Timothy Hutton
When I was 12, I was taking golf lessons in a public park program in Nashville. My dad was a solid working class golfer; he was never going to join a country club, but on the public courses he was pretty solid, generally shooting 8-10 overpar for 18 holes. He was very encouraging, and even though we were not rolling in dough, he and Mom scraped together the cash for me to take these lessons, 3 days a week throughout the summer.
One perk of taking these lessons was automatic entry into a city-wide tournament. I can’t remember what it was called, but it was played on “Little Shelby”, a par 29 course shoe-horned in between a longstanding rowhouse neighborhood and the Cumberland River. It was something like Nashville Junior Golfers Open, and was open to golfers between the ages (I think) of 8 and 15.
At the end of the first of a two-day tournament, I had somehow shot a 1 under par 28, and was in second place, only 1 shot back. My name was in the paper, and I could not sleep that night, worrying about round 2. Although I was not yet a teenager, I was filled with the terrifying thought that I may have just experienced the greatest day of my life, and that I was facing 60-80 years filled with days that could never ever be that good again. The next day I shot a 40, and finished about 50th.
All of that to say, when Ordinary People shows on TV, I immediately think of that day, and of how fond I am of Timothy Hutton, and how, although his best role probably occurred in his first theatrical feature, even when it’s that good early, it’s just a single good experience, and not the end of all of the good things in life.
I also LOVE Iceman, another 80’s film that hasn’t dated that well, but I don’t care. And for any FOT who might be tuned in…..Turk-182 it.
Ten best roles
10) Deliberate Intent 9) Deterrence 8) Stephanie Daley 7) Iceman 6) Daniel 5) Beautiful Girls 4) Taps 3) Q&A 2) Ordinary People 1) The Falcon and the Snowman
Percentile rating
89.70
June 6th, 2008 at 9:33 pm
I think its obvious your personal experience has colored your rating on this one. Don’t forget he played the butler in the big screen version of “The Nanny”.