Burgess Meredith would have been 99 years old today (umm, had he not died 10 years ago). But that's not the point. We've come to praise Burgess -- not to bury him (umm, again).

Everyone has their own "Meredith moment." Maybe you worshiped him as The Penguin while watching Batman reruns from the 60s. Or you loved "Grandpa Gustafson" in the "Grumpy Old Men" movies. ("Drop ... that ... fish!")

Real 80s aficionados need only recall his two finest gigs: "Mickey" the trainer in the first three "Rocky" movies. And "Ammon" the playwright in 1981's "Clash of the Titans." (Claymation villains and Harry Hamlin in a toga -- now that's old-school entertainment.)

Because as I'm about to prove to you...

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW, YOU CAN LEARN FROM A BURGESS MEREDITH MOVIE:

• "Keep hittin' em in the ribs! Don't let that bastard breathe!"
• "Ah the young. Why do they never listen? When will they ever learn?"
• "If you can catch a chicken, you can catch greased lighting."
• "Call no man happy who is not dead!"
• "Women weaken legs!"
• "Experience has taught me that life was tragic enough without my having to write about it."