praeceptrix

Diana Rigg, one of my first crushes, has died. She was 82. She was a brilliant actress. I adored her in everything I saw her in. Damn. https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-54106509?at_custom4=F4D3382E-F369-11EA-B3F1-D13A4D484DA4&at_campaign=64&at_custom3=%40BBCBreaking&at_custom2=twitter&at_custom1=[post+type]&at_medium=custom7 https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-27986272

Anthony Martignetti, who starred in the Prince Spaghetti commercials of my youth, has died. He was 63. I had forgotten about those commercials, but the minute I saw the headline I remembered them quite clearly. https://deadline.com/2020/08/anthony-martignetti-dead-obituary-prince-spaghetti-commercial-actor-1203024695/

Thanks for this information. I've never seen the show, but I will now check it out. Like many others, I have been thrust into online teaching (community college Western Civilization surveys) and am looking for resources to supplement my lectures and help with keeping the students engaged. I've no idea whether any of their episodes will be useful, but it can't hurt to check.

Clearly I am a bit loopy this morning (semester starts in a week and I am still not comfortable with or prepared for teaching online 😟), but my first reaction was to wonder what kind of funnel -- a funnel cake (yum!)? a funnel for decanting? I'm also having fond memories of the Pros and Cons of Closed Captioning thread at Television Without Pity. Both computer generated captions and those done by humans can produce some amusing mistakes.

I know nothing about him or his work, but 35 is just too young! I suppose that dying in his sleep is a kinder way than some of the alternatives, but it's still too damned young. My heart goes out to his family and friends.

Julian Bream, lutenist and guitarist, has died at the age of 87. This one really hurts. I had the pleasure of seeing him in concert several times, many years ago, both as a solo performer and as a duo with guitarist John Williams (not the composer). https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-53777949

Interesting and distressing article about the investigation into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput who was 34 when he died in June. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-53655118

Zoe Saldana has done a 180° and is now apologizing for her portrayal of Nina Simone. https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-53676550 From the linked article: In a new interview, originally broadcast live on Instagram, Saldana said: "I should have never played Nina. "I should have done everything in my power with the leverage that I had 10 years ago, which was a different leverage, but it was leverage nonetheless. "I should have done everything in my power to cast a black woman to play an exceptionally perfect black woman." <snip> "I thought back then that I had the permission [to play her] because I was a black woman," Saldana said. "And I am. But it was Nina Simone. And Nina had a life and she had a journey that should have been - and should be - honoured to the most specific detail because she was a specifically detailed individual." <snip> Saldana's regret at the role marks a departure from her previous comments defending her part in the film. In 2013, she told Latina magazine: "Let me tell you, if Elizabeth Taylor can be Cleopatra, I can be Nina - I'm sorry. It doesn't matter how much backlash I will get for it. I will honour and respect my black community because that's who I am." In another interview with Allure in 2016, she said: "There's no one way to be black. You have no idea who I am. I am black. I'm raising black men. Don't you ever think you can look at me and address me with such disdain."

Connie Culp, the first face-transplant recipient in the United States, has died. She was 57. Her husband shot her in the face with a shotgun in 2004; she received the face transplant in 2008 (after 30 previous surgeries). The article doesn't give the cause of death, but does say that she had been in the hospital for several days. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1235578

That's one of the points made in this article on BBC: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-53499195 From the article: The show does not question these prejudices but, as some point out, what it does do is hold up a mirror - a disturbing reminder of patriarchy and misogyny, casteism and colourism. And, as writer Devaiah Bopanna points out in an Instagram post, that is where its true merit lies. "Is the show problematic? Reality is problematic. And this is a freaking reality show," he writes. "Reality is not 1.3 billion woke people worried about clean energy and free speech. In fact, I would have been offended if Sima Aunty was woke and spoke about choice, body positivity and clean energy during matchmaking. Because that is not true and it is not real."

Thanks. I've never checked out that thread (indeed, I suspect that I have not checked out most of the threads here!). That poor woman. Depression is hell, and I suspect that the pressures of competition made it worse. I hope that she was not abused by any of her coaches (I am assuming that the sport is no less toxic than the other sports which rely on starting very young).

Olympic figure skater Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya has died. Neither article gives details about the cause of death. I saw a link which said she jumped from a window, but it was the Daily Fail, so I refuse to click on it. She was only 20! Tragic. https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2020/07/18/ekaterina-alexandrovskaya-dies-figure-skater/?partner=Yahoo https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/sport/2020/jul/18/ekaterina-alexandrovskaya-australian-figure-skater-dies-aged-20

Galyn Görg died the day before her 56th birthday. Cancer sucks. https://www.yahoo.com/amphtml/entertainment/fresh-prince-bel-air-actress-163418020.html

My condolences for your loss. I hope that the hospice care helped your mother and your family. When my mom needed hospice care, 20+ years ago, doctors were reluctant to admit that there was nothing else to do, so the referral for hospice care was delayed until quite late (hell, I think we had to fight for it to be at home, rather than in a facility).

Paralympian Angela Madsen has died. She was 60, and died attempting to be the first paraplegic and oldest woman to row solo from California to Hawaii. According to a statement issued by her widow, Debra Madsen, "She told us time and again that if she died trying, that is how she wanted to go." Wow. Quite an impressive woman. https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2020/06/26/us/angela-madsen-obit-spt-trnd/index.html

Max Tuerk, former NFL offensive lineman, has died. He collapsed while hiking, but no official cause of death has been announced yet. He was only 26. Far too young. https://www.foxnews.com/sports/max-tuerk-usc-dead-chargers-cardinals.amp

No apologies necessary, Merylinkid! I'm just grateful that my field is not considered entertaining enough for there to be a gazillion fictional portrayals. I don't know how lawyers and legal professionals avoid tearing their hair out and/or destroying their televisions in frustration. And having to deal with clients whose preconceptions were formed by popular culture? I salute you for your patience! I wonder if there's a comparison chart of how various professions are misrepresented on TV. That, together with a study of the effects of fictional portrayals on common perceptions, might make a fascinating dissertation topic (assuming it's not already been done). Of course, given that we watch TV to escape from our mundane lives, I suspect there are many people who have no desire to see accurate portrayals. C'est la vie.

Ouch. Reality is too painful sometimes (and I am one of the lucky ones who did get a full-time position after a decade on the adjunct hamster wheel!). I'm sure that everyone who watches fictional portrayals of their careers gets frustrated, especially those in the medical and legal fields. I have yet to see anything remotely close to my experiences as a college professor (or student, for that matter).

I don't follow fashion and know almost nothing about models, so I don't know how much of a celebrity Zara Abid was outside of Pakistan. The 28 year old model is presumed to have died in a plane crash last Friday (the casualties have not officially been named, but the reports said that only two men survived), and now trolls are posting horrible things about her on social media, all under the guise of religion*. I am thoroughly disgusted with much of the human race. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52794940 * Please note that I am not bashing Islam, just the horrible people using their misogynistic interpretation of it. All three of the major monotheistic religious traditions have sects with extremely misogynistic fundamentalists.

Saturn, about 84 years old, has died. Possibly the oldest alligator in the world, he escaped from the Berlin Zoo when it was bombed in 1943, then survived for 3 years in Berlin (I really want to know more about that...), and had lived in the Moscow Zoo since 1946. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-52784240

Photographer Astrid Kirchherr has died just short of her 82nd birthday. She was instrumental in creating the Beatles' image. https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-52687056 https://mobile.twitter.com/marklewisohn/status/1261338530019565573?s=20

Valentina Blackhorse, a celebrity in the Navajo Nation, has died from covid-19. She was 28. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/30/obituaries/valentina-blackhorse-dead-coronavirus.html?action=click&module=Latest&pgtype=Homepage She died on April 23. The obituary is part of a series the NYT is publishing about people lost to the pandemic.)

Interesting article from the New York Times about a proposal by MGM Resorts in Las Vegas to host entire sports leagues -- teams and their families -- for entire seasons. I'm not sure how well it would work. I also have concerns about the fairness of allocating testing resources and space for elite and highly-paid athletes when so many people have much greater need. That said, it's an interesting approach to the question of post-pandemic entertainment. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/01/sports/when-sports-come-back-nba-nfl.html?action=click&module=Top Stories&pgtype=Homepage

Fred the Godson has died from covid-19. His genre is not my favorite, but from what I have read, he was very talented and witty. More than that, 41 is just too young. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/24/arts/music/fred-the-godson-dead-coronavirus.html?action=click&module=Latest&pgtype=Homepage

They're doing a reboot of Leverage! All of the original cast, except Tim Hutton, will be back. Not sure how I feel about it yet. https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/23/21232510/leverage-reboot-imdb-tv-original-series-amazon-free-streaming-service