SAD DEMISE OF CURTIS JACKSON ON 'THE WHITE SHADOW'

Unusually hatless, Eric Kilpatrick's Jackson lies beside his signature shades and a broken bottle with blood red white...

Growing up, a couchy, cloistered white boy nearing middle-school, addicted to a television show about black High School basketball players in the ghetto, one of the worst viewing experiences occurred on a personal favorite series THE WHITE SHADOW when Eric Kirkpatrick's Curtis Jackson, the soul  of the show with streetwise lingo; a red-fronted cap straight out of Fat Albert or an early-70's Blaxploitation flick; a pair of dark sunglasses; and a penchant for "funkadelic" music: the last grasp of epic greatness before rap took over as groundbreaking musicians were replaced by drumbeats and samples borrowed from others... Anyways...

On the final episode of the SHADOW's second (leading to a final third) season, which would take out some of the grooviest, and goofiest, characters ranging from Thomas Carter's central player James Hayward to Ken Michaelson as the gawky geeky Jewish butt of all jokes, Goldstein, and a character whose sleek and slender rhythm bookended smoothly with Jackson's natural ease, Nathan Cook as Milton Reese: We'll continue the sad tale of Curtis Jackson's demise from the 2nd Season finale, THE DEATH OF ME YET, with captions below each photo providing plot-points, quotes, and some trivia.

Well ok he's sans the cap here too as Curtis Jackson says farewell to Coach Ken Reeves

Ticking towards Jackson's demise as James Hayward realizes that more wine is needed for a post-victory party

CJ given the chore with his girl played by black (close-up-at--house-party dancing) VALLEY GIRL,  Theresa Hayes

It's not such a gas, gas, gas as Jackson ironically states, "Be back in a flash!"

Another irony: The basketballer from the final season of WHAT'S HAPPENING, Leland Smith (Snake), is the killer

Jackson realizing the dire situation, and a reason to see him up close in his sweet funky cap

Leland Smith's Snake was a nice guy in the worst season of WH but he's mean as a snake here

Technically the last pic showed Smith killing the store worker who shot at him causing Jackson to meet his end

For Google: Death Curtis Jackson White Shadow Curtis Jackson Death White Shadow Jackson Death

Nathan Cook and Erick Kilpatrick side by side on their last opening credit juxtaposition shot