Ben Starr, who co-created Silver Spoons and helped develop The Facts of Life, died Sunday of congestive heart failure at his home in Los Angeles, his daughter Carol Starr Schneider told the Los Angeles Times. He was 92. Starr co-created Silver Spoons with Martin Cohan and Howard Leeds. The series, which ran from 1982-86 on NBC before moving to first-run syndication for one more season, starred a young Ricky Schroder and Joel Higgins as his wealthy but irresponsible father. He also served as a writer and producer on Diff'rent Strokes and helped develop Facts of Life, a
read more...
read more...
- 1/21/2014
- by Kimberly Nordyke
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Veteran comedy writer Ben Starr died Sunday at the age of 92. Starr began his Hollywood career in radio as a writer for Al Jolson, George Burns, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. He later segued into television, amassing dozens of credits over a nearly 50-year span, most recently as a writer on 2001′s The Facts Of Life TV Reunion. Starr was a writer and co-creator of the Facts Of Life, which first aired in 1979 and ran through 1988. His other writing and/or producing credits include Mr. Ed (1961-1963), The Andy Griffith Show (1966), The Brady Bunch (1971-1973), Maude (1974), Chico And The Man (1977), All In The Family (1975-1978), Diff’rent Strokes (1978-1982) and Silver Spoons (1982-1987). Starr’s film credits include Oliver Twist (1974), Treasure Island (1973), and 1966′s Texas Across The River and Our Man Flint. He also was featured in Lunch, Donna Kanter’s documentary about comedians.
- 1/20/2014
- by THE DEADLINE TEAM
- Deadline TV
MasterChef's second season has seen the finalists tasked with everything from cooking for children and bikers to replicating a Gordon Ramsay signature dish, to preparing food for all three judges' mothers, to tackling the most difficult pressure test ever (making a perfect soufflé in just 90 minutes). Following last week's challenge, which saw the departure of Ben Starr, just four contestants remain in the running to win the $$250,000 prize and title of America's Next MasterChef. Jennifer Behm, Christian Collins, Adrien Nieto and Suzy Singh will each cook for judges Gordon Ramsay, Graham Elliot and Joe Bastianich tonight, but only three will progress to Tuesday night's finale when the winner will be crowned. In the sneak preview below, each of the final contestants can be seen talking about how much winning MasterChef (more)...
- 8/15/2011
- by By Lara Martin
- Digital Spy
Filed under: TV Replay
Ben Starr wanted to impress Chef Gordon Ramsay by showing him he could make British food on 'Masterchef' (Tuesdays, 9Pm on Fox). He made a risky choice, preparing shepherd's pie, a dish with which Ramsay is no doubt very familiar. He'd have to compete with Jennifer Behm's meatloaf and Adrien Nieto's meatball trio.
Ramsay loved Behm's meatloaf, while judge Graham Elliot thought Nieto's meatballs were too salty. "This dish is screaming for one thing," said Elliot. "A giant glass of water. It's so salty."
Then it was up to Starr. "We have brown veal, onion, carrot, celery, mushrooms sautéed in butter," he said, introducing his dish. "On top we have garlic mashed potatoes finished with a reduction of red wine beef stock with a little bit of worcestershire sauce to remind you of home."
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments...
Ben Starr wanted to impress Chef Gordon Ramsay by showing him he could make British food on 'Masterchef' (Tuesdays, 9Pm on Fox). He made a risky choice, preparing shepherd's pie, a dish with which Ramsay is no doubt very familiar. He'd have to compete with Jennifer Behm's meatloaf and Adrien Nieto's meatball trio.
Ramsay loved Behm's meatloaf, while judge Graham Elliot thought Nieto's meatballs were too salty. "This dish is screaming for one thing," said Elliot. "A giant glass of water. It's so salty."
Then it was up to Starr. "We have brown veal, onion, carrot, celery, mushrooms sautéed in butter," he said, introducing his dish. "On top we have garlic mashed potatoes finished with a reduction of red wine beef stock with a little bit of worcestershire sauce to remind you of home."
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments...
- 8/10/2011
- by Nick Zaino
- Aol TV.
Ben Starr has been eliminated from the MasterChef kitchen. The travel writer from Dallas, TX lost his chance to scoop the $$250,000 prize and title of 'MasterChef' on Tuesday night's episode of the Fox competition. Ben had started the episode on a high, winning the Mystery Box challenge with a shepherd's pie that Gordon Ramsay called "delicious". The Mystery Box ingredients had included ground pork, ground veal, ground beef, vegetables, potato and rice, and Gordon admitted that he had never had a shepherd's pie made with veal until now. Adrien and Jennifer were also in the top three for the Mystery Box challenge. The former made three different meatballs with three different sauces, although the judges thought it was too salty, and the latter made a meatloaf with roasted corn and homemade ketchup. Ben's prize for winning the Mystery (more)...
- 8/10/2011
- by By Lara Martin
- Digital Spy
Filed under: Features, Recaps
Graham Elliot is a world renowned chef and judge on Fox's 'MasterChef' who'll be guest blogging for AOL TV from time to time this season. Here are his thoughts on this week's episode ...
Ahh yeah, another mystery box challenge! Tonight's challenge was close to my heart, as it featured one of my favorite ingredients: diver scallops. Most scallops are dredged across the sea bed, resulting in broken shells, excess grit, and sand. Diver scallops, on the other hand, are hand-picked by scuba divers, thereby insuring they're in much more pristine shape when they get to the kitchen.
While many of the contestants have cooked scallops before, few of them have actually had the pleasure of shucking a live one freshly plucked from the water. In addition to actual cooking skills, a great chef must be able to show due respect for his or her ingredients.
Graham Elliot is a world renowned chef and judge on Fox's 'MasterChef' who'll be guest blogging for AOL TV from time to time this season. Here are his thoughts on this week's episode ...
Ahh yeah, another mystery box challenge! Tonight's challenge was close to my heart, as it featured one of my favorite ingredients: diver scallops. Most scallops are dredged across the sea bed, resulting in broken shells, excess grit, and sand. Diver scallops, on the other hand, are hand-picked by scuba divers, thereby insuring they're in much more pristine shape when they get to the kitchen.
While many of the contestants have cooked scallops before, few of them have actually had the pleasure of shucking a live one freshly plucked from the water. In addition to actual cooking skills, a great chef must be able to show due respect for his or her ingredients.
- 7/26/2011
- by Graham Elliot
- Aol TV.
MasterChef continues Monday, June 20, on Fox After scouring the nation for the best amateur cooks in the nation, the judges of MasterChef have chosen this season.s Top 18 finalists: Jennifer Behm, Erryn Cobb, Christian Collins, Christine Corley, Esther Kang, Jennie Kelley, Tracy Kontos, Max Kramer, Angel Moore-Soukkay, Giuseppe Morisco, Adrien Nieto, Derrick Prince, Mark Raffaelli, Alejandra Schrader, Alvin Schultz, Anthony Scruggs, Suzy Singh and Ben Starr. Our favorite three? Alvin Schultz, Suzy Singh and Christian Collins!! Only one finalist will walk away with the $250,000 grand prize. On Monday, June 20 (9:00-10:00 Pm Et/Pt) on Fox, these finalists compete in the first challenge. The contestants have one hour to prepare a dish using only the...
- 6/15/2011
- by April MacIntyre
- Monsters and Critics
Filed under: TV Replay
You have to be a pretty nerdy foodie for superchef Gordon Ramsay to call you "the ultimate food geek!"
On 'MasterChef,' (Mon., 9Pm Et on Fox) excitable contestant Ben Starr proved that he was one of the world's biggest food geeks as he wowed the judges with his tasty, pumpkin-flavored concoctions and his pumpkin-inspired chef's get-up.
Ben earned the moniker "Pumpkin Man" with a hefty serving of fish tacos made with his own pumpkin Ipa, and his hit signature ingredient, "crispy fried pumpkin!" The wacky, bright orange chef's hat and matching pumpkin print apron didn't hurt, either.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments...
You have to be a pretty nerdy foodie for superchef Gordon Ramsay to call you "the ultimate food geek!"
On 'MasterChef,' (Mon., 9Pm Et on Fox) excitable contestant Ben Starr proved that he was one of the world's biggest food geeks as he wowed the judges with his tasty, pumpkin-flavored concoctions and his pumpkin-inspired chef's get-up.
Ben earned the moniker "Pumpkin Man" with a hefty serving of fish tacos made with his own pumpkin Ipa, and his hit signature ingredient, "crispy fried pumpkin!" The wacky, bright orange chef's hat and matching pumpkin print apron didn't hurt, either.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments...
- 6/14/2011
- by Mike Moody
- Aol TV.
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.