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Dear helpful fellow editors,
I created the present article a few months ago, because I remembered Henderson from his roles in Greaser's Palace and Serpico, and thought that he warranted at least a stub, seeing as he had played about 30 roles in TV dramas and films.
However, after searching extensively online, I found out that there are almost no sources other than IMDb and the like, or in Wikipedia articles on films where he is named as a cast member.
Another editor (Kingstoken) added the {{BLP IMDb refimprove|date=January 2017}} today (quite correctly) and, after searching high and low online, I found just one published reference (a brief obituary), which I have now added to the article.
Nonetheless, I am now wondering if he is notable enough, given the guidelines (WP:A7, for example).
Therefore, would someone please help me here? I am too close to the article to be objective in this case: I would like to keep it because of his track record as a minor actor, but I can't decide whether the paucity of online sources prevents this article from meeting the guidelines on notability, since there isn't "significant coverage" (per WP:GNG).
Of course, there may well be newspaper articles, interviews and printed books that have covered Henderson's career, but I have none of those in my possession; so, would it be OK to keep the article after adding
{{Expert needed}}, for example?
Thank you in advance for any assistance anyone could offer, whenever convenient, as it would help me to learn a bit more about the WP:AfD process.
With kind regards;
Patrick. ツ Pdebee.(talk)(guestbook) 16:24, 3 January 2017 (UTC)Reply
@Pdebee: thanks for your contribution, and for following up on your sources. I did a quick search online and only coincidentally came up with the same book that you did, and little else. Our notability guideline for entertainers suggests the usual criteria which determine whether or not to write an article about an actor. I think we'll use point 1 here, "has had significant roles in multiple notable films, television shows, stage performances, or other productions." He has certainly had roles in multiple works spanning a long career, we can see that from his obituary, however I don't think any of his roles have been starring roles at least, so we'll need to make an argument for significance. My opinion is that he meets the standard: for example according to IMDb at least, he appeared in 22 episodes of Car 54, a well-known program which aired 60 episodes (he was in a little over a third of them). He had a small but kind of important role in one episode of DS9, the sort normally reserved for actors of some prominence. And I'm not so familiar with Serpico but he at least appears to have some extended dialogue with Pacino. The standard indicates the likelihood that significant coverage may exist, even if we can't locate it at the moment, and indeed it's more difficult to locate print sources further back in time. I can't do much to help in that regard myself, but I don't think that the "expert" tag is exactly the right way to do this. You might try posting a note at WikiProject Actors and Filmmakers.
As for the BLP tag, it's in fact not correct as it's meant to be used to enforce the high sourcing standards for biographies of living persons but Henderson died several years ago. I don't think there's any harm in keeping this article as a stub based on the information we've been able to find, scant though it is. If you'd like to propose the article for deletion anyway, I can help with that, just post another note here and someone will be back around to help. Cheers. Ivanvector (Talk/Edits) 18:52, 3 January 2017 (UTC)Reply
Thank you so much for your prompt and most helpful guidance. I am so glad that you pointed me so helpfully to the guidelines that apply in the general cases of entertainers, as they bear on this specific case. I will study this aspect of the guidelines some more and, thereby, be better prepared for next time round; thank you!
As you gathered, I was unsure about the fate of this article but didn't really want to submit it for deletion, although I would have accepted that with good grace if it had violated some guideline(s). I am therefore very pleased to know that you think it continues to have merit as a stub, even with the current lack of content and citations. In addition to those of Henderson's roles you singled out in Car 54, DS9 and Serpico, he was also one of the major protagonists in Greaser's Palace (playing Greaser himself), which had quite an impact internationally when it was released although, regrettably, that doesn't seem to be documented anywhere online, as far as I have been able to determine.
I am grateful to you for your advice about the unsuitability of the {{Expert needed}} template in this case and, without wishing to impose too much on your kindness, would be keen to learn from you about why it wasn't the right approach. I had concluded that it served our purpose perfectly, since this is a collaborative project and the template seemed designed exactly for the goal of attracting a fellow editor expert in this area, and with access to published materials on Henderson. In any case, thank you in advance for finding the time, whenever convenient, to help me understand your rationale, as this would help me progress further in my learning.
Finally, thank you also for pointing out the BLP aspect of the earlier template; this had occurred to me but, for the sake of simplicity, I chose to praise the earlier editor for correctly highlighting my initial reliance on IMDb. Oh, and thank you also for removing the duplicate 'stub' template!
Well, Greg, it's been a pleasure to receive your thoughts and advice, and I remain most grateful to you for your helpful and timely assistance.
PS: I am sure it's not too late to wish you a Happy New Year, with best wishes of good health and success in all your endeavours, here and in real life!
There's probably nothing wrong with adding the {{expert needed}} template, I just find it's better to be proactive and approach interested editors directly (by posting at the WikiProject, for example) rather than wait for an interested person to happen to browse the category that the "expert" tag populates and maybe come visit the article. There are currently 7,003 articles tagged with "expert needed" tags, the oldest dating to April 2007; you could be waiting a while!
Best wishes to you as well! If I can be of further assistance please feel free to post a note on my talk page, or you may find better and faster help at the Teahouse. Ivanvector (Talk/Edits) 23:49, 3 January 2017 (UTC)Reply
Thank you for clarifying your ideas about how to enlist the support of expert editors. I agree it's always much better to be proactive, and thank you also for the detailed research you carried out on that waiting list.
I have now also spent some time studying the notability guideline for entertainers, and also the credible claim of significance approach (which was new to me!). I am indebted to you for enabling me to learn this method of determining an article's merit in a case such as this one, and I am sure I will be able to apply this with greater confidence next time; thank you so much!
It's very generous of you to invite me to contact you again if necessary and, as you quite rightly suggest, the Teahouse is another great place for asking for assistance. Thanks once again for all your great help, Greg!
