifically for Saturday Night Live alum
00:27Phil Hartman, who'd played similar characters like Troy McClure on Matt Groening's other
00:32show, The Simpsons.
00:33Before Futurama started recording the voices for its first episodes, though, Hartman was
00:36killed by his wife in a horrific murder-suicide that rocked Hollywood.
00:40In the aftermath, his character Bill McNeil on the live-action sitcom NewsRadio was given
00:45an emotional send-off, but Futurama hadn't hit the airwaves yet, so Groening looked to
00:49West to fill Hartman's shoes.
00:51While there have long been rumors about Hartman having recorded samples as Branigan before
00:56production, no such tape has ever materialized.
00:58In 2010, former ER star Maura Tierney was cast in Parenthood, a loose adaptation of
01:04the 1989 Steve Martin comedy of the same name.
01:06In the series' pilot, Tierney played Sarah Braverman, who, with her two children, moves
01:11back in with her parents after her divorce.
01:13The pilot episode was strong enough to get the series picked up, but when it debuted
01:16on screens that fall, Tierney was nowhere to be found, replaced by Gilmore Girls star
01:21Lauren Graham.
01:22At the time, The Hollywood Reporter reported Tierney dropped out of the series after filming
01:26the pilot when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
01:29With extensive life-saving treatment needed, Tierney couldn't commit to the series and
01:32exited the show to focus on her health.
01:35All of her scenes in that pilot episode were removed, and Graham came aboard to play Sarah
01:38Braverman.
01:39Thankfully, Tierney recovered, and has gone on to appear in numerous TV shows and movies
01:44since.
01:46The long-running British series Doctor Who owes its longevity to the concept of regeneration,
01:50with a series lead, an immortal alien who travels time and space, is reborn after death,
01:54and a new body.
01:55This has allowed the show to recast the lead multiple times, but while the first regeneration
02:00of original series star William Hartnell was necessitated by the aging actor's poor health,
02:04the exit of the show's third Doctor, John Pertwee, was even more heartbreaking.
02:08According to Pertwee, it was the death of Roger Delgado, who played his archenemy The
02:12Master, that made him re-evaluate his time on the show.
02:15Delgado died in a car accident while filming a TV show in Turkey.
02:19Roger had been killed, and I was very upset about that.
02:22And I wouldn't want to really have worked with any other actor playing The Master."
02:27The end result, of course, was the arrival of future legend Tom Baker in the role of
02:31the fourth Doctor.
02:32The Master, meanwhile, was recast, too, with Peter Pratt and Geoffrey Beavers playing the
02:36character in his next two appearances, before being replaced by Anthony Ainley for the rest
02:40of the 1980s.
02:42In the 1990s, the smash-hit sitcom That 70s Show recast one of their main supporting characters.
02:48His co-star, Lisa Robin Kelly, who played Topher Grace's on-screen sister Lori Foreman,
02:53disappeared in its fourth season, returning for a handful of episodes in season five before
02:57being entirely recast with Christina Moore.
03:00In 2012, Kelly finally revealed on ABC News that she left the show due to spiraling substance
03:05abuse issues sparked by a tragic miscarriage.
03:08I had lost a baby.
03:11As a result of that, I lost everything, and I was abusing alcohol."
03:16Sadly, just a year after that interview, though, Kelly died in her sleep mere days
03:20after voluntarily checking herself into a rehab facility.
03:24It's hard to calculate the impact of Jim Henson on Hollywood.
03:27The celebrated puppeteer and voice actor was responsible for iconic characters on screens
03:32big and small, from The Muppets and Fraggle Rock to Labyrinth.
03:35When Henson died, however, the beloved children's TV series Sesame Street may have been dealt
03:40the hardest blow when Henson passed in 1990, as he had been the show's guiding force since
03:45its inception in 1969.
03:47Henson had created most of the puppets on the show, and also provided the voices for
03:51some of the most iconic characters, including Guy Smiley, Ernie, and Kermit the Frog.
03:56Following Henson's death, Steve Whitmire took over both Ernie and Kermit, while Smiley was
04:00all but retired from the show, until puppeteer Eric Jacobson revived the part beginning in
04:052005.
04:07After the success of HBO's Rome, rival network stars created Spartacus Blood & Sand, a big-budget
04:12historical epic centered on the infamous Roman gladiator who led a slave revolt against
04:17the Roman Empire.
04:18Andy Whitfield filled the title role, but after the show's first season, he had to leave
04:22the series following a cancer diagnosis.
04:25Though the series went forward with the prequel, Spartacus Gods of the Arena, to avoid recasting
04:29Spartacus, Whitfield tragically never recovered.
04:32He died in September 2011, and the role was ultimately filled by Liam McIntyre, who picked
04:36up the sword and sandals and led the show's next outing, Spartacus Vengeance, in 2012.
04:41Before his passing, Whitfield filmed a documentary along with his widow, Vashti Whitfield, which
04:46chronicled his battle with cancer in an attempt to raise awareness for other patients.
04:50"...he wanted to bring purpose to it and our journey."
04:54The 1960s sitcom Bewitched is famous for recasting its lead actor halfway through the show's
04:59run, with Dick Sargent mysteriously replacing Dick York as Darren Stevens for its last three
05:04seasons.
05:05Unfortunately, despite the show's best efforts to accommodate York's failing health, his
05:08chronic back issues became too difficult to manage, and Sargent was brought in to replace
05:12him.
05:13Darren wasn't the only character to get replaced, though.
05:15Obnoxious neighbor Mrs. Kravitz had to be recast after season three, too, and the reason
05:19was even more devastating.
05:21Original actor Alice Pierce had been diagnosed with cancer before the show even began filming,
05:26and she succumbed to the disease just two years later.
05:28Her replacement, Sandra Gould, held down the role for the rest of the series, and even
05:32returned as Mrs. Kravitz for the short-lived spinoff Tabitha.
05:37Primetime 80s soap opera Dynasty got a 2017 reboot, with a broad ensemble cast that included
05:42Nicolette Sheridan as Alexis Carrington, the ex-wife of billionaire Blake Carrington.
05:47When Alexis turned up again in season three, though, she was suddenly played by series
05:51star Elizabeth Gillies, who ordinarily played Alexis' daughter, Fallon.
05:56Gillies was put under heavy makeup in a storyline that saw Alexis recovering from extensive
06:00plastic surgery, and she was replaced permanently by Elaine Hendricks for seasons four and beyond.
06:06So why was the change necessary?
06:08Sadly, Sheridan revealed in a statement that she had stepped away from the show to spend
06:12time with her mother, who had been diagnosed with stage four breast cancer.
06:15Sheridan said,
06:16"...the chance to spend precious time with my terminally ill mother is more important
06:20to me right now."
06:21She added in an interview with Access Hollywood that she considered her mother, actor Sally
06:24Adams, to be her personal hero.
06:26"...I feel blessed that I am able to be here in Los Angeles with her and be by her side
06:32at this part of her journey."
06:35In the 1960s, sitcoms centered around rural Americans were all the rage, and one of the
06:39biggest TV hits was Green Acres, about a big city lawyer who starts a new life on a farm
06:44with his wife.
06:45Set in the same fictional universe as Petticoat Junction, another rural-themed network hit,
06:49the series also featured Barbara Pepper in the role of Doris Ziffel, the couple's elderly
06:54neighbor.
06:55The character originated on Petticoat Junction before making the move to Acres.
06:59Tragedy struck after season three, though, when Pepper died suddenly from a blood clot
07:03at the age of 54.
07:04She'd been something of a recurring regular, appearing in 30 episodes in its first three
07:09seasons, but after Pepper's passing, the role of Doris was reduced, with incoming actor
07:13Fran Ryan taking over for the show's subsequent seasons.
07:17Few cartoons in the 2000s had as much of a cultural influence as Samurai Jack, which
07:21told the story of a young samurai prince who returns after years away from home on a mission
07:25to defeat the powerful demon called Aku.
07:28Aku was played by Japanese actor Marco, who might be best known to movie fans as Akiro
07:33the Wizard in Arnold Schwarzenegger's Conan the Barbarian films.
07:37Samurai Jack ran for four seasons, starting in 2001, and was revived for a fifth season
07:42more than a decade later.
07:43By then, Marco had passed away, dying from esophageal cancer in 2006 at the age of 72.
07:49The show's creator, Genndy Tartakovsky, told The Verge,
07:52"...it was hard.
07:53For a while, I thought we should reimagine Aku with a different voice, perhaps even use
07:57a different character.
07:58But then I realized I loved Aku too much."
08:00In the end, voice actor Greg Baldwin, who previously had taken over Marco's character
08:04Uncle Iroh on Avatar The Last Airbender, stepped into the role.
08:07Tartakovsky said,
08:08"...honestly, nobody can replace Marco.
08:11He was that special, that unique, especially the performance he made for Aku.
08:14But Greg did really well."
08:17By the early 90s, it was fairly common for big-screen comedies to spawn TV adaptations,
08:21so Harry and the Hendersons was no surprise.
08:24Adapted from the film about a Bigfoot who is adopted by a suburban family, the three-season
08:28series Harry and the Hendersons had stuntman Kevin Peter Hall, better known for portraying
08:33the titular creature in Predator, reprising his role as Harry from the film.
08:36In late 1991, though, Hall died unexpectedly at just 35 years old.
08:41Tragically, following a devastating car accident, Hall was given a blood transfusion that turned
08:46out to be contaminated with HIV, which ultimately took his life.
08:50Following his death, stunt actors Dewan Scott and Patrick Pinney took over playing the eponymous
08:54Harry for the remainder of the series.
08:57The Mary Tyler Moore Show was so popular it launched several spinoffs, including Phyllis
09:01in 1975.
09:03The show starred Cloris Leachman, who continued to play Mary's narcissistic ex-neighbor Phyllis
09:08Lindstrom.
09:09Barbara Colby co-starred as Phyllis' boss, photographer Judy Erskine, a character she'd
09:12originated on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
09:15But after just three episodes were filmed of Phyllis, Colby was murdered alongside acting
09:19student James F. Kiernan, killed by an unknown shooter who ambushed them as they were leaving
09:23an acting class.
09:24Although a group of suspects were initially apprehended, Colby's killer was never identified
09:29and no motive was ever determined.
09:31For the remainder of the first season of Phyllis, Erskine was played by Liz Torres, but the
09:35character was dropped from the series after that.
09:38The Star Trek franchise has its share of recasts for a variety of reasons, whether due to contract
09:42disputes or scheduling conflicts.
09:45But in 1990, the franchise was forced to find a new actor to play the villain in a season
09:493 episode of Star Trek The Next Generation for one of the most tragic reasons imaginable.
09:54In the episode, The Most Toys, British actor David Rappaport was chosen to play Kivas Farjo,
09:59an unscrupulous cosmic collector who kidnaps the android Commander Data to add him to his
10:04treasure trove.
10:05Rappaport got his start in UK television and later appeared in films like Time Bandits.
10:10He even had a show of his own, The Wizard, which ran for two years in the late 1980s.
10:14Unfortunately, during production on The Most Toys, Rappaport was forced to bow out after
10:19he attempted to take his own life.
10:21Sol Rubinek stepped in to play Farjo, but just three days before the episode premiered,
10:26Rappaport died by suicide on May 2nd, 1990.
10:29Rappaport's unfinished work as Farjo was later released on the Next Generation Blu-ray release
10:33in 2013.
10:34If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available.
10:39Call or text 988 or chat 988 lifeline dot org.

Recommended