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Lee Rich, Producer of 'The Waltons' and 'Dallas,' Dies

May, 25, 2012 11:05 am | Comments On #Dallas, Lee Rich, Lorimar, MGM, Television, The Waltons, UA

Lee Rich, the Emmy-winning TV and film executive who produced such shows as "The Waltons," "Eight Is Enough" and "Dallas," has died. He was 93.

Rich, who was also the former chairman and chief executive of MGM/UA Communications, said he considered his greatest accomplishment to be co-founding Lorimar, which produced the shows. It went on to produce "Family Matters," "Full House" and "Perfect Strangers," among other series.

Rich started in television at the advertising agency Benton & Bowles, where he helped package and sell both "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and "The Danny Thomas Show." In 1965 he left to start his own...

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'Risky Business' Mom, Actress Janet Carroll, Dies

May, 24, 2012 9:11 am | Comments On #Janet Carroll, married with children, Movies, Risky Business, Tom Cruise

Janet Carroll, the actress best known for playing Tom Cruise's crystal egg-obsessed mom in "Risky Business," died Tuesday in New York at age 71.

Carroll's son told the Associated Press his mom died after a long, unspecified illness.

Carroll, who began her career in theater, played Jim Dial's (Charles Kimbrough) wife, Doris, on "Murphy Brown," Kimberly's (Marcia Cross) mom on "Melrose Place" and Richard Fish's (Greg Germann) mom on "Ally McBeal."

Also read:...

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TV Remote Control Inventor Eugene Polley Dies at 96

May, 22, 2012 1:07 pm | Comments On #eugene polley, Remote control, Television, tv remote control

Eugene Polley, who invented the first wireless remote control for television, died of natural causes Sunday at a Chicago hospital, the Associated Press reports. He was 96.

A former engineer for Zenith, Polley created the Flash-Matic tuning system -- a ray gun-shaped device that shot a beam of light at photo cells at the corners of television screens, allowing viewers to change channels and turn the picture and sound on and off -- in 1955. Advertising for the device noted that it was "[a]bsolutely harmless to humans!"

Polley, a native of Chicago, received an Emmy, along...

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Robin Gibb, Bee Gees Co-Founder, Dead at 62

May, 20, 2012 4:04 pm | Comments On #bee gees, disco, Media, music, robin gibb

Bee Gees co-founder Robin Gibb has died after a battle with cancer of the colon and liver. He was 62.

"The family of Robin Gibb, of the Bee Gees, announce with great sadness that Robin passed away today following his long battle with cancer and intestinal surgery," a note on his web site said Sunday. "The family have asked that their privacy is respected at this very difficult time."

Also read: Donna Summer's Long Last Dance: From Reluctant Moaner, Casablanca Queen to Emeritus Class Act

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Donna Summer, Disco Queen, Dead at 63

May, 17, 2012 9:05 am | Comments On #dies, donna summer, music, obituary

Legendary disco diva Donna Summer has died, a spokesman confirmed to TheWrap.

The "Hot Stuff" and "Last Dance" singer was 63. No cause of death was given, but TMZ reports Summer had been battling cancer.

In a statement, Summer's family praise the singer's religious faith.

"While we grieve her passing, we are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continued legacy," the statement reads. "Words truly can't express how much we appreciate your prayers and love for our family at this sensitive time."

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Summer's soaring mezzo-soprano voice and catchy...

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Stephen Lord, Writer for 'CHiPs,' 'Fantasy Island,' Dead at 85

May, 11, 2012 1:56 pm | Comments On #chips, fantasy island, stephen lord, Television

Stephen Lord, a writer for more than a dozen television shows over three decades, died May 5 at the age of 85.

Lord, a New Orleans native whose birth name was Stephen Loyacano, passed away in his Sherman Oaks, CA home with his family at his side.

He wrote for iconic shows of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s such as “CHiPs,” “Fantasy Island” and “Johnny Ringo.”

Lord contributed to shows in myriad ways, such as producing, directing and occasionally acting, but above all he was a writer.

He started in the mid-1950s with “Harbor Command” and kept writing into the late 1980s and early 1990s, contributing episodes of “T.J. Hooker” and “Matlock.”

Lord also wrote a handful of features, including “The Bermuda Triangle” and “The Fall of the House of User,” based on Edgar...

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Vidal Sassoon, Hairstylist to the Stars, Dead at 84

May, 09, 2012 2:09 pm | Comments On #ahri stylist, Mia Farrow, Movies, Roman Polanski, vidal sassoon

Vidal Sassoon, a prominent Hollywood hair stylist turned international brand, died of apparent natural causes at his home on Wednesday. He was 84.

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Kevin Maiberger, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department, said officers were dispatched around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday to the 15000 block of Mulholland Drive. Family members were present as officers confirmed Sassoon’s death.

The British hair stylist was a Los Angeles institution, working with actors and actresses, aiding filmmakers and opening a series of schools for aspiring stylists.

Sassoon started his career in his native England, opening his...

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TV's 'Goober' George Lindsey Dead at 83

May, 06, 2012 10:39 am | Comments On #andy griffith show, george lindsey, goober, Television

Actor and comedian George Lindsey -- Goober on TV's "Andy Griffith Show" -- died early Sunday morning after an extended illness, his family announced.

He was 83 years old.

Lindsey auditioned for the role of Gomer Pyle, but fellow actor and Alabama native Jim Nabors ended up with the part. When Nabors got his own show later, Lindsey was approached about resuming his role of Goober, which he did for the next five years.

Also read: Jack Elinson, Veteran TV Comedy Writer, Dies at 89

"George...

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Adam Yauch, Beastie Boys' MCA, Dies at 47 (Update)

May, 04, 2012 10:39 am | Comments On #Adam Horowitz, Adam Yauch, Beastie Boys, dies, MCA, Michael Diamond, Mike D, music, Television

Adam Yauch, who helped make hip-hop a worldwide cultural force as one-third of the breakthrough crossover group The Beastie Boys, has died after battling cancer. He was 47.

The band's publicist said in a statement that he died in his native New York City on Friday morning. Yauch, also a film director who co-founded the distribution company Oscilloscope Laboratories and an organizer of the Tibetan Freedom Concerts, was first diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his left salivary gland in 2009.

With bandmates Mike D (Michael Diamond) and Ad-Rock (Adam Horovitz), Yauch started the Beastie Boys in the late 1970s as a hardcore punk outfit.

See also:...

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Amos Vogel, New York Film Fest Co-Creator, Dies at 91

April, 25, 2012 10:35 am | Comments On #amos vogel, cinema 16, Movies, new york film festival, obituary, Roman Polanski

Amos Vogel, who made a sophisticated mark on the American film scene by co-creating Cinema 16 and the New York Film Festival, died on Tuesday in Manhattan. He was 91.

Vogel emphasized experimental and independent fare in his programming for Cinema 16, an influential forum he launched with his wife, Marcia, in 1947.

During Cinema 16’s 17-year run, Vogel zoomed in on the work of directors like Roman Polanski, John Cassavetes, Kenneth Anger and Francois Truffaut. Audiences for the cinema club’s screenings topped 1,000 during its height.

In 1963, he brought the same curator's sensibility to his next big project, the New York Film Festival,...

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