Lately I’ve been thinking about how rare it is that I find myself thinking about a movie’s main character.

Usually, when I leave the theater, I’m already talking about the supporting character who won my attention. I think it’s time to draw your attention to some of these memorable characters. Most of them are so intriguing, I’d love to see them lead their own TV series. They just have that magic that makes them irresistible. I can’t get enough of them.

And, since Twitter has made it clear that we should express what’s important to us in 140 Characters, I am going to start doing just that.

These are characters who I think deserve more attention than they’ve received, characters that live on in my imagination long after they’ve left the big screen. They’re the characters I think about when I’m writing my own stories.

Your job? Be the first to identify the film (or one of the films) these characters inhabit. If you want to play fairly and honestly, you won’t use the Internet to look up the answer. (But hey, a bazillion people downloaded Wolverine illegally, so I know that an appeal for responsibility is probably useless…)

The prizes? The satisfaction of knowing you’ve probably spent far too many beautiful days watching movies. 🙂 And your name will be up in lights when I post the next character.

And we begin with:

SPECIAL AGENT ALONZO MOSELY

"Mardukas is my shot."
“Mardukas is my shot.”

The world would be a better place if Yaphet Kotto appeared in more films. Strangely, he has not had a more prominent, famous big-screen role than that of Alonzo Mosely. And it’s an unforgettable role. His character swings between deadpan observation and simmering (sometimes explosive) rage, and in doing so earns some of the film’s biggest laughs. No one has a face like him, no one has a voice like him. And no one has an embarrassing secret like him! (But that’s a surprise.) He steals the show whenever he’s onscreen.

It’s worth noting that Kotto played this character in more than one film, although the second time was the cause of some controversy, and the second film is probably better forgotten.

What is Alonzo Mosely’s movie?

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