Interesting, overlooked, and significant obituaries from around the world, as they happen, emphasizing the positive achievements of those who have died. Member, Society of Professional Obituary Writers.
Sunday, August 3, 2014
Noel Black
Director in film and TV; best known for "Pretty Poison" Oscar-nominated for 1965's "Skaterdater"! -- via the New York Times.
Walt Martin
Oscar-nominated sound mixer -- via the Hollywood Reporter. Best known for his late-period Eastwood work, he earned his way to the position and how. He are some of the films he worked on prior: "Cavegirl," "Sorority House Massacre," "Pass the Ammo," "Gatorbait II: Cajun Justice," "Dead Heat," "Grizzy Adams and the Legend of Dark Mountain," and the immortal "Dead Man on Campus." I wold have loved to have taped his memoirs. He did it all!
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/behind-screen/jersey-boys-why-clint-eastwood-713637
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/behind-screen/jersey-boys-why-clint-eastwood-713637
Friday, August 1, 2014
Rick Mittelman
Emmy-nominated, long-time TV comedy writer -- via the Hollywood Reporter. Here's a short list of some of the shows he wrote for" Red Skelton. "The Flintstones." Dick van Dyke. "I Spy." "Gomer Pyle." "Bewitched." "That Girl." Mary Tyler Moore. "The Odd Couple." "Remington Steele." "MacGuyver." 56 shows!!!
Saaed Saleh
Comic actor -- via the Bahrain News Agency. Got his start in the cast of the classic 1973 Egyptian comedy, "Madraset el-Moshaghbeen" (School of the Mischievious). It was adapted from the 1967 British film, "To Sir, with Love," and started many an Egyptian comedy career.
FRIDAY BOOK REVIEW: Backstage at the funeral home, and lookee-loo syndrome
By BRAD WEISMANN
Mortuary Confidential: Undertakers
Spill the Dirt
Kenneth McKenzie and Todd Harra
2010
Citadel Press
New York
“ . . . the dead don’t complain,
but their families sure can.”
We are fascinated by the
forbidden. Sex, graphic violence, personal secrets and indiscretions revealed all
put us off . . . but draw us in as well.
This is no truer than about the
subject of death – how we die, what happens to us, the repercussions for the
living – and all the possible misadventures our abandoned bodies can suffer. This
compulsion to slow down and gawk at tragedy, known to rush-hour commuters as
the “lookee-loo” syndrome, is part of the reason for this blog, and part of the
reason for the writing of “Mortuary Confidential.”
“Mortuary Confidential” is a book
of funerary anecdotes. It is an illuminating compendium, and it does go far
beyond what a reader might expect. It is not merely a grotesquely comic
retailing of death-ritual mishaps and bungles, although there are heavy handfuls
of them listed among the 50 stories given here. Wisely, the authors go over
many aspects of the profession, including dealing with the idiosyncratic
bereaved and uncomprehending officiants. There are also stories about patient
spouses who deal with the 24/7 demands of the trade, and poignant,
life-changing moments that funeral directors experience in the presence of
mourners, and much more.
If there is a flaw here, it is
that all the anecdotes have been written in one authorial voice. It’s as though
the authors compiled the raw data and then pressed out each story from the same
mold – the tone becomes monotonous after a while. And the most interesting
observations come in Harra’s introduction, when he notes that his profession is
a “hidden” one, not lauded or even thought of until necessity intervenes, that
it represents “a failure to our scientific/medical-oriented society.”
That we fixate on the morbid
details of life at times is indicative of our voyeuristic impulses. However,
our peering over the gates of the funeral home also demonstrates the seriousness
with which we invest it. Per Harra, “ . . . we, as a society, must uphold a
basic principle of humanity, the sanctity of life, through reverence for the
dead.” Well said.
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Manny Roth
Founded and ran Cafe Wha?, one of the musical centers of the folk and rick scenes in New York City in the 1960s -- via Rolling Stone.
Dick Wagner
Guitarist and songwriter -- via Rolling Stone. Worked on such great albums as "Berlin" and "Welcome to My Nightmare"; wrote "Only Women Bleed."
Dick Smith
Master of makeup for film and television -- via Variety. Among his amazing projects: "Mark Twain Tonight!", "The Exorcist," "The Godfather," "Amadeus," "Death Becomes Her," "Altered States," "The Hunger," "Scanners," and "Little Big Man."
Martin Tahse
Producer on Broadway and on TV; the man behind the ABC Afterschool Specials -- via the New York Times.
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Peter Marquardt
Actor and video game producer -- via Deadline Hollywood. Best known for playing El Moco in Robert Rodriguez's "El Mariachi" and "Desperado."
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Peter Marler
Animal behaviorist whose work on animal language led to spectacular advances in understanding -- via the New York Times.
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