Late Actors and their Eulogisers

Some of these I knew, but most I did not. These are some famous late movie actors and which fellow famous actor gave the eulogy at their funeral. And note, I didn’t get a list online, I had to look these all up. When I could get a quote, I included it.

Chris Farley (1964-1997) – Tom Arnold

“Chris was concerned about his size, and so he made sure that all of us who knew him well saw him naked at least once.”

Phillip Seymour Hoffman (1967-2014) – Paul Thomas Anderson (Director, There Will Be Blood, Boogie Nights, Phantom Thread. He directed Hoffman in The Master and in 2021 cast his son, Cooper, in Licorice Pizza.)

Roddy Piper (1954-2015) – Ric Flair

Robin Williams (1951-2014) – Billy Crystal

“He made us laugh, big time. I spent many happy hours with Robin on stage. The brilliance was astounding, the relentless energy was kind of thrilling. I used to think that if I could just put a saddle on him and stay on for eight seconds I was going to do ok.”

Humphrey Bogart (1899-1957) – John Huston

Heath Ledger (1979-2008) – Cate Blanchett

Carrie Fisher (1956-2016) – Meryl Streep

Whitney Houston (1963-2012) – Kevin Costner

“Whitney if you could hear me now I would tell you, you weren’t just good enough–you were great. You sang the whole damn song without a band. You made the picture what it was. A lot of leading men could have played my part, a lot of guys could have filled that role, but you, Whitney, I truly believed that you were the only one who that could have played Rachel Marin at that time.”

Jim Henderson (1936-1990) – Frank Oz

“And we did have fun, we had such great silly fun together the best thing of all, the best thing, was when you watch Jim laugh until he cried.”

Sonny Bono (1935-1998) – Cher

“Some people were under the misconception that Son was a short man, but he was heads and tails taller than anyone else. He could see above the tallest people. He had a vision of the future and just how he was going to build it. And his enthusiasm was so great that he just swept everybody along with him.”

Elizabeth Taylor (1932-2011) – Colin Farrell 

“Give beauty back, beauty, beauty, beauty, back to God, beauty’s self and beauty’s giver.”

The Iron Sheik (1942-2023) – Sgt. Slaughter

Walter Matthau (1920-2000) – Jack Lemmon

Michael Clark Duncan (1957-2012) – Tom Hanks

“[Michael was] one of the finest people I’ve ever had the privilege to work with or know. Michael was the gentlest of souls – an exemplar of decency, integrity and kindness. The sadness I feel is inexpressible.”

Grace Kelly (1929-1982) – Jimmy Stewart

“You know, I just love Grace Kelly. Not because she was a princess, not because she was an actress, not because she was my friend, but because she was just about the nicest lady I ever met. Grace brought into my life as she brought into yours, a soft, warm light every time I saw her, and every time I saw her was a holiday of its own. No question, I’ll miss her, we’ll all miss her, God bless you, Princess Grace.”

Buster Keaton (1895-1966) – Dick Van Dyke

John Belushi (1949-1982) – Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belush

“Although I had a close, head to head, arm to arm working relationship with John, that proximity never affected the fact that from the moment I met him, through all work, I remain his number one fan.”

Peter Sellers (1925-1980) – David Niven (Former Bond portrayer)

John Candy (1950-1994) – Dan Aykroyd (Apparently he recited lyrics from “John’s favourite song” O Canada.)

Congratulations . This is your week.

Best Actress:

Meg Ryan as Maggie Cavanaugh in

Best Actor: Aside from Candy, I’d say Eugene Levy as Norman Kane in

Best Quote:

FAT MAN: “You get out of here fella. I’m trying to watch the Smurfs.”JACK CHESTER: “You’re trying to watch the Smurfs?”FAT MAN: “Yeah.”JACK CHESTER: “Did you see the one where Papa Smurf took a crutch and smashed the shit out of a guy with a red hat? Did you see that one? You want to see that one?”

– John Candy as Jack Chester in

There are several eulogies in movies, and I have two favourites that come to mind. One is given by one character for another in Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994). Even though they were both secondary characters, the eulogy itself and the delivery were beautiful. The second is one of the main characters in The Big Lebowski who eulogizes his father and spreads his ashes. I can’t tell you why I love it, but you have to see it to appreciate it.