One of my favorite damn people on the planet, Bruce Campbell, talked about his “treatable” but not “curable” cancer diagnosis on The Adam Carolla Show last week, and said he has about five years, “give or take.”
His own takeaway been to live life in the present.
If you have a chance, I highly recommend watching this entire, funny and touching interview with him about his life and work, and make sure you have some tissue. It’s an emotion grabber.
For now, let’s live in the present with Bruce, and celebrate some of his works just a little off center from the mainstream.
Campbell is an iconic horror legend for his portrayal of Ash Williams in his longtime bud Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead franchise. Army of Darkness and Ash Vs. The Evil Dead are repeat watches for me. Later, he did well in the series Burn Notice as Sam Axe, but he has done some really fun, quirky interesting lesser known projects for both television and film that are worth checking out if you haven’t:
The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. (1993-94)
Fox brought us this comedy western sci-fi steampunk epic in the midst of the 1990s, where Campbell stars as an intellectual lawyer-turned-bounty hunter after his U.S. Marshall dad is slain. It only lasted one season, but is filled with some good actors. Don’t look for historic accuracy in this fantasy western, through. That was never the point. Honestly, I wish tv would bring this type of campy weirdness back.
Sky High (2005)
Before Disney started buying up and running other people’s IPs into the ground, they used to make some fun family friendly movies just for the sake of entertainment. This Kurt Russell vehicle about a secret high school for future superheroes has amazing supporting cast. This includes Campbell as Coach Boomer, who’s superpower is supersonic yelling. Just like most real life high school coaches.
Jack of All Trades (2000)
This one is hard to find, but if you want to see Campbell at his ridiculous physical comedy best, try hunting down this short-lived syndicated series. I warn you, though, ridiculous is the key. Just like Brisco County Jr., it doesn’t even attempt to be historically accurate. Campbell is an American secret agend in the early 1800s sent to fictional island in the East Indies to seek out threats to the U.S. of A. such as Napoleon (played by Vern Troyer). Yes, it’s that stupid. However, if you miss Mel Brooks and Zucker Brothers style site gags and over-the-top acting, Campbell throws himself into all of it…like this clip:
Bubba Ho-Tep (2002)
Here’s a horror comedy movie that had critical acclaim, but never broke into mainstream success. Campbell plays Elvis Presley…maybe…living in anonymity in a Texas nursing home. He and friend who claims to be John F. Kennedy, played by the great Ossie Davis, take on a reanimated ancient Egyptian mummy preying on residents. It’s a mellow, and melancholy film with action, comedy and some pretty scary moments. It has become a cult favorite, and Campbell is still praised for his portrayal in this one.
Finally, we have to take a look at what Campbell has going right now, and it looks to be beautiful and hilarious way to spread his message of living for the present:
Emma & Ernie (2026)
This is Campbell’s very personal project. It is not only starring, written, and directed by Campbell, but he and his wife produced it together. A recently widowed man goes on adventures (or misadventures rather) with his wife’s ashes to fulfill her final wish. It’s a comedy. Be prepared to cry…and laugh. Really….really laugh. Yes, it deals with loss and grief, but also celebrates cherished memories and the need to continue living. He is doing a limited screening tour right now, but be on the lookout for this one in the the near future. After Campbell’s appearance on Carrolla, I would bet this one will get a lot of attention.
Who knows what the future holds for any of us, but no matter how much time we have left let’s celebrate our life….right now. Thank you Bruce, for making us all realize that.