I met Fred at a fraternity party, a big burly guy with a handsome face and deep voice. Deep and dramatic. I knew before he told me that he dreamed of being an actor.
On our first date we rode his motorcycle 20 miles from campus to an old cider mill. With a gallon of cider and a bag of greasy donuts, we tramped the fields while Fred stood on stumps and declaimed lines from Shakespeare.
Then we headed to the football game where Fred stood up in the stands and declared, “The play’s the thing!” It was entertaining at first, but the end came when Fred recited his own poetry beneath my dormitory window.
Thirty years later, I’m sitting in my living room watching the television series of “Lonesome Dove” when I hear that familiar voice. “Fred!” I cry, and sure enough, there he is, playing the role of “Big Zwey,” a buffalo hunter who isn’t very bright but saves a woman from his rough companions. A character who could have been played for laughs but makes me care about his sad fate.
After the show, I check the internet and discover that Frederick Coffin had played in over 80 films and countless television shows. He died in 2003 of lung cancer so it was too late to tell him I recognized his voice.
Fred never became a star but that wasn’t his goal. He was an actor, and a good one.
