Passages
- MichaelB
- Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
- Location: Worthing
- Contact:
Re: Passages
The late Ronald Bergan still pops up on the Guardian's obituary pages from time to time, and I doubt they've exhausted his work yet.
And I'm a friend of the Independent's Woody Allen obituarist [sic]. He wrote the bulk of it in the 1990s, and tops it up occasionally – although happily both are still alive as I type this. Although the paper itself has been online-only for some time, which I don't imagine the obit's author expected when he wrote most of it!
And I'm a friend of the Independent's Woody Allen obituarist [sic]. He wrote the bulk of it in the 1990s, and tops it up occasionally – although happily both are still alive as I type this. Although the paper itself has been online-only for some time, which I don't imagine the obit's author expected when he wrote most of it!
- GaryC
- Joined: Fri Mar 28, 2008 3:56 pm
- Location: Aldershot, Hampshire, UK
Re: Passages
More to do with astronomy than film or TV (though one did write novels and for the small screen), but Sir Bernard Lovell and Sir Fred Hoyle wrote each other's Guardian obituary, which meant that Hoyle's words appeared eleven years after his death to the month, as Lovell lived to 98.
Last edited by GaryC on Mon Jan 20, 2025 2:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- Feego
- Joined: Thu Aug 16, 2007 7:30 pm
- Location: Texas
Re: Passages
I am absolutely certain most of the TCM tributes are ready to go well in advance, as they often drop on their Facebook page the very day a death is announced. Some are probably compiled in response to a death if the person was not at an extreme advanced age (e.g. Teri Garr last year). But I’d bet good money they already have videos done for Eva Marie Saint, Leslie Caron, Clint Eastwood, etc.
- MichaelB
- Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
- Location: Worthing
- Contact:
Re: Passages
Oh, definitely.
- MichaelB
- Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
- Location: Worthing
- Contact:
Re: Passages
Bertrand Blier.
(And I bet this'll be a Ronald Bergan obit when the Guardian gets round to publishing it!)
(And I bet this'll be a Ronald Bergan obit when the Guardian gets round to publishing it!)
- Lemmy Caution
- Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2006 3:26 am
- Location: East of Shanghai
Re: Passages
At first glance, I thought the Blier link was www.lemonade.com
I figured it was some buzzy art/culture website.
I figured it was some buzzy art/culture website.
- domino harvey
- Dot Com Dom
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm
Re: Passages
RIP to another true weirdo of cinema
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- Joined: Fri May 18, 2018 3:07 pm
Re: Passages
Jules Feiffer.
A true Renaissance man, his wonderful comic strip Feiffer helped set the template for Doonesbury and Bloom County. He simultaneously achieved success as a comic book historian, children’s book author, Broadway-produced playwright, and screenwriter for Robert Altman, Mike Nichols, and Alain Resnais, among others.
A true Renaissance man, his wonderful comic strip Feiffer helped set the template for Doonesbury and Bloom County. He simultaneously achieved success as a comic book historian, children’s book author, Broadway-produced playwright, and screenwriter for Robert Altman, Mike Nichols, and Alain Resnais, among others.
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- Joined: Mon Jun 27, 2005 3:31 pm
- Location: Indiana
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- MichaelB
- Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
- Location: Worthing
- Contact:
Re: Passages
Trumpeter and conductor Elgar Howarth, a major figure in contemporary classical music, and a close friend and outstanding interpreter of Harrison Birtwistle, many of whose works he premiered.
Delightfully, his sole original film credit was Frank Zappa's 200 Motels, for which he conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Delightfully, his sole original film credit was Frank Zappa's 200 Motels, for which he conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Last edited by MichaelB on Tue Jan 21, 2025 7:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- hearthesilence
- Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2005 4:22 am
- Location: NYC
Re: Passages
FFS everyone's dropping like flies today. Hudson's been in very frail health due to advanced aged, but his loss still hits very hard. Absolutely love the Band, and despite the tumultuous and polarized arguments longtime fans might have of who wronged who, there's no doubt that musically they were a democratic unit where everyone contributed massively - the group of legend would've been unthinkable without any of them, and indeed the latter day reunion without Robertson and then Manuel could never be the same partly for that reason. To the very end of their first run, Hudson was exceptional and still growing by leaps and bounds, as heard on Northern Lights-Southern Cross, the last album they made that lives up to their legacy.
I was able to make my first trips up to Woodstock in recent years, and I've stopped by Big Pink a few times. The last time, me and my partner just sat on the bench outside for about 20 or 30 minutes on a crisp, clear autumn day, and even decades later, it was wonderful just picturing Dylan and the Band enjoying their solitude around there.
- Aunt Peg
- Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2012 5:30 am
Re: Passages
My long departed father dabbled in journalism in the 1950s. He mentioned to me during the 1980s that the newspaper he worked for had obituaries for most famous people already written back then and all they needed to do was just make a few updates before publishing.Feego wrote: ↑Mon Jan 20, 2025 11:26 amI am absolutely certain most of the TCM tributes are ready to go well in advance, as they often drop on their Facebook page the very day a death is announced. Some are probably compiled in response to a death if the person was not at an extreme advanced age (e.g. Teri Garr last year). But I’d bet good money they already have videos done for Eva Marie Saint, Leslie Caron, Clint Eastwood, etc.
- MichaelB
- Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
- Location: Worthing
- Contact:
Re: Passages
This is slightly tangential, but I seem to recall that when Nigel Lawson sensationally resigned from Margaret Thatcher's cabinet just before Channel 4 News went on air, they quickly dug out the obituary reel for him and used that as filler while they hastily restructured the entire programme behind the scenes after it had already started broadcasting. I assume the reel didn't mention his death, which would presumably be added at the very last moment when it was finally used for its intended purpose (which in the event didn't happen for another three decades or so).
I watched it live, and remember the excitement of realising that they were essentially making it up as they went along - if I remember rightly, they didn't try to hide this, probably wisely, since the resignation itself broke just before broadcast but loads of other stuff like shocked reactions happened over the next hour. And this was in 1989, when big news stories like this broke on telly, not via the then nonexistent interwebtubes.
I watched it live, and remember the excitement of realising that they were essentially making it up as they went along - if I remember rightly, they didn't try to hide this, probably wisely, since the resignation itself broke just before broadcast but loads of other stuff like shocked reactions happened over the next hour. And this was in 1989, when big news stories like this broke on telly, not via the then nonexistent interwebtubes.
- hearthesilence
- Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2005 4:22 am
- Location: NYC
Re: Passages
This may be relevant, but back in 2007, I had a friend who was interning at Reuters in London, and IIRC he was asked to go through all the footage they had of Nicolas and Cécilia Sarkozy (usually at some official function) and find shots that showed some kind of tension or sign of trouble in their relationship. It was believed that a divorce was imminent and they wanted something read to send out to clients, and it didn't sound like it was an urgent task that had to be done under deadline pressure, they just wanted to be ahead of the curve. When the divorce was finally announced, it was something like a week or even a few weeks later. So long story short, it's probably general practice to stay ahead of something if you know it's coming.
EDIT: I forgot something else - a friend of mine worked as a designer for a major paper, and while she was not a journalist, she had to do design layouts or something like that for some of their big news stories. Just like that scene in Citizen Kane, I distinctly remember her shuddering when she made one for Trump declaring victory in 2016 right before election day (or at the latest, the morning the polls opened). She also made one for Clinton expecting/hoping that would be used, but well, IT DIDN'T HAPPEN.
EDIT: I forgot something else - a friend of mine worked as a designer for a major paper, and while she was not a journalist, she had to do design layouts or something like that for some of their big news stories. Just like that scene in Citizen Kane, I distinctly remember her shuddering when she made one for Trump declaring victory in 2016 right before election day (or at the latest, the morning the polls opened). She also made one for Clinton expecting/hoping that would be used, but well, IT DIDN'T HAPPEN.
- colinr0380
- Joined: Mon Nov 08, 2004 4:30 pm
- Location: Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, UK
Re: Passages
Sounds a little like the two newspaper headlines that close out The Day The Earth Caught Fire!
- MichaelB
- Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
- Location: Worthing
- Contact:
Re: Passages
Or like Boris Johnson writing two columns about Brexit, one pro and one anti, and then basically flipping a coin.
Or like someone - I forget who, sadly - writing three Daily Mail columns for publication immediately after the 10pm exit poll in 1997, predicated on a narrow Tory win, a narrow Labour win and a landslide Labour win. (Not a landslide Tory win, you notice; they weren't completely delulu.)
Or like someone - I forget who, sadly - writing three Daily Mail columns for publication immediately after the 10pm exit poll in 1997, predicated on a narrow Tory win, a narrow Labour win and a landslide Labour win. (Not a landslide Tory win, you notice; they weren't completely delulu.)
- Aunt Peg
- Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2012 5:30 am
Re: Passages
Nicholas Eadie, 67 Australian actor of stage, screen & TV probably best known internationally for his role as Rebecca Smart's father in Ann Turner's wonderful Celia (1989) https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-01-23/ ... /104850018
- hearthesilence
- Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2005 4:22 am
- Location: NYC
Re: Passages
Phyllis Dalton, Oscar-Winning costume designer, at the age of 99. Best-known for historical epics, she's designed the costumes for such films as Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago, Alfred Hitchcock's 1956 version of The Man Who Knew Too Much, The Princess Bride and the 1989 film adaptation of Henry V.
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- Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:29 am
Re: Passages
John Erwin, voice of He-Man - https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv ... 236123692/
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- Joined: Tue Aug 06, 2024 8:44 pm
Re: Passages
He no longer has the powerOrlac wrote: ↑Sat Feb 01, 2025 5:39 pmJohn Erwin, voice of He-Man - https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv ... 236123692/
- colinr0380
- Joined: Mon Nov 08, 2004 4:30 pm
- Location: Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, UK
Re: Passages
colinr0380 wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2025 2:21 amThere was an interesting story related on one of the 42nd Street Forever trailer compilations that Szwarc apparently got the job of directing Jaws 2 as a kind of compensation for the way that his 1975 horror film Bug was entirely overshadowed on its release by coming out only a week or two before Jaws hit cinemas and changed the landscape of exploitation film (and Hollywood cinema) entirely.
His big period was 1984-5 and his collaborations with the Salkinds on prolonging the Superman franchise with spin-offs. I'm well aware of its flaws in comparison to the Christopher Reeve films but I kind of loved Supergirl more as a kid with the beautiful Helen Slater, the invisible monster sequence which seems to reference Forbidden Planet and Fiend Without A Face simultaneously, the trip into the void with Peter O'Toole and the clinging to the edge of a deep pit that kind of feels like something the end of The House That Jack Built referenced(!), and the goofy trio of villains chewing the scenery with gusto in Faye Dunaway, Brenda Vaccaro and Peter Cook (Vaccaro is the MVP of that film). Plus Hart Bochner doing the dumb and ditzy love interest/woman in peril role! And a tiny role for Matt Frewer as a random thug, just after the Python Crimson Permanent Assurance short and just before he was Max Headroom!
And then straight afterwards Szwarc did Santa Claus: The Movie which amusingly repurposes the superhero genre, and the flying effects, to tell the story of Santa! (They really should have gone with "You'll believe a Santa can fly!" as a tagline! He's even got his own Ice Fortress!) With a great villain in John Lithgow (who gets an amusing death(?) scene as he exits the film, which to my mind is the way that every evil CEO in cinema should go out) exploiting the naive elf Dudley Moore. I saw that a lot as a kid, including at the cinema on its first release and then a screening for all the kids at school a few years later! (We were all given the choice between Santa Claus: The Movie and Santa Claus Conquers The Martians to screen on the last day before Christmas. I had already seen Santa Claus: The Movie a few times by that point so ended up voting for the chance to see Santa Claus Conquers The Martians! Naturally I was outvoted by an overwhelming majority, which was probably for the best in hindsight!)
Lithgow has just turned up in the latest Criterion closet video, and someone really should have got him to do that line at the end!

- MichaelB
- Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
- Location: Worthing
- Contact:
Re: Passages
Brian Murphy, a name most likely meaningless to non-Britons (although he appeared in films like Sparrows Can't Sing and a Ken Russell double-header of The Devils and The Boy Friend), but a British sitcom immortal thanks to playing George Roper in Man About the House (1976-76) and its even more successful spin-off George and Mildred (1976-79), the latter of which only ended thanks to the premature death of his onscreen wife Yootha Joyce. He then got his own sitcom, L for Lester (1982), where he played a hapless driving instructor, and thereafter remained a reassuringly regular presence on British television in multiple sitcoms, soap operas and drama series right up to 2023.
- The Curious Sofa
- Joined: Fri Sep 13, 2019 6:18 am
Re: Passages
Brian Murphy and Yootha Joyce managed to imbue their otherwise seaside postcard characters with humanity and pathos.
- Aunt Peg
- Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2012 5:30 am
Re: Passages
Happy to say that he is also familiar to Australians of a certain age who watched Man About the House and George & Mildred on TV back in the 1970s. Those along with other British series of the era were are regular staple for many people down-under.MichaelB wrote: ↑Tue Feb 04, 2025 4:57 amBrian Murphy, a name most likely meaningless to non-Britons (although he appeared in films like Sparrows Can't Sing and a Ken Russell double-header of The Devils and The Boy Friend), but a British sitcom immortal thanks to playing George Roper in Man About the House (1976-76) and its even more successful spin-off George and Mildred (1976-79), the latter of which only ended thanks to the premature death of his onscreen wife Yootha Joyce. He then got his own sitcom, L for Lester (1982), where he played a hapless driving instructor, and thereafter remained a reassuringly regular presence on British television in multiple sitcoms, soap operas and drama series right up to 2023.
Last edited by Aunt Peg on Tue Feb 04, 2025 8:54 am, edited 1 time in total.