Tommy Lee Jones

A recent article in the UK Guardian analyzes the film career of Tommy Lee Jones, making the point that in recent years he has hit his stride as an actor and in the roles he has played on film (as well as a few that he directed.)

The profile also makes sure that the reader understands that Jones is a mean SOB. If you've ever read interviews with him, or seen him make one of his surly, taciturn personal appearances on television, you'd probably already figured it out.

One phrase in the article -- author unknown, but sounds more like an American wrote it rather than a Brit -- was this: "You know what they say about west Texans past 50 -- How they don't change but just start to smell higher."

First, I'm not sure about exactly what that means, but I don't think it's a compliment. Second, have you ever heard that saying before?

Other than that weird statement, the profile is really good. It even mentions a western that not many people saw, a film directed by Jones: "The Good Old Boys."

In addition to that film, Jones starred in two more of my all-time favorite westerns: "The Missing" and of course, "Lonesome Dove."