Wow...
Quote:
Clarke never won an Olympic gold medal despite officially breaking 17 world records and at one point holding records for every distance from two miles to 20 kilometres.
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Wow...
Quote:
Clarke never won an Olympic gold medal despite officially breaking 17 world records and at one point holding records for every distance from two miles to 20 kilometres.
An interesting character!
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Kirk Kerkorian, the son of poor Armenian immigrants who used his gambler’s instincts to become a multibillionaire Las Vegas casino tycoon, Hollywood mogul, airline owner and auto industry investor, died at age 98.
Kerkorian, who founded MGM Resorts International and was its largest shareholder, died in Los Angeles on Monday night, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
He passed away after a brief illness, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.
Kerkorian had little formal education and dropped out of school at age 16. In his youth he was known as “Rifle Right Kerkorian” for his punching power as a small-time boxer. He would become an enduring American business heavyweight with a knack for placing winning bets in the corporate world.
Last month, Forbes magazine estimated Kerkorian’s wealth at $4.2 billion after he took a hit on his investments in 2008, when the magazine said he was worth $16 billion.
Three different times — in 1969, 1973 and 1993 — Kerkorian built the world’s biggest hotel in Las Vegas, the desert gambling capital where he first made his fortune in the 1950s and 1960s.
On his way to becoming a casino magnate, he befriended “Rat Pack” stars Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and other Las Vegas headliners.
Kerkorian owned some of the biggest and best-known Las Vegas hotels and casinos, at one time owning more than half the hotel rooms on the famous Las Vegas Strip. He also was instrumental in turning Las Vegas into a family destination rather than merely a naughty pleasure spot for adults.
Kerkorian bought and sold the venerable MGM film studio three times, acquired the United Artists studio and tried to buy Columbia Pictures.
Yet, even as a studio chief, he would stand in line to buy movie tickets at a theater with everyone else rather than attend private screenings.
Kerkorian mounted high-stakes pursuits of US automakers but never acquired one. He twice tried to buy Chrysler, triggering a massive legal tussle, and made big investments in General Motors and Ford.
He was a skilled aviator who flew dangerous missions delivering warplanes from Canada to Britain during World War Two and later opened a charter flight business serving gamblers wanting to get from Los Angeles to Las Vegas more quickly than a 10-hour drive.
He began buying property in Las Vegas in 1962 after selling his charter airline, which he later repurchased, and was on his way to becoming a Las Vegas power player.
“When you’re a self-made man you start very early in life,” Kerkorian once told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “… You get a drive that’s a little different, maybe a little stronger, than somebody who inherited.”
He later bought and sold airlines including Western Airlines, started the failed luxury airline MGM Grand Air and launched an unsuccessful bid for Trans World Airlines.
In the business world, he was known more for making a deal than for nurturing a company over the long haul, often taking a major risk, reaping the benefits and getting out. For example, MGM under Kerkorian often languished artistically and even sold off such items as its studio lot and movie props including Dorothy’s ruby slippers from “The Wizard of Oz.”
“He’s a born gambler with a sixth sense for sniffing out value,” former auto executive Lee Iacocca, who joined Kerkorian in the unsuccessful Chrysler takeover bid in 1995, told the Los Angeles Times in 2005. “Doing deals is what keeps him alive.”
Kerkorian agreed. “I’m a gambler at heart,” he told the Times. “That’s my life.”
The only other person with a resume like his — an aviator and owner of an airline, film studio and Las Vegas casinos — was fabled billionaire recluse Howard Hughes, who died in 1976.
Las Vegas lifestyle
Kerkorian enjoyed the Las Vegas lifestyle, and his second wife was a Las Vegas showgirl. They had two daughters, Tracy and Linda, whose names he combined to create the name of his holding company, Tracinda, and his charity, the Lincy Foundation.
Kerkorian remained vigorous into old age. He was an avid tennis player despite not starting until age 50, and liked to play lengthy doubles matches with friends in Beverly Hills.
Kerkorian’s third wife was former women’s professional tennis player Lisa Bonder, who was 49 years younger than him. They were married for just 28 days in 1998 and went through a nasty 2002 child support fight.
Court papers showed Bonder falsified a DNA sample in order to claim Kerkorian was the biological father of her daughter. DNA tests later revealed Hollywood producer Steve Bing as the father. A security guard working for Kerkorian nabbed dental floss from Bing’s trash to obtain the crucial DNA sample.
Kerkorian testified in 2008 in the trial of his lawyer, Terry Christensen, who was convicted of conspiring to wiretap Bonder during the dispute. Bonder had sought $320,000 in monthly child support for her then-3-year-old daughter, including $144,000 for travel, $14,000 for parties and play dates, and $436 for care of the girl’s bunny and other pets.
In 2014 the Las Vegas Sun reported that at age 96 Kerkorian had married Una Davis, who was many years younger.
Kerkorian’s charitable work has included hundreds of millions of dollars in support of Armenia. He started providing medical and other supplies following a damaging 1988 earthquake in Armenia and helped build homes and repair infrastructure.
Kerkorian avoided public events, usually shunned publicity and rarely spoke to the media but was not a recluse.
He was born as Kerkor Kerkorian in Fresno, California, on June 6, 1917, the youngest of four children of Armenian immigrant parents. His family lost its farmland amid financial difficulties in the 1920s and he had to work to help out.
Kerkorian was sent to reform school and dropped out at age 16. A friend with whom he worked installing furnaces changed his life by taking him on a flight in a single-engine plane. Kerkorian then paid for flying lessons with famous woman pilot Pancho Barnes by milking cows and shoveling manure at her ranch. His love of flight launched his business career.
Kirk Kerkorian, Casino Tycoon, Movie Mogul, Auto Investor Dies at 98 - The Jakarta Globe
Good sportsman & good bloke.
Initially I read Kervorkian! :rolleyes:
He popped his clogs in 2011.Quote:
Originally Posted by panama hat
ha, ha, same here.Quote:
Originally Posted by panama hat
Rick Ducommun dies at 62; actor appeared in 'The 'Burbs,' 'Groundhog Day'
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Actor and comedian Rick Ducommun, who appeared in “Groundhog Day” and “Die Hard” but was best known for his role in the 1989 film "The 'Burbs," has died at the age of 62.
Ducommun died at a hospital in Vancouver, Canada, after suffering from complications due to diabetes, his brother said Thursday.
After "The 'Burbs," which became a cult classic, Ducommun was featured in "Gremlins 2: The New Batch," the Bill Murray hit "Groundhog Day" and "Ghost in the Machine."
After dropping more than 200 pounds, he landed the role of Art Weingartner, the nosy neighbor to Tom Hanks in "The 'Burbs."
Despite positive reaction to his work, the film was not a success, and Ducommun found himself continuing to perform stand-up comedy while occasionally doing film work, including an appearance in "Blank Check." He also had roles in "Little Monsters," ''Spaceballs," ''Die Hard," ''The Hunt for Red October," ''The Experts," ''The Last Boy Scout," ''Encino Man," ''Last Action Hero" and "Scary Movie."
HBO produced a stand-up comedy special with Ducommun in 1989 called "Rick Ducommun: Piece of Mind," which was well-received, as was the follow-up, "Hit and Run" in 1992. Ducommun was a regular performer on the Comedy Channel, later renamed Comedy Central.
"He was funny, talented and creative," said his brother, Peter Ducommun. "I think what people admired most was his stand-up. He was a comedian's comedian. Anyone who had the opportunity to see him live, loved his material."
Born in Prince Albert, Canada, Ducommun was an avid skateboarder in the 1960s. Skateboarding was such a big part of their lives that they created Skull Skates, a skateboarding accessories company, in 1978. Ducommun was heavily involved in the company until his stand-up career started to take off and he moved to Los Angeles, his brother said.
Peter Ducommun told the Associated Press that his brother stepped away from show business after starting a family. At the end of his life, he was living in Vancouver.
He is survived by four children, his ex-wife, two brothers, a sister and his father.
Rick Ducommun dies at 62; actor appeared in 'The 'Burbs,' 'Groundhog Day' - LA Times
No comment.Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracuda
Which is actually a comment.Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
Yes, but I didn't want to say "he was dying in Vancouver" as that would have been insensitive. Technically, at the end of his life he would have actually been dead so "dying" is inappropriate.Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracudaWhich is actually a comment.Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
Now look at what you made me do !
You way over sensitive, dude. You left me thinking what you meant by 'no comment'. Now I have you figured. You're a canuck and that's the meaning of the first 3 letters of your nic, innit?Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
Peoples: canucks are insecure.
How much of your day do you spend thinking about these things?Quote:
Originally Posted by can123Yes, but I didn't want to say "he was dying in Vancouver" as that would have been insensitive. Technically, at the end of his life he would have actually been dead so "dying" is inappropriate.Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracudaWhich is actually a comment.Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
Now look at what you made me do !
In fairness, some of them do jump out at you. The pretty young Korean actress below died while skydiving in preparation for a film role.
The report says: "Jung In Ah had been missing since going skydiving on June 13 and police believed she died from not landing properly when her parachute failed to deploy correctly."
I mean there's all sorts of things wrong with that.
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It is a curse. I read literally because I once worked as a proof reader for a Q.C. It was torture. Long story. He's dead now.Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracuda
Have you considered the possibility of you not being very bright ?Quote:
Originally Posted by wjblaney
Yes or no: are yu a Candyian?Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
In all fairness, Harry, you don't half to explain fukin' nuthin to dumb canuks (do u remember SoCal?) Green coming.Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracuda
Of course I am not Canadian !Quote:
Originally Posted by wjblaney
So what did you jump on my fukin' ass for?Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
Because he's Welsh!
:cmn:
I take it he's not living in Vancouver...Quote:
Originally Posted by can123
No He's a Zombie!
James Horner, Film Composer for 'Titanic' and 'Braveheart,' Dies in Plane Crash
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The two-time Oscar winner, 61, worked on three James Cameron films, two 'Star Trek' movies and classics like 'A Beautiful Mind,' 'Field of Dreams' and 'Apollo 13.'
James Horner, the consummate film composer known for his heart-tugging scores for Field of Dreams, Braveheart and Titanic, for which he won two Academy Awards, died Monday in a plane crash near Santa Barbara. He was 61.
His death was confirmed by Sylvia Patrycja, who is identified on Horner's film music page as his assistant.
"We have lost an amazing person with a huge heart and unbelievable talent," Patrycja wrote on Facebook on Monday. "He died doing what he loved. Thank you for all your support and love and see you down the road."
Horner was piloting the small aircraft when it crashed into a remote area about 60 miles north of Santa Barbara, officials said. An earlier report noted that the plane, which was registered to the composer, had gone down, but the pilot had not been identified.
For his work on the 1997 best picture winner Titanic, directed by James Cameron, Horner captured the Oscar for original dramatic score, and he nabbed another Academy Award for original song (shared with lyricist Will Jennings) for “My Heart Will Go On,” performed by Celine Dion.
“My job — and it’s something I discuss with Jim all the time — is to make sure at every turn of the film it’s something the audience can feel with their heart,” Horner said in a 2009 interview with the Los Angeles Times. “When we lose a character, when somebody wins, when somebody loses, when someone disappears — at all times I’m keeping track, constantly, of what the heart is supposed to be feeling. That is my primary role.”
His score for Titanic sold a whopping 27 million copies worldwide.
His fruitful partnership with Cameron also netted him Oscar noms for original score for the blockbusters Aliens (1986) and Avatar (2009). The pair reportedly were also at work on Avatar sequels.
The Los Angeles native earned 10 Oscar noms in all, also being recognized for his work on two other best picture winners: Braveheart (1995) and A Beautiful Mind (2001). He also received noms for An American Tail (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Apollo 13 (1995) and House of Sand and Fog (2003).
Always busy, Horner has three films coming out soon: Southpaw, the boxing drama that stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Rachel McAdams and is due in theaters in July; Jean-Jacques Annaud’s Wolf Totem, out in September; and The 33, a drama based on the 2010 mining disaster in Chile that’s set for November.
His lengthy film résumé includes The Lady in Red (1979), Wolfen (1981), Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1983), Red Heat (1988), Glory (1989), The Rocketeer (1991), Patriot Games (1992), Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993), Jumanji (1995), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), Troy (2004) and The Amazing Spider-Man (2012).
His father was two-time Oscar-winning art director/set designer Harry Horner (The Heiress, The Hustler).
Horner spoke about the state of his career in a December interview with David Hocquet.
“I’m much choosier,” he said.’ “I don’t want to be doing these movies that now 85 or 90 composers want, as opposed to six. And now all these movies, action movies. I don’t get offered all the movies obviously, but I see a lot of them and I do get asked to do a lot of them, and I just know they’re not asking me to do something that I can do something original, they’re asking me to do a formula and I’m too rebellious.”
Posted by Sylvia Patrycja on Monday, June 22, 2015
Patrick Macnee. No more bowler hats ! I liked him and his programme "The Avengers".
Avengers star Patrick Macnee dies - BBC News
A cool customer with iconic fashion sense, RIP.
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^ RIP. He had that kind of face you could never tell how old he was.
Made it to American TV too. Unusual for a brit series, I believe. RIP PatrickQuote:
Originally Posted by can123
Quite a character!
Quote:
British actor Patrick Macnee was born on February 6, 1922 in London, England into a wealthy and eccentric family. His father, Daniel Macnee, was a race horse trainer, who drank and gambled away the family fortune, leaving young Patrick to be raised by his lesbian mother, Dorothea Mary, and her female lover. Shortly after graduating from Eton (from which he was almost expelled for running a gambling ring), Macnee first appeared on stage and made his film debut as an extra in Pygmalion (1938). His career was interrupted by World War II, during which he served in the Royal Navy. After military service, Macnee attended the Webber Douglas School of Dramatic Art in London on scholarship. He also resumed his stage and film career, with bit parts such as Young Jacob Marley in A Christmas Carol (1951). Disappointed with his limited roles, Macnee left England for Canada and the United States.
In 1954, he went to Broadway with an Old Vic troupe and later moved on to Hollywood, where he made occasional television and film appearances until returning to England in 1959. Once back home, he took advantage of his producing experience in Canada to become co-producer of the British television series Winston Churchill: The Valiant Years (1960). Shortly thereafter, Macnee landed the role that brought him worldwide fame and popularity in the part of John Steed, in the classic British television series The Avengers (1961). His close identification with this character limited his career choices after the cancellation of the series in 1969, prompting him to reprise the role in The New Avengers (1976), which, though popular, failed to recapture the magic of the original series. During the 1980s and 1990s, Macnee became a familiar face on American television in such series as Gavilan (1982), Empire (1984), Thunder in Paradise (1994) and NightMan (1997). In the past decade, Macnee has also made several audio recordings of book fiction.
Chris Squire, bassist for Yes, dies at 67
Squire was the only constant member of the English prog rock band over their 21 studio albums
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Chris Squire, the bassist and co-founder of English prog-rock band Yes, has died.
The 67-year-old had been undergoing treament for acute erythroid leukemia, having announced that he was takinga hiatus from the band in May.
"It’s with the heaviest of hearts and unbearable sadness that we must inform you of the passing of our dear friend and Yes co-founder, Chris Squire," the band announced via their Facebook page. "Chris peacefully passed away last night in Phoenix Arizona. We will have more information for you soon."
"For the entirety of Yes's existence, Chris was the band’s linchpin and, in so many ways, the glue that held it together over all these years. Because of his phenomenal bass-playing prowess, Chris influenced countless bassists around the world, including many of today’s well-known artists.
"Chris was also a fantastic songwriter, having written and co-written much of Yes’s most endearing music, as well as his solo album, Fish Out of Water.
"Outside of Yes, Chris was a loving husband to Scotty and father to Carmen, Chandrika, Camille, Cameron, and Xilan. With his gentle, easy-going nature, Chris was a great friend of many … including each of us. But he wasn’t merely our friend: he was also part of our family and we shall forever love and miss him."
Squire was the only constant factor in a band that shuffled its line-up many times over their 21 studio albums to date.
Meanwhile keyboard player Geoff Downes paid tribute to his late bandmate on Twitter.
Utterly devastated beyond words to have to report the sad news of the passing of my dear friend, bandmate and inspiration Chris Squire. #yes
— Geoffrey Downes (@asiageoff) June 28, 2015
Others, including Jason Bonham, were quick to show their appreciation.
I'm devastated with the News that Chris Squire passed away . I spent a lot of time with Chris in the late 80's .... http://t.co/6R2OJgGXAZ
— Jason Bonham (@Jason_Bonham) June 28, 2015
RIP Chris Squire, super bassist of Yes. An extremely talented musician's musician who mastered his instrument and took it to new realms.
— Tom Morello (@tmorello) June 28, 2015
Belle and Sebastian dedicated a song to Squire during their Glastonbury set today.
Yes have confirmed that their summer tour will go on as planned, with Billy Sherwood stepping in to replace Squire.
Chris Squire, bassist for Yes, dies at 67 - Telegraph
Discography 1969-2009
I thought yes had disappeared Into obscurity sometime in the 70s.
NoQuote:
Originally Posted by Cujo
( :) )
I used to really enjoy listening to their album "Relayer". It had some interesting harmonic overtones going on.
I think Rick Wakeman is an awesome musician.
Did you know he had three heart attacks in his 20s?
And he's still going in his 60s.
Remarkable.
Yes..... for me the main justification for the punk rock ethos of 'get rid of the old farts'
Dreadful dreadful self indulgent twaddle.
Well that punk shite was just a fad - no musical merit whatsoever.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bobcock
not so, not snow, snot no.Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracuda
:smileylaughing:Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracudaWell that punk shite was just a fad - no musical merit whatsoever.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bobcock
Right, Dad. Although it did thankfully send a lot of prog rock dinosaur bands into their well-appointed tar-pits in the late 70's.
Are you still wearing flares, Harry?
Did it?Quote:
Originally Posted by kmart:smileylaughing:Quote:
Originally Posted by harrybarracudaWell that punk shite was just a fad - no musical merit whatsoever.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bobcock
Right, Dad. Although it did thankfully send a lot of prog rock dinosaur bands into their well-appointed tar-pits in the late 70's.
Are you still wearing flares, Harry?
Most of them are still going and still making albums.
And people still want to listen to their music.
The shite that's come out since punk is mostly unmemorable background noise.
In fact I blame it for inventing the way record companies now market talentless shitbags as "musicians".
Yes, that's right, you c u n t s are to blame for Justin Bieber!
:)
^There is certainly a lot of nostalgia for bands like Yes and other prog rock bands nowadays. (Rick Wakeman seems to be all over the place on UK television these days. He's more entertaining talking than twiddling away on a keyboard for hours, it must be said). In the mid 70's though, music was going up it's own arse with double-neck guitars, concept double-albums about faeries and castles in the sky; extortionate tickets prices for bands (during a recession), etc. Punk was an overdue kick up the arse for the music biz.
Not a bad opinion, that. Fcukin' disco. :wtf:Quote:
Originally Posted by kmart
If Yes have tribute bands do they have names like 'Yeah', 'Yep', 'Affirmative' etc.?
:)