Who's Next To Croak?

[grand theft sparrow]

i hope the woman that plays George's mom on Seinfeld dies soon. Estelle somethin

wtf, did she kill ur father or sumthing?

stepfather

Damn.  I should keep quiet about Jerry Stiller slugging my uncle in the nuts then.

[El Duderino]

i hope the woman that plays George's mom on Seinfeld dies soon. Estelle somethin

wtf, did she kill ur father or sumthing?

stepfather

Damn.  I should keep quiet about Jerry Stiller slugging my uncle in the nuts then.

classic....well put

[Pubrick]

i hope she never dies.

[cine]

Oscar-winner Peter Ustinov dies


Oscar-winning actor Peter Ustinov has died in Switzerland. He was 82.

A close friend said said Ustinov died last night. The British-born actor had lived in Switzerland for decades.

A person who answered the telephone at Ustinov’s home in a mountain village overlooking Lake Geneva confirmed he had died but declined to give further details.

Born in London on April 16, 1921, the only son of a Russian artist mother and a journalist father, Ustinov claimed also to have Swiss, Ethiopian, Italian and French blood – everything except English.

Ustinov was educated at the prestigious Westminster School, but hated it and left at 16. He appeared in his first revue and had his first stage play presented in London in 1940, when he was 19.

In a career lasting some 60 years, Ustinov appeared in roles ranging from Emperor Nero to Agatha Christie’s Belgian detective Hercule Poirot.

He won Academy Awards for supporting actor in the films Spartacus and Topkapi in the 1960s.

More recently he was the voice of Babar the Elephant, played the role of a doctor in the film Lorenzo’s Oil, and in 1999 appeared as the Walrus to Pete Postlethwaite’s Carpenter in a multimillion-dollar TV movie version of Alice in Wonderland.

Ustinov faced criticism in the early 1990s for his controversial views on the emergence of Russia from Communist rule, and for his unstinting support for Mikhail Gorbachev, but his long service as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF led UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to joke that Ustinov was the man to take over from him.

No immediate details funeral arrangements were available.

[(kelvin)]

There goes one of the finest men we could hear of...farewell, Sir Peter.

[cine]

Broadcaster Alistair Cooke dies


LONDON, England -- UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has led tributes to veteran broadcaster Alistair Cooke who has died aged 95, less than a month after recording his last "Letter from America."

A spokesman for the BBC said on Tuesday that Cooke, who was credited with improving transatlantic understanding for more than half a century, died at his home in New York.

The broadcaster, who was born in England, retired earlier in March following advice from doctors after 58 years. He was famous throughout the world for his weekly broadcast on BBC World Service and in Britain on Radio 4.

Blair told the BBC: "I was a big fan. I thought they were extraordinary essays and they brought an enormous amount of insight and understanding to the world.

"He was really one of the greatest broadcasters of all time, and we shall feel his loss very, very keenly indeed.

"He was a remarkable man who was broadcasting the Letter from America right up to a few weeks ago. He will be deeply, deeply missed."

Cooke, who had missed only three broadcasts in about 3,000 programs over 58 years, thanked his listeners for their loyalty after announcing his retirement.

"I can no longer continue my 'Letter From America,'" Cooke said.

"Throughout 58 years I have had much enjoyment in doing these talks and hope that some of it has passed over to the listeners, to all of whom I now say thank you for your loyalty and goodbye."

Millions of listeners across the world tuned in for Cooke's weekly observations of life in America since his show began in 1946.

Cooke was perhaps best known for "Alistair Cooke's America," a BBC series aired around the world, and as host of the PBS series "Masterpiece Theatre" in the United States for 22 years.

Born Alfred Cooke in 1908 and raised in a boarding house in Blackpool, England, he changed his name to Alistair after graduating from Cambridge University with an honors degree in English and joined the BBC in 1934 as a film critic.

"Letter From America" -- said to be the world's longest-running radio speech program -- was originally intended to last only 13 weeks.

[ono]

Sad that my only real memories of this man are Cookie Monster's "Alistair Cookie."  If Cookie Monster can spoof him, he must have been great.

[Jeremy Blackman]

"Letter from America" really irritates me sometimes. But he did have an interesting way of telling stories.

[MacGuffin]

Selby, author of 'Last Exit,' 'Requiem,' dead at 75

Hubert Selby Jr., the acclaimed and anguished author of "Last Exit to Brooklyn" and "Requiem for a Dream," died Monday of a lung disease, his wife said. He was 75. Selby died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at his home in the Highland Park section of Los Angeles, said his wife of 35 years, Suzanne Selby. Born in New York City, Selby's experience among Brooklyn's gritty longshoremen, homeless and the down-and-out formed the basis for his lauded 1964 novel "Last Exit to Brooklyn," which was made into a film in 1989. "It was a seminal piece of work. It broke so many traditions," said Jim Regan, head of the master's of professional writing program at USC, where Selby taught as an adjunct professor for the past 20 years.

[cine]

Comic and actor Alan King dead at 76

NEW YORK (AP) -- Alan King, whose tirades against everyday suburban life grew into a long comedy career in nightclubs and television that he later expanded to Broadway and character roles in movies, died Sunday at the age of 76.

King, who also was host of the New York Friars Club's celebrity roasts, which had recently returned as a staple on television's Comedy Central, died at a Manhattan hospital, said a son, Robert King.

King appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" 93 times beginning in the 1950s.

Comedian Jerry Stiller, who knew King for more than 50 years, said King was "in touch with what was happening with the world, which is what made him so funny."

"He always talked about the annoyances of life," Stiller said. "He was like a Jewish Will Rogers."

King played supporting roles in more than 20 films including "Bye Bye Braverman," "I, the Jury," "The Anderson Tapes," "Lovesick," "Bonfire of the Vanities," "Casino" and "Rush Hour 2." He also produced several films, including "Memories of Me," "Wolfen" and "Cattle Annie and Little Britches," and the 1997 television series "The College of Comedy With Alan King."

He said he was working strip joints and seedy nightclubs in the early 1950s when he had a revelation while watching a performance by another young comedian, Danny Thomas.

"Danny actually talked to his audience," he recalled in a 1991 interview. "And I realized I never talked to my audience. I talked at 'em, around 'em and over 'em, but not to 'em. I felt the response they had for him. I said to myself, 'This guy is doing something, and I better start doing it."'

King, who until then had been using worn out one-liners, found his new material at home, after his wife persuaded him to forsake his native Manhattan, believing the suburban atmosphere of the Forest Hills sections of Queens would provide a better environment for their children.

Soon he was joking of seeing people moving from the city to the suburbs "in covered wagons, with mink stoles hanging out the back."

His rantings about suburbia, just as America was embracing it, struck a chord with the public and soon he was appearing regularly on the Sullivan show, Garry Moore's variety show and "The Tonight Show."

Bookings poured in, and he toured with Tommy Dorsey's orchestra, played New York's showcase Paramount theater and performed at top nightclubs around the country.

He also worked as the opening act for such music stars as Lena Horne, Billy Eckstine, Patti Page and Judy Garland, whom he joined in a command performance in London for Queen Elizabeth II.

After that show he was introduced to the queen and, when she asked, "How do you do, Mr. King?" he said he replied: "How do you do, Mrs. Queen?"

"She stared at me, and then Prince Philip laughed," he recalled. "Thank God Prince Philip laughed."

King appeared in a handful of films in the late 1950s, including "The Girl He Left Behind," "Miracle in the Rain" and "Hit the Deck," although he didn't care for his roles. "I was always the sergeant from Brooklyn named Kowalski," he once complained.

He also appeared on Broadway in "Guys and Dolls" and "The Impossible Years," and produced the Broadway plays "The Lion in Winter" and "Something Different."

He wrote the humor books "Anyone Who Owns His Own Home Deserves One" (1962) and "Help! I'm a Prisoner in a Chinese Bakery" (1964).

Born Irwin Alan Kniberg, he grew up on Manhattan's Lower East Side and in Brooklyn.

"Both of them were tough neighborhoods, but I was a pretty tough kid," he recalled in 1964. "I had an answer for everything. ... I fought back with humor."

He married Jeanette Sprung in 1947 and they had three children, Robert, Andrew and Elaine Ray. When King was at the height of his career, he faced one son's drug addiction and said he realized he had neglected his family.

"It's not easy being a father," he said, "but I've been allowed a comeback."

He spent more time at home and his son conquered his addiction.

"Now everyone kisses," he said. "We show our affections."

[cine]

'GH' actress Anna Lee dead at 91

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Anna Lee, whose nearly 70-year acting career in movies and television spanned from her breakthrough role in "How Green Was My Valley" to an extended run on "General Hospital," died Friday of pneumonia, her son said. She was 91.

Lee had been ailing for the past several months and died at her home near Beverly Hills with son Jeffrey Byron, 48, by her side, Byron said Sunday.

Paralyzed from the waist down in a car accident just a year after she began playing Lila Quartermaine in ABC's "General Hospital," Lee acted in a wheelchair for more than two decades until she left the soap last year, Byron said.

Born in Kent, England, Lee studied acting in London and was known as "the British bombshell" when touring with the London Repertory Theatre, her son said.

In the early 1930s she moved to California to work in Hollywood, and appeared in more than 60 films including "The Sound of Music" (1965), "Fort Apache" (1948) and "King Solomon's Mines" (1937).

"She was beautiful," said actress Maureen O'Hara, who starred with Lee in 1941's "How Green Was My Valley." "She came to the United States and immediately everybody fell in love with her."

O'Hara said Lee was most effective as an actress in straightforward tales of love and family life. "She made you feel, looking at her, that you belonged to the same family as her," she said.

Nearing retirement age, Lee's stint on ABC's "General Hospital" rejuvenated her, Byron said. "That was really a great elixir for her. Without a doubt it gave her much more longevity later in life," he said.

In 1982, Lee received an MBE, or Member of the Order of the British Empire award. She is to be honored with a lifetime achievement award at Friday's Daytime Emmy Awards ceremony.

Lee was married three times, first to Robert Stevenson, the director of films including "The Love Bug" and "Mary Poppins." She was married to George Stafford for two decades and wed writer Robert Nathan in 1970. Nathan died in 1985.

Lee is survived by a sister, Ruth, two sons, two daughters, seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held in Los Angeles in several weeks, Byron said.

[mogwai]

(has this been already covered?)

Actor Tony Randall Dies at 84



Actor Tony Randall, the stage, screen and television actor best known as fussy Felix Unger on the 70s sitcom The Odd Couple, died in New York in his sleep Monday night after complications from a long illness; he was 84. An actor who specialized in playing comedic sidekicks and best friends, Randall first gained prominence onscreen by reprising his Broadway starring role in Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? in 1957. That film was followed two years later by his scene-stealing turn in Pillow Talk opposite Rock Hudson and Doris Day, the first of many supporting romantic comedy roles for which he would become best known (others included Let's Make Love, Lover Come Back and Send Me No Flowers), although he was also an effective and versatile lead in 7 Faces of Dr. Lao. Randall seamlessly transitioned to television in 1970 with The Odd Couple, based on the hit Neil Simon play, in which he was paired with Jack Klugman, who played the messy Oscar Madison; the show ran for five years and won both actors Emmy Awards for their roles. Innumerable television appearances followed, most notably The Tony Randall Show (1976-78 ) and Love, Sidney (1981-83), a pioneering sitcom in which his character's homosexuality was implied but never stated. Randall turned most of his energy to the stage in his later career, founding the non-profit National Actors Theatre in 1991, starring in and directing a number of the company's productions. The actor made a brief return to the screen last year in Down with Love, an homage to the Rock Hudson-Doris Day films in which he co-starred. Randall is survived by his wife Heather Harlan Randall – who was fifty years younger and made him a father for the first time at 77 – and their two children, a 7 year-old daughter and a 5 year-old son.

[modage]

poor tony randall.  he was lookin' good in Down With Love just last year.  

[MacGuffin]

Ronald Reagan dead at 93
Former president had Alzheimer's disease for 10 years

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Former President Ronald Reagan died Saturday at his home in Los Angeles. He was 93.

At least two of his children and his wife, Nancy, were at his bedside, according to the former president's Los Angeles office.

Ron Reagan Jr. and Patty Davis -- children from his current marriage to Nancy Davis Reagan -- were with him, the office said.

Michael Reagan, his adopted son from his first marriage to actress Jane Wyman, might have been with his father or was still en route. Maureen Reagan, his daughter from that marriage, died in 2001.

In a statement earlier Saturday, Joanne Drake, Reagan's chief of staff in Los Angeles, said: "He is 93 years old. He has had Alzheimer's disease for 10 years. There are plenty of rumors. When there is something significant to report, I will do so."

The news came as President Bush toured Europe to honor the heroes of World War II on the weekend of the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.

Alzheimer's is a progressive, irreversible, incurable neurological disorder that causes losses of memory and mental abilities -- eventually leading to dementia, according to the Mayo Clinic Web site.

[Fernando]

Hollywood engineer, developer of Steadicam, dies.

Associated Press

Malibu, Calif. - Edmund DiGiulio, a Hollywood technical innovator who
oversaw development of a stable-filming system known as the Steadicam,
has died. He was 76.

DiGiulio died at his home in Malibu west of Los Angeles on Friday
after a long struggle with congestive heart faliure, his wife, Louise,
said Tuesday.

Awarded a lifetime achievement Academy Award two years ago, DiGiulio
also received three technical awards and a medal commendation from the
academy.

In the 1970s, as head of Cinema Products Corp., DiGiulio directed the
creation of the Steadicam, a mounting system that provides stable
images while allowing operators to move freely with a movie camera
slung to their torsos. The system is a staple on movie sets today.

Steadicam inventor Garrett Brown and Cinema Products' engineering
staff received an Oscar for the system in 1978.

After graduating from Columbia University, DiGiulio went to work for
IBM in 1950, then went to Mitchell Camera Corp., where he worked on
advancements in film technology.

At Mitchell, DiGiulio developed a reflex-viewing system for movie
cameras that earned him his first technical honor at the Oscars in
1969. He received technical awards for other camera and film
advancements in 1993 and 1999.

At Cinema Products, DiGiulio worked on Stanley Kubrick's films
beginning with 1971's "A Clockwork Orange." Their collaboration
included development of ultra-high-speed lenses to capture candlelit
scenes in 1975's "Barry Lyndon."

"Ed was a technological guru, even for Oscar-winning technologists,"
said Don Rogers, former post-production chief at Warner Bros. "He
always had a twinkle in his eye and a smile in his voice."

A five-time chairman of the academy's Scientific and Technical
Committee, DiGiulio was a fellow of the Society of Motion Picture and
Television Engineers,
a fellow of the British Kinematograph Sound and Television Society and
an associate member of the American Society of Cinematographers.

Besides his wife, DiGiulio is survived by his daughter, Amanda
DiGiulio Richmond, and a granddaughter, Samantha Victoria Richmond.

A memorial service is planned for Saturday.

Link