LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Veteran Hollywood executive Richard D. Zanuck, the prolific producer behind the blockbuster shark thriller 'Jaws,' the best-picture Oscar-winner 'Driving Miss Daisy' and a string of Tim Burton fantasies, died on Friday of a heart attack at age 77.
Zanuck, son of famed 20th Century Fox chieftain Darryl F. Zanuck, who was named by his father at age 28 as Fox's head of production, making him Hollywood's then youngest-ever studio boss, died at his home in Beverly Hills, a spokesman said.
No further details were immediately available about the circumstances of his death.
Zanuck, who spent the bulk of his career as an independent producer, earned numerous awards during more than 50 years in filmmaking.
Among his accolades were the Academy Award he shared with his wife and collaborator, Lili Fini Zanuck, for their work on 'Driving Miss Daisy,' and the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for his work with longtime associate David Brown.
Steven Spielberg, with whom Zanuck collaborated on 'Jaws,' called the producer 'a cornerstone of our industry, both in name and in deed.'
'In 1974, Dick Zanuck and I sat in a boat off Martha's Vineyard and watched the mechanical shark sink to the bottom of the sea,' Spielberg recalled in a statement. 'Dick turned to me and smiled. 'Gee, I sure hope that's not a sign.''
That moment of wry humor proved to be far from prophetic, as 'Jaws,' the tale of a great white shark that terrorizes a small New England beach town, became one of the biggest hits of its era and helped launch Spielberg's career as a director.
Born in Los Angeles, Zanuck, whose mother was actress Virginia Fox, joined his father as a story and production assistant on two 20th Century Fox films, 'Island in the Sun' and 'The Sun Also Rises.'
He debuted as a full-fledged producer at age 24 on 1959 feature film 'Compulsion,' which starred Orson Welles. Four years later, he was placed in charge of production at his father's studio.
During his eight-year tenure there, the studio cranked out a series of critical and commercial successes, 'The Sound of Music,' 'Patton' and 'The French Connection,' all of which won best film Oscars. Other Fox hits from that period include the original 'Planet of the Apes' series, the Paul Newman and Robert Redford western 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' and the Korean War satire 'M*A*S*H.'
HOLLYWOOD HITS AND MISSES
But a handful of big-screen musical flops 'greenlighted' for production by Zanuck, among them 'Doctor Dolittle,' 'Hello Dolly' and 'Star,' cost the studio dearly and ultimately led to his ouster in 1970 by his father.
From there, Zanuck and Brown moved briefly to Warner Bros., where they oversaw the making of the religious thriller 'The Exorcist' and Mel Brooks' parody western, 'Blazing Saddles' before starting their own production company.
It was the Zanuck/Brown label that made Spielberg's 1974 film directorial debut, 'The Sugarland Express,' and his 1975 blockbuster 'Jaws,' which earned Oscars for film editing, score and sound.
Other Zanuck/Brown successes included 'The Sting,' a Depression-era tale of grifters that reunited Newman and Redford and won seven Academy Awards, including best picture; courtroom drama 'The Verdict,' which earned five Oscar nominations, and 'Cocoon,' which won Oscars for best supporting Oscar (Don Ameche) and visual effects.
Zanuck earned his greatest personal filmmaking accolade for the first movie produced under his own Zanuck Company label, the 1989 film 'Driving Miss Daisy,' about the relationship of a stubborn old Jewish woman (Jessica Tandy) and her black chauffeur (Morgan Freeman) in the American South.
The film earned four Oscars, including best actress for Tandy and best picture for Zanuck and his wife.
The latter stretch of Zanuck's career was marked by a close collaboration with director Tim Burton, starting with a 2001 remake of 'Planet of the Apes,' released by 20th Century Fox.
Others included the 2005 hit 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,' the critically acclaimed 2007 musical 'Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street' and the 2010 success 'Alice in Wonderland,' all starring Johnny Depp.
The last film of Zanuck's career ended up being his sixth collaboration with Burton, the critical and commercial bomb 'Dark Shadows,' also starring Depp and based on the 1960s television series about lovelorn vampire.
In addition to his wife, Zanuck is survived by his sons Harrison and Dean, and nine grandchildren.
(Editing by Peter Cooney)
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Friday, July 13, 2012
"Green Mile" actor Michael Clarke Duncan hospitalized
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - 'The Green Mile' actor Michael Clarke Duncan has been hospitalized in Los Angeles, a spokeswoman for his reality TV star girlfriend said on Friday.
Priscilla Clarke, a representative for 'The Apprentice' star Omarosa Stallworth, did not provide any further details on why Duncan was taken to the hospital.
Celebrity website TMZ reported that Stallworth discovered early Friday that Duncan had suffered a heart attack and was in cardiac arrest. She revived him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation before he was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital, TMZ reported.
Duncan, 54, starred in the 1999 prison drama 'The Green Mile' and had roles in the 2003 comic book movie 'Daredevil' and 2005 release 'Sin City.'
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
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Priscilla Clarke, a representative for 'The Apprentice' star Omarosa Stallworth, did not provide any further details on why Duncan was taken to the hospital.
Celebrity website TMZ reported that Stallworth discovered early Friday that Duncan had suffered a heart attack and was in cardiac arrest. She revived him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation before he was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital, TMZ reported.
Duncan, 54, starred in the 1999 prison drama 'The Green Mile' and had roles in the 2003 comic book movie 'Daredevil' and 2005 release 'Sin City.'
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
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DC officer investigated over alleged remark about first lady: report
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Authorities were investigating a Washington police officer on Thursday over a possibly threatening remark he allegedly made about first lady Michelle Obama, reports said.
The unidentified officer assigned to a motorcade detail was speaking with colleagues on Wednesday about potential threats against the Obamas and allegedly made a comment about shooting Mrs. Obama, The Washington Post reported, citing police sources.
The comment was apparently overheard by another officer, who told a superior. Metropolitan police notified the Secret Service, which oversees security for the president and his family.
Without confirming details, police said in a statement that the department had received 'an allegation that inappropriate comments were made.'
It was unclear if the remark constituted an actual threat against the first family.
NBC's Washington affiliate quoted Police Chief Cathy Lanier as saying there was conflicting information about what actually was said and that the department's internal affairs unit was investigating.
A Secret Service spokesman said the agency was aware of the incident and was taking 'appropriate follow-up steps.' The agency would not provide more details.
The White House had no immediate comment.
(Reporting By John Crawley; Editing by Peter Cooney)
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The unidentified officer assigned to a motorcade detail was speaking with colleagues on Wednesday about potential threats against the Obamas and allegedly made a comment about shooting Mrs. Obama, The Washington Post reported, citing police sources.
The comment was apparently overheard by another officer, who told a superior. Metropolitan police notified the Secret Service, which oversees security for the president and his family.
Without confirming details, police said in a statement that the department had received 'an allegation that inappropriate comments were made.'
It was unclear if the remark constituted an actual threat against the first family.
NBC's Washington affiliate quoted Police Chief Cathy Lanier as saying there was conflicting information about what actually was said and that the department's internal affairs unit was investigating.
A Secret Service spokesman said the agency was aware of the incident and was taking 'appropriate follow-up steps.' The agency would not provide more details.
The White House had no immediate comment.
(Reporting By John Crawley; Editing by Peter Cooney)
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Sigourney Weaver turns political animal for new TV show
NEW YORK (Reuters) - In new TV series 'Political Animals,' Secretary of State Elaine Barrish Hammond, who has just lost a presidential bid, laments that the country just doesn't adore her as much as her womanizing husband and former President.
If that sounds like current Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, actress Sigourney Weaver, who portrays Elaine, disagrees.
The similarities between the real-life politician and the TV one are clear in the frothy series premiering July 15 on the USA Network, yet Weaver swears she did not have Clinton in mind. She points to other women she has met, mostly those in non-profit work, upon which she based the character.
'I admire Mrs. Clinton immensely, (but) I don't know anything about her except the little bit we are allowed to know. I never think of her when I am playing this part,' Weaver told Reuters in a recent interview.
The 62-year-old actress said 'Political Animals,' a soapy dramatization of sex, greed and politics in the White House, is based on many families who have lived there - not just the Clintons. She noted that while Elaine's ex-husband, Bud Hammond, 'had been a successful president, not unlike Bill Clinton,' her character 'was first lady, then became a governor, then ran for president, failed, then became secretary of state.'
'Some of the details are similar to the Clintons, but in fact, if you talk to the creator, he has been a real political junkie for most of his life, and he is fascinated by all these families who have been in the White House,' she said.
Creator Greg Berlanti gives the show's pilot a light tone, setting it apart from more serious, recent political TV dramas such as 'Game Change' about Sarah Palin.
SOAPY WHITE HOUSE
In the pilot episode, Elaine divorces her husband, tries to help her gay son with finances while he battles drug addiction and chastises a Russian foreign minister for patting her bottom during a press conference.
Elaine offers a steely image in public, but lets her guard down in private, showing disappointment she wasn't popular enough to secure the presidential nomination.
'The country loves you Bud. They will always love you, but it's me they have mixed feelings about, ' she tells her husband at the start of the first episode. Two years later, however, she has earned a measure of popularity as a hardworking Secretary of State - much like Hillary Clinton.
Weaver, who has a history of playing strong women, most notably as Ripley in the four 'Alien' space films, said that to prepare for the role she read former Secretary of State Albright's 2009 memoir, 'Read My Pins,' about global politics.
She also leaned heavily on her views of women she met in the non-profit sector more than any real-life political figures.
The miniseries reaches audiences following other political shows centered on female characters during the current U.S. presidential election year, including HBO comedy series 'Veep,' featuring Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as a U.S. vice president and HBO movie 'Game Change,' which starred Julianne Moore as conservative firebrand Sarah Palin.
'It's more enticing to watch fake politics on television than real politics because real politics is difficult to watch. Everything is even more dysfunctional than my own family,' Weaver said with a smile.
Elaine is the type of fearless female that real-life Washington needs more of, said Weaver, who believes women are more likely to cross the political aisle and 'get down to work.'
'Women naturally roll up their sleeves,' she said. 'They support each other on both sides of the aisle. It's a much more collaborative, team-building kind of inclusiveness about their work, and I feel like we need that kind of energy in the Washington politics-as-usual.'
A Democrat with a businessman father she described as 'a Nelson Rockefeller Republican,' the actress is worried about the current trend of partisanship and what she sees as the common person being left behind in today's economic policies.
'What politicians have to be talking about is the needs of real people. To me, as long as the Republicans are the champions of big business, that can't happen. Because the common man is being left out of all of this. And this trickle-down idea is fallacy,' she said.
(Reporting By Christine Kearney Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Eric Walsh)
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If that sounds like current Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, actress Sigourney Weaver, who portrays Elaine, disagrees.
The similarities between the real-life politician and the TV one are clear in the frothy series premiering July 15 on the USA Network, yet Weaver swears she did not have Clinton in mind. She points to other women she has met, mostly those in non-profit work, upon which she based the character.
'I admire Mrs. Clinton immensely, (but) I don't know anything about her except the little bit we are allowed to know. I never think of her when I am playing this part,' Weaver told Reuters in a recent interview.
The 62-year-old actress said 'Political Animals,' a soapy dramatization of sex, greed and politics in the White House, is based on many families who have lived there - not just the Clintons. She noted that while Elaine's ex-husband, Bud Hammond, 'had been a successful president, not unlike Bill Clinton,' her character 'was first lady, then became a governor, then ran for president, failed, then became secretary of state.'
'Some of the details are similar to the Clintons, but in fact, if you talk to the creator, he has been a real political junkie for most of his life, and he is fascinated by all these families who have been in the White House,' she said.
Creator Greg Berlanti gives the show's pilot a light tone, setting it apart from more serious, recent political TV dramas such as 'Game Change' about Sarah Palin.
SOAPY WHITE HOUSE
In the pilot episode, Elaine divorces her husband, tries to help her gay son with finances while he battles drug addiction and chastises a Russian foreign minister for patting her bottom during a press conference.
Elaine offers a steely image in public, but lets her guard down in private, showing disappointment she wasn't popular enough to secure the presidential nomination.
'The country loves you Bud. They will always love you, but it's me they have mixed feelings about, ' she tells her husband at the start of the first episode. Two years later, however, she has earned a measure of popularity as a hardworking Secretary of State - much like Hillary Clinton.
Weaver, who has a history of playing strong women, most notably as Ripley in the four 'Alien' space films, said that to prepare for the role she read former Secretary of State Albright's 2009 memoir, 'Read My Pins,' about global politics.
She also leaned heavily on her views of women she met in the non-profit sector more than any real-life political figures.
The miniseries reaches audiences following other political shows centered on female characters during the current U.S. presidential election year, including HBO comedy series 'Veep,' featuring Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as a U.S. vice president and HBO movie 'Game Change,' which starred Julianne Moore as conservative firebrand Sarah Palin.
'It's more enticing to watch fake politics on television than real politics because real politics is difficult to watch. Everything is even more dysfunctional than my own family,' Weaver said with a smile.
Elaine is the type of fearless female that real-life Washington needs more of, said Weaver, who believes women are more likely to cross the political aisle and 'get down to work.'
'Women naturally roll up their sleeves,' she said. 'They support each other on both sides of the aisle. It's a much more collaborative, team-building kind of inclusiveness about their work, and I feel like we need that kind of energy in the Washington politics-as-usual.'
A Democrat with a businessman father she described as 'a Nelson Rockefeller Republican,' the actress is worried about the current trend of partisanship and what she sees as the common person being left behind in today's economic policies.
'What politicians have to be talking about is the needs of real people. To me, as long as the Republicans are the champions of big business, that can't happen. Because the common man is being left out of all of this. And this trickle-down idea is fallacy,' she said.
(Reporting By Christine Kearney Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Eric Walsh)
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Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Tom Cruise attorney threatens National Enquirer with lawsuit
The Hollywood Reporter on its website posted a letter from Cruise's Los Angeles attorney, Bert Fields, in which he blasts American Media Inc, parent of the Enquirer, for what he calls 'false and vicious lies' he says will cause 'hundreds of millions of dollars' in damages to Cruise.
'As you were notified in advance, your current issue of National Enquirer makes numerous false and defamatory assertions about our client Tom Cruise,' the three-page letter begins.
The letter draws attention to disparaging descriptions of Cruise in the Enquirer's issue that hit newsstands on Wednesday, with Fields writing, 'These are all lies - vicious, hurtful, damaging lies.'
Fields did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment late on Wednesday and a representative for American Media could not be reached.
Cruise and Holmes have been the subject of hundreds of headlines worldwide since she filed for divorce from the 'Mission: Impossible' movie star two weeks ago, seeking sole custody of their 6-year-old daughter, Suri.
Earlier this week, the couple agreed to a divorce and custody arrangement, but details were undisclosed. Both have remained publicly silent about the issue, except for one joint statement in which they said they were working together to settle their differences in the best interest of Suri.
Speculation about a reason for the split has centered on Cruise's membership in the Church of Scientology, but that has never been confirmed by either the couple or their representatives.
(Reporting By Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Peter Cooney)
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Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Broadway's Nina Arianda tapped for Janis Joplin film
The independently-produced film, titled 'Joplin,' looks at the last six months in the life of the raspy-voiced singer who died in 1970 of a drug overdose following chart success with classic rock hits such as 'Down on Me' and 'Piece of My Heart.'
Producer Peter Newman told show business news website Deadline that 'Joplin' would have a production budget under $20 million and it would be in production early next year.
Arianda won raves in 'Venus in Fur,' a sex comedy in which she portrays a struggling actress named Vanda who staggers into an audition late then proceeds to put on the performance of her life. The role won her Broadway's Tony for best actress, and she recently appeared in Woody Allen movie, 'Midnight in Paris.'
Durkin is best known for making 2011 independent film 'Martha Marcy May Marlene,' which led to the director's award at last year's Sundance Film Festival.
Joplin, who died at age 27, had a short career but lived a full life and was iconic for the Woodstock generation.
She gained rock stardom as the lead singer of the psychedelic-acid rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company, then cemented her fame with backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band.
Newman said Arianda will sing all the songs in the film.
(Reporting By Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Bernard Orr)
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Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes wrap up speedy divorce
'Mission: Impossible' star Cruise, 50, married Holmes, 33, who first gained fame on television drama 'Dawson's Creek,' in a glamorous wedding in an Italian castle in November 2006. Suri was born about six months earlier.
The couple and their young daughter became a favorite of celebrity magazines and seemed happy until late last month when Holmes filed for a divorce in New York. Her move surprised fans and even Cruise, who was in Iceland shooting a movie.
Since then, the media have speculated that the pair differed on raising 6-year-old Suri as a Scientologist, although neither they nor their attorneys would comment on the matter.
'The case has been settled and the agreement has been signed. We are thrilled for Katie and her family and are excited to watch as she embarks on the next chapter of her life,' Holmes attorney Jonathan Wolfe of New Jersey-based firm Skoloff & Wolfe said in a statement.
Cruise lawyer Bert Fields also released a statement saying, 'Tom is really pleased we got there, and so am I.'
But there was no direct comment from either of the stars. Instead, they issued a joint statement ahead of the announcement.
'We are committed to working together as parents to accomplishing what is in our daughter Suri's best interests,' the pair said in the statement. 'We want to keep matters affecting our family private and express our respect for each other's commitment to each of our respective beliefs and support each other's roles as parents.'
As reports surfaced on Monday with purported details of the custody agreement, lawyer Wolfe released a new statement saying the deal was being kept under wraps.
'There are numerous inaccuracies in the reports regarding the purported contents of the agreement reached between the parties. The agreement is confidential and its terms will not be disclosed,' Wolfe said.
SPEEDY SETTLEMENT
Paul Talbert, a family law attorney with New York-based firm Chemtob Moss Forman & Talbert, called the speed of negotiations and settlement - Holmes initially filed for divorce on June 28 - fast for such a high-profile couple with abundant assets.
'Cases with so many moving parts do not routinely resolve themselves in a matter of 10 days. We obviously have one or two extremely motivated people,' Talbert said.
He said it was difficult to speculate accurately about settlement details, and added that media coverage about Cruise and Scientology likely played a role in the speedy finish.
'Nobody wins in a messy public battle, and you certainly have two concerned parents here that recognized Suri definitely loses if this is a public divorce,' Talbert said.
Cruise, who rose to stardom in 1983's 'Risky Business' and became a major box office draw with 1986's 'Top Gun', continues to thrill audiences. His most recent 'Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol' sold nearly $700 million worth of tickets worldwide following its release in December 2011.
But he generated a storm of criticism in the mid-2000s during media interviews in which he attacked the use of prescription drugs to treat psychiatric conditions. His opposition to psychiatry was rooted in Scientology, considered a religion by backers and a cult by detractors.
On talk show host Oprah Winfrey's program in 2005, he jumped on her couch declaring his love for Holmes, only to be pilloried in the press for his out-of-character display of affection.
Holmes has appeared in several movies and TV shows including mini-series 'The Kennedys,' but her career has seemed to take a back seat to Cruise and to raising Suri.
Since she filed for divorce, however, an interview she gave six months previously to Elle magazine for its upcoming August edition seemed to indicate she wanted to refocus on work.
'He has been Tom Cruise for 30 years,' she told the magazine. 'I know who I am and where I am and where I want to go, so I want to focus on that.'
Holmes' marriage to Cruise was her first. Cruise had been married twice previously to actresses Mimi Rogers and Nicole Kidman, with whom he adopted two children. Both those marriages ended in divorce.
(Reporting By Bob Tourtellotte in Los Angeles; editing by David Gregorio and Mohammad Zargham)
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Monday, July 9, 2012
New Malcolm Gladwell book will explore the power of underdogs
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bestselling author Malcolm Gladwell is writing a book called 'David and Goliath' that is being billed as an exploration of what happens when underdogs confront the powerful.
Little, Brown will publish the book in 2013. Gladwell, 48, is a New York Times best-selling author whose books include 'The Tipping Point'.
Little, Brown is a division of Hachette Livre, a subsidiary of the Lagardere Group.
(Reporting By Christine Kearney, editing by Piya Sinha-Roy)
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Little, Brown will publish the book in 2013. Gladwell, 48, is a New York Times best-selling author whose books include 'The Tipping Point'.
Little, Brown is a division of Hachette Livre, a subsidiary of the Lagardere Group.
(Reporting By Christine Kearney, editing by Piya Sinha-Roy)
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Oscar-winning actor Ernest Borgnine dead at 95
The real-life U.S. Navy veteran who became a household name during the 1960s by starring as the maverick commander of a World War Two patrol boat in the popular television comedy 'McHale's Navy,' died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, longtime spokesman Harry Flynn said.
Borgnine, who continued to work until very recently, had been the oldest living recipient of an Academy Award for best actor, Flynn said.
A statement from the actor's family said he 'had been in excellent health until a recent illness.' Flynn said Borgnine recovered from unspecified surgery he underwent a month ago but his condition deteriorated rapidly after he visited the hospital on Tuesday for a medical checkup.
His last screen credit was the lead role of an aging nursing home patient in a film set for release later this year, 'The Man Who Shook the Hand of Vicente Fernandez.' The performance earned Borgnine a best actor award at the Newport Beach Film Festival, where it debuted in April, Flynn said.
With his burly profile, gruff voice and gap-toothed leer, Borgnine was on the verge of being typecast as the bad guy early in his career, following a string of convincing performances as the heavy in such films as 'Johnny Guitar' in 1954 and 'Bad Day at Black Rock in 1955.'
Borgnine's most memorable turn as a menacing tough guy was his breakout role in the 1953 Oscar-winning film 'From Here to Eternity' as the sadistic Sergeant 'Fatso' Judson, who terrorizes and eventually kills Frank Sinatra's character, Private Angelo Maggio.
UGLY DUCKLING ROLE
But Borgnine broke free from the bad-guy rut and won his own Oscar with a rare leading-man role in 1955's 'Marty,' playing a warm-hearted New York butcher who lamented, 'One fact I gotta face is that, whatever it is that women like, I ain't got it.'
In addition to his Academy Award, Borgnine's work in 'Marty' led to more sympathetic roles in such films as 'Jubal' (1956) and 'The Best Things in Life Are Free' (1956).
Critic Bosley Crowther described Borgnine's Oscar-winning performance in 'Marty,' a film version of a television play by Paddy Chayevsky, as 'a beautiful blend of the crude and strangely gentle and sensitive.'
Some critics hinted that Borgnine was a 'Marty' in real life, but the actor, who was married five times, took exception by saying, 'I'm no playboy, but I'm no dumb slob either.'
'Marty' also won Oscars for best picture, best director and adapted screenplay.
'Ernie is the nicest man I've ever worked with,' said Sidney Lanfield, who directed him on the TV sitcom 'McHale's Navy.' 'When he says, 'Hello! How are you?' or 'Glad to see you!' you can bet the line has not been rehearsed.'
The television show, in which he starred as the skipper of a misfit PT boat crew skirting Navy regulations while chasing Japanese submarines, ran on ABC from the fall of 1962 until August 1966 and reinvigorated Borgnine's career. Funnyman Tim Conway co-starred as McHale's ensign.
He starred again as Lieutenant Commander Quinton McHale in a 1964 big-screen adaptation of the TV show, and returned to supporting character work in such movies such as 'The Flight of the Phoenix' (1965), 'The Dirty Dozen' (1968), Sam Peckinpah's 'The Wild Bunch' (1969) and 'The Poseidon Adventure' (1972).
He appeared in dozens of films in all.
NAVY SERVICE
He was born Ermes Effron Borgino in Hamden, Connecticut, and did not take up acting until after a 10-year hitch in the U.S. Navy, including a stint during World War II as a gunner's mate on a destroyer in the Pacific.
'I just couldn't see myself going into a factory where I saw these pasty-faced fellows walking in and walking out after stamping their cards,' Borgnine once said.
Using money he earned from the G.I. Bill, Borgnine studied at the Randall School of Dramatic Arts in Hartford and performed on stage for several years at a Virginia theater.
His first Hollywood job was a low-budget picture, 'China Corsair,' in 1951, starring in ethnic makeup as the Chinese proprietor of a gambling club.
He made his Broadway debut in the 1949 Mary Chase comedy 'Harvey,' and after a trio of early-'50s films appeared on Broadway again in 1952 in another Chase production, 'Mrs. McThing,' this time opposite Helen Hayes.
Hayes ended up being a godmother to the eldest of Borgnine's three children, daughter Nancee, by his first wife.
Borgnine returned to series television as co-star of the mid-1980s action film 'Airwolf.' And in 1988 he portrayed a mafia chief in the big-screen film 'Spike of Bensonhurst.'
Working well into his 90s, Borgnine earned an Emmy nomination for his 2009 guest appearance on the final two episodes of the television hospital drama 'ER,' playing the husband of a dying elderly woman. The following year, he notched a cameo role as a CIA records keeper in the spy thriller 'Red.'
He performed voice work for animated productions late in his life, including 'SpongeBob SquarePants' and 'All Dogs Go to Heaven.'
Borgnine's 1964 marriage to singer-actress Ethel Merman barely lasted a month. He said it broke up because fans paid more attention to him than her during their honeymoon.
The longest of Borgnine's five marriages was his last - to Tova Traesnaes, whom he married in 1973. Despite his rough looks, Borgnine appeared in ads touting the face-rejuvenating powers of beauty products from a company she started.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman.; Editing by Bill Trott and Christopher Wilson)
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Sunday, July 8, 2012
Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes eye settlement: reports
Celebrity website TMZ.com, citing an unnamed source, reported that Holmes, 33, and Cruise, 50, are negotiating visitation, child support and a property settlement. People magazine made similar claims and said the estranged couple wishes to avoid airing marital issues in court.
Attorneys for Cruise and Holmes did not return requests for comment on Sunday, but Holmes was photographed a day earlier entering her attorney's office in New York.
In a move that Cruise's spokeswoman said left the 'Mission: Impossible' star 'deeply saddened,' Holmes filed divorce papers in New York in late June, ahead of last week's U.S. Independence Day holiday, citing irreconcilable differences.
According to her attorneys, Holmes is seeking sole custody of their 6-year-old daughter, Suri, and much speculation has surfaced that Holmes wants to raise the young girl outside the Church of Scientology, of which Cruise is a key member.
Cruise flew back to Los Angeles from a film shoot in Iceland early last week, and since then has remained publicly quiet about the divorce. His attorney, Los Angeles-based Bert Fields, has said Cruise wants to remain private.
Cruise and Holmes married in 2006 and have been enthusiastically followed by celebrity watchers, who dubbed the pair 'TomKat.' Holmes' divorce filing shocked their fans because their marriage seemed to be on solid ground.
(Reporting By Andrea Burzynski; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Sandra Maler)
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Autopsy of RFK Jr's wife finds antidepressants but no alcohol
Results of toxicology tests completed in June revealed that Mary Kennedy, 52, had the antidepressants Trazodone, Desmethylvenlafaxine and Venlafaxine in her blood when she died, a representative of the Westchester County Office of the Medical Examiner said. There was no alcohol found, the report said.
Her family could not be immediately reached for comment.
Mary Kennedy, who has been described by friends and relatives as having long struggled with depression, was found hanging in a barn behind the family's home in the New York City suburb of Bedford on May 16.
The cause of death was ruled as asphyxiation by hanging and the manner of death was suicide, according to her autopsy.
Mary Kennedy had four children with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a lawyer and environmentalist and the son of the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy. The couple filed for divorce in 2010, but it had not been finalized.
Her death was the latest tragedy to strike the Kennedy family. President Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 and his brother, Robert, suffered the same fate five years later. JFK's son, John F. Kennedy Jr., died in a 1999 plane crash along with his wife and sister-in-law.
Two of RFK's sons died unexpectedly - David Kennedy of a drug overdose in 1984 and Michael Kennedy in a 1999 skiing accident.
(Reporting By Lily Kuo; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Paul Simao)
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Saturday, July 7, 2012
Feds say Dr. Drew was paid to promote antidepressant
LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Dr. Drew Pinsky has come under fire for helping to market an antidepressant for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
A Boston judge on Thursday approved a record $3 billion guilty plea by British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline, which paid the 'Celebrity Rehab' doctor - known as Dr. Drew - $275,000 to tout Wellbutrin, approved by the FDA to treat depression, as a drug to treat other conditions including obesity, addictions and sexual dysfunction.
At one point, Pinsky, then hosting sex and romance radio program 'Loveline,' told a woman that ingredients in the drug explained her having 60 orgasms in one night, a by-the-books talking point from Glaxo in what the federal government called its 'nationwide scheme' to market the drug for alternative uses.
In a statement to Forbes, Pinsky defended his comments about the drug, claiming they were in line with his clinical observations of its side effects.
'In the late 90s I was hired to participate in a 2 year initiative discussing intimacy and depression which was funded by an educational grant by Glaxo Wellcome,' he wrote in the e-mailed statement. 'Services for the non branded campaign included town hall meetings, writings and multimedia activities in conjunction with the patient advocacy group the National Depressive and Manic Depressive Association. My comments were consistent with my clinical experience.'
But the Justice Department's complaint against Glaxo alleged that Pinsky highlighted the drug's libido-enhancing effects without revealing that he was a paid spokesman.
It is unclear whether Pinsky will face any legal issues.
Neither Pinsky nor Glaxo responded to emails and calls from TheWrap for comment.
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A Boston judge on Thursday approved a record $3 billion guilty plea by British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline, which paid the 'Celebrity Rehab' doctor - known as Dr. Drew - $275,000 to tout Wellbutrin, approved by the FDA to treat depression, as a drug to treat other conditions including obesity, addictions and sexual dysfunction.
At one point, Pinsky, then hosting sex and romance radio program 'Loveline,' told a woman that ingredients in the drug explained her having 60 orgasms in one night, a by-the-books talking point from Glaxo in what the federal government called its 'nationwide scheme' to market the drug for alternative uses.
In a statement to Forbes, Pinsky defended his comments about the drug, claiming they were in line with his clinical observations of its side effects.
'In the late 90s I was hired to participate in a 2 year initiative discussing intimacy and depression which was funded by an educational grant by Glaxo Wellcome,' he wrote in the e-mailed statement. 'Services for the non branded campaign included town hall meetings, writings and multimedia activities in conjunction with the patient advocacy group the National Depressive and Manic Depressive Association. My comments were consistent with my clinical experience.'
But the Justice Department's complaint against Glaxo alleged that Pinsky highlighted the drug's libido-enhancing effects without revealing that he was a paid spokesman.
It is unclear whether Pinsky will face any legal issues.
Neither Pinsky nor Glaxo responded to emails and calls from TheWrap for comment.
This news article is brought to you by DOGS - where latest news are our top priority.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Famed sports painter LeRoy Neiman dead at 91
Neiman, a showman known for his handlebar mustache, sometimes painted live on television during major events such as the Olympics and the Super Bowl, helping make him one of the world's most commercially successful contemporary artists.
Among his subjects were boxing's Muhammad Ali, former New York Jets football star Joe Namath and baseball greats Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio.
Neiman had just published his memoirs, 'All Told,' which came out days before his 91st birthday on June 8.
'He had a happy birthday. He was so happy to see his memoir published,' said Gail Parenteau, his publicist.
She said he died at Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan of natural causes. He had been hospitalized there in 2010 with vascular problems that required life-saving surgery to remove his right leg above the knee, she said.
By coincidence, his latest work - a multicolored golf ball 4 feet in diameter and completed in April - went on display in Chicago on Wednesday, said his archivist, Tara Zabor.
Neiman was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on June 8, 1921, and was of Turkish and Swedish descent 'as near as I can figure out,' according to his official website.
A child of the Great Depression whose father abandoned his family at a young age, Neiman enlisted in the U.S. military in 1942, later taking part in the invasion of Normandy and fighting in the Battle of the Bulge, according to a biography provided by Parenteau.
On returning home, he attended Chicago's School of the Art Institute on the G.I. Bill.
He became a contributing artist for Playboy magazine in the 1950s and established a friendship with its founder, Hugh Hefner, one of many famous friends including Frank Sinatra and Ali.
He painted about a dozen portraits of Ali, Zabor said, befriending the boxer when he was still known as Cassius Clay.
'TRUE ORIGINAL'
Neiman said he ignored advice that working with Playboy would ruin his career as a legitimate artist.
'But Playboy was liberating,' he wrote in his memoir. 'I was drawn to it and went for it full throttle. ... I lived my life as I wanted to live it and screw what happens. I always stayed in tune with my own ambitions and attitudes and I'm still my intractable old self, for better or worse.'
Patty Otis Abel, a contributor and editor on his memoir, said Hefner appreciated that Neiman came from a fine arts background.
'Hugh wanted to be able to combine a fine art and more of a commercial sensibility, and he felt that's what LeRoy brought,' Abel said.
Neiman was named official artist of the Olympic Winter Games in Lake Placid and Sarajevo in 1980 and 1984 and the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles, cementing his image as a painter of athletic themes. He also painted U.S. presidents, jazz musicians, Las Vegas gamblers and the animals of Africa in addition to authoring 15 books.
Abel agreed he was a showman.
'There was always a genuine aspect to it,' she said. 'It was never phony. This was a genuine guy and a true original.'
(Reporting By Daniel Trotta; editing by Christopher Wilson)
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Ashton Kutcher suing California DMV over reality show
The actor-producer is suing the California Department of Motor Vehicles for at least $1.44 million, saying it backed out of a planned reality series about the day-to-day drama and comedy at DMV offices.
Kutcher's Katalyst Productions and Soda and Pop, Inc., sued the department Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. In their complaint, they allege that the DMV committed to a 'docu-series' in 2010. It was to 'capture the variously humorous, emotional, dramatic, moving, humanizing and entertaining situations that arise on a daily basis at DMV's more than 170 offices across the state of California,' the lawsuit said.
DMV agreed to open up its offices for filming at least four half-hour episodes, and its agreement with Katalyst left open the possibility of up to six seasons, according to the plaintiffs. Katalyst made a deal to produce at least the first four half-hour episodes of the show for TruTV.
But DMV backed out, according to the suit, saying it no longer considered the project to be in its 'best interest.' Although Katalyst has offered to change the initial agreement, the lawsuit says, the DMV remain uninterested.
Katalyst says it has spent 'hundreds of thousands of dollars' developing the series, and is seeking at least $1.44 million in damages.
The DMV told TheWrap it does not comment on pending litigation.
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