Showing posts with label obituary. Show all posts
Showing posts with label obituary. Show all posts

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Dallas Star Larry Hagman Dead at 81

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Actor Larry Hagman has passed away after a battle with throat cancer at the age of 81.

Hagman starred in two of the most enduring and popular television series of all time. He got his first big break starring as astronaut Major Anthony Nelson in the popular 1960s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie co-starring Barbara Eden as the beautiful Genie with magical powers, who was always creating trouble for the master of her dreams. The show has become one of the most iconic sitcoms of the era and has been in syndication for the past five decades.

Hagman entrenched his icon status with the role of the incredibly devious JR Ewing on the prime time hit soap opera Dallas, centered around the machinations of the oil baron at the family homestead "Southfork" and his relationships with family, friends and especially his enemies.  The famous "Who Shot JR?" episode remains one of the most watched television programs of all time, as almost one hundred million Americans tuned in to see the dastardly JR receive his comeuppance. The show was a global phenomenon, watched in over one hundred countries and making Hagman a household name worldwide.

The show was so popular that cable network TNT decided to resurrect the Ewing clan for an updated version of the series, Dallas: The Next Generation, which debuted last season to good reviews and solid ratings. 

Hagman was born into show biz royalty. His mother was the beloved actress of stage and film Mary Martin, who originated the role of Peter Pan in the smash hit Broadway musical. He is survived by his wife of 52 years Maj, his son Preston, daughter Heidi and five grandchildren. He was surrounded by family and friends at the time of his death, including co-star Linda Gray, who played JR's long-suffering wife Sue Ellen, as well as Patrick Duffy, who played JR's angelic brother Bobby.




TNT said in a statement: 'All of us at TNT are deeply saddened at the news of Larry Hagman's passing. He was a wonderful human being and an extremely gifted actor.
'We will be forever thankful that a whole new generation of people got to know and appreciate Larry through his performance as J.R. Ewing. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this very difficult time.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2237668/Dallas-star-Larry-Hagman-dies-aged-81-battle-cancer.html#ixzz2D7cCnVhJ
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
TNT said in a statement: 'All of us at TNT are deeply saddened at the news of Larry Hagman's passing. He was a wonderful human being and an extremely gifted actor.
'We will be forever thankful that a whole new generation of people got to know and appreciate Larry through his performance as J.R. Ewing. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this very difficult time.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2237668/Dallas-star-Larry-Hagman-dies-aged-81-battle-cancer.html#ixzz2D7cCnVhJ
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
TNT said in a statement: 'All of us at TNT are deeply saddened at the news of Larry Hagman's passing. He was a wonderful human being and an extremely gifted actor.
'We will be forever thankful that a whole new generation of people got to know and appreciate Larry through his performance as J.R. Ewing. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this very difficult time.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2237668/Dallas-star-Larry-Hagman-dies-aged-81-battle-cancer.html#ixzz2D7cCnVhJ
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Monday, August 13, 2012

Author/Editor Helen Gurley Brown Dead at 90


Former editor of Cosmopolitan magazine and bestselling author Helen Gurley Brown has died in New York City at the age of 90.

Brown became an instant sexual liberation icon with the publication of her bestselling book Sex and the Single Girl in 1962, which proclaimed that unmarried women could—and indeed did —enjoy sex without the benefit of marriage. Her book would pave the way for so-called "women's lib" fiction, including Jacqueline Susann's iconic bestseller Valley of the Dolls. She would later be appointed as Editor-in-Chief of Cosmpolitan magazine, which had been struggling for many years to find its audience. She quickly turned the magazine from a money-losing rag into the top-selling women's magazine in the US.

The magazine would break all the rules, featuring scantily-clad supermodels photographed by famed photographer Francesco Scavullo, with provocative article titles (normally about sex or orgasms) blazed across the cover. Brown would remain as Editor-in-Chief from 1964 until stepping down in 1997.

She was an unabashed feminist, believing and championing for women's rights at every opportunity. She was married to film-producer David Brown from 1959 until his death in 2010. She was also a champion of plastic surgery for women, freely admitting that she had multiple facelifts and other surgeries over the years to fight back the ravages of time.

This year  Brown donated $30 million to Columbia and Stanford Universities, both of which Mr. Brown had attended, to create the David and Helen Gurley Brown Institute for Media Innovation. She remained childless—by choice.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Novelist/Screenwriter Nora Ephron Dead at 71



Award-winning novelist, screenwriter and director Nora Ephron has passed away in New York City at the age of 71.

Ephron carved out a highly-successful career for herself in Hollywood, writing the screenplays for some of the most popular comedies of the past several decades, including When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle.

She began her journalistic career writing essays for periodicals and magazines, before trying her hand at novel-writing. Ephron admitted her 1983 bestseller Heartburn was loosely based on her marriage to Watergate journalist Carl Bernstein and detailed his alleged infidelities during the course of their marriage. The novel was later made into a film starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson, with Ephron writing the screenplay.

She would find her niche in writing movie scripts. She wrote the script for the Academy Award nominated film Silkwood, which would star Streep along with Cher and Kurt Russell. Her biggest success would come with her romantic comedies-dubbed "chick flicks" by the mass media. When Harry Met Sally was a huge financial success at the box office, catapulting former As the World Turns actress Meg Ryan into international super-stardom. Sleepless in Seattle was also a mammoth box office smash around the world, pairing Ryan once again with her popular co-star Tom Hanks.

More recently, she experienced success with Streep yet again in Julie & Julia, with the actress emoting as chef Julia Child (and earning yet another Oscar nomination). Her bestselling memoir I Feel Bad About My Neck And Other Thoughts About Being a Woman published in 2007 detailed her own insecurities about Hollywood and her appearance as she aged in a town that does not allow for aging.

Ephron passed away of pneumonia brought on by acute myeloid leukemia, her son Jacob Bernstein told The New York Times. She is survived by her third husband, Goodfellas screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi, and her two sons with ex-husband Carl Bernstein.


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