He's your friend when things get rough

Jack Wild, who was the Artful Dodger in the movie of "Oliver!" and Jimmy on "H.R. Pufnstuf" has died. "Oliver!" used to be one of my favorite musicals; I was actually in a stage production a long time ago (how long ago? Long enough for me to convincingly play a starving orphan child). The teenage Wild was actually nominated for an Oscar for his performance, so you have to wonder if they're rushing him into the "im memory of..." montage for this Sunday night.

By a strange coincidence, I recently went on a nostalgia kick of watching a bunch of old Krofft TV shows, including "Pufnstuf," though that's not the show that most deeply resides in my brain ("The Krofft Supershow" does that.)

The thing about Wild, at least as far as I can see, is that he was just such a "stage school" kid, apt to sing a song (like "Mechanical Man" or "Consider Yourself") at, as they say, the drop of a hat. It's very much the kind of kid I was, once upon a time.

So though I can't claim that Wild was one of my special favorites from childhood...he sure was involved with one or two of 'em. So, R.I.P, Jimmy...hope they let you take that damned flute with you.

May a psychedelic dragon sing you to sleep among the talking trees.