Gene Wilder, Carrie Fischer, Alan Rickman
We lost some of the brightest stars this year and our hearts were broken. Here’s to those who have gone but will live in our memories and in our hearts.
‘Watership Down’ author Richard Adams
Joe Alaskey, voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck
Legendary playwright Edward Albee
Boxing legend Muhammad Ali
Mother Mary Angelica, nun who built Catholic media network
René Angélil, husband of Céline Dion
Alexis Arquette, actress and transgender activist
‘Tuck Everlasting’ author Natalie Babbitt
Actor Kenny Baker, ‘Star Wars’ R2-D2
Voice of ‘Star Wars’ Adm. Ackbar, Erik Bauersfeld
Brian Bedford, the British-born, Tony Award-winning performer was one of the great stage actors of his generation
David Bowie
David Bowie, master of reinvention
Dale Bumpers, fmr. U.S. senator, Arkansas governor
Charmian Carr, Liesl in ‘The Sound of Music’
Myra Carter, winner a Drama Desk, Obie, Outer Critics Circle and Lucille Lortel Award for her acclaimed performance in Edward Albee’s Three Tall Women
Wrestler, entertainer Chyna
Singer-songwriter Guy Clark
‘Miss Cleo,’ TV psychic network pitchwoman
Singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen
Pat Conroy, author of ‘Prince of Tides’ and ‘Great Santini’
Comic book artist Darwyn Cooke
Fashion photographer Bill Cunningham
George Curry, champion of black press
Children’s author Anna Dewdney
‘L.A. Law’ actor Larry Drake
Actress Patty Duke
‘Dances with Wolves’ actor Chief David Bald Eagle, Jr.
Umberto Eco, famed author of ‘The Name of the Rose’
Bob Elliott, the surviving member of the long-lived radio, club, and Broadway comedy team of Bob and Ray
Shawn Elliott, an actor and singer with numerous credits in theatre, film, and television
Keith Emerson of Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Paul Elvstrom, sailing great
Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez
Zelda Fichandler, co-founded Arena Stage
Fyvush Finkel, the last significant living link to New York’s once-thriving Yiddish theatre
Carrie Fisher, ‘Star Wars’ Princess Leia
Actor, playwright and Nobel laureate Dario Fo
Jazz great Pete Fountain
The Eagles’ Glenn Frey
Zsa Zsa Gabor, Conrad Hilton, Natalie Wood
Zsa Zsa Gabor
Juan Gabriel, Mexican music icon
George Gaynes, ‘Punky Brewster’ actor
Seth Gelblum, legal counsel to producers, writers, directors, composers and others involved in theatrical productions. He was given a Tony Honor for Excellence in Theatre in 2016.
Former senator, astronaut John Glenn
Tammy Grimes, star of the Broadway musicals, Best known for The Unsinkable Molly Brown
‘Voice’ singer Christina Grimmie
Merle Haggard, country music’s outsider hero
Dan Haggerty, ‘Grizzly Adams’ star
Pat Harrington, Schneider on ‘One Day at a Time’
Actor and comedian Ricky Harris
Jim Harrison, author of ‘Legends of the Fall’
Cecilia Hart, a Drama Desk Award winner for her performance in Dirty Linen & New-Found-Land. Married to Oscar- and Tony-winner James Ear Jones
Fred Hellerman of the Weavers
Florence Henderson, TV’s Carol Brady
Jack Hofsiss, who won a Tony and Drama Desk for his direction of The Elephant Man
Robert Horton, was Starbuck in the original Broadway musical 110 in the Shade
James Houghton, transformed the New York theatre scene and gave birth to the Signature Theater
Ken Howard
Ken Howard, Thomas Jefferson in 1776 and a basketball coach in the television series The White Shadow.He won a Tony Award as Best Featured Actor for Child’s Play, and starred in Broadway musical Seesaw
Actress Beth Howland, waitress on ‘Alice’
Actor David Huddleston, ‘The Big Lebowski’
PBS newscaster Gwen Ifill
Monte Irvin, Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder
George S. Irving, Tony winner for Best Featured Actor in a Musical in Irene opposite Debbie Reynolds
Anne Jackson, a theatre actor whose decades-long career was highlighted by frequent onstage teamings with her husband, Eli Wallach
Country music legend Sonny James
Bill Johnson, Former Olympic gold medal skier
Paul Kantner, Jefferson Airplane guitarist
WWII Navajo code talker Joe Hosteen Kellwood
Actor George Kennedy
CNN’s Will King
W.P. Kinsella, whose book inspired ‘Field of Dreams’
Former Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird
Dick Latessa, who won a Tony for “Hairspray
Harper Lee, ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ author
Rapper Shawty Lo
Warren Manzi, author of the whodunit phenomenon Perfect Crime, the longest-running straight play in New York theatre
David Margulies, ‘Ghostbusters’ actor
Garry Marshall, TV and movie legend
Sir George Martin, Beatles producer
‘Days of Our Lives’ star Joseph Mascolo
PBS’ John McLaughlin
John McMartin originated roles in Follies and Sweet Charity
Cabaret writer Andrew Martin
Denise Matthews, Prince protege Vanity
‘ALF’ actor Michu Meszaros
80s pop star George Michael
Frankie Michaels, youngest actor ever to win a Tony Award when he took home the prize at age 11 for playing Patrick Dennis in the original production of Mame
Marvin Minsky, Pioneer of artificial intelligence
Edgar Mitchell, Astronaut who walked on moon
Patrice Munsel, a coloratura soprano who often performed at the Metropolitan Opera
Author Gloria Naylor
James M. Nederlander, the longtime patriarch of the Nederlander theatre-owning dynasty
Noel Neill, Lois Lane on ‘Superman’ TV show
Marni Nixon, a singer and actress who gained fame by dubbing the singing voices of other actresses in famous movie musicals, The King and I, West Side Story, My Fair Lady.
James Noble, Actor known as ‘Benson’ governor
Former Rep. Mike Oxley
Golfing great Arnold Palmer
Israeli leader and Nobel laureate Shimon Peres
Ezio Petersen, a longtime member of the circle of New York theatre journalists
Lawrence Phillips, imprisoned ex-NFL rusher
Singer Prince
Former first lady Nancy Reagan
‘American Gladiator’ Lee Reherman, ‘The Hawk’
Debbie Reynolds, ‘Singin’ in the Rain’
in Die Hard
Actor Alan Rickman, Harry Potter’s Professor Snape
Dylan Rieder, pro skateboarder and model
Doris Roberts, mom on ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’
Vera Rubin, dark matter pioneer
Rock ‘n’ roll star Leon Russell
Former Heisman Trophy winner Rashaan Salaam
Morely Safer, ’60 Minutes’ legend
Actor Joe Santos of ‘The Rockford Files’
ESPN’s John Saunders
Antonin Scalia, Supreme Court justice
William Schallert, dad on ‘The Patty Duke Show’
Phyllis Schlafly, towering social conservative figure
Garry Shandling, inventive TV comedian
‘Iron’ Mike Sharpe, WWE Superstar
Madeleine Sherwood, best known for her roles in Cat On a Hot Tin Roof and Sound of Music
Frank Sinatra Jr.
Andrew Smith, former Butler basketball player
Ralph Stanley, bluegrass music legend
Robert Stigwood, force behind ‘Saturday Night Fever’
Elizabeth Swados, whose experimental musical theatre was a mainstay of 1970s and ’80s theatre
Rep. Mark Takai of Hawaii
‘Growing Pains’ dad Alan Thicke
Ray Tomlinson, creator of email
choreographer Robert Tucker
Vanity, Singer, reformed nasty girl, Prince protégé.
‘The Man From U.N.C.L.E.’ actor Robert Vaughn
Abe Vigoda, ‘Godfather’ and ‘Barney Miller’ actor
Janet Watson, the choreographer of Broadway’s Big River and the currently running production of The Fantasticks
Fritz Weaver, won a Tony Award as Best Actor in a Play for Child‘s Play
Maurice White, leader and founder of Earth, Wind & Fire
Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate
With Gilda Radner in Haunted Honeymoon
Actor Gene Wilder, star of ‘Willy Wonka’
Suzanne Wright, autism advocate
‘Star Trek’ actor Anton Yelchin
Alan Young, Wilbur on ‘Mister Ed’
Cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond
Music legend Buckwheat Zydeco
Saturday, March 25, 2023
A Statement From Andrew Lloyd Webber
I am shattered to have to announce that my beloved elder son Nick died a few hours ago in Basingstoke Hospital. His whole family is gathered together and we are all totally bereft.
Thank you for all your thoughts during this difficult time.
The 75-year-old Oscar-winning composer son Nicholas followed in his father’s footsteps and was a successful composer in his own right, having written Fat Friends The Musical. He was married to musician Polly Wiltshire, who appeared on the soundtrack of his father’s 2019 movie Cats.
During his career, Nicholas also scored music for an adaption of The Little Prince as well as composing numerous TV and film scores, including for the BBC1 drama Loves, Lies, and Records.
Nicholas previously spoke about making his own way in the theatre world away from his famous family name in a 2011 unearthed interview.
He said he wanted to be ‘judged on his own merits’ so dropped his surname when working to see what the reaction would be.
Our hearts and prayers go out to his family.
Also on Saturday Lea Michele updated her fans on the status of her two-year-old’s health via her Instagram after he was hospitalized earlier this week. Her son Ever was in the hospital, but is now out due to a ‘scary health issue. She posted a picture backstage in her dressing room ahead of her Broadway performance in Funny Girl. Lea had been out to focus on her family.
“I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for just so much love and support this week. I really really appreciated it”.
Richard Belzer was best known for his role as BPD Detective, NYPD Detective/Sergeant, and DA Investigator John Munch, whom he portrayed as a regular cast member on the NBC police drama series Homicide: Life on the Street and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as well as in guest appearances on several other series. He portrayed the character for 23 years, from 1993 until retiring in 2016.
Belzer started off as a stand-up comic at Pips, The Improv, and Catch a Rising Star. He participated in the Channel One comedy group that satirized television and became the basis for the cult movie The Groove Tube. He was the audience warm-up comedian for Saturday Night Live and made three guest appearances on the show between 1975 and 1980.
He is noted for small roles in Fame, Café Flesh, Night Shift, and Scarface. He appeared in the music videos for the Mike + The Mechanics song “Taken In” and for the Pat Benatar song “Le Bel Age”, as well as the Kansas video “Can’t Cry Anymore”. In addition to his film career, Belzer was a featured player on the National Lampoon Radio Hour with co-stars John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Gilda Radner, and Harold Ramis.
In the late 1970s, he co-hosted Brink & Belzer on 660AM WNBC radio in New York City. He was a frequent guest on The Howard Stern Show.
In the 1990s, Belzer appeared frequently on television. He was a regular on The Flash, nd in several episodes of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. He followed that with starring roles on the Baltimore-based Homicide: Life on the Street (1993–1999) and the New York City-based Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–2013).
Belzer appeared in several of Comedy Central’s televised broadcasts of Friars Club roasts. On June 9, 2001, Belzer himself was honored by the New York Friars Club
Belzer voiced the character of Loogie for most of the South Park.
Belzer believed there was a conspiracy to assassinate President John F. Kennedy and wrote five books discussing conspiracy theories. Dead Wrong and Hit List were written with journalist David Wayne and reached The New York Times Best Seller list.
Belzer survived testicular cancer in 1983. His HBO special and comedy CD Another Lone Nut pokes fun at this medical incident as well as his status as a well-known conspiracy theorist.
Belzer died at his home in Beaulieu-sur-Mer on February 19, 2023, at age 78, from complications of unspecified circulatory and respiratory conditions.
Raquel Welch has passed on. In 1981 she starred on Broadway in Woman of the Year, receiving praise for following Lauren Bacall in the title role.
In 1997, Welch starred on Broadway in Victor/Victoria, following Julie Andrews and Liza Minnelli in the title role.
That year, she also acted in an episode of the comedy series Seinfeld, entitled “The Summer of George”, Welch played a highly temperamental version of herself, assaulting series characters Kramer and Elaine, the former because he fired her from an acting job and the latter because Welch mistakenly thought Elaine was mocking her.
In 2001, she had supporting roles in the comedy films Legally Blonde opposite Reese Witherspoon and Tortilla Soup. In 2002, she starred in the PBS series American Family, a story about a Mexican American family in East Los Angeles. Her next film was Forget About It (2006). She also appeared in Welcome to The Captain, which premiered on CBS television on February 4, 2008. In 2015 she played a role in The Ultimate Legacy.
Most recently Welch appeared in a sitcom titled Date My Dad (2017) where she reunited with Robert Wagner on screen, four decades after starring together in The Biggest Bundle of Them All. She acted in How to Be a Latin Lover (2017).
For many years, Welch performed in a successful one-woman nightclub musical act in Las Vegas.
She first came to attention for her role in Fantastic Voyage and won a contract with 20th Century Fox. They lent her to a British studio where she made One Million Years B.C. Her images in the doe-skin bikini became one of the bestselling posters and turned her into an international sex symbol. She later starred in Bedazzled, Bandolero!,
100 Rifles, Myra Breckinridge and Hannie Caulder.
She made several television variety specials.
Her rise to stardom in the mid-1960s brought her international fame. She won a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Musical or Comedy for her performance in The Three Musketeers.
She was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in Television Film for her performance in the film Right to Die.
In 1995, Welch was chosen by Empire magazine as one of the “100 Sexiest Stars in Film History”. Playboy ranked Welch No. 3 on their “100 Sexiest Stars of the Twentieth Century” list.
Rachel Welch’s career was so varied that to write about her life completely would be to write a novel. The best way I know how to celebrate a performers life is to gather the clips that allow us to see their work.
Welch died yesterday, February 15, 2023, at her home in Los Angeles, following a brief illness. She was 82. With her the era of sex symbols diminishes.
-
Tech2 years agoHow to Take Advantage of Virtual Numbers for SMS
-
Business2 years agoEntre Institute Review – Is Jeff Lerner’s Program a Scam?
-
Entertainment2 years agoA Star is Born – Barvina Takes Entertainment World by Storm
-
Events3 months agoNew Year’s Eve Traditions In The US and Around The World
-
Film9 months agoElvis and The Mob Connection
-
Broadway2 years agoBroadway Reopening: The Theatre Listings
-
Events2 years agoThe Question On Everyone’s Mind Should Be How Did The Haitians Get To Mexico
-
Spiritual2 years agoThe History of Numerology
-
Family2 years agoWho Is Justine Ang Fonte and Why Are We Letting Her Near Children?
-
Broadway11 months agoFunny Girl Makes Julie Benko a Star