On this day in 1979, one of the most beloved character actors of all time died. Mr. Ed was an inspiration to thousands of horses world-wide. His wildly popular talking horse TV show is what “Ed” was most well-known for, but to his death, he refused to believe that was his defining moment.

But like Kramer on Seinfeld, the Palomino and his role were never to be eclipsed. Sure, there were the attempts to branch out – he tried to introduce talking horses into Westerns, but at the time, Westerns were in decline, although Mel Brooks wished Ed was alive when Blazing Saddles was filmed. Ed’s role as a Lassie replacement was a failure as he could not master a barking sound, and his stint as the original Meathead on “All in the Family” ended prematurely when Ed was horsing around and made an off the hoof remark about Sally Struther’s weight.

Yesterday, I heard Killdeer calling in the back pasture. So spring is near, although, today’s strong north winds tell us not to get too excited.