I don’t generally get that upset about the passing of a celebrity. I may have enjoyed his or her music, movies or whatever, but people pass away every day and it feels…disingenuous to become distraught over the death of someone I never knew in person.

But I was extremely bummed to hear of the passing of the great Harold Ramis. The tributes being sung to the actor/writer/director are numerous and well-earned, with many people (rightly) pointing out that he did as much as anyone to influence the course of the current comedic world, first with his brilliant work on SCTV and then in the movies he wrote, directed and starred in through the 80s, 90s and 00s.

Here’s why this one is hitting me harder than other celebrity passings: Looking at his filmography, his early films wound up making up a ridiculously high percentage of my junior high and high school conversation. Instead of responding to someone with a thought of my own I’d do so with a Ghostbusters quote. Or I’d greet a friend in the hallway with a Caddyshack line. Back to School was a staple of my buddies and I getting together and Club Paradise was a staple of summer afternoon cable TV watching. And while it wasn’t the first Griswold movie I saw, i immediately recognized the original Vacation as being the superior product.

What I took away from Ramis’ movies was the importance of timing. As much as any Marx Bros or Jack Benny routine, if you watch Ramis’ movies or listen to the words in his screenplays you always get the sense that he’s said these words out loud to himself in order to make sure they flow right. That the timing has been worked out. That, just like a singer knowing where the musical phrase should be to, he knows what the crescendo of the scene should be.

Anyone who values the power of words is mourning Ramis today. By all accounts he was an extremely nice and friendly guy (not surprising given his working class Chicago upbringing), without which all that talent means little.