Death List Members in the News
May 2007
Charles Nelson Reilly
January 2007
Bobby Hamilton
December 2006
Gerald Ford
November 2006
Jack Palance
August 2006
Fidel Castro, Kirk Douglas, John Madden
July 2006
Keith Richards, Ozzy Osbourne, Gerald Ford, Tony Stewart, Phyllis Diller,
B.B. King, Dale Jarrett, Arnold Palmer
May 2006
Keith Richards, David Blaine
April 2006
Tony Stewart, Gerald Ford, B.B. King, Queen Elizabeth, Mickey Rooney, Bob
Barker, Harry Morgan, Charlton Heston, David Blaine, Vin Scully, Muhammad
Ali, Hugh Hefner, Arnold Palmer, Jerry Lewis
March 2006
Courtney Love, Dale Jarrett, Sterling Marlin, Jerry Lewis, Osama Bin Laden,
Queen Elizabeth, Ozzy Osbourne, Gerald Ford
February 2006
Walter Cronkite, Brian Dennehy, Don Knotts, Willie Mays, Vin Scully, Tony
Bennett, Courtney Love, Bob Barker
January 2006
Gerald Ford, Tony Stewart, B.B. King, Walter Cronkite, William Shatner, Courtney
Love, Nick Nolte
December 2005
Richard Pryor, Ozzy Osbourne & Queen Elizabeth, Nick Nolte, Hugh Hefner,
Tony Bennett, Tony Stewart, David Blaine
November 2005
George Michael, Courtney Love, William Shatner, Muhammad Ali
October 2005
Rosa Parks, William Shatner, Joe Namath, B.B. King, Jerry Lewis, Tony Stewart,
Arnold Palmer, Richard Pryor, Jack Klugman, Michael Waltrip, Hugh Hefner,
Dale Jarrett
September 2005
Courtney Love, Ozzy Osbourne, B.B. King, Michael Waltrip, Willie Nelson, Courtney
Love, Jerry Lewis, Arnold Palmer
August 2005
William Shatner, Vin Scully, Ron Popeil, Hugh Hefner, Dale Jarrett, Keith
Richards, Ozzy Osbourne, John Madden, Courtney Love, Richard Pryor, Sterling
Marlin, Tony Stewart, Tony Bennett, Don Knotts, Jerry Lewis
July 2005
Muhammad Ali, Courtney Love, Kirk Douglas, Bob Barker, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony
Stewart, Dale Jarrett, Phyllis Diller, Michael Waltrip, Gerald Ford, Mickey
Rooney, Jack Klugman, Keith Richards, Nick Nolte, Rosa Parks,
Luther Vandross
June 2005
Jim Otto, Vin Scully, Tony Bennett, Gerald Ford, Tony Stewart, Queen Elizabeth,
Muhammad Ali, Ozzy Osbourne, Jack Klugman, John Madden
May 2005
Michael Waltrip, Queen Elizabeth, Fidel Castro, Tony Stewart, Walter Cronkite,
Arnold Palmer, B.B. King, George Michael, Vin Scully, Keith Richards, Don
Knotts, Brian Dennehy, Michael Waltrip, Wilford Brimley, Ozzy Osbourne, Willie
Mays, Bob Barker, Nick Nolte, Jim Otto
April 2005
Larry Hagman, Richard Pryor, Willie Mays, Phyllis Diller, David Blaine, Tony
Stewart, Queen Elizabeth, Muhammad Ali, Nick Nolte and William Shatner, B.B.
King, Ozzy Osbourne, Rosa Parks, Luther Vandross, Pope John Paul II
March 2005
Ozzy Osbourne, Pope John Paul II, Courtney Love, Phyllis Diller, Vin Scully,
Fidel Castro, Ed Asner, Bob Barker, B.B. King, Arnold Palmer, Keith Richards,
Muhammad Ali, Jack Palance, Jack Klugman, Sterling Marlin, Joe Namath, Charlton
Heston, Jerry Lewis, Horatio Sanz
February 2005
Pope John Paul II, Wilford Brimley, Tony Stewart, Queen Elizabeth, Willie
Nelson, B.B. King, Ozzy Osbourne, Dale Jarrett, Fidel Castro, Phyllis Diller,
Courtney Love, Gerald Ford, Larry Hagman, Rosa Parks, Mickey Rooney, Hugh
Hefner
January 2005
Willie Mays, Ozzy Osbourne, Arnold Palmer, B.B. King, Vin Scully, John Madden,
Johnny Carson, Brian Dennehy, Kirk Douglas, William Shatner, Rosa Parks, Jerry
Lewis, Courtney Love, Pope John Paul II, Willie Nelson, Mickey Rooney, Gerald
Ford, Bob Barker
December 2004
Richard Pryor, Queen Elizabeth, Ozzy Osbourne, Keith Richards, Rosa Parks,
Nick Nolte, Don Knotts
November 2004
Kirk Douglas, Ozzy Osbourne, Arnold Palmer, Jerry Lewis, Larry Hagman, Johnny
Carson, Queen Elizabeth, B.B. King, Muhammad Ali
October 2004
October 28 - Courtney Love
October 27 - Keith Richards
October 26 - Tony Bennett
October 21 - Fidel Castro
October 18 - Ernest Borgnine
October 18 - Mickey Rooney
October 14 - Willie Nelson
October 11 - Jack Klugman
October 7 - Jack Palance
October 6 - Pope John Paul II
October 6 - Hugh Hefner
October 5 - Rodney Dangerfield, Dead at age 82
October 1 - Ernest Borgnine
September 2004
Courtney Love, Arnold Palmer, Rosa Parks, Rodney Dangerfield, Bob Barker,
Nick Nolte, Tony Bennett
August 2004
Arnold Palmer, Rodney Dangerfield, Bob Barker, Brian Dennehy, Ernest Borgnine,
Rosa Parks, Walter Cronkite, Willie Mays, Pope John Paul II, Fidel Castro,
Julia Child, Jerry Lewis, Mickey Rooney, Joe Namath, B.B. King
July 2004
Rosa Parks, Courtney Love, Fidel Castro, Nick Nolte, Don Knotts, Larry Hagman,
Kirk Douglas, William Shatner
October 28, 2004: 'Angry, vicious' Courtney Love assaulted me, musician tells court
LOS
ANGELES - Raging US rocker Courtney Love poured whiskey over a female musician,
hurled the bottle at her head and scarred her with her nails in a terrifying
early morning attack, a court heard Wednesday.
Musician Kristin King made the claim at a hearing in Los Angeles at which the legally embattled Love was ordered to stand trial on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon against King.
An "angry, vicious and erratic" Love laid into King after finding her sleeping on the couch of Love's ex-boyfriend Jim Barber in Los Angeles on April 25 this year, King told the judge.
Love, 40, stormed through the house before assaulting King with the bottle, hurling a burning candle at her, pinching her breast, pulling her hair and slapping her, King testified.
She "picked up a (Johnnie Walker) Red Label bottle of whiskey and dumped it all over me. She threw the bottle at the left side of my face," King said at the hearing held to determine whether Love must stand trial.
Love, the widow of grunge rocker Kurt Cobain, then "picked up a big candle that was lit and threw it at the back of my head," the alleged victim told Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Sanjay Kumar.
The blond actress-singer then sat on King, pulled her hair, dug her nails into her arm, scarring it, and grabbed her left breast in the "worst pinch I ever had," King told the court.
"I was like 'get off me,' and she slapped me across the mouth," King said, adding that Love, who appeared "very aggressive, angry, just vicious, erratic," pinned her down in a foetal position.
She said she finally managed to escape Love's grip and fled with a cell phone that she used to call police. Love was arrested at the scene.
King claimed the attack left her with bruises, nail marks, a bump on the back of her head and a chipped tooth.
After hearing the evidence, the judge ordered that Love, who is free on 150,000 dollars bail, must stand trial and told her to return to court on November 10 to be arraigned.
Love is also awaiting trial on separate charges of drug possession stemming from an October 2, 2003 incident in which she was arrested outside Barber's home after smashing a window.
In a third criminal case against her, Love pleaded guilty in July of being under the influence of drugs and was sentenced to a drug rehabilitation case.
from the Hindustan Times
October 27, 2004: Depp's mentor plays his dad
Yo
ho ho and two bottles of rum! Johnny Depp, applauded constantly and universally
for his stunning portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates Of The Caribbean:
Curse Of The Black Pearl, is getting his dream father in the sequel.
Jack Sparrow has been critically acclaimed as startlingly original, and one
of the most innovatively played characters ever on the silver screen.
Whenever Depp has been quizzed about his quirky mannerisms, his odd swaying walk, omnipresent slur and idiosyncratic nuances galore he brought magnificently to the character, he has credited one man.
He based his portrayal of the aging, drunken Pirate on the behavior of Rolling Stones' guitarist Keith Richards, an old rocker who has survived a tremendously debauched life and decidedly not getting older gracefully.
Richards is an old friend of Depp's, and was quite flattered and amused by the zany characterisation.
Earlier this year, Depp expressed interest in Richard's playing his father in the film, if only as a cameo.
Now, IMDb announces that Keith Richards will indeed play father to Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates sequel, Pirates Of The Caribbean: Treasures Of The Lost Abyss, to begin shooting in February 2005.
Director Gore Verbinski better have enough rum on sets large enough to accommodate the two Sparrows.
from the rediff Entertainment Bureau
October 26, 2004: Tony Bennett Unveils Scuplture
SAN
FRANCISCO Oct 26, 2004 — Tony Bennett unveiled his heart a 5-foot heart-shaped
sculpture on which he painted an image of the Golden Gate Bridge at Union
Square before crooning his famous song to an adoring crowd.
Bennett made the appearance Monday as part of the Hearts in San Francisco project, a collection of 130 decorated heart sculptures that have been displayed on city streets and public spaces since Valentine's Day.
After unveiling his heart, which will be on permanent display at Union Square, Bennett joined the crowd in singing his signature tune, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."
The hearts, which were painted by local artists and celebrities, will be showcased at SBC Park Nov. 6-8 for the public, who will be asked to donate $10. The sculptures will then be auctioned off starting Nov. 11 at a dinner and online.
Organizers expect to raise about $1.5 million to benefit San Francisco General Hospital Foundation, according to spokeswoman Cynthia Bowman.
from the Associated Press
October 21, 2004: Castro Breaks Knee in Dramatic Public Fall
HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuban President Fidel Castro tripped and shattered a kneecap in a tumble captured on live television that raised new questions about the political future of the communist-run country he has led for 45 years.
Castro, 78, stumbled on a step and fell on his left knee on Wednesday night as he returned to his seat after a graduation ceremony speech at the mausoleum holding the remains of fellow revolutionary Che Guevara at Santa Clara in central Cuba.
Helped to a chair, he soon recovered and asked for a microphone to reassure the stunned crowd of 30,000, some of whom burst into tears, that he was "intact" and would be able to continue working even in a plaster cast.
A brief official statement said Castro broke his left knee and suffered a hair-line fracture in his right arm. Castro wanted the country to know "he is in condition to continue attending to fundamental issues in close cooperation with the leadership" of the ruling Communist Party, it said.
In a letter to the Cuban people read on the evening news, Castro said his kneecap had broken into eight pieces and he had undergone a three-hour operation to rebuild it with titanium thread. His left leg was in plaster and his right arm in a sling, he said.
The Cuban leader was driven 175 miles to the capital in an ambulance and given local anesthetic for the middle-of-the-night operation in a medical facility at his government's headquarters, the Palace of the Revolution.
"My progress is good and I will not stop communicating with you," he said. He said he continued running the government and had received a phone call from his political ally, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, who wished him a speedy recovery.
Chavez, a former paratrooper, told supporters in Venezuela Castro had joked with him about the fall by saying: "I think I would have made a good parachutist."
A leader of Cuba's Roman Catholic Church said Castro was bound to recover. "The man is so determined that he will rise up and walk, even if he has to limp," the prelate told Reuters.
HOW LONG AT THE HELM?
But the incident renewed uncertainty about how long the aging leader can remain at the helm at a time of growing pressure by the U.S. government to oust Castro by supporting dissent and tightening sanctions on Cuba's battered economy.
Doubt about Castro's health has persisted since a brief fainting spell during a speech under a blistering sun in June 2001.
Castro still gives long speeches and appears on marathon television broadcasts, but his public activity has declined.
Leading a march against President Bush in Havana in May, he looked frail and appeared to walk with difficulty, even leaning on a fellow marcher.
Cuba watchers said it was no surprise a man of his age, when bone density starts to decline, had suffered fractures.
The issue, they said, is whether Cuba is prepared for the day when Castro is no longer managing and making decisions at the tireless pace he has kept up for four decades.
"This surely brings home to the Cuban governing elite exactly what will happen when he is no longer the glue holding things together," said Julia Sweig, an expert on Cuba at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington.
"He is the consensus builder. This has not diminished with age or time. Nobody thinks that role can be replaced by one person," Sweig said.
After the fainting incident, Castro confirmed that he views his younger brother, Raul, head of Cuba's armed forces and No. 2 in the political hierarchy, as his successor.
Members of the Cuban leadership, such as Vice President Carlos Lage, Alarcon and Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque were quick to point out that Cuba has a succession process in which the Council of State nominates another leader.
Sweig said the Bush administration and anti-Castro exiles in the United States were wrong to plan on a "big bang" moment when Castro goes that will see Cuba suddenly become a multi-party democracy.
from Reuters
Castro's 2 fractures raise health concerns
HAVANA (Agence France-Presse) — The bone-breaking tumble that Cuban leader Fidel Castro took in front of television cameras has renewed speculation about the fragility of a regime built around the 78-year-old president.
Mr. Castro, who has headed the communist government in Havana for more than 45 years, broke his left knee and right arm in the fall on Wednesday night as he walked down steps after giving a speech to a graduation ceremony.
"These are quite serious injuries for a man of 78, but it is also a reminder that the succession question is open," said a Western diplomat. "Mortality is no longer an abstract question at this age."
For the Cuban people, who regularly hear rumors about Mr. Castro's health, the fall was a new sign of weakness in their leader, who fainted while giving a speech in June 2001.
Power in Cuba is completely focused on Mr. Castro, who runs the island's daily management and diplomacy with an iron hand, ordering the official response to hurricanes and the daily power cuts that have severely affected the population and economy.
"Revolutionaries do not retire," is a favored phrase of the Cuban leader, who remains a divisive figure in the world: Some consider him a champion of the Third World and others view him as a cruel, autocratic dictator.
And he is determined to carry on.
Mr. Castro's brother, Raul, 74, is the designated successor.
The two were guerrillas together and Raul was at his brother's side when the communist government was formed in 1959.
Diplomats and other observers often raise doubts however about Raul Castro's capacity to maintain the president's legacy.
"He pales next to the charisma of Fidel," said one diplomat.
from the Washington Times
October 18, 2004: Ernest Borgnine Makes Chief
WASHINGTON
- Academy Award winning actor Ernest Borgnine obtained a lifelong dream of
advancement to chief petty officer in Washington, D.C. this weekend.
The actor who played Lt. Cmdr. Quniton McHale in the 1960s television show, "McHale's Navy," not only played a sailor on TV, he served in the U.S. Navy for 10 years.
Borgnine enlisted in the Navy in 1935 serving on destroyers and submarine chasers. He served his commitment until 1941, but after just three months of being a civilian again, Pearl Harbor was hit by the Japanese and Borgnine returned to active duty. Borgnine went to sea with the Navy -- helping to guard the U.S. Atlantic Coastline during the height of World War II. He rose to the rank of gunner's mate 1st Class. He left the Navy after the war in 1945, but he says he never forgot what he learned.
"Of all of my successes in life, including all that I've earned in acting, being in the Navy is my greatest achievement," Borgnine told an audience at the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, Oct. 17.
"The camaraderie and the work ethic is something that I always remembered ... and it's what got me through things the rest of my life."
Borgnine was presented with a chief's pin, hat and given the title, "honorary chief petty officer" from the highest ranking enlisted man in the U.S. Navy -- Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Terry D. Scott.
Scott does not give out such honorary titles very often, but he said because of Borgnine's Navy service, and his support of the Navy and it's families, Borgnine deserves this special advancement.
At 87, Borgnine is still very busy. While in Washington he spoke at the National Press Club, served as master of ceremonies for the United States Navy Band's annual Navy Birthday Concert and he attended a viewing of his latest film, "A Trail to Hope Rose," which is a Hallmark Original movie -- a western -- that aired July 3.
He's about to begin shooting in Florida for an upcoming film. He is also the voice of the character, "Mermaid Man," on the Nickelodeon show, "SpongeBob SquarePants."
For more information on Ernest Borgnine's visit to the Navy Memorial call Tami Faram, director of Public Relations for the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation at 202-380-0718.
from the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
October 18, 2004: Mickey Rooney Returns
Complete
with all the pomp and circumstance federal, state and local dignitaries could
muster, Port Huron on Sunday kicked off its weeklong Celebration of Light.
Standing shoulder to shoulder as chilling wind whipped through Pine Grove Park, hundreds of local residents watched as a rock marking the playground of Thomas Alva Edison's youth was rededicated.
But for many, the highlight of Sunday's ceremony celebrating the 125th anniversary of Edison's perfection of the incandescent light bulb was an appearance by actor Mickey Rooney.
Rooney, who portrayed Edison in the movie Young Tom Edison, was the keynote speaker at the hourlong ceremony.
The actor last visited Port Huron -- Edison's boyhood home -- in 1940 for the movie's premiere.
"Can you think what you would do without lights just for a minute? It's scary to think about," Rooney said Sunday.
"Thomas Edison was an idea man. He wrote them down, he thought about them and he accomplished much."
Best known as "the rock" monument in Pine Grove Park, the 62-ton granite boulder that served as Sunday's ceremonious centerpiece first was dedicated in 1929 -- the 50th anniversary of Edison's light bulb -- by the Rotary Club of Port Huron.
Brought to Port Huron via railroad from a farm in the small Huron County village of Kinde, the rock was one of the first local markers honoring Edison.
The inscription on the rock's plaque, local historians said, helped lead to excavations of Edison's Port Huron home site between 1976 and 1991.
The boulder has been cleaned, and the Rotary Club has placed a new plaque on its base to mark the anniversary.
The origin of the rock and the Rotary Club's foresight 75 years ago, officials said, are similar to the creativity and ingenuity that helped Edison succeed as an inventor and a businessman.
It was the simple lessons in life, such as those of persistence, and a strong work ethic that led to Edison's acclaim, said C. Barry E. Sloane, the inventor's great-grandson.
Sloane of Woodbury, N.J., was on hand for Sunday's celebration.
"When the tough get going, keep going ... have fun in whatever you're doing ... help other people. These are all steps (Edison) taught us," Sloane said during the ceremony.
"(Edison) taught us by his very life how to dance with the divine."
from the Times Herald, Angela Mullins
October 14, 2004: Reynolds & Nelson Join 'Dukes Of Hazzard'
Burt
Reynolds and Willie Nelson have signed on to join the cast of Warner Bros.
bigscreen remake of TV's The Dukes of Hazzard, says Variety.
The feature, helmed by Jay Chandrasekhar, will be set in the present day but the General Lee, the duo's 1969 Dodge Charger, is expected to be the same iconic orange car seen in the series.
Reynolds will play corrupt politician Boss Hogg and Nelson will play Uncle Jesse. Seann William Scott and Johnny Knoxville have already signed to play Bo and Luke Duke. Jessica Simpson will play Daisy Duke.
from KillerMovies
October 11, 2004: Actor Jack Klugman Lends His Voice to the Early Detection of Oral Cancer
MALIBU,
Calif. -- Three-time Emmy winner and cancer survivor, actor Jack Klugman couldn't
speak for more than three years after his cancer treatments. Having regained
his voice, he's lending it to the Oral Cancer Foundation's effort to educate
the public through television PSAs about the need for an annual screening
to catch oral cancers in their early, most survivable stages. The public service
announcements began airing September 15, and will continue to air in several
hundred markets in the United States through the end of the year.
Klugman, who is most famous for his television roles portraying compulsive slob Oscar Madison in "The Odd Couple" and medical examiner Quincy in "Quincy, M.E.," recently made his return to television with an appearance as a medical examiner on "Crossing Jordan" and in live theater to rave reviews in the production of "An Evening with Jack Klugman." Klugman returns to the stage again this month at the Falcon Theatre in "Golf With Alan Shepard," directed by Skip Greer; and in the spring will play a movie director in "The Value of Names," to be staged at New York's Queens Theatre in the Park.
"When I contacted Jack about doing the PSA for the Oral Cancer Foundation, he responded immediately," said Brian Hill, foundation executive director, and himself a survivor of a late stage oral cancer. "He said, 'I'm your perfect candidate--I'm here today only because my doctors found it and treated it early... let's do it!'"
Klugman credits early detection for his survival of cancer and his subsequent return to stage and screen. But Klugman deserves credit of his own--for seeking treatment long before many others typically do. When he developed hoarseness, a common warning sign, he went straight to his doctors, who immediately diagnosed the cancer. His prompt action allowed doctors to successfully treat Klugman--through with surgery that included removal of his right vocal cord. The surgery left him without the ability to speak. It took Klugman more than three years to recover his voice. But with extensive therapy, he was able to regain a voice that, while raspy and soft, allows him not only to be understood, but to perform. While still struggling in recovery and voice rehabilitation, he credits long time friend and Odd Couple partner Tony Randall with pushing and encouraging him when times were tough. Klugman states, "Tony told me that I had better get working on my therapy, because he was going to see that we brought the Odd Couple back to stage in less than a year. I told him he was crazy, but with his encouragement and extensive therapy it came to pass."
Hill states that "working with Klugman was an incredible experience. This guy is a fighter, and he has a passion for life that is palpable. As an example of someone who has faced adversity such as the loss of his voice and come back to excel in his craft, he has become a real hero figure to me."
The Oral Cancer Foundation's public service campaign aims to help others survive and thrive as Klugman has. Approximately 30,000 Americans per year are newly diagnosed with oral cancer. Only half of them will be alive in five years. The death rate for oral cancer is higher than that of many we routinely hear about such as cervical cancer, prostate cancer, or skin cancer (malignant melanoma), reports the Newport Beach, California-based Oral Cancer Foundation. The death toll is particularly high because lack of public awareness, combined with infrequent opportunistic screenings for the condition by the medical and dental professions. This results in a disease that in two-thirds of cases, is found as a late-stage, advanced cancer. Chances for recovery at this stage are significantly worse than if oral cancer is caught early. Death rates from cancers such as that of the cervix, skin, and prostate, have decreased as annual checks for those diseases have been adopted--this could also be the case with oral cancer, if the simple and painless screening procedure were to be adopted as a routine part of dental or physical examinations.
from U.S. Newswire
October 7, 2004: Actor Jack Palance visits vets at VA Medical Center
Although
he didn't say he was casting his ballot for George W. Bush for president,
he did say he supports the Republican Party.
Academy award-winning actor, Lattimer native and Hazle Township Senior High School graduate Jack Palance, also known as Vladimir Palanuik, paid a visit to the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Plains, Wednesday. Although VA officials could not comment on the coincidence, Palance visited on the same day as President George W. Bush came to speak in Wilkes-Barre.
According to VA officials, political campaigning on federal property is not allowed, but that point didn't stop Palance from answering a question about the upcoming election.
"Mr. Palance, who are you voting for?" came a question from the audience.
"Me? I'm voting for the winner," was his quick response, followed by his Republican Party comment.
Accompanied by his wife, Elaine, an unsteady Palance, who walked with by a cane, entered the packed auditorium to talk about his career on stage, screen and television.
Assisted by his wife, the actor answered questions from the audience.
"Why the hell are you all so quiet?" Palance said as he entered the room.
Rudy Gresham, assistant to Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi, said Palance walks with a cane but that doesn't mean he's weak.
"But, don't let that fool you. While he was visiting our dialysis patients downstairs, Jack did five, one-hand pushups," Gresham said.
Palance, who is his 85 years old, wowed the audience at the Academy Awards several years ago by doing several one-handed pushups on stage after receiving his Oscar for best supporting actor.
Another question from the audience asked about his regimen for keeping so fit.
"What do you do to keep yourself so young?" a woman asked.
"I lie," was the quick answer.
Palance said he spends a half-hour Monday through Saturday exercising.
"It's part of my regular routine," he said.
Palance, who was a star quarterback for Hazle Township High School and graduated in 1936, is also a graduate of Stanford University. He began his acting career in radio and on stage in New York City. He also piloted a B-24 bomber during World War II.
He won a supporting actor Academy Award and a Golden Globe award for his performance as "Curly" in the movie "City Slickers."
Palance signed photographs and chatted with fans after the program.
from The Citizens Voice
October 6, 2004: Audience participants say pope's endurance of hardships inspires them
VATICAN
CITY - Although Pope John Paul II's speech is often slurred, his facial muscles
stiff and his movement limited, participants at his Wednesday general audience
say that the way the pope endures his evident hardships inspires them as Catholics.
"God bless him," was the reaction of Lucy Edwards, a nurse from Scranton, Pa., following a particularly trying morning for the pope in sunny St. Peter's Square Oct. 6.
"I don't know how he is still up there, struggling to talk, struggling to breathe. It's even more of an experience for me, because of his illness. He is a true servant," she said.
In recent weeks, the pope's frailty has been more evident. During the Oct. 6 audience, Pope John Paul addressed the faithful about marriage, referring to the second half of Psalm 45, but he spoke only six sentences of the prepared text.
In the midst of his regular multilingual greetings to pilgrims present in the square, he paused for several seconds while apparently trying to form the words. The audience began to clap in encouragement, and he was able to continue his message in Lithuanian.
"I think he is trying to set an example for those who are aging," said Candice Garrison, 55, of Duluth, Minn. "He is demonstrating dignity and courage that should be seen even though he has an infirmity. He conveys this even more in his current state of health, and it's very moving."
Pope John Paul's nervous system disease has confined him to the wheeled throne that he now uses for all public appearances. To enable the pope to continue to drive through St. Peter's Square to wave at and sometimes touch the hands of eager admirers, the throne is lifted onto his white vehicle.
The pope evidently relishes this contact with the faithful, and on Oct. 6 he even managed to kiss a baby thrust into his arms as the popemobile slowed.
At every audience, despite the difficulties in speech and heavily labored breathing, Pope John Paul continues his practice of greeting the various pilgrim groups, often in their own languages. Italian, English, French, Spanish, German and Portuguese are always used; another half-dozen that change from week to week usually are added.
But his decreasing participation has been evident in recent weeks. On Oct. 2, he began a beatification ceremony, but allowed a Vatican official to celebrate the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
During the summer, the length of his Wednesday audiences was cut to a minimum, and for the past year or so the amount of text he reads has been vastly reduced. Summaries of his texts in other languages, which he once read aloud, are now read aloud by others.
Papal trips -- in the past numerous, long and with grueling schedules -- are now rare and short, with few events.
But to the crowd in St. Peter's Square that did not quite fill all the chairs Oct. 6, the pope's frailty does anything but diminish their experience.
"It doesn't matter if he can't speak as well. It's still a great event in my life," said Nagy Annabella, an 18-year-old from Szekesfehervar, Hungary, who was participating in her first papal audience with her Catholic high school class.
"It was total inspiration; just being here does it," said Beth Sallie of North Bay, Ontario.
"He's beautiful. Even though he's suffering so much, he's still being our shepherd," said Lynda Rozell, part of a group from the Diocese of Arlington, Va. "His breathing was so difficult -- when he paused, I think people clapped to encourage him."
A group of French-speaking altar servers from Bassecourt, Switzerland, described Pope John Paul as "like a grandfather." They mentioned many things special about the audience, but no one mentioned his health.
from the Catholic News Service, Sarah Delaney
October 6, 2004: Playboy creating Hefner love shack in Las Vegas
LAS
VEGAS – In a marriage made in sin, Hugh Hefner is coming to Las Vegas,
where he'll have a vertical version of his Playboy mansion – a nearly
12,000-square-foot love shack on top of the Palms hotel-casino 40-story tower
that's under construction.
The two-story suite will be named the Hugh Hefner Sky Villa and have its own glass elevator that overlooks the Strip, along with an indoor and outdoor pool.
"He's going to make it his home away from home," Palms owner George Maloof said. "He's got plenty of room to play. It's a perfect fit."
Maloof said he completed a long-term licensing agreement with Playboy Enterprises Inc. on Monday.
The deal will allow the Palms to use the iconic brand in Nevada and in the tower's new nightclub, boutique casino and lounge, along with a retail Playboy store, said Bill Farley, Playboy's vice president of marketing events.
The 300-room tower opens in early 2006. Chicago-based Nine Group and the Palms will own and run the new spots. The Nine Group operates four other venues at the Palms, including the popular Rain nightclub and swanky rooftop Ghostbar.
Playboy said it expects to report a seven-figure revenue increase, starting in 2006, as a result of signing the licensing deal. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Playboy has produced three weekend events with the Palms that have lured a crush of people hoping to catch glimpses of Playboy Playmates and the stars that follow.
Farley
said Playboy picked the off-Strip Palms because it believes the property has
become the hottest and hippest casino in the city since its November 2001
opening.
The casino is geared to the right demographic, young men from ages 21 to 34, the backbone of Playboy's business, Farley said.
"We are very selective in what we get involved in," Farley said. "There have been quite a few gaming-related overtures over the last decade that ranged from Indian casinos to other ventures but this is the one that ultimately became the deal that worked."
Maloof has been successful marketing the $265 million, 430-room casino as one of the coolest properties in Las Vegas thanks to a steady stream of hip celebrities, beautiful women and curious men.
The Playboy brand should bolster the sexy image Maloof has promoted relentlessly.
Maloof said the Playboy deal and the new tower are still a work in progress.
"We haven't got all the details yet," Maloof said. "We're still putting finishing touches on the whole project."
from the Associated Press
October 5, 2004: Comic Rodney Dangerfield Dies at Age 82
LOS
ANGELES — Rodney Dangerfield knew "I don't get no respect"
was funny when it cracked up New Yorkers, notorious for being tough. From
there on out, the one-liner became his catchphrase and the pudgy, bug-eyed
comic became the perennial loser.
Dangerfield, 82, died Tuesday afternoon at the University of California, Los Angeles, Medical Center, where he had undergone heart surgery in August, said publicist Kevin Sasaki.
After the operation, Sasaki said, the comedian suffered a small stroke and developed infectious and abdominal complications. He had been in a coma but regained consciousness in the past week.
"When Rodney emerged, he kissed me, squeezed my hand and smiled for his doctors," Dangerfield's wife, Joan, said in the statement. The comic is also survived by two children from a previous marriage.
Clad in a black suit, red tie and white shirt with collar that seemed too tight, Dangerfield brought down the house with the likes of "When I was born, I was so ugly that the doctor slapped my mother"; "When I started in show business, I played one club that was so far out my act was reviewed in Field and Stream;" and "Every time I get in an elevator, the operator says the same thing to me: 'Basement?'"
In a 1986 interview, he explained the origin of his "respect" trademark:
"I had this joke: 'I played hide and seek; they wouldn't even look for me.' To make it work better, you look for something to put in front of it: I was so poor, I was so dumb, so this, so that. I thought, 'Now what fits that joke?' Well, 'No one liked me' was all right. But then I thought, a more profound thing would be, 'I get no respect.'"
He tried it at a New York club, and the joke drew a bigger response than ever. He kept the phrase in the act, and it seemed to establish a bond with his audience.
Dangerfield is most remembered for 1980's "Caddyshack," in which he held his own with such comics as Chevy Chase, Ted Knight and Bill Murray.
He would later gain more film roles and the respect of fans who howled at his jokes and fellow comedians who admired his talent.
"For a guy who got no respect, I will miss him and he always had my respect. I love him," comedian George Lopez said Tuesday in a statement.
Flowers were placed on his star on Hollywood Boulevard after word of his death, and the marquee of The Improv, a comedy club where Dangerfield often performed, read "Rest In Peace Rodney."
Teller, half of the magic duo "Penn & Teller," said Dangerfield at times would appear while they were performing in Las Vegas, walking around the casino wearing a satin dressing gown and sandals with a beautiful girl on his arm.
"He was so confident," Teller said. "He was Rodney and he could do anything."
Comedian Adam Sandler, who starred with Dangerfield in 2000's "Little Nicky," said the affection felt for Dangerfield "when you saw him on TV or in the movies was doubled when you had the pleasure to meet him. He was a hero who lived up to the hype."
Dangerfield was born Jacob Cohen on Nov. 22, 1921, on New York's Long Island. Growing up in the borough of Queens, his mother was uncaring and his father was absent.
He ingratiated himself to his schoolmates by being funny, writing down jokes and storing them in a duffel bag. When he was 19, he adopted the name Jack Roy and tried out the jokes at a resort in the Catskills, training ground for Danny Kaye, Jerry Lewis, Red Button, Sid Caesar and other comedians.
At 19 he started as a standup comedian. He made only a fair living, traveling a great deal and appearing in rundown joints.
At age 27, he married Joyce Indig, a singer he met at a New York club. The couple settled in Englewood, N.J., had two children, Brian and Melanie, and he worked selling paint and siding. But the idyllic suburban life soured as the pair battled. The couple divorced in 1962, remarried a year later and again divorced.
Dangerfield returned to comedy at 42.
When he came back to show business, he took up the name Rodney Dangerfield.
Dangerfield's bookings improved, and he landed television gigs. He appeared on the Ed Sullivan show seven times and on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson more than 70 times.
After his ex-wife died, he decided to quit touring and open a New York nightclub, Dangerfield's, so he could stay close to home and raise his children.
After "Caddyshack," Dangerfield continued starring in and sometimes writing films such as "Easy Money," "Back to School," "Moving," "The Scout," "Ladybugs" and "Meet Wally Sparks." He turned dramatic as a sadistic father in Oliver Stone's 1994 "Natural Born Killers."
In 1995, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences rejected Dangerfield's application for membership.
It was the ultimate rejection, and Dangerfield played it to the hilt. He had established his own Web site ("I went out and bought an Apple Computer; it had a worm in it"), and his fans used it to express their indignation. The public reaction prompted the academy to reverse itself and offer membership. Dangerfield declined.
"They don't even apologize or nothing," he said. "They give no respect at all pardon the pun to comedy."
from the Associated Press
October 1, 2004: Ernest Borgnine returns to narrate the 229th Navy birthday concert
Ernest
Borgnine, distinguished Academy Award winning actor and former Sailor, returns
as guest narrator for the 229th Navy Birthday Concert sponsored by the chief
of Naval operations, Adm. Vern Clark. Capt. Ralph M. Gambone will lead the
men and women of The United States Navy Band in this celebration Oct. 16 at
8 p.m. at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. The program will pay special
tribute to the 60th Anniversary of the invasion of Normandy.
Mr. Borgnine served in the U.S. Navy from 1935 to 1945, attaining the rank of Gunner's Mate First Class. He reported for duty as Lt. Cmdr. Quinton McHale, "skipper" aboard PT 73 in "McHale's Navy," the beloved television series that ran from 1962 to 1966. Between these accomplishments, he won an Academy Award for his role in the 1955 dramatic film, "Marty." His distinguished career has included diverse roles on Broadway, in over a hundred movies and numerous television shows. He has been seen recently as the commissioner's father in "The District" and is featured in the Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation, "The Trail to Hope Rose." In addition to three honorary doctorates, the Navy community has recognized Mr. Borgnine as well. He holds the title of "Honorary Flight Leader" for the Blue Angels and received the "Lone Sailor" award by the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation.
Capt. Gambone encourages all to join in the festivities. Highlights include the "Commodores" jazz ensemble playing a collection of music from World War II that will feature one of Navy Band's newest chiefs, Yolanda Pelzer Harvin. The "Sea Chanters" chorus will bring you music of Broadway, and Musician 1st Class W. Reid Williams will sing the contemporary hit, "You Raise Me Up," made popular by Josh Groban. The Navy Band will take you to the coast of Normandy on June 6, 1944, in the powerful musical portrait of that invasion, "Lonely Beach." Survivors of the historic landing will share their stories in a special commemoration of the 60th Anniversary of D-Day.
from The Beam, Bolling Air Force Base, Washington D.C., U.S. Navy Band Public Affairs