The RIP Famous Person Thread

[harrybarracuda]

And King Crimson were groundbreaking and legendary.

[SKkin]

King Crimson

[harrybarracuda]

https://teakdoor.com/3458682-post99.html

[harrybarracuda]

Scriptwriter Alan Simpson, co-creator of Hancock and Steptoe, dies at 87



LEGENDARY scriptwriter Alan Simpson, famous for hits including Hancock’s Half Hour and Steptoe And Son, has died at the age of 87 after a long battle with lung disease.

Simpson was famous for his writing partnership with Ray Galton.

His manager Tessa Le Bars said: “Having had the privilege of working with Alan and Ray for over 50 years, the last 40 as agent, business manager and friend, and latterly as Alan’s companion and carer, I am deeply saddened to lose Alan after a brave battle with lung disease.”

Galton and Simpson met at Milford Sanatorium when they were both diagnosed with tuberculosis as teenagers.

Galton and his family paid tribute in a joint statement, saying: “There are no words to express our sense of loss and sadness at the passing of Alan Simpson, Ray’s partner and family friend over the last 70 years.

“From their first attempts at humour in Milford Sanatorium, through a lifetime of work together, the strength of Alan and Ray’s personal and professional bond was always at the heart of their success. We respectfully request there are no attempts to contact the Galton family home at this time.”

As well as their acclaimed work with Tony Hancock and Steptoe actors Harry H Corbett and Wilfrid Brambell, Galton and Simpson also wrote TV, film and stage scripts for the likes of Frankie Howerd, Peter Sellers, Leonard Rossiter, and, at Yorkshire TV in the 1970s, for Arthur Lowe and Les Dawson.

After sending a skit to a BBC talent spotter, the pair got their first big break with Hancock’s Half Hour, which began on radio in 1954 before moving to the small screen.

Next, in 1962, came the hugely popular sitcom Steptoe And Son, about father and son rag-and-bone men living together in a grimy house in Shepherd’s Bush.

The sitcom became the most popular programme on TV and is seen as one of the shows from the Golden Age of the genre.

It earned Galton and Simpson, who had not been expected to survive tuberculosis in their teenage years, Writers’ Guild Awards in 1962 and 1963.

In 1997, a six-part BBC series called Get Well Soon, written by Galton and John Antrobus, was based on Galton and Simpson’s experiences in Milford Sanatorium.

Proving the continued popularity of their characters, the pair successfully revived Steptoe And Son for a play in 2005 called Murder At Oil Drum Lane.

Both were both awarded OBEs in 2000 for their contribution to British television.

The pair said last year that they still met every Monday to drink coffee and discuss the best comedians.

“When there were only two channels, there was a load of rubbish. A show might start out dreadful, but you nursed it,” Simpson told the Daily Telegraph, rubbishing the suggestion that there had ever been a TV Golden Age.

“Fifty years ago, if you had an idea, it could be going out within three weeks - the time it took to build the sets. Now it has to go through committees, and the process can take years.”

Galton and Simpson were honoured with the Bafta Fellowship last summer.

“We always wanted a Fellowship, even though we did not know what a Fellowship was. Not the sort of thing one associates with a couple of Cockney lads, apart from Alfred Hitchcock, of course,” Simpson said at the time.

Scriptwriter Alan Simpson, co-creator of Hancock and Steptoe, dies at 87 - Yorkshire Post

[Mathos]

Tara Palmer-Tomkinson dead: Prince Charles
and Piers Morgan lead tributes after socialite
dies aged 45



Found in her London flat earlier today 8th of February 2017.




Quite a character in her short life span.

[Neo]

Former 'It girl' Tara Palmer-Tomkinson found dead - BBC News

[Gazza]

Don't really know anything about Tara, but I certainly remember the first time I saw her.

[harrybarracuda]

Stanley Kallis, TV Producer of ‘Hawaii Five-O,’ ‘Mission: Impossible,’ Dies at 88

Pat Saperstein
FEBRUARY 10, 2017 | 06:24PM PT



Television producer and writer Stanley Kallis, who worked on shows including “Hawaii Five-O” and “Mission: Impossible,” died at his home in Laguna Beach, Calif. on Jan. 28.

He helped develop the concept for “Hawaii 5-0” for CBS with writer Leonard Freeman, then moved to producing “Mission: Impossible” with Peter Graves and Martin Landau before returning to “Hawaii 5-0” as executive producer.

His next show as producer was “Police Story,” created by Joseph Wambaugh, which won the Emmy for drama series in 1976. In the late 70s, Kallis produced “Washington Behind Closed Doors,” a mini-series for ABC that won seven Emmy nominations.

During the 1980s, he produced projects including “The Manions of America,” “Amber Waves,” “Two of a Kind,” “Columbo” and “The Glitter Dome,” also based on a Wambaugh novel.

He then worked with ABC on the Oprah Winfrey series “Brewster Place” in the early 1990s. Before retiring, he produced the series “The Exile” in Paris.

Kallis moved to Hollywood when his father Mischa Kallis became art director for Paramount Studios. After graduating UCLA, he became an assistant film editor.

With backing from his father and brother, he wrote and produced three B-movies that led to a TV series, “The Law and Mr. Jones,” starring James Whitmore. His first TV writing credit came on “Wagon Train” in 1959. He wrote and produced for the “Dick Powell Anthology” as well as “The Danny Thomas Hour.”

He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Lucetta, daughters Karen Cheesman, Laurie Kallis, Katherine Wenglikowski, Jennifer Kallis, and Nicole Kallis; three grandchildren; and a brother, Albert Kallis.

Donations may be made to the Los Angeles Philharmonic or the Nine O’clock Players of the Assistance League of So. California.

Stanley Kallis, ?Hawaii Five-O? Producer, Dies at 88 | Variety

[harrybarracuda]

AL JARREAU
DEAD AT 76
10 2/12/2017 9:41 AM PST



Al Jarreau, famed R&B and jazz singer died Sunday morning according to his reps.
The 7-time Grammy winner had been hospitalized recently in Los Angeles. Amid his medical battle he announced he would be retiring. He'd been touring almost non-stop for 50 years.

A message on his website says he passed away while in the hospital.
Just last week, Al's son said his father was singing "Moonlighting" to one of his nurses.

Jarreau won 7 Grammy's for a slew of hits through the '70s and '80s including "Mornin'," "After All, "We're In This Love Together" and, of course, that theme to the immensely popular "Moonlighting" TV show.

Legendary Jazz Singer Al Jarreau Dead at 76 | TMZ.com

[Latindancer]

He'd been touring almost non-stop for 50 years.

Wow ! What a way to go !

[crackerjack101]

He was quite extraordinary;

[harrybarracuda]

Bobby Freeman, of ‘Do You Want to Dance,’ Dies at 76
By DANIEL E. SLOTNIKFEB. 13, 2017



Bobby Freeman, whose “Do You Want to Dance” climbed the pop charts in 1958 and endured long afterward in covers by the Beach Boys, the Ramones, Bette Midler and others, died on Jan. 23 at his home in Daly City, Calif. He was 76.

The cause was a heart attack, his son Robert Freeman Jr. said on Monday. The death had not been widely reported.

Mr. Freeman was still a teenager when he wrote and recorded the song that became his signature. Sung with infectious enthusiasm and featuring a driving Latin rhythm and a joyful guitar solo, “Do You Want to Dance” reached No. 5 on the Billboard singles chart.

An energetic showman and dancer, Mr. Freeman was soon touring with Fats Domino and Jackie Wilson and appearing on television shows like “American Bandstand” and “The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beechnut Show.”

Mr. Freeman’s version of “Do You Want to Dance” (also known as “Do You Wanna Dance,” with and without the question mark) embodied the spirit of early rock ’n’ roll, but the secret to the song’s longevity was that artists interpreted it in myriad ways.

The Beach Boys reached No. 12 on the Billboard chart in 1965 with a typically up-tempo close-harmony interpretation. John Lennon recorded a dreamy reggae version. The Ramones ramped up Mr. Freeman’s energy to punk-rock levels. Both the Mamas and the Papas and Ms. Midler slowed the song down; Ms. Midler’s version, a sensual ballad, reached No. 17 on the Billboard chart in 1973. She told CBS News in 2006 that “Do You Want to Dance” was her favorite song.

The song was also featured on the soundtrack of George Lucas’s rock ’n’ roll coming-of-age film “American Graffiti” (1973).

Mr. Freeman was not a one-hit wonder. “C’mon and Swim” (1964) — a young Sly Stone was its producer and a co-writer — reached No. 5 on the Billboard chart. “Betty Lou Got a New Pair of Shoes” (1958) also charted.

Robert Thomas Freeman was born in Northern California on June 13, 1940, and raised in San Francisco. He attended Mission High School there before joining the Romancers, a doo-wop group.

In addition to his son Robert, his survivors include another son, Jerrald; his partner of 17 years, Michele Ellen; two daughters, April Freeman and Nichole Hackett; and several grandchildren.

Mr. Freeman released a handful of songs after 1964, but none became hits. He spent years performing at clubs in San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Reno, Las Vegas and other cities, and that was fine with him.

“I’m just as content as I could be with what I’m doing,” he told The San Francisco Chronicle in 1990. “I have no complaints whatsoever.”



https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/13/a...ies-at-76.html

[misskit]

Clyde Stubblefield, James Brown's Funky Drummer, Dies At 73



Clyde Stubblefield, the funk drummer whose work with James Brown made him one of the most sampled musicians in history, died Saturday morning in Madison, Wisc., his publicist confirmed. Stubblefield was 73; his publicist did not provide a cause of death.

For most of his career, Stubblefield was better known in sound than in name. He joined James Brown's backing band in 1965, one of countless musicians on an ever-rotating roster. As he told NPR in 2015, the ensemble seemed to have more than enough drummers already when he showed up to audition. "I went on stage and there was five drum sets up there," he explained. "And I'm going, 'Wow, what do you need me for?'"

Still, his recordings with Brown managed to rise above the competition: Songs like "Cold Sweat," "Say It Loud — I'm Black And I'm Proud" and "Mother Popcorn" are now revered as a gold standard for funk drumming. A generation later, he would have an even bigger impact on hip-hop, as the pattern he'd played on 1970's "Funky Drummer" proved irresistible to producers. The track's distinctive break, a sixteenth beat punctuated by deft, delicate snare hits, has been sampled on hundreds of songs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_co...&v=V5DTznu-9v0

Perhaps most notably, Public Enemy's production crew The Bomb Squad made "Funky Drummer" the backbone of 1989's "Fight the Power." That song in turn became the unofficial theme music of Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing, echoing through the streets of Bedford-Stuyvesant and foreshadowing the fiery confrontation in the film's climax.

Sampling was still a legal gray area in the late '80s, and Stubblefield's contributions to hip-hop's evolving sound went largely unrecognized — and uncompensated — for decades. In 2009, a PBS documentary called Copyright Criminals aimed to bring the legacy of Stubblefield and other sampled musicians to light. Two years later, the drummer joined Public Enemy's Chuck D and The Roots on the stage of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon — where, at long last, he performed his part of "Fight the Power" in the flesh.

Stubblefield made news last year when he revealed that Prince donated $90,000 to help him pay his hospital bills, after the drummer developed bladder cancer in the early 2000s.

Clyde Stubblefield, James Brown's Funky Drummer, Dies At 73 : The Two-Way : NPR

[harrybarracuda]

Norma McCorvey, once-anonymous plaintiff in landmark Roe vs. Wade abortion case, dies at 69.



When Norma McCorvey revealed on Dallas television station in 1984 that she was the “Roe” in the landmark case that led the Supreme Court to legalize abortion, she called it “my law.”

Fourteen years later, she told a U.S. Senate subcommittee that she would like nothing more than to see Roe vs. Wade overturned.

“I am dedicated to spending the rest of my life undoing the law that bears my name,” she said. The statements reflected the ever-twisting personal journey of a woman who lived a difficult life and who went from being an anonymous plaintiff to a symbol for both sides of the abortion debate.

When word spread that McCorvey had died Saturday of heart failure at age 69 in an assisted living facility in Katy, Texas, abortion rights proponents remembered her indispensable role in Roe vs. Wade; abortion opponents celebrated her efforts to reverse it. Her tempestuous personal story — she had three children by three men — sometimes made her an imperfect fit for the aims of activists. In “I Am Roe,” one of her two memoirs, she described her years as a teenage runaway and reform school inmate, a high school dropout who drifted from job to job. She was an addict, a lesbian and “a complete failure,” she declared.

“I am a rough woman, born into pain and anger and raised mostly by myself,” she wrote. In 1970, McCorvey was more than two months pregnant when she met lawyers Sarah Weddington and Linda Coffee, who were preparing to contest the law that made it illegal to have an abortion in Texas, except by a doctor’s orders to save a woman’s life. The lawyers were looking for a plaintiff who wanted to terminate her pregnancy.

McCorvey signed the suit that contested the law, on the grounds that it violated the 9th Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees the right to free choice and privacy. She used the alias “Jane Roe” to avoid public scrutiny, and the case moved slowly from Dallas District Court to the Supreme Court. In the meantime, McCorvey gave birth to her baby. She never had the abortion.

The Supreme Court announced its decision in January 1973, ruling 7 to 2 that making abortion illegal was unconstitutional. For some years, McCorvey remained secretive about her role in the case. When she revealed her identity in 1984, it was to endorse the decision. But in interviews that followed, she began to describe her troubled life.

“Baby Roe” was her third child, a girl like the others. She gave each one up for adoption because she felt unfit to raise them, McCorvey said. McCorvey went on to attend abortion rights protests, but she felt the movement never truly embraced her. She was never a “poster child” of the movement because “poster people were supposed to look like suburban wives,” said David Garrow, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “Liberty and Sexuality: The Right to Privacy and the Making of Roe v. Wade.” That lack of connection, he said, reflected homophobia as well as social class.

In reality, McCorvey truly was a “representative plaintiff,” Garrow said. “It made perfect sense that a woman who needed an abortion in 1970 had a down-and-out life. If you had connections, you could get a safe abortion from a doctor.”

After signing the affidavit that launched Roe vs. Wade, McCorvey had little more to do with it. She and her lawyers agreed that she would not be called on to give a deposition or appear in court. Weddington argued before the judges that the 9th Amendment gives a pregnant woman, not the court, the right to decide whether she will terminate her pregnancy.

When Dallas court judges decided in favor of “Roe,” the defendant, Dist. Atty. Henry Wade, said he would appeal. In the meantime, he said, he would continue to prosecute doctors who performed abortions. Once her baby was born, in the summer of 1970, McCorvey lost track of the case. She learned about the Supreme Court decision by reading about it in the newspaper.

Norma Leah Nelson was born Sept. 22, 1947, in Lettesworth, La., north of Baton Rouge. The family moved to Houston, where her father, Olin, repaired radios and televisions and her mother, Mary Mildred, worked as a waitress. The couple divorced when Norma was 13. She moved to Dallas with her mother and her older brother.

Starting at about age 10, she began running away from home and spent time in reform schools. It was there that she realized she was a lesbian, she later wrote. At 16, she married Woody McCorvey, a sheet metal worker she met in Dallas.

When she got pregnant, he beat her and said the baby wasn’t his. She went home to her mother, gave birth to her first baby and named her Melissa. Soon afterward, McCorvey’s mother took custody of the infant.

McCorvey got pregnant again during a brief relationship with a man she worked with at a Dallas hospital. When the baby was born, the child’s father adopted her and cut ties with McCorvey. Pregnant a third time, she left her job with a traveling carnival and went to live with her father. After a difficult birth, she saw “Baby Roe” once before the girl went home with her adoptive parents.

At her father’s Dallas apartment, McCorvey slid into a deep depression, took an overdose of pills and drank a bottle of bourbon. She was near death when he came home from work. The incident left her searching for a reason to live. She found it in her alias. Jane Roe was her alter ego, the powerful woman she always wanted to be, “the other woman, whose name was on the Supreme Court papers and someday, maybe, in the history books,” McCorvey wrote in her autobiography.

“Without Jane Roe, without a cause to fight for and a purpose for living, the original Norma would never have survived.” Several years after her suicide attempt, McCorvey was leaving a grocery store with her purse stuffed with stolen food. The store manager, Connie Gonzalez, caught her but didn’t report her to the police. The pair began dating, and soon afterward McCorvey moved in with Gonzalez. “Connie has taken care of me in hundreds of ways,” McCorvey wrote. “I have taken care of her as best I can.”

McCorvey settled into “regular person” status, she later said, but one day Weddington telephoned to say a Dallas reporter wanted to interview her. Among other reasons for agreeing, McCorvey said, she wanted public recognition for her part in the case. Invitations to speak on college campuses and before women’s groups followed, and she consulted on a television movie, “Roe vs. Wade,” that starred Holly Hunter as McCorvey and won two Emmy Awards in 1990.

But McCorvey wasn’t prepared for the ways that the abortion controversy came to her front door. She received hate mail. She found doll clothes and trash scattered on her lawn. One dark morning in April 1989, she told reporters, someone shot out the windows of her house. A few days later, she attended an abortion rights rally in Washington, D.C., organized by the National Organization for Women. She had been invited, but once she arrived, felt all but ignored. It was a familiar experience.

“They never gave me the respect I thought I deserved,” McCorvey said of abortion rights leaders in a 1995 television interview on “Nightline.” A lot of McCorvey’s evolution from being a supporter of abortion rights to an opponent “had to do with her feelings of being treated like poor, working-class, white trash,” Garrow said.

Her doubts about legal abortion increased when she went to work at a Dallas abortion clinic. She met women who used the medical procedure for birth control. She worried about the lack of professional counseling at the clinic for women who were ambivalent about terminating their pregnancy. She alleged that one doctor performed an operation in bare feet. McCorvey also complained that her lawyers never made it clear to her that the Roe vs. Wade case would probably take too long for her to benefit from a favorable verdict. In her view, they used her.

“I felt increasingly alienated” from the abortion rights movement, McCorvey wrote in a second memoir, “Won By Love,” in 1997. Her doubts about Roe vs. Wade were tested when a leading anti-abortion group opened an office in the same strip mall as the clinic where she worked. At first, McCorvey exchanged snide remarks with abortion opponents and nicknamed their national president, the Rev. Philip Benham, “Flipper.”

Eventually, she and Benham began to talk. He baptized her in a Dallas swimming pool in August 1995, a religious conversion that made national news. Months later, she told the Washington Times that her relationship with Gonzalez had become platonic. "I am not a lesbian. I'm just a child in Christ now," she said.

McCorvey quit her job at the clinic, joined Benham and formed a speakers’ bureau named “Roe No More.” She later burned the Supreme Court decision that bore her name at a protest in a church parking lot, and tore it up outside the Mississippi state Capitol. “She spent the better part of the last 25 years working to undo the terrible Supreme Court decision that bears her name,” said Troy Newman, president of Operation Rescue, who described her as a longtime friend. He added in an interview, “As Christians, we understand that God allows you U-turns.”

Abortion rights attorney Gloria Allred, who represented McCorvey before her religious conversion, called her “a very complicated person” who had continued to speak warmly with Allred throughout her life. In her later years, McCorvey gradually drifted back to “normal person” status. But she was confident that her unusual story would be remembered. “I do not fit many people’s idea of a historical role model,” she said.

Norma McCorvey, once-anonymous plaintiff in landmark Roe vs. Wade abortion case, dies at 69 - LA Times

[Troy]

Dan Vickerman: Former Australia lock dies at the age of 37




Former Australia lock Dan Vickerman has died at the age of 37, the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) has confirmed.


South Africa-born Vickerman played 63 Tests for Australia after his 2002 debut and featured in three World Cups.


"The rugby world is in shock after news of the tragic passing of Dan Vickerman. He was an enforcer on the field and a much-loved character off the field," said ARU chief executive Bill Pulver.


No details of the cause of death have been disclosed.


The former Wallaby died at his family home in Sydney and is survived by wife Sarah and two sons.


He retired from the game in 2012 after spells with the Brumbies and Waratahs franchises in Super Rugby, and also spent the 2009-10 season in England with Premiership side Northampton Saints whilst studying at Cambridge University.


England head coach Eddie Jones, who coached Australia and the Brumbies in his homeland, was among those to pay tribute.


"On behalf of the RFU and myself, I would like to send my condolences to Dan Vickerman's family, Sarah and the two kids," he said.


"He was a wonderfully committed team player and a good guy. He will be sorely missed by the rugby community."


...
Dan Vickerman: Former Australia lock dies at the age of 37 - BBC Sport

[BaitongBoy]

Stuart McLean, CBC Radio host and award-winning humorist, dead at 68




Canada's Storyteller: A Tribute to Stuart McLean
Stuart McLean remembered


Stuart McLean, the host of CBC Radio's The Vinyl Café and an award-winning humorist, has died at age 68 after a battle with melanoma.

McLean's trademark blend of storytelling — part nostalgia, part pithy observations about everyday life — and folksy, familiar delivery made him a hit with audiences for more than 20 years. But he always maintained that success came as a surprise to him.

He laughingly recalled how his mother, accosted by a fan after one of his live performances of The Vinyl Café, said she never expected McLean to become famous.

"I didn't really expect myself to amount to very much either," he told CBC's George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight in 2012. "I was intimidated by the brains and the athletes all around me and just didn't think I measured up."

But listeners disagreed. By the late 1970s and early 1980s, McLean was a regular presence on CBC Radio, where his mischievous sense of humour made him a regular contributor and a guest host on Morningside with Peter Gzowski.

[harrybarracuda]

Japanese Auteur Seijun Suzuki Dies at 93
11:46 PM PST 2/21/2017 by Gavin J. Blair



The cult director who churned out yakuza gangster B-movies that were later hailed as classics influenced Quentin Tarantino and Jim Jarmusch.
Japanese director Seijun Suzuki died on Feb. 13 at a Tokyo hospital after a battle with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which affects the lungs. He was 93.

His death was announced by Nikkatsu, the studio that famously fired him in 1967 after 12 years and 40 films, for what is now seen as his masterpiece Branded to Kill. The film was made in black and white as a punishment for his work on Tokyo Drifter - now also considered a classic - the year before. Both films were intended by Nikkatsu to be straightforward, B-movie yakuza gangster flicks, but Suzuki’s experimental style, unconventional narrative flow and comedy touches were too much for the studio bosses.

Suzuki sued for unfair dismissal and found himself shunned by the industry and unable to direct for a decade.

“Seijun Suzuki made his directorial debut with Harbor Toast: Victory Is In Our Grasp in 1956 and since then he continued to influence fans and filmmakers all around the world with films such as Tokyo Drifter, Branded to Kill and Zigeunerweisn,” said Nikkatsu in a statement, adding, “We hereby express our deepest condolence and our profound gratitude and respect for his lifelong work.”

Suzuki went on to find work as an actor and television celebrity in Japan, before gaining international recognition later in life for his directing, with Quentin Tarantino, Jim Jarmusch, Wong Kar-wai and Takeshi Kitano all hailing his creative genius and influence.

Zigeunerweisen was screened at Berlin film festival in 1980 after he had promoted it in Japan by taking an inflatable tent cinema around the country to allow audiences to see it. It was later voted the best film of the decade by film critics in Japan.

His final film was Princess Raccoon in 2005.

Japanese Auteur Seijun Suzuki Dies at 93 | Hollywood Reporter

[Storekeeper]

Alan Colmes, Fox News' liberal voice, dead at 66 | NJ.com

Alan Colmes, the longtime radio host best known as Fox News's liberal voice on the network's popular "Hannity & Colmes" show and later as a Fox commentator, has died at the age of 66 after a brief illness, Fox News reported Thursday morning.

"When Alan and I started 'Hannity & Colmes,' there wasn't a day that went by where we didn't say we were the two most fortunate men in all of television," his former co-host Sean Hannity tells the network of his longtime friend. "Alan, in the midst of great sickness and illness, showed the single greatest amount of courage I've ever seen."

Colmes, a New York native and Hofstra University graduate, started as a stand-up comedian before moving into radio, working at WNBC and WABC before Fox News CEO Roger Ailes hired him to help launch the network in 1996. For 12 years, he and the conservative Hannity clashed nightly; Holmes left the show in 2008 but continued to appear on Fox News and hosted his own nationally syndicated late-night talk radio show, "The Alan Colmes Show."



Alan Colmes, left, with his former 'Hannity & Colmes' co-host Sean Hannity at the 10th anniversary of Fox News Channel in 2006, has died. He was 66. (Peter Kramer | Getty Images)

[Digby Fantona]

Bill Paxton, actor known for Aliens and Titanic, dies aged 61 - BBC News

[Barty]

Bill Paxton, actor known for Aliens and Titanic, dies aged 61 - BBC News

Game over man, game over!

RIP dude.

[harrybarracuda]

"The only actor to be killed by a Predator, a Terminator and an Alien".

RIP

Actor Bill Paxton dies aged 61 after complications from surgery
February 26 2017



Paxton, known for films including Twister, True Lies and Aliens, died on Saturday after complications from surgery.

A family representative said in a statement: "It is with heavy hearts we share the news that Bill Paxton has passed away due to complications from surgery.

"A loving husband and father, Bill began his career in Hollywood working on films in the art department and went on to have an illustrious career spanning four decades as a beloved and prolific actor and filmmaker.

"Bill's passion for the arts was felt by all who knew him, and his warmth and tireless energy were undeniable."

The Texas native appeared in dozens of movies and television shows throughout his career.

He got his start on the big screen in Crazy Mama in 1975, and went on to star in some of the most popular films of the 1980s, from a brief appearance as a blue-haired punk opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Terminator to memorable roles in True Lies, Titanic and Apollo 13.

He won a Saturn Award for his performance in Aliens.

Science fiction fans have noted that he was the only actor to be killed by a Predator, a Terminator and an Alien.

But despite starring in several big-budget movies, Paxton was also known as a character actor, playing everyday people in films such as One False Move, A Simple Plan and Nightcrawler.

Major film roles waned in the 2000s but a television career blossomed.

He received three Golden Globe nominations for his role as a polygamist in the HBO series Big Love.

"Big Love was a seminal series for HBO for many years due to Bill's extraordinary talent and grace," an HBO statement said.

"Off screen, he was as warm, smart and fun as one could be."

In 2012 he was nominated for an Emmy for his performance in the civil war drama Hatfields & McCoys, alongside Kevin Costner.

The actor also worked behind the camera, directing feature films The Greatest Game Ever Played and Frailty.

Paxton had two children and was married for 30 years.

Actor Bill Paxton dies aged 61 after complications from surgery - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

[misskit]

Damn, that's sad. I always liked Paxton. He has acted in so many great movies and television series.

[misskit]

Joseph Wapner, judge who presided over The People's Court, dies at 97

Former LA court judge presided over real cases on TV from 1981 to 1993



A family member said on Sunday Joseph Wapner, who presided over The People’s Court with steady force during the heyday of the reality courtroom show, has died. He was 97.

David Wapner said his father died on Sunday at home in his sleep. His father was hospitalized a week ago with breathing problems, he said, and had been under home hospice care.

The People’s Court was one of the ancestors of the syndicated reality shows of today. Wapner decided real small-claims cases on the show from 1981 to 1993. He auditioned soon after retiring from Los Angeles courts, where he had been a judge for more than 20 years.

His affable, no-nonsense approach attracted many fans, putting the show in the top five in syndication at its peak.

Before auditioning for the show, Wapner had spent more than 20 years on the bench in Los Angeles, first in municipal court and then in superior court. At one time he was presiding judge of the Los Angeles superior court, the largest court in the US. He retired as judge in November 1979, one day after his 60th birthday.

more https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-r...-court-dies-97

[Sumbitch]

^^ me too...

[kmart]

Damn, that's sad. I always liked Paxton. He has acted in so many great movies and television series.

Think someone mentioned the film "A Simple Plan" that Paxton starred in, on another thread.? Great (low budget) movie, flying under the radar of the popular big-budget films he was in, but a great performance nonetheless from him in that film.

RIP.