Cultureshark Remembers Allan Melvin

I'm not trying to turn this into a contest, but of all the recent celebrity deaths, the one that saddened me the most was the passing of Allan Melvin a few weeks ago. Sure, he was 84 and had a great run, but, darn it, he was a great character actor and a warm, friendly presence on my TV set both in my formative and formed years.

In many circles, the news of Melvin's death prompted someone to rush to assert that they DIDN'T remember him as Sam the Butcher from "The Brady Bunch." Hey, I like burnishing my old-guy credentials as much as the next (actually old) old guy, but I have to admit I grew up on a steady diet of Melvin's Sam the Butcher. I also appreciated his Magilla Gorilla and was aware of him on "Archie Bunker's Place," but it wasn't till later I discovered him as Corporal Henshaw on "Sgt. Bilko" and as a recurring visitor to "The Dick Van Dyke Show." After all, I was approximately -20 and -14, respectively, when those classic sitcoms debuted.

Melvin was great on both of those, and as I've grown older, I've realized those are two of the best shows of all time, while "The Brady Bunch" is--well, let's just say that I still enjoy the show, but for different reasons. Still, there's nothing wrong with Sam the Butcher. The only problem is, this great character's image has been corrupted by years of cheap reflex jokes about Sam giving Alice his meat. You'll notice I avoided this pun when I used the word "diet" in the previous paragraph. I think it's time to quit making the snide Sam the Butcher comments.

Look at the facts. As much as people love to put a postmodern spin on the relationship and turn Sam and Alice into some kind of extramarital sexfest--an even bluer-collar Howard and Marion Cunningham, if you will--there just wasn't much going on there. Alice seemingly spent every other episode complaining that Sam WASN'T romantically inclined toward her. The man brought flowers and candy now and again, and Alice was on his short list when he needed a companion for the Meatcutter's Ball, but this was a man more interested in his craft--and in his bowling team--than in some kind of middle-aged hanky panky.

And, folks, there's nothing wrong with that. Sam was a great guy. He was old but not too old, wise but not a know-it-all, and he was the kind of accessible grownup that would make a great pal for a kid who needed one. He certainly was willing to assist those Brady kids when they needed help. If he was a little careless about safety precautions for the door to his frozen meat locker, well, hey, nobody's perfect.

The point is, sometimes a butcher is just a butcher. Keep the Greg-Marcia or Greg-Carol subtext going, but let's hide the "hide the salami" jokes for a while, OK? Leave me with my innocent memories of a classic TV supporting character--one who showed up just often enough to be linked with the show but not enough to upstage the regulars. Sam the Butcher was pleasant and likable all the way, a guy who would never put his thumb on the scale (though he might have a corny joke about doing so), and I'd like to think part of that is a natural goodness in Allan Melvin.

Paramount released a fantastic "Best of" DVD set of "Bilko" episodes a few years back. Corporal Henshaw wasn't given the sharp lines and wacky situations like Phil Silvers and, say, Doberman, were, but as one of Bilko's go-to sidekicks, the character was a crucial anchor. It was great to see Melvin participate in that DVD set. He provided an audio commentary and episode-specific introductions, and though he didn't provide a wealth of detail, his enthusiasm for that time in his life was infectious. As he recalled that time in his life--50 years ago and in the earlier days of an accomplished career--Allen Melvin sounded genuine and genuinely likable. It's sad to lose someone like that under any circumstances, but his legacy lives on in hours and hours of memorable television.