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Quite an amazing career to look back on - part of the all-round excellent cast of one of the finest sci-fi B-movie's of the 50s, Them!, roles in The Asphalt Junge (also the narrator of Huston's Red Badge of Courage), and in Don Siegel's Crime In The Streets. In William Wellman's Batteground (with Ricardo Montalban) and Raoul Walsh's Battle Cry. Small parts in Oklahoma! and Kiss Me Kate, the mad doctor in another one of my guilty pleasure films The Relic.

And of course his small but intensely powerful scene as the ineffectual priest that Liv Ullman goes to for solace in Bergman's The Serpent's Egg.

There's a very touching moment in the documentary about William Wellman ("Wild Bill") in which Whitmore reflects on the scene that likely won him the Oscar, and the rare gift of an opportunity Wellman gave him to play it.

This is the closing scene in Battleground and features Whitmore. Caveat: the YouTube clip is stretched.

Holy crap. I just sent that link to someone a few days ago. I had no idea it was Blossom Dearie. RIP. It might as well be spring.

I'm about to write the Grim Reaper a very sternly-worded letter. Groovin' Gary (Richard LaVon Griffiths) from The Beaver Trilogy is dead.

Matt wrote:I'm about to write the Grim Reaper a very sternly-worded letter. Groovin' Gary (Richard LaVon Griffiths) from The Beaver Trilogy is dead.

In an attempt to explain why this is such sad news, a micro-trilogy:
Groovin' Gary
Groovin' Sean
Groovin' Crispin

A one off, here's Ms. Blossom Dearie from the Jack Paar Show - a woman, her voice, her piano. Be warned - it's in balck and white, shot with one camera, no cuts. Just talent, soul and artistry. What crazy times back then...

How's this for an unsettling coincidence: I was reading through some old music magazine from 1996 about two hours ago and came across some mention of a musician named Jorge Reyes that intrigued me. I'd never heard of the guy in my life, I'll admit. So I looked him up online and it turns out he died something like 48 hours ago of a heart attack, aged 57. Well, it unsettled me, anyway.

As for Blossom Dearie, I find her 1950s small-group sessions her best work. Would have loved to have seen her in one of her regular club dates around that time.

Playwright Hugh Leonard.

A little late in mentioning this: the boxer Ingemar Johansson, perhaps best known to film fans from the important role his most famous bout plays in My Life As A Dog.

Robert Quarry, Count Yorga Vampire and AIP's would-be successor to Vincent Price. Check out his performance opposite Price and Cushing in the underrated Madhouse, an entertaining riff on cult stardom.

Alas, Biederbeck never did find the secret to immortality.

Hercules Bellville, worked on several Polanski films, and was close associate of producer Jeremy Thomas.

Howard Zieff, director of the My Girl films; Private Benjamin; Hearts of the West; The Dream Team; the Dudley Moore remake of Unfaithfully Yours; House Calls, a pre-Hopscotch teaming of Walter Matthau and Glenda Jackson; Slither with James Caan and The Main Event with Barbara Streisand and Ryan O'Neal.

Wendy Richard, aka Miss Brahms from Are You Being Served?

Interesting to note that she had small roles in Gumshoe and Cornel Wilde's No Blade Of Grass.

colinr0380 wrote:Interesting to note that she had small roles in Gumshoe and Cornel Wilde's No Blade Of Grass.

And had her scenes cut from Help! There's a picture of young Wendy standing with young McCartney, I think it was from the Daily Mail - she's hardly recognizable, at least to me.

And she also had a UK Number One single - "Come Outside", in collaboration with Mike Sarne, future director of Myra Breckinridge.

As well as being a very funny performer on Radio 4's Just a Minute - no mean feat, given the usual competition.

Polish poster artist Franciszek Starowieyski.

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