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In Memoriam: Entertainment Industry Celebrity Deaths

Kromm

By Kromm
in Everything Else TV

Mr. Sparkle
Message added by Mr. Sparkle,

Reminder:

This thread is for deaths of celebrities in the entertainment business only. No notices about politicians, please. 

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Bastet

Bastet

That "I hate spunk" scene in the pilot was the one he did at the audition.  I don't think anyone knew at the time quite how iconic it was going to become.

Ed Asner lived a great life - his acting, his activism, and his family - and died at home at 91.  That's fantastic, although of course still a terribly sad loss for those who loved him.  Here is what wound up being his last interview, conducted just a couple of weeks ago, an extensive look back on his career. 

This is sad:

Quote

[The pandemic] changed my life. It seems like it’s changed everybody’s life — and I think it’s changed performing and creativity as much as anything else. My eyesight is not the greatest and my hearing is not the greatest, so I don’t go out much anyway. I sit here most of the time, bored as hell, not sure which way to turn. I don’t know. I’m waiting for the next gig, and they’re slower in coming in now, I can tell you.

But it's a positive interview, and it's great that one of his final acts was signing on to the class action lawsuit against the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan (draconian changes to eligibility requirements this year mean thousands lost coverage, many of whom are elderly actors who'd paid into the plan for decades [the income requirement does not include pensions or residuals - which the IRS considers income, but not the inept leadership of SAG-AFTRA - and, with few new roles available to them, that's what many older actors live on]).

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Bastet
Bastet

Piss up a rope, Val Kilmer.  If your physical illness got so bad that your life utterly sucked and no end to that suffering was in sight, so that suicide was or seemed to be the best of the available

wilsie
wilsie
BetterButter
BetterButter

Olivia Newton-John Has Died At 73

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bmasters9

bmasters9

End-title billing as Lou Grant on MTM (as Edward Asner); MTM herself was the only cast member billed at the top (because she was the star of the show, and the show was named for her); all others (including Asner, Knight, McLeod, etc.) were billed at the bottom (from MTM condensed all-in-one)...

 

edasnerlougrantmtm.jpg

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ebk57

ebk57

I had the great pleasure of having Ed Asner (and Madeline Kahn) at the theatre where I worked in the late 80s when they did Born Yesterday.  He was a lovely man and a lot of fun to have around.  Rest in peace, Ed! 

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MissAlmond

MissAlmond

4 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Also, his Santa in Elf was the best damn movie Santa ever.

I loved Ed Asner's Santa!  Stalked by the paparazzi and hated by the Central Park Rangers after placing them on the "naughty" list. 

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Blergh

Blergh

17 hours ago, bmasters9 said:

End-title billing as Lou Grant on MTM (as Edward Asner); MTM herself was the only cast member billed at the top (because she was the star of the show, and the show was named for her); all others (including Asner, Knight, McLeod, etc.) were billed at the bottom (from MTM condensed all-in-one)...

 

edasnerlougrantmtm.jpg

Of course, it should be noted that 'Edward' wasn't his original and/or actual given name but he explained in a Tweet a few years back that his parents  bestowed him the name of 'Eddie' while his Hebrew name was 'Itzak'  His father had originated from  Lithuania while his mother had been born in Russia and they were Jewish immigrants who'd settled in (of all places) Kansas City, Kansas where he was born in 1929.  I imagine that he either formally changed it or just used 'Edward' as his stage name so he would be more likely to be cast in roles of dignity than he would have had he kept using just 'Eddie'  but it seems   shortly after he landed the iconic role of Lou Grant he just went with 'Ed'. BTW, 'Itzak' is the original version of the name 'Isaac' which the son of Abraham and Sarah was given due to Sarah reacting the God telling Abraham that she'd  bear  a child at 90(!) with a laugh- so their son literally named 'she laughed' ! Somehow that seems apt for the late Mr. Asner (who provided the right amount of lemon to MTM's chirpy sugar water in their landmark show) . RIP, Mr. 'I hate spunk' Asner! 

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MissAlmond

MissAlmond

(edited)
2 hours ago, cynicat said:

Are they sure she's really dead?

Rumor has it her funeral cortege was last seen entering a farmhouse but you didn't hear it from me.  

Edited by MissAlmond
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Crashcourse

Crashcourse

(edited)

Nooooo!!!  Not Willard!  😭

I remember when he was Bozo the Clown and the first Ronald McDonald, and as the weatherman on our local NBC station in DC before he went to the Today show.   

Sounds like he had a great life, but I'm just sorry he couldn't make it to his 100th birthday so his picture could be on the Smucker's jar.

R.I.P., Mr. Scott   

Edited by Crashcourse
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bmasters9

bmasters9

8 minutes ago, Crashcourse said:

Sounds like he had a great life, but I'm just sorry he couldn't make it to his 100th birthday so his picture could be on the Smucker's jar.

That, I think, was what endeared him to many-- wishing happy birthdays to centenarians and showing them on Smucker's jars; here's an example from 2010:

 

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Blergh

Blergh

(edited)

 

IIRC, the whole business of the now-deceased Willard Scott getting dressed up like Carmen Miranda  on The Today Show happened when The Addams Family star Carolyn Jones died in 1983- and he claimed that when they were kids they used to dress up like the late Brazilian star (which seemed an odd claim because he was born in Alexandra, Virginia while she  four years his senior- and   a native of Amarillo, Texas[!]). Anyway, rather than just let this claim go and move onto other things , a number of viewers said they wanted him to dress up that way on camera and he said he'd only do it if someone would donate $1,000 to charity. Well, someone with enough money to burn DID- and the rest is TV history (good or bad). 

Edited by Blergh
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magicdog

magicdog

I took French in Middle and HS, so we used to read French publications talking about French celebrities.  Belmondo and Catherine Deneuve were two of the best known French celebrities at the time.  I remember the article we were reading was about his son Paul, and his racing career.  It was that class that helped me get to know his film work a little. 

RIP Monsieur Belmondo. 

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DollEyes

DollEyes

(edited)

Tragic. First Ed Asner, then Willard Scott and now Michael K. Williams. All three were TV icons in their own ways, whether one played a grumpy newsman with a heart of gold, the other was a loveable TV weatherman or another who played several iconic characters on several iconic shows, especially Omar Little in The Wire. Because of MKW, I'll never hear "The Farmer In the Dell" the same way again. 

RIP Mr. Asner, Mr. Scott and Mr. Williams. "Indeed."

Edited by DollEyes
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Enero

Enero

Very sad to hear about Michael K. Williams. Out of all the stars to launch from The Wire, his portrayal of the Omar character was the most memorable. He was such an interesting and great actor. 

Condolences to his family. 

RIP Michael. 😢

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DearEvette

DearEvette

47 minutes ago, AgentRXS said:

I am devastated at the loss of Michael K. Williams. He was so good on Lovecraft Country and The Wire.

2021 just plain sucks.

 

Super underrated, but he was also excellent in Hap & Leonard.

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Bastet

Bastet

The only acting role of his I've seen is When They See Us, but I saw the Raised In the System documentary he did on the myriad problems with the juvenile justice system, how it's at the root of this country's mass incarceration crisis, and solutions that have proven effective.  It was terrific.

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MissAlmond

MissAlmond

More links on the death of Michael K. Williams

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/michael-k-williams-the-wire-star-dead-at-54-1235009002/

https://deadline.com/2021/09/hollywood-remembers-michael-k-williams-the-wire-lovecraft-country-1234827939/

https://deadline.com/2021/09/michael-k-wiliams-wendell-pierce-tribute-the-wire-1234827938/

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/michael-k-williams-dead-the-wire-1235057436/

Tweet from David Simon, creator of The Wire

 

 

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MisterGlass

MisterGlass

RIP Michael K Williams, and best wishes to his family.  I saw his career very out of order, seeing him first in Hap and Leonard, and coming to The Wire only last year during the pandemic.  He had a great ability to be both funny and deeply tragic.

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DearEvette

DearEvette

(edited)
8 minutes ago, MissAlmond said:

https://bleedingcool.com/tv/community-harmon-mchale-brown-post-on-michael-k-williams-passing/

I had totally forgotten Michael K Williams did a stint on Community.  I was a huge fan of that show's first three seasons.  One of my favorite episodes was Basic Lupine Urology, a Law and Order parody. Williams, playing the biology teacher, demands proof someone murdered a yam.  Such a versatile actor.  

 

He was also a choreographer -- which I had heard a while ago, but never really paid attention to.  Just learned that he choreo'd and dances in Crystal Waters' 100% Pure Love video.  The song is a banger, one of my faves and I've seen the video a billionty-twelve times but never knew it was him.  I love the dancers on that video, the aesthetic is so cool.  And there he is, the middle dancer.

Edited by DearEvette
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DollEyes

DollEyes

(edited)

MKW's acting career was started by Tupac Shakur, who, IIRC, saw his picture in a casting office and cast him in Bullet. 

Another example of MKW's great dancing skills was in this video:  

http://www.twitter.com/ElSangito/status/1435076013747159042

This clip is more proof of MKW's brilliant acting skills-with an ending that, to put it mildly, hits different:

http://www.twitter.com/MissMelyssaFord/status/1435081946389008386

 

Edited by DollEyes
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Macbeth

Macbeth

(edited)

Director Ava DuVernay, who worked with Williams on "When They See Us," wrote a loving tribute on Instagram and I have started crying again:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTf61jUJmpU/

"I remember the times you’d come on set even when you weren’t on the call sheet. Just to share a hug. To cheer us on. Strolling in like the King that you were. For just a flash to give some love - then gone. I remember nights out in NYC that summer and how you were so loved by the folks in your city. I remember our work on the work, always connected and communicating and exacavating and building because you were so open and ready to give your all. I remember you sending me a picture of yourself as a young man and sharing with me that the boys whose story we were telling were a reflection of you - and we were going to get it right.

I remember you taking the young actors to the beach on your own and talking to them about things I couldn’t - about being a young, Black man in New York at the time - and how grateful I was. I remember the last text you sent me introducing me to your friend “Ava” that you met Day One in your trailer - and me not believing that you kept your start-of-production orchid for three whole years. I remember you speaking of mortality, like you did in your post last year about Kobe. In it, you wonder how you’ll be remembered and what your legacy will be.

Maya Angelou once said, your legacy lives on in every life you touch. You, brother, touched many. Through your personal interactions big and small, through your community activism, through your struggles, through your triumphs, through your glorious work. You moved many. You moved me. What you doubted in life, be certain of now, dear brother. Be certain. You were a flash of love - now gone. But never forgotten."

 

Edited by Macbeth
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Bastet

Bastet

2 hours ago, Macbeth said:

Director Ava DuVernay, who worked with Williams on "When They See Us," wrote a loving tribute on Instagram and I have started crying again:

That's one of the most beautiful tributes I've ever read. 

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Blergh

Blergh

7 hours ago, MissAlmond said:

Irma Kalish comedy writer and one of television's first female producers has died, age 96.

https://deadline.com/2021/09/irma-kalish-dead-tv-writer-producer-maude-all-in-the-family-1234827909/

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/irma-kalish-trailblazing-sitcom-writer-producer-dies-1235009021/

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/irma-kalish-dead-96-comedy-writer-maude-1235057465/

Let's not forget that Mrs. Kalish wrote some of the most poignant episodes of All in the Family including 'Gloria the Victim' (1973) in which she comes home wearing rather austere borrowed clothes and her hair pulled back in a tight  back bun.  After a time, Gloria reveals that she had been attacked at a construction site that she'd attempted to dart through as a short cut and only because the attacker got startled by others that she was able to escape before she'd been raped. Archie and Mike (for once ) were united in their outrage over what had nearly happened to her and they insisted on calling the cops. The cop sent over attempted to blame Gloria for what happened and made jokes which further outraged Archie and Mike while Gloria decided that she didn't want to get dragged through the mud so that's why she didn't press charges. But the most poignant moments happened when Edith (of all people) quietly told Gloria of a similar experience with a friend's boyfriend (when she was a teen) who had lured her under the Coney Island Boardwalk on the pretense of a snack but Edith was able to escape harm due to her remembering her own father having instructed her to use her  knee on any attackers (but with the chilling postscript of Edith wondering all those decades later of how many other girls did that creep harm via the same tactics).  The end is rather chilling with Archie and Mike congratulating themselves for having 'protected their own' after getting rid of the inappropriate cop- while the camera ends with a closeup of Gloria silently shaking in trauma. 

In any case, she was one of the most brilliant pioneers so RIP, Mrs. Kalish (and 96 is a remarkable age to have reached). 

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