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Ralph Waite (Father Matt) has died
Topic Started: Feb 13 2014, 08:49 PM (6,516 Views)
DiMera87
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I'm so sad. I've always loved Father Matt. From his scenes with Chloe until his big role in the Eric story. I just feel like he's added so much to the show with his presence. He always felt like such a sweet guy and a father/grandfather figure to all of the character he's interacted with on the show...even Nicole. Pretty heartbroken. I never knew when he was going to be on, but I always loved whenever he popped up.
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buffyloverlori


Such sad news I really loved him on Bones as Booth's Grandfather!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! May he rest in peace, and so sad for his family and friend's!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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hops
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Very sad. Loved him on the Waltons, and more recently on CSI and Bones.
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KAM


This is so very sad. I can't believe we won't be seeing him again as Father Matt. That role was such a treat...perfect casting. Ralph Waite always brought such a good presence -- as a good man -- to his characters. RIP
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Vicky4Mimi
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Bless his heart. This is very sad, he will be missed.
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MissFancyFace
Some gals have all the luck!

I am saddened by this! :( R.I.P Mr.Waite! :(
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ArizonaDaze
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I'm so sad over this. He was great on the Waltons and of course, Father Matt, but I will miss him most as Jackson Gibbs, on NCIS. Thanks, Ralph, for all the pleasure you gave us over the years. RIP.
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Supergirlx2
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buffyloverlori
Feb 13 2014, 10:04 PM
Such sad news I really loved him on Bones as Booth's Grandfather!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! May he rest in peace, and so sad for his family and friend's!!!!!!!!!!!!!
since you brought up Bones:

David_Boreanaz: R.I.P. pops #Ralph Waites
https://twitter.com/David_Boreanaz/status/434152522911981568
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Supergirlx2
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KJAlfonso: Ralph Waite RIP ,you'll will be very much missed .It was an honor and always a pleasure to work with you .
https://twitter.com/kjalfonso/status/434157144938524672

ericmartsolf: Ralph Waite. Rest in peace and thank you sir.
https://twitter.com/ericmartsolf/status/434168058857283584

1CaseyMoss: Rest in peace, Ralph Waite. My father says the same thing.
https://twitter.com/welovesoapstv/status/434182591277989888
Edited by Supergirlx2, Feb 13 2014, 11:47 PM.
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LuvCoffee
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dooldooldool
Feb 13 2014, 08:49 PM
Just watching the local news in Palm Springs and they broke into the newscast with the announcement that local resident Ralph Waite has died.

Of course, he will likely remain onscreen well into 2014.

http://www.deadline.com/2014/02/ralph-waite-dead-the-waltons-papa-john/
RIP Ralph Waite So sad.
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Jason47
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REST IN PEACE, FATHER MATT

Posted Image

RALPH WAITE

IN LOVING MEMORY

JUNE 22, 1928-FEBRUARY 13, 2014


Ralph Waite, who portrayed Father Matt on "Days of Our Lives" for 70 episodes from 2009-2014, passed away earlier this evening. Waite made his probable final appearance as Father Matt on January 24, when he performed the Christening for Arianna. Larry Poindexter showed up the next week as Father Louis, most likely in scenes intended for Father Matt that had to be re-written. As a college student, Waite earned his Bachelor of Divinity at Yale, and became an ordained minister before starting his acting career. So, it was a fitting end that Waite's final work as an actor had him performing as a priest on the set of St. Luke's in Salem.

Here's a look at Ralph Waite's first and last scenes as Father Matt. Waite debuted on "Days" in scenes with Nadia Bjorlin (Chloe) on February 18, 2009. His final appearance as Father Matt was on January 24, 2014. Greg Vaughan (Eric) shared the final lines of dialogue with Father Matt.

First scenes...February 18, 2009
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82xvX-ZAR7A

Last scenes...January 24, 2014
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMGdyGiUZM4


Here's an obituary from The Hollywood Reporter:

Ralph Waite, who was beloved to TV viewers as the ultimate father figure, John Walton, on The Waltons, has died. He passed away at midday on Thursday at his home in South Palm Desert, Steve Gordon, the accountant for the Waite family, told The Hollywood Reporter.

He was nominated for an Emmy in 1978 for his portrayal of the middle-American paterfamilias. He starred on The Waltons for nine years and directed 15 episodes. Waite also performed in the vaunted mini-series Roots, for which he received a 1977 Emmy nomination.

Prior to his role on The Waltons, Waite had been in only one other TV show, a Nichols episode.Waite also performed in the vaunted mini-series Roots, for which he received a 1977 Emmy nomination.

More recently, he appeared in Days of Our Lives and had a recurring role as Reverend Norman Balthus on HBO's Carnivale, a part befitting a man who once served as an ordained minister on Long Island. He also appeared as Jackson Gibbs in NCIS over the course of several seasons and as Hank Booth in Bones.

Waite was the founder and director of the Los Angeles Actors Theatre, which he established in 1975. To get the company off the ground, Waite allocated $50,000 of his own money to produce and direct revivals of The Hairy Ape and The Kitchen, in which he also performed.

LAAT won many critical awards, including the Margaret Harford Award given by the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle for “its consistently high standards, its commitment to adventurous theater and to community involvement.”

Multi-faceted, Waite was also an ordained minister, a former social worker and a recovering alcoholic. He channeled that background into a film on the lives of people on L.A.'s skid row, On the Nickel, which he produced/directed/wrote/starred.

Under his own production banner, Ralph Waite Prods, he starred as a criminal lawyer in the 1983 TV series The Mississippi.

TV movies credits include the titular role in The Secret Life of John Chapman, OHMS, Angel City and The Gentleman Bandit.

Politically active, he twice ran unsuccessfully for a Congressional seat, including a run for the seat left vacant by the late Sonny Bono in 1998.

Ralph Waite was born June 22, 1928 in White Plains, New York and graduated from Bucknell University. He later studied for three years at Yale and earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree. At that juncture, he went on to have stints as a social worker for the Westchester County Department of Welfare, as well as publicity director and associate editor at Harper & Row. He was a minister at the United Church of Christ in Garden City, Long Island.
“He was a top notch minister and a dynamic actor in the pulpit even then,” former parishioner and actor Bill Hayes told TV Guide in 1975. “But I don't think Ralph ever enjoyed being asked to conform to the mold or the stereotype expected of most clergymen. He was disturbed by people telling him to straighten his tie or shine his shoes or fix the hole in his sock. He was a very individualistic guy who wanted to be himself.”

It was during his ministerial tenure that Waite traveled to his own Damascus, a night he spent with his parishioner Bill Hayes at his acting class. At age 32, Waite left the ministry to pursue acting.

His conversion from the church to the stage was immediately successful. In 1960, Waite got his first stage role in a Broadway production of Blues for Mister Charlie. In his first eight years of acting, he landed appearances in eight Broadway plays, including Hogan's Goat, Watering Place and The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald. He also performed Blues for Mister Charlie in London.

As his stage career gathered steam, Waite also garnered small roles in top films: Cool Hand Luke and Five Easy Pieces. In 1969, he played in a coming-of-age saga, Last Summer, which starred an up-and-coming Richard Thomas.
Edited by Jason47, Feb 13 2014, 11:45 PM.
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Kaha
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RIP, Ralph Waite! He was a comforting presence on Days. I will miss him.
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kay
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Kay

RIP Mr. Ralph Waite. He will certainly be missed.
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PhoenixRising05
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So sad. He was such a calming presence on Days and added so much to the scenes and stories he was involved in.

Great actor. He will be missed. May he RIP.
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Kevin_Buchanan
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R.I.P. Ralph Waite. Childhood memories of him as Pa Walton on THE WALTONS, and I too liked him as Father Matt. Hopefully DAYS pays tribute to him and have Father Matt pass away on the show.
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Grandpa Hughes
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"Dedicated to the brotherhood of healing. "

He was great. He added a warm and paternal element as Father Matt. Of course I remember him from The Walton's and NCIS but he was in two of my all time favorite movies, Cool Hand Luke and Five Easy Pieces. A class act and he will be missed.
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greeneyedgirl
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At least we can all agree on liking Father Matt.
So sad to hear this new and praying for the family. :(
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Dany_E
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Jason47
Feb 13 2014, 10:43 PM
Posted Image

Posted Image

REST IN PEACE, FATHER MATT


Here's an obituary from The Hollywood Reporter:

“He was a top notch minister and a dynamic actor in the pulpit even then,” former parishioner and actor Bill Hayes told TV Guide in 1975. “But I don't think Ralph ever enjoyed being asked to conform to the mold or the stereotype expected of most clergymen. He was disturbed by people telling him to straighten his tie or shine his shoes or fix the hole in his sock. He was a very individualistic guy who wanted to be himself.”

It was during his ministerial tenure that Waite traveled to his own Damascus, a night he spent with his parishioner Bill Hayes at his acting class. At age 32, Waite left the ministry to pursue acting.


Is this our Bill Hayes mentioned here? Anyone know?
Edited by Dany_E, Feb 13 2014, 11:11 PM.
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Jason47
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Dany_E
Feb 13 2014, 11:10 PM
Is this our Bill Hayes mentioned here? Anyone know?
Yes, it's Bill. Bill was doing lots of TV in New York City in the 1950's, and Ralph became a minister working on Long Island in 1954, so I guess they met there.
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Marlene


Such sad news.

I wondered why there was a new priest, Father Lewis, all of a sudden.

I love the Walton's as a child and having Father Matt in Salem was like having Pa Walton around.

RIP Ralph Waite.
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