My Life , My Blog

  Stella Stevens, born Estelle Eggleston (October 1, 1938 – February 17, 2023) She began her acting career in 1959 and starred in such popular films as Girls! Girls! Girls! (1962), The Nutty Professor (1963), The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963), The Silencers (1966), Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows (1968), The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970), and The Poseidon Adventure (1972). Stevens also appeared in numerous television series, miniseries, and movies, including Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1960, 1988), Bonanza (1960), The Love Boat (1977, 1983), Hart to Hart (1979), Newhart (1983), Murder, She Wrote (1985), Magnum, P.I. (1986), Highlander: The Series (1995), and Twenty Good Years (2006). In 1960, she won a Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress. In addition, Stevens appeared in three Playboy pictorials, and was Playmate of the Month for January 1960. Stevens also appeared in several stage productions, including a touring production of an all-female version of Neil Si...

Julie Adams, born Betty May Adams (October 17, 1926 – February 3, 2019) Adams was an actress, primarily in television. She starred in a number of films in the 1950s, including Bend of the River and Creature from the Black Lagoon. She was also known for her roles as Paula Denning on Capitol and as Eve Simpson on Murder, She Wrote. In 1946, at the age of 19, she was crowned "Miss Little Rock" and then moved to Hollywood, California to pursue her acting career. Her first movie role was a minor part in Red, Hot and Blue (1949), followed by a leading role in the Lippert western The Dalton Gang (1949). Adams was featured as the bathing beauty Kay Lawrence in the science-fiction film Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954). Adams co-starred in 1950s films opposite some of Hollywood's top leading men, including with James Stewart in 1952's Bend of the River, with Rock Hudson in The Lawless Breed (1953) and One Desire (1955), with Tyrone Power in The Mississippi Gambler (1953), ...

  Thomas Morgan Woodward (September 16, 1925 – February 22, 2019) Woodward was an actor who is best known for his recurring role as Marvin "Punk" Anderson on the television soap opera Dallas and for his portrayal of Boss Godfrey, the sunglasses-wearing "man with no eyes", in the 1967 film Cool Hand Luke. On another television series, Gunsmoke, he can be seen in 19 episodes, the most guest appearances of any actor on that long-running Western. He served in the Korean War as a lieutenant in special services . His acting debut came in the 1956 film "The Great Locomotive Chase". Besides "Cool Hand Luke", he went on to appear in other such films as "Gunpoint" (1966), "Firecreek" (1968), "The Sword of Ali Baba" (1968), "Final Chapter: Walking Tall" (1977), "Battle Beyond the Stars" (1980), and "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" (1985). He also made his television debut in 1956 on the series "Z...

  Nathaniel Taylor (March 31, 1938- February 27, 2019) Taylor was a television actor, best known for his recurring role as Rollo Lawson in the 1970s sitcom Sanford and Son, a role he later reprised on its short-lived 1980-1981 spin-off Sanford. He later played the first version of Jim-Jam with Redd Foxx on the 1986 series The Redd Foxx Show. Later, he played Rerun's (Fred Berry) brother-in-law Ike in the sitcom What's Happening!!. Taylor also appeared in the films Trouble Man (1972), Willie Dynamite (1974), and Passing Through (1977). Taylor was married twice, and had seven children. According to his friend, entertainer/promoter Alonzo Williams, Taylor suffered a heart attack and was hospitalized on Saturday, and died at UCLA Medical Center on February 27th, 2019, age 80. He is interred at Riverside National Cemetery in Riverside, California.  

  Gerald Norman Springer (February 13, 1944 – April 27, 2023) Born in London, England, during World War II to refugees escaping the Holocaust, Springer was raised in Queens, New York City. He attended Northwestern University School of Law, qualified as a lawyer, and first became actively involved in politics working for the campaign of Robert Kennedy in 1968. A Cincinnati City Council member, Springer served as the 56th Mayor of Cincinnati from 1977 to 1978. He then worked as a local news anchor in Cincinnati where he won several Regional Emmy Awards for commentary. Springer was best known for hosting the tabloid talk show Jerry Springer from 1991 to 2018. He also debuted the Jerry Springer Podcast in 2015. From 2007 to 2008, he hosted America's Got Talent, and from 2019 until 2022, Springer hosted the courtroom show Judge Jerry. Springer appeared in an episode of Married... with Children as the host of a talk show called The Masculine Feminist, in which he advocated for women gett...

Gavin MacLeod, born Allan George See (February 28, 1931 – May 29, 2021) MacLeod's career began in films in 1957. In 1965, he played opposite Peter Mann in The Sword of Ali Baba. He went on to play alongside Anthony Franciosa in A Man Called Gannon (1968), with Christopher George in The Thousand Plane Raid, and opposite Clint Eastwood, Telly Savalas, and Carroll O'Connor in Kelly's Heroes (1970). MacLeod achieved continuing television success co-starring opposite Ernest Borgnine on McHale's Navy (1962–1964) as Joseph "Happy" Haines, and on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970–1977) as Murray Slaughter. He also starred on ABC's The Love Boat (1977–1986), in which he was cast as Merrill Stubing, the ship’s captain. MacLeod and his second wife were hosts on the Trinity Broadcasting Network for 17 years, primarily hosting a show about marriage called Back on Course. In the 2000s MacLeod guested on several TV series, including "Oz", “The King of Queens,” “J...

  Anthony Dominick Benedetto, known professionally as Tony Bennett (August 3, 1926 – July 21, 2023) Bennett amassed many accolades throughout his career, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award, and two Primetime Emmy Awards. He was named an NEA Jazz Master and a Kennedy Center Honoree, and was the founder of the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in Astoria, Queens, New York. Bennett began singing at an early age. He fought in the final stages of World War II as a U.S. Army infantryman in the European Theater. Afterward, he developed his singing technique, signed with Columbia Records and had his first number-one popular song with "Because of You" in 1951. Several popular tracks such as "Rags to Riches" followed in early 1953. He then refined his approach to encompass jazz singing. He reached an artistic peak in the late 1950s with albums such as The Beat of My Heart and Basie Swings, Bennett Sings. In 1962, Bennett recorded his signature song, ...

  John Saxon, born Carmine Orrico (August 5, 1935-July 25, 2020) He was an actor and martial artist who has worked on more than 200 projects during a span of 60 years. Saxon is known for his work in westerns and horror movies, often playing police officers and detectives. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Saxon studied acting with Stella Adler before beginning his career as a contract actor for Universal Pictures, playing in such movies as Rock, Pretty Baby (1956) and Portrait in Black (1961). During the 1970's and 1980's, he would establish himself as a character actor, frequently portraying law enforcement officials in horror movies such as Black Christmas (1974), Dario Argento's Tenebrae (1982), and A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). In addition to his roles in horror movies, Saxon co-starred with Bruce Lee in the martial arts movie Enter the Dragon (1973), and has supporting roles in the westerns Death of a Gunfighter (1969) and Joe Kidd (1972), as well as the adven...

  Patricia Eva "Bonnie" Pointer (July 11, 1950 - June 8, 2020) She was a singer, most notable for being a member of the Grammy Award–winning vocal group. Bonnie and youngest sister June began singing together as teenagers and in 1969 the duo had co-founded The Pointers (otherwise known as The Pair). After Anita joined the duo that same year, they changed their name to The Pointer Sisters and recorded several singles for Atlantic Records between 1971 and 1972. In December 1972, they recruited oldest sister Ruth and released their debut album as The Pointer Sisters in 1973. Their self-titled debut yielded the hit "Yes We Can Can". Between 1973 and 1977, the Pointers donned 1940s fashions and sang in a style reminiscent of The Andrews Sisters; they also melded the sounds of R&B, funk, rock and roll, gospel, country and soul. In 1977, Bonnie left the group to begin a solo career. In 1978, Bonnie signed with Motown and in the same year, Bonnie released "Heaven M...

  Mary Farrah Leni Fawcett (February 2, 1947 – June 25, 2009) Fawcett began her career in 1968 in commercials and guest roles on television. During the 1970s, she appeared in numerous television series, including recurring roles on Harry O (1974–76), and The Six Million Dollar Man (1974–78) with then husband, film and television star Lee Majors. She rose to international fame when she posed for her iconic red swimsuit poster and starred as private investigator Jill Munroe in the first season of Charlie's Angels. In 1983, Fawcett received positive reviews for her performance in the Off-Broadway play Extremities. She was subsequently cast in the 1986 film version and received a Golden Globe nomination. She received two Emmy Award nominations for her roles in TV movies, as a battered wife in the 1984 film The Burning Bed and as real-life murderer Diane Downs in the 1989 film Small Sacrifices. Her 1980s work in TV movies also earned her four additional Golden Globe nominations. In 1996...

  James Edmund Caan (March 26, 1940 – July 6, 2022) While studying at Hofstra University, Caan became intrigued by acting and was interviewed for, accepted to, and enrolled in New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, where he studied for five years. One of his instructors was Sanford Meisner. "I just fell in love with acting", Caan later recalled. "Of course all my improvs ended in violence." After early roles in Howard Hawks's El Dorado (1966), Robert Altman's Countdown (1967) and Francis Ford Coppola's The Rain People (1969), he came to prominence playing his signature role of Sonny Corleone in The Godfather (1972), following which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor. He reprised the role of Sonny Corleone in The Godfather Part II (1974) with a cameo appearance at the end. In addition, Caan had significant roles in films such as Brian's Song (1971),...

  Jackie Mason, born Yacov Moshe Maza (June 9, 1928 – July 24, 2021) Mason was a stand-up comedian and film and television actor. He is ranked No. 63 on Comedy Central's 100 greatest stand-up comedians of all-time. His 1986 one-man show The World According to Me won a Special Tony Award, an Outer Critics Circle Award, an Ace Award, an Emmy Award, and a Grammy nomination. Later, his 1988 special Jackie Mason on Broadway won another Emmy Award (for outstanding writing) and another Ace Award, and his 1991 voice-over of Rabbi Hyman Krustofski in The Simpsons episode "Like Father, Like Clown" won Mason a third Emmy Award. He had written and performed in six one-man shows on Broadway. In 1961, the comic got a big break, an appearance on Steve Allen’s weekly television variety show. His success brought him to “The Ed Sullivan Show” and other programs. He was banned for two years from the “Sullivan” show when he allegedly gave the host the finger when Sullivan signaled to him to ...

  King Henry IV died in 1413, and it was his last wish to be buried in Canterbury Cathedral rather than Westminster Abbey. He had always had an affinity for Thomas Becket’s cult, which was still thriving at the time, and wanted to be buried adjacent to his shrine. The body made the journey from London to Kent and was finally laid to rest on the north side of Trinity Chapel. A rumour began a few weeks after the King’s death that stated that during a dinner party toasting the late King’s life, one guest was reported to have said: "God knows whether he was a good man; but this I know for certain: while his body was conveying in a small vessel from Westminster towards Canterbury to be buried there, I was one of three persons who threw the corpse into the sea, between Berking and Gravesend." The rumour went on to say that a storm had been raging at the time, and it was thought the body was considered a bad omen by those onboard, so it was thrown overboard to appease the superstiti...

  Is Nefertiti Buried in the Valley of the Queens? .  She may be ancient Egypt’s most famous face, but the quest to find the eternal resting place of Queen Nefertiti has always been hotly sought after. It remains to this day, one of Egypt’s most outstanding mysteries.  In 2015, Egyptologist Dr. Nicholas Reeves, first suspected there were still undiscovered chambers lying inside the tomb of Tutankhamun. These chambers may possibly hold the mummy of Nefertiti. Do the remains of the ancient world’s most famous woman lie concealed in the Valley of the Kings? Frustratingly close to the tomb of her step-son, Tutankhamun?  Does the tomb of Egypt’s most beautiful and enigmatic Queen, really be inches from the most well-known and visited tomb in the world? Or does she lie in the Valley of the Queens, a nearby cemetery once used for royal Egyptian women?  The Valley of the Queens was known in ancient times as Ta-Set-Neferu, “The Place of Beauty”. It would only be fitting ...

  SIGNIFICANT. For approximately 4000 years this location has held profound sacred significance and is only one of three in the country. What are we looking at? This is a Bronze Age Bowl barrow – in a churchyard. At a distance of two feet from the top of the barrow, a discovery of twenty skeletons emerged, laid to rest without coffins. Remarkably preserved, their east-west orientation indicated that these individuals were not ancient Britons but followers of Christianity. Some theories speculate that they might have been victims of the Black Death, which ravaged the country in 1348, or casualties of the Civil War, potentially linked to the siege of Marlborough in 1642. The original purpose of the barrow was discovered seven feet from its apex. The remains of cremated bones, remnants of a funeral pyre from 4000 years ago, were carefully gathered, wrapped in cloth, placed on a wooden plank, and covered by the entire barrow. And the continuity of humankind - ‘modern’ graves in the 400...

  Vandaag spreken we over de herinnering aan Magda Schneider (1909–1996), een Duitse actrice, een discrete maar essentiële figuur achter een van de grootste sterren van de Europese film: Romy Schneider. Geboren op 17 mei 1909 te Augsburg (Duitsland), begon ze een actricecarrière in de jaren 30 en werd een populaire ster van de Duitse en Oostenrijkse film, vooral in musicals en sentimentele films van de jaren 1930-1950. Zij is degene die haar dochter Rosemarie Albach — toekomstige Romy Schneider — kennis maakt met de filmwereld door haar vanaf haar 15e te laten spelen in Sissi (1955), naast haar eigen moeder op het scherm. Maar naast de artistieke band is het een intense, complexe en soms pijnlijke relatie die Magda en Romy delen — gekenmerkt door liefde, bescherming, maar ook verwachtingen, stiltes en de gewichten van het verleden. Magda Schneider, weduwe van acteur Wolf Albach-Retty (vader van Romy), heeft de stormen van de 20e eeuw met terughoudendheid doorstaan: het nazisme, de ...

  David Lynch, the visionary film and television director whose work has left an indelible mark on modern cinema and pop culture. Known for his surreal storytelling, dark atmospheres, and inventive visual style, Lynch became one of the most influential filmmakers of his generation. Born David Keith Lynch, he honed his artistic skills at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he created his first film, a 60-second animation titled “Six Men Getting Sick” in 1967. His breakthrough came with the 1977 feature film “Eraserhead,” followed by the critically acclaimed “The Elephant Man” in 1980, earning him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director. Over his prolific career, Lynch directed iconic films including “Dune” (1984), “Blue Velvet” (1986), “Wild at Heart” (1990), “Mulholland Drive” (2001), and “Inland Empire” (2006). He also co-created the groundbreaking television series “Twin Peaks” (1990-1991), which became a cul...