The TV legacy of Louis Gossett Jr.
Q: I was sorry to see that Louis Gossett Jr. died. How many TV series did he do? – Steve Eagle, Johnstown, Pa.
A: He did quite a bit of guest-star work throughout the 1960s and 1970s, encompassing shows from “The Partridge Family” and “Good Times” to “The Rockford Files” and “The Six Million Dollar Man,” before scoring huge attention — and a Primetime Emmy Award — for ABC’S 1977 television milestone “Roots,” which was a limited series (or, in the terminology of that time, a “miniseries”), but a series nonetheless. After that, Gossett spent a season as the mentor to the title character in NBC’S “The Powers of Matthew Star” (1982-83), then played a crime-solving anthropology professor in five “Gideon Oliver” films for an “ABC Mystery Movie” anthology in 1989. He went back to the miniseries format in CBS’S “Return to Lonesome Dove” in 1993 and did two “Ray Alexander” mystery movies for NBC in the mid1990s, then recurred on the CBS sci-fi show “Extant” in 2014-15 and on “Stargate SG-1” in 2005-06, when it was on what now is Syfy. Following another recurring role in the third and final season of Sundance TV’S “Hap and Leonard” (2018), Gossett had his last continuing television part in HBO’S “Watchmen” (2019), as the ex-superhero grandfather of the lead female character who was played by Regina King (“Shirley,” 2024).
Q: Why do so many characters in the firehouse seem to be coming and going on “Chicago Fire” these days? – Brian Lawrence, via e-mail
A: We suspect it’s largely due to the producers’ quest to find what feels like the right mix, something that isn’t always easy to achieve — especially after losing such long-timers as Kara Killmer’s Sylvie Brett and Alberto Rosende’s Blake Gallo (not to mention, earlier, Jesse Spencer’s Matt Casey). It’s a measure of giving the character his or her own personality, and fitting that among the other established figures can be tricky.
Rome Flynn stayed only for six “Chicago Fire” episodes as Jake Gibson, and Jocelyn Hudon entered the show immediately afterward as Brett’s paramedic successor Lyla Novak … who initially seemed a bit too man-crazy for her own good, but soon proved her professional mettle by helping to defuse a tense situation involving an armed teenager. Michael Bradway has also just been added to the cast as fireman Jack Damon, and more changes may be yet to come when the 13th year begins next season.
Q: I see that Bob Van Dillen is on Fox Weather now. Why did he leave HLN? – Kim Carey, via e-mail
A: As you might have noticed, HLN has not produced its own morning news programming since the end of 2022, when it canceled “Morning Express With Robin Meade” – on which Van Dillen had been the meteorologist for more than 20 years. Van Dillen arrived at Fox Weather the following summer, and with that channel maximizing viewer familiarity with when he appeared on HLN, he’s still on the morning shift frequently.
Before going national, New Jersey native Van Dillen worked in Charlotte, N.C., and several New York markets including Syracuse, Albany and Utica.