Long Ru,ored, rareley Seen
Showing posts with label TV. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TV. Show all posts
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Sada Thompson
Thompson died Wednesday of a lung disease at Danbury Hospital, agent David Shaul said Sunday from Los Angeles.
Thompson won wide acclaim during an illustrious career that spanned more than 60 years, during which she gravitated toward quality work that allowed her to plumb her characters' complexities.
"When you start off acting, it does seem very romantic, and the make-believe part of it all seems very exciting," she told the Los Angeles Times in 1991. "It's only later that you begin to realize how fascinating the work is — that it's a bottomless pit, and you never get to the end of it. Human character is just endlessly fascinating."
Even before she graduated in 1949 from Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University, then called the Carnegie Institute of Technology, she was on a trajectory to take on challenging roles drawn from the classics as well as contemporary plays.
A prolific actress, she made her mark in theater and film generally portraying the matriarchs in family dramas.
In her stage debut in 1945, she played Nick's Ma in William Saroyan's "The Time of Your Life." She was Mrs. Higgins in "Pygmalion" (1949), the resentful matriarch determined not to hurt again in "Real Estate" (1987), the embattled Mrs. Fisher in the 1991 comedy "The Show-Off," the slovenly and bitter mother, Beatrice, in the 1965 production of "The Effect Of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds" and Dorine in "Tartuffe" (1965). She collected Obies for the latter two.
By far, her biggest Broadway success was "Twigs," by George Furth, in which she played three sisters — as well as their mother. The play took its title from a line by Alexander Pope: "Just as the twig is bent, the tree's inclined." She won a Tony and the New York Drama Critics Award that season.
The New York Times' Walter Kerr noted that what held the play together was "the peculiar luminosity that moves with Miss Thompson wherever she goes."
Throughout her career, her choices brought recognition from fellow actors more than they made her famous.
"When you're around great actors (like Thompson), they become an ideal or a goal that keeps reminding you of the quality you want your work to be," William Anton, who played Thompson's son in the 1989 San Diego production of "Driving Miss Daisy" and a preferred son-in-law in "The Show-Off," told the Los Angeles Times in 1991.
In the late '70s, she picked up an Emmy for her portrayal of the levelheaded Kate Lawrence in the ABC drama "Family," which ran for five seasons.
Born Sada Carolyn Thompson on Sept. 27, 1929, in Des Moines, Iowa, she got her unusual name from her maternal grandmother, whose name, Sarah, was turned into Sada. Her parents moved to New Jersey when she was 5, and her fascination with the stage began soon thereafter. Her parents would often take her to a summer theater where plays would stop on their way to Broadway or before they began their national tours.
"I saw stars like Helen Hayes, Maurice Evans, Tallulah Bankhead and Cornelia Otis Skinner," she told The Associated Press in 1987. "It was enchanting. I knew that was the world I wanted to be in."
In 1956, she won a Drama Desk Award for Moliere's "The Misanthrope" and for an English girl mourning the death of her half-brother in war in "The River Line" (1957). She was nominated for an Emmy for her portrayal of Carla's mother in the NBC comedy "Cheers" (1991).
Thompson said she loved a good character role.
"There's always something more to be accomplished with a character," she told the AP in 1987. "Theater is a human experience. There's nothing shellacked or finished off about it. I guess that's why it always draws me back."
Thompson met and married a fellow drama student, Donald Stewart, at the Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1949. Their daughter is a costume designer.
Geekshow posts FIRST Wonder Woman Pilot review
Geekshow has posted an interview with someone who has seen the new Wonder Woman pilot episode.
The interview begins with a non-spoiler review of the pilot before moving on to SPOILER heavy discussions.
•The pilot features 2 costumes; the one seen in the set pictures with cloth like pants and red boots, and the classic "bathing suit" which is described as looking the better of the two by a million miles. The costume she ends the pilot wearing is the classic "bathing suit" costume. The one that was first shown in Entertainment Weekly, with the blue boots and shiny pants, does not appear in the pilot.
•Despite some cheesy dialogue most of the actors are described as good, especially Adrianne Palicki (Diana Prince/Wonder Woman) and Tracie Thoms (Etta). However Justin Bruening (Steve Trevor) is described as "awful", lacking charisma and he even suggests recasting or scrapping the character altogether.
•The action is described as over the top with a needless amount of violence, with Wonder Woman killing people and using her Lasso of Truth as a whip.
•The script and dialogue is described as overly cheesy, with Wonder Woman even saying "tits".
•Despite the pilot's flaws the reviewer says if this was the first episode of a T.V series he would tune in for the next episode, BUT only if the script showed improvements, as it currently "feels like a David E. Kelly show" and not a Wonder Woman show.
So to summarise; the pilot is "really really average", Adrianne Palicki and Tracie Thoms are great as Wonder Woman and Etta respectively, and Justin Bruening as Steve Trevor is "awful".
College Star Trek Production - from 1971!!!!
Star Trek fan films are certainly nothing new, however this particular one is old. REALLY old. In fact, it dates back to 1971 and was a school project. As it stands, it's probably the oldest Trek fan film in existence.
Tom Welling Being Courted by Marvel?
According to Australia's whatsplaying.com.au, we haven't even seen Tom Welling in the Superman tights yet and Marvel is already supposedly courting him for a potential project.
Muses the site, "You’d think after spending ten years playing a comic book character, an extra few years playing crimefighter would be the furthest thing from Welling’s mind - but it’s not, he’s up for playing a superhero again (you’ll recall he tested for Superman Returns a couple of years ago; if he had gotten it, he would’ve been playing Clark Kent a lot longer). Guess you stick with what you know. And like. And enjoy. Don’t know what film, if any one in particular, Marvel is looking at Welling for but they do have film adaptations of Deathlok, Runaways and Doctor Strange in the works. If it’s one of those three, I think the safe bet is Welling is being considered for Strange. Be interesting to know if Warner Bros, who are in bed with DC, are courting Welling - our contact didn’t know."
The piece also mentions Welling as a possibility for a currently-in-development Allen Quartermain reboot being developed by Smallville co-creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar.
Muses the site, "You’d think after spending ten years playing a comic book character, an extra few years playing crimefighter would be the furthest thing from Welling’s mind - but it’s not, he’s up for playing a superhero again (you’ll recall he tested for Superman Returns a couple of years ago; if he had gotten it, he would’ve been playing Clark Kent a lot longer). Guess you stick with what you know. And like. And enjoy. Don’t know what film, if any one in particular, Marvel is looking at Welling for but they do have film adaptations of Deathlok, Runaways and Doctor Strange in the works. If it’s one of those three, I think the safe bet is Welling is being considered for Strange. Be interesting to know if Warner Bros, who are in bed with DC, are courting Welling - our contact didn’t know."
The piece also mentions Welling as a possibility for a currently-in-development Allen Quartermain reboot being developed by Smallville co-creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar.
Fox Cancels Human Target
Despite a massive push on the part of the fan base and the show's cast and crew, it seems that Christopher Chance's adventures have come to an end.
As recently as WonderCon in San Francisco, Mark Valley, Jackie Earle Haley and other cast members and producers did their best to get the word out about Human Target on Fox in the hopes that the show would be renewed for a third season. Unfortunately Deadline is reporting that the show has been canceled.
Search Amazon.com for human target
As recently as WonderCon in San Francisco, Mark Valley, Jackie Earle Haley and other cast members and producers did their best to get the word out about Human Target on Fox in the hopes that the show would be renewed for a third season. Unfortunately Deadline is reporting that the show has been canceled.
Search Amazon.com for human target
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
Sol Saks
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Friends and family say the writer who created the television comedy "Bewitched" has died. Sol Saks was 100.
Saks' wife Sandra says he died Saturday at Sherman Oaks Hospital in Los Angeles, where he was being treated for pneumonia.
Saks wrote the pilot script for "Bewitched," but he never wrote another episode of the ABC series about a witch married to a mortal. The show starring Elizabeth Montgomery ran from 1964 to 1972.
Longtime friend Paul Wayne told the Los Angeles Times that the pilot script earned Saks royalties for life.
Saks is survived by his wife, daughter Mary Spivey, son Daniel Saks, two granddaughters and two great-grandsons.
His wife says no service will be held because Saks considered a lavish 100th birthday party a living memorial.
Saks' wife Sandra says he died Saturday at Sherman Oaks Hospital in Los Angeles, where he was being treated for pneumonia.
Saks wrote the pilot script for "Bewitched," but he never wrote another episode of the ABC series about a witch married to a mortal. The show starring Elizabeth Montgomery ran from 1964 to 1972.
Longtime friend Paul Wayne told the Los Angeles Times that the pilot script earned Saks royalties for life.
Saks is survived by his wife, daughter Mary Spivey, son Daniel Saks, two granddaughters and two great-grandsons.
His wife says no service will be held because Saks considered a lavish 100th birthday party a living memorial.
Madelyn Pugh Davis
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Madelyn Pugh Davis, a screenwriter who co-created the lines and slapstick that Lucille Ball brought to life in TV's classic comedy "I Love Lucy," has died. She was 90.
Davis died Wednesday at her home in the Bel-Air neighborhood of Los Angeles after a brief illness, her son, Michael Quinn Martin, said Thursday.
Davis and her longtime writing partner, Bob Carroll Jr., crafted all episodes for the hit CBS TV sitcom's first four years before they were joined by two other writers, said Lucie Arnaz, Ball's daughter.
Whenever her mother was complimented on her success, Arnaz recalled, "the first words out of her mouth were, 'I have these wonderful writers,' or, 'I can't do it without my writers.' Most of the time she was referring to Davis and Carroll."
In turn, Davis' son said, his mother would pay tribute to Ball's ability to turn physical gags described in a script into something "much more amazing."
Martin and hi s mom often watched reruns together of the classic sitcom that still airs worldwide.
"She was always kind of flabbergasted that people were still interested in it after all these years," he said. His mother always got a laugh out of the show, sometimes noting she'd "cranked out" so many episodes that she couldn't entirely recall them.
Davis and Carroll had worked on Ball's radio comedy, "My Favorite Husband." When the show moved to TV in 1953 as "I Love Lucy," Ball took Davis and Carroll with her and added real-life husband Desi Arnaz to the cast.
The writing duo remained with the show during its 1951-57 run and then wrote for "The Lucy Show," ''Here's Lucy" and "Life With Lucy." Carroll died in 2007 at age 87.
Ball, who died at 77 in 1989, is the subject of a one-woman show, "An Evening with Lucille Ball," starring Suzanne La Rusch and directed by Lucie Arnaz.
Arnaz recalled Davis as "such a girlie girl, a lady," someone who understood how to wr ite for a woman.
Her nature, along with "her professionalism, wit and inventiveness," made her an essential part of the success of "I Love Lucy," said Tom Gilbert, co-author of "Desilu: The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz," slated for re-release in a new version in August.
"She softened the edges of the Lucy Ricardo character and made her more likable. I feel certain she was the force behind the marvelous interplay between the Lucy and Ethel characters as well," Gilbert said, referring to co-star Vivian Vance's Ethel Mertz.
The entertainment industry can be tough for women to crack but Davis, an Indiana native, got an unexpected assist, said her son: When she arrived in Los Angeles around 1944, male writers were scarce because so many were serving in World War II.
"On the flip side, if writers would come in to pitch a story they would always look at Bob, the man of the team, and that was a bit frustrating," Martin said. After working with the pair , however, "they realized they were equals."
Besides her son, Davis is survived by stepchildren, grandchildren and a great-grandchild. Services will be private.
Davis died Wednesday at her home in the Bel-Air neighborhood of Los Angeles after a brief illness, her son, Michael Quinn Martin, said Thursday.
Davis and her longtime writing partner, Bob Carroll Jr., crafted all episodes for the hit CBS TV sitcom's first four years before they were joined by two other writers, said Lucie Arnaz, Ball's daughter.
Whenever her mother was complimented on her success, Arnaz recalled, "the first words out of her mouth were, 'I have these wonderful writers,' or, 'I can't do it without my writers.' Most of the time she was referring to Davis and Carroll."
In turn, Davis' son said, his mother would pay tribute to Ball's ability to turn physical gags described in a script into something "much more amazing."
Martin and hi s mom often watched reruns together of the classic sitcom that still airs worldwide.
"She was always kind of flabbergasted that people were still interested in it after all these years," he said. His mother always got a laugh out of the show, sometimes noting she'd "cranked out" so many episodes that she couldn't entirely recall them.
Davis and Carroll had worked on Ball's radio comedy, "My Favorite Husband." When the show moved to TV in 1953 as "I Love Lucy," Ball took Davis and Carroll with her and added real-life husband Desi Arnaz to the cast.
The writing duo remained with the show during its 1951-57 run and then wrote for "The Lucy Show," ''Here's Lucy" and "Life With Lucy." Carroll died in 2007 at age 87.
Ball, who died at 77 in 1989, is the subject of a one-woman show, "An Evening with Lucille Ball," starring Suzanne La Rusch and directed by Lucie Arnaz.
Arnaz recalled Davis as "such a girlie girl, a lady," someone who understood how to wr ite for a woman.
Her nature, along with "her professionalism, wit and inventiveness," made her an essential part of the success of "I Love Lucy," said Tom Gilbert, co-author of "Desilu: The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz," slated for re-release in a new version in August.
"She softened the edges of the Lucy Ricardo character and made her more likable. I feel certain she was the force behind the marvelous interplay between the Lucy and Ethel characters as well," Gilbert said, referring to co-star Vivian Vance's Ethel Mertz.
The entertainment industry can be tough for women to crack but Davis, an Indiana native, got an unexpected assist, said her son: When she arrived in Los Angeles around 1944, male writers were scarce because so many were serving in World War II.
"On the flip side, if writers would come in to pitch a story they would always look at Bob, the man of the team, and that was a bit frustrating," Martin said. After working with the pair , however, "they realized they were equals."
Besides her son, Davis is survived by stepchildren, grandchildren and a great-grandchild. Services will be private.
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