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From Diana - who took Greg to the G Girls taping:
Waiting for the scene of Greg on the show was, I think, almost as exciting as he must have felt waiting for the taping as well. Yes, he wasn't on long, and I am the one sitting to his right, but it wasn't about the show - it was about the experience. From the moment I picked him up and asked if he was ready for his debut, and he said, "oh yeah! maybe they'll call me back, maybe I'll become a permanent extra, and then an actor..." That was the way Greg lived every moment of his life, with an insane optimism that made things happen when the odds were against it. That day at Warner bros filled him with an exuberance that lifted him to new heights for a few more weeks.

When he first told me he had only a few months left but it was all right because he had lived a really good life, I wanted to shake him and say, "you're only 23, you haven't even lived." In the weeks towards the end and after, when I became aware of all of you out there, it became apparent that
he had the soul of someone who lived 100 years. I teased his father that I think maybe he was reincarnated.

I loved Greg like a son, and want to thank all of you for so many kind and wonderful words about him, believe me you were all mentioned many times at his service and days following. I still sob deeply several times a day. I walked out of "Kingdom of Heaven" to use the rest room and walked down the empty corridor where I instantly saw Greg in my mind hobbling down that aisle on his crutches as I've seen hundreds of times in the last eight years. I'm sure the other critics in the theater when I returned wondered what about that movie had reduced me to tears

Greg will never fade from our memories. Someone is working on completing his screenplay that he was writing, and I'm thinking about doing a made for TV movie about his life. I included many of your comments in a booklet I made for his mother and dad, so feel it's only fair to share those of the critics here about him with you. Again, thanks for all your love and support and making him smile - it's the brightest thing we all loved and miss about Greg. if any of you ever head to San Diego, ring me up! <dsaenger@adnc.com>

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In the six years that I've been in town, Greg was the closest I came to seeing myself in a local cineholic. We even shared a passion for baseball caps! I loved the fact that he never showed his hand immediately following a movie. It would be easier to get the Colonel to admit his secret herbs and spices than elicit Greg's flash reaction. He gave them all thought. Lots of thought, weighing every cut and wasted pan before passing judgment. Greg was great to slam trash with. God knows he was on the front lines of multiplex cinema and proudly wore his scars of schlock. It was when we talked "Millennium Mambo" that I discovered the true aficionado and his depth of understanding (and awe). He was an eternal student who in the end managed to teach us all a lesson in dignity. If I owned a "Scream 3" cap it would be tipped in your direction, my friend. Onward to greater things.
Scott Marks - film critic

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When I think of Greg I see his smile. With hair, without hair, with two legs or one, Greg was smiling that big broad smile. That's the Greg I remember. Fred Saxon - film critic

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Greg was too young to leave this world. I loved his wonderful sense of humor. I'll miss him terribly. James Colt Harrison - film critic

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It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to watch Greg grow from a teenager with a sometimes overly exuberant passion for film into a young man who never lost that passion. When he returned to San Diego after his time in New York, he had a new maturity about him, but never lost that enthusiasm and was always so much fun to talk to. I admired him for the grace, dignity and sense of humor he exhibited through the last few years of trials he endured. Greg was a special person and I'm so glad that I had the chance to know him and to learn some very valuable lessons about life from him as well. Staci Torgeson - film publicist

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Greg's incredible strength was matched by his humor, spirit and generosity. He was fearless and incisive in his role as a film critic. He dissected film with passion, knowledge and poetry, and his talent was ahead of his years. Greg will forever remain an inspiration to those who knew him. Dan Bennett - film critic.

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I'll never forget Greg's unfailing optimism, his incredibly good manners, and his unusual taste in films. But most of all, he was a mensch and the world is less for his loss. Jean Lowerison - film critic.

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Every time I think of Greg I have to laugh. We banged heads a lot, got into heated discussions (I will never agree with his assessment of Julia Stiles), and there was no one on earth who could launch into a friendly yet extremely passionate argument over the merits of a particular film like Greg. He was so much fun to engage in a debate that it was worth taking the opposite side of an argument just to get him going. No one could argue a point more thoroughly, more ardently than Greg. Greg was my favorite person to go toe-to-toe with and I'll miss our spirited conversations and forever hold dear the ones we engaged in. Rebecca Murray - film critic.

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Toward the end, he sent me, unsolicited, a list of his all-time Top Ten, in reverse order of preference (for added suspense): Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, The Time Machine (1960), The Sweet Hereafter, Hairspray, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, That Obscure Object of Desire, Last Year at Marienbad, Dr. Strangelove, Manhattan, Lost Highway. He was his own man. He was his own mystery. How would that list have read, twenty or thirty years from now? Duncan Sheperd - film critic.

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We've had the pleasure to know Greg since he was an enthusiastic high school film critic. As we watched him grow as a writer and cinephile, we were happy to call him not only a professional colleague, but also, a friend. We were always amazed by the maturity he exuded at such a young age and the grace, dignity and humor in the way he handled his life in both health and illness. We feel honored to have known Greg and will very much miss his generous spirit. Jenny, Peyton, Lissa, Marybeth, Jennie, Lindsay, and athy - his friends at Solomon Friedman.

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Greg was one of the most remarkable young men I've ever known. His encyclopedic knowledge of film was truly amazing. I've never known anyone who went through such trying circumstances and never once complained. He inspired me in countless ways. Kyle Counts - film critic.

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Greg, the youngest member of the SD Film Critics Society, was active in voting and in Film School Confidential the student festival. He was great at making people feel comfortable about his situation. When we had a pirate theme at my son's school Greg dressed up as Peg Leg Greg and posed for photos with the kids. They loved it. At our Shaun of the Dead haunted house last Halloween he was part of a gag in which the Shaun character knocks the head off one zombie and the leg off another. He would wiggle his stump around and scare the kids.

Greg helped at the SD Comic Con to help raise money for Film School Confidential. Greg was a film activist who worked to get the word out about films he felt passionately about and to get them screened here. He helped Ruth Baily at the SD International Film Festival with film suggestions and supported Madstone and its New Yorker film series. He was always trying to get films he liked like "Millennium Mambo," "Smoking/No Smoking" -to play here. Among his favorite actresses were Natalie Portman, Isabelle Huppert, Neve Campbell and the Gilmore Girls. When Greg called me to let me know that his doctor had only given him 6 months to live, I asked him if there was anything he wanted to do that I could help with. He wanted a walk on part the Gilmore Girls. I finally got it to happen.

Greg had great knowledge of film, unpredictable taste and a voracious appetite to see films. He was fun to argue with and could get extremely wound up in a discussion about film that his speech would become rapid and he'd barely take breaths. Even if I disagreed with him, I always respected his passion and love for film. And I will miss getting his year's end list of all the films and being asked to participate in his annual awards. Beth Accomando - film critic.

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