I remember my dad making me watch a couple of these movies when I was a child. I thought this humour was childish when I was six years old. God Only knows what I'd make of it now.
Why, apparently just because he's British, can't NW be seen as a great artist? France has its Mr Hulot (Tati), the US has its Buster Keaton. Take a look at this and tell me that it isn't up there with those.
I could always take him or leave him when I was a kid, but he did have his moments.
I just watched an episode of a TV Documentary called 'Wonderland' which showed Normen in his 90s and living on the Isle Of Man. He was still a showman, loving to play to any audience he could find.
All he eneeded was to be driven around for a couple of hours every day and to have an icecream down on the front.
His family agonised over putting him in an old folks home as he was starting to have falls and episodes and the doctors said he needed professional help 24/7. They ended up doing that but he seemed to like it as he had a captive audience.
I met Norman in Albania in 2001. He was out there for the Albania-England game and appeared on the pitch doing his usual stumbling routine. Even the riot police stopped scowling and joined in the laughter.
I chatted to him in the departure lounge at Tirana airport a couple of days later. He was fascinated that I had to been to Albania when it had still been under communist rule. He was very unassuming and was happy to talk to anyone and everyone, a real gent of the old school.
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