Former Grand Rapids Press columnist and movie critic John Douglas has died. Douglas was also a frequent contributor on Take Five and Company on WZZM.

A post from his daughter, Karen Douglas on Facebook, says that John passed away overnight.

Current movie critic John Serba also posted, "Goodbye to my friend, my mentor and a good man." In his heartfelt obituary to Douglas on the Grand Rapids Press/MLive web site, Serba shared this Douglas story with his readers:

He loved people, and he loved using his job as a voice of The Press to stick up for the little guy. He hated injustice, how modern-day institutions would slap a hard-up family with fees after being a couple days late with a mortgage payment. He experienced injustice himself once. I risk mangling the story, telling it secondhand, but I need to share it: One day, he visited the public library downtown, which had short-term parking meters for people returning books. They cost 10 cents. He dropped a dime in one, and it jammed. He went in, dropped off his books, came back, and found a ticket on his car. He explained the situation, and the city ripped up the ticket. But he wanted his dime back. He was told to write a letter to the city treasurer, which was fine and dandy, but then he'd be out the cost of the stamp. Suffice to say, the story ends with him receiving a letter in the mail with two nickels taped to it.

 

That is John Douglas' personality to a T: living his life with a twinkle in his eye. He wasn't cheap – he often picked up the tab when we ate lunch together. But an opportunity to cause trouble over 10 stupid cents was just too delicious for him to pass up.

John's most recent appearance on Take Five and Company was shown on April 22, but taped in March, because he told WZZM-13 he hadn't been feeling well and wanted them to have a backup. Shortly after that taping he was diagnosed with being terminally ill.

Memorial service information can be found here.

 

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