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Patrick Adiarte, the Philippines-born dancer and actor who appeared in The King and I and Flower Drum Song on Broadway and the big screen and had a recurring role on M*A*S*H, has died. He was 82.

Adiarte died Tuesday in a Los Angeles-area hospital of pneumonia, his niece, Stephanie Hogan, told The Hollywood Reporter.

When The Brady Bunch went to Honolulu for a family vacation in a three-part episode that kicked off the fourth season of the ABC series in 1972, Adiarte played a construction gofer who gives the kids a tour before they meet with all kinds of chaos after Bobby (Mike Lookinland) discovers a small tiki idol that could be cursed.

Adiarte also was a popular dancer on the 1965-66 NBC musical variety series Hullabaloo, where he began a short-lived singing career with the pop tune “Five Different Girls.”

In 1952, Adiarte joined the Broadway cast of Rodgers...

A French filmmaker best known to horror fans for directing the first sequel to Steven Spielberg’s Jaws back in 1978, Jeannot Szwarc has passed away at the age of 85 this week.

Jane Seymour, who starred alongside the late Christopher Reeve in Szwarc’s 1980 film Somewhere in Time, writes on Facebook: “Today, we say goodbye to a true visionary. Jeannot Szwarc was not just a brilliant director but a kind and generous soul. He gifted us many timeless stories, including Somewhere in Time, a film that changed my life forever.

“May his memory be a blessing, and may his artistry live on in our hearts.”

Jeannot Szwarc got his start in Hollywood directing for multiple television shows throughout the late 1960s and into the 1970s including “Ironside,” “It Takes a Thief,” “Paris 7000,” “The Virginian,” “Longstreet” and “Marcus Welby, M.D.” He made his feature debut with the 1972 TV movie Night of Terror,...

Jeannot Szwarc, the French-American director who helmed the movies Somewhere in Time and Jaws 2 and multiple episodes of shows including The Practice, Smallville and Grey’s Anatomy, has died. He was 87.

Szwarc died Tuesday of respiratory failure at Central Hospital in Loches, France, his son Sacha Szwarc, a film editor, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Jane Seymour, who starred alongside Christopher Reeve in the 1980 time-traveling romantic fantasy Somewhere in Time, said on Facebook that the role changed her career.

“Jeannot Szwarc was not just a brilliant director but a kind and generous soul,” she wrote. “He gifted us many timeless stories, including Somewhere in Time, a film that changed my life forever. May his memory be a blessing, and may his artistry live on in our hearts.”

His other film credits included the Martin Sheen-starring Enigma (1982), the Helen Slater-starring Supergirl (1984) and Santa Claus (1985), starring David Huddleston and Dudley Moore.

Szwarc...

Jeannot Szwarc, the French filmmaker best known as the director of the science fiction romantic drama “Somewhere in Time” (1980), “Jaws 2” (1978) and “Supergirl” (1984), died Thursday. He was 85.

His death was announced by actress Jane Seymour, who co-starred with Christopher Reeve in “Somewhere in Time.” On Instagram, Seymour wrote, “Today, we say goodbye to a true visionary. Jeannot Szwarc was not just a brilliant director but a kind and generous soul. He gifted us many timeless stories, including ‘Somewhere in Time,’ a film that changed my life forever. May his memory be a blessing, and may his artistry live on in our hearts.”

Among Szwarc’s other feature films are the Michael Crichton thriller “Extreme Close-Up” (1973), “Santa Claus: The Movie” (1985) and the 1996 family film “Hercule et Sherlock.”

He also had a long and prolific career directing for American television, beginning in the 1960s with episodes of “Ironside” and “It Takes a Thief.

Jeannot Szwarc, the French director known for Jaws 2, Supergirl and The Rockford Files, has died. He was 85.

Jane Seymour, who starred alongside the late Christopher Reeve in Szwarc’s 1980 film Somewhere in Time, announced the director’s death Wednesday with a heartfelt statement on social media.

“Today, we say goodbye to a true visionary,” she wrote on Instagram. “Jeannot Szwarc was not just a brilliant director but a kind and generous soul. He gifted us many timeless stories, including Somewhere in Time, a film that changed my life forever. May his memory be a blessing, and may his artistry live on in our hearts.”

Producer Jeffrey Kramer, who worked with Szwarc on several titles over the years, wrote on Instagram, “Rip my dear Jeannot Szwarc One of the finest most talented souls I was privileged to know!”

Born Nov. 21, 1939 in Paris, Szwarc graduated from Harvard University before he began...

Earl Holliman, an actor whose scores of credits spanning a half-century ranged from 1950s films Forbidden Planet and Giant to Police Woman and others popular ’70s and ’80s TV dramas and starred in the first episode of The Twilight Zone, died Monday in Los Angeles after a short illness. He was 96.

His niece, Theresa Mullins Harris, announced the news on social media, writing in part: “His dream at 5 years old of becoming a movie star came true, more than he ever could have imagined.”

Holliman got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame won a Supporting Actor Golden Globe for 1957’s The Rainmaker and was nominated for the short-lived early-’90s ABC sitcom Delta, starring Delta Burke. He was a series regular on the latter, playing the understanding owner of a bar where aspiring country singer Delta Bishop (Burke) worked while trying to make it.

Born on September 11, 1928, Holliman...

Lisa Kudrow remembers her Friends TV mom, Teri Garr, following news of her death.

Garr died at the age of 79 due to multiple sclerosis, which was first diagnosed in 1999. Kudrow shared the small screen with Garr in multiple episodes of the NBC sitcom and paid tribute to her late co-star.

“Teri Garr was a comedic acting genius who was and is a huge influence on me and I know I’m not alone in that,” Kudrow said in a statement to People. “I feel so lucky and grateful I got to work with Teri Garr.”

Garr played the role of Phoebe Abbott on Friends, Kudrow’s Phoebe Buffay, and Ursula Buffay’s estranged mother. Her first appearance was in the 1997 Season 3 finale episode titled “The One at the Beach.” In the episode, Phoebe meets with a woman she believes is her parents’ friend. Phoebe later discovers that the woman is her biological mother.

We’re sad to report that Teri Garr, the gifted actress who starred in such classic films as Tootsie, Young Frankenstein, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, has passed away at 79. According to her publicist, Heidi Schaeffer, Garr died of multiple sclerosis after struggling with health issues in recent years. She passed away on Tuesday, leaving a legacy behind that shines like she did on the silver screen.

Garr began her Hollywood journey with minor roles in Elvis Presley movies during the 1960s. She appeared in films like Viva Las Vegas and Roustabout and also in Pajama Party, which starred Annette Funicello, Tommy Kirk, and Elsa Lanchester. Garr appears in various classic TV series, such as Star Trek, Batman, That Girl, Mayberry, It Takes a Thief, Room 222, and more. Regardless of her role, Garr stood out, destined to climb the Hollywood ladder with show-stopping performances in major motion pictures around the corner.

Teri Garr, who scored an Oscar nomination for Tootsie, starred opposite Gene Wilder in Mel Brooks’ classic horror spoof Young Frankenstein and played Richard Dreyfuss’ put-upon wife in Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, died Tuesday. She was 79.

Her publicist Heidi Schaeffer told The Associated Press that Garr died of multiple sclerosis after struggling with health issues in recent years.

Garr got her start with bit parts in a number of 1960s Elvis Presley movies, including Viva Las Vegas and Roustabout and appeared in the 1964 Annette Funicello romp Pajama Party. She continued to land small movie roles throughout the decade and also appeared in episodes of classic TV series Star Trek, That Girl, Mayberry R.F.D., It Takes a Thief and Room 222.

In the early ’70s, she recurred on The Sonny and Cher Hour and guested on M*A*S*H, The Odd Couple, The Bob Newhart Show,...

Following news of O.J. Simpson’s passing, many are learning about his career in football and entertainment.

He was a Heisman Trophy winner in college and an NFL star throughout the 1980s. Like other athletes, he ventured into roles in movies and television.

Some of Simpson’s television roles came the year of his Heisman Trophy win, including single-episode appearances in popular shows Dragnet, Ironside, and It Takes a Thief.

In the late 1980s through the mid-1990s, he was a recurring character in the popular Naked Gun series.

The detective spoof films starred the late Leslie Nielson as Detective Frank Drebin and Simpson as Detective Fred Nordberg.

Based on scarce details, Simpson’s last movie may have been from the Naked Gun series. However, others might see him listed for the upcoming film Mayday Z.

Eric Roberts and Tara Reid to star in Mayday Z

Based on the cast and synopsis,...

Bruce Kessler, who directed episodes of shows including The Monkees, It Takes a Thief, The Rockford Files, McCloud and The Commish when he wasn’t driving race cars, designing boats or circling the globe in a yacht, has died. He was 88.

Kessler died Thursday at his home in Marina del Rey after a brief illness, his brother, author and columnist Stephen Kessler, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Survivors also include his wife, actress Joan Freeman, perhaps best known as the love interest of Elvis Presley’s character in Roustabout (1964). She and Kessler were together for 54 years and married for 33.

Kessler served as second-unit director on Howard Hawks’ Red Line 7000 (1965), an action film about stock cars that starred James Caan, before embarking on a three-decade career as a director for television.

His credits included The Flying Nun, Adam-12, Marcus Welby, M.D., Get Christie Love!, Baretta, Switch, CHiPs, The A-Team, The Greatest American Hero,...

Charles Dierkop, best known for his roles in The Sting, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and Police Woman, died Sunday at a Sherman Oaks Hospital. He was 87.

He reportedly suffered from a heart attack and a case of pneumonia.

The Wisconsin-born character actor got his start in an uncredited role opposite Paul Newman in The Hustler. He reunited with him as Flat Nose Curry in the 1969 flick Butch Cassidy and as a bodyguard in the Best Picture Oscar-winning 1973 movie The Sting.

He found steady work in TV, with roles in episodes of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Lost in Space, The Girl From U.N.C.L.E., Mannix, Kung Fu, The F.B.I., The Andy Griffith Show, Star Trek, Batman, Adam-12, It Takes a Thief, Love, American Style and Mission: Impossible.

Dierkop played Detective Pete Royston from 1974-78 as a series regular opposite Angie Dickinson on NBC’s Police Woman, a spinoff of Police Story.

Stephen Kandel, the prolific screenwriter whose work over four decades in television spanned Sea Hunt to Star Trek, Batman to Barnaby Jones and Mannix to MacGyver, has died. He was 96.

Kandel died Oct. 21 of natural causes in his Boston apartment, his daughter Elizabeth Englander told The Hollywood Reporter.

Kandel also wrote multiple episodes of such shows as The Millionaire, The Rogues, Gidget, I Spy, Ironside, The Wild Wild West, It Takes a Thief, Dan August, The New Mike Hammer, Mission: Impossible, Room 222, The Magician, Medical Center, Cannon, Hawaii Five-o and Hart to Hart.

Plus, he co-created Iron Horse, a 1966-68 drama from ABC and Screen Gems that starred Dale Robertson, as a gambler turned railroad baron, Gary Collins and Ellen Burstyn.

“His résumé reads like a Baby Boomer’s dream list of must-see TV,” Tom Weaver wrote in his 2005 book, Earth vs. the Sci-Fi Filmmakers.

Kandel had a hand...

Looking back at Ke Huy Quan's filmography, starting with his standout performances in the movies Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and The Goonies, the success he's experiencing now has been long overdue. Quan's career has had its highs and lows, but his talent shines through in his Academy Award-winning role in Everything Everywhere All at Once. Quan's career resurgence continues with his likable portrayal of Ouroboros in season 2 of Loki, showcasing his enduring talent.

Ke Huy Quan has appeared in precisely 10 movies throughout his career, as of 2023, and some definitely rank better than others. Starting with his memorable turn as Short Round in 1984's Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and continuing via appearances in films like 1985's The Goonies and 1992's Encino Man, Quan's career took a lengthy pause before making a comeback with his Academy Award-winning role in 2022's Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Lew Palter, the veteran character actor and admired CalArts School of Theater faculty member who portrayed the department store magnate Isidor Straus in James Cameron’s Titanic, has died. He was 94.

Palter died May 21 of lung cancer at his home in Los Angeles, his daughter, Catherine Palter, told The Hollywood Reporter.

The New York native played one of the Supreme Court justices in First Monday in October (1981), starring Walter Matthau, Jill Clayburgh and Barnard Hughes, and he donned a robe for stints on The Flying Nun, Hill Street Blues and L.A. Law as well.

Plus, he portrayed an LAPD detective on the 1976-77 CBS series Delvecchio, starring Judd Hirsch.

Palter joined CalArts in 1971 and served as an acting teacher and director at the Santa Clarita school until his retirement in 2013, but he also conducted private workshops and taught around the country and around the world, including in Edinburgh and at Carnegie Mellon and UCLA.

Carol Locatell, who had a memorable turn as the foulmouthed mother Ethel Hubbard in Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning and worked alongside Burt Reynolds in three films, has died. She was 82.

Locatell died April 11 at her home in Sherman Oaks after a long battle with cancer, her husband, songwriter and record producer Gregory Prestopino, told The Hollywood Reporter. They were together for 50 years.

Locatell moved from Los Angeles to New York in the mid-1980s to shake up her career, and from her first audition there she landed a part on Broadway in Neil Simon’s Broadway Bound, which premiered in 1986. She then appeared in The Shadow Box in 1994 and in The Rose Tattoo a year later.

She first met Reynolds when she auditioned for him for a role in Simon’s Chapter Two at his dinner theater in Jupiter, Florida. She worked with him in Paternity...

Coolio‘s cause of death has been revealed more than six months after he was found dead at a friend’s house in Los Angeles.

The rapper, 59, died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamine, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner.

The coroner’s report also included cardiomyopathy, asthma and phencyclidine, or Pcp, as contributors to his death.

According to the CDC, cardiomyopathy is a “collection of diverse conditions of the heart muscle” that can make its ability to pump blood more difficult.

Coolio’s spokesperson said the rapper went to the bathroom at a friend’s house. When he didn’t come out, the friend called for help. Once responders arrived, Coolio was pronounced dead.

In Memoriam 2022: 100 Great Celebrities Who Died In 2022

Several musicians and celebrities paid tribute following the announcement of his death, including Weird Al Yankovic, Ice Cube and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Rapper Coolio, who helped define the sound of the 1990s, died in Los Angeles on Sept. 28, 2022, at the age of 59, his manager, Jarez Posey, confirmed to Rolling Stone at the time. (Popsugar previously reached out to Coolio's rep for confirmation but did not hear back.)

On April 6, nearly seven months after his death, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner confirmed that Coolio died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine. The coroner's report, which is available online, also noted cardiomyopathy unspecified, asthma, and recent phencyclidine (Pcp) use as other significant contributors to his death.

Coolio was born Artis Leon Ivey Jr. in Monessen, Pa, in 1963. He later moved to the Compton neighborhood of Los Angeles, home to many other notable rappers including members of the group N.W.A, Kendrick Lamar, and Roddy Ricch. Coolio released his debut album, "It Takes a Thief," in 1994, and the following year, he released the seminal "Gangsta's Paradise.

Sharon Acker, best known as Lee Marvin’s unfaithful wife in the 1967 film Point Blank, died March 16 in a Toronto residential home. She was 87 and her death was confirmed by daughter Kim Everest, a casting director.

Acker had a long and varied resume in film, television, and the stage. In 1956, she played the teacher Mrs. Stacey on a CBC adaptation of Anne of Green Gables. She then joined the Stratford Shakespeare Festival company, starring as Anne Page opposite future Star Trek costar William Shatner in a production of The Merry Wives of Windsor.

In addition to Point Blank, her film credits include Lucky Jim (1957). Acker also was in Don’t Let the Angels Fall (1969), which played in competition at Cannes. She was selected by the Motion Picture Exhibitors of Canada as their Film Star of Tomorrow that year,

Her memorable TV roles included a 1976-77 CBS adaptation of Executive Suite, playing...

Sharon Acker, the Canadian actress who portrayed Lee Marvin’s unfaithful wife in the 1967 neo-noir classic Point Blank and the right-hand woman Della Street opposite Monte Markham on a rebooted Perry Mason in the 1970s, has died. She was 87.

Acker died March 16 in a retirement home in her native Toronto, her daughter Kim Everest, a casting director, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Star Trek fans know Acker for her January 1969 turn as Odona, a desperate woman from an overpopulated planet, on the third-season episode “The Mark of Gideon.”

She also starred on a 1976-77 CBS adaptation of Executive Suite, playing the wife of Mitchell Ryan‘s Dan Walling. (Acker and Ryan assumed the parts performed by William Holden and June Allyson in the 1954 MGM film directed by Robert Wise.)

In John Boorman’s Point Blank, Acker’s character takes up with John Vernon’s Mal Reese after he shoots Walker (Marvin...

Gordon Pinsent, a prolific Canadian actor who gained international recognition in 2006 for his performance alongside Julie Christie in Sarah Polley’s drama “Away From Her,” died Saturday. He was 92 years old.

Pinsent’s death was confirmed to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation through a statement released by his family. No further details about his death are available at this time.

“Gordon Pinsent’s daughters, Leah and Beverly, and his son, Barry, would like to announce the passing of their father peacefully in sleep today with his family at his side,” reads a note written on behalf of Pinsent’s family by his son-in-law, Peter Keleghan. “Gordon passionately loved this country and its people, purpose and culture to his last breath.”

With more than 150 film and television acting credits, Pinsent’s career spanned seven decades and made him a household name in his native country. His role as a husband losing his...

Gordon Pinsent, one of Canada’s most iconic actors, has died. He was 92 and died in his sleep Saturday, his family confirmed.

“Gordon Pinsent’s daughters Leah and Beverly, and his son Barry, would like to announce the passing of their father peacefully in sleep today with his family at his side,” said a note written on behalf of Pinsent’s family by his son-in-law, actor Peter Keleghan.

“Gordon passionately loved this country and its people, purpose, and culture to his last breath.”

Pinsent’s career spanned dozens of films and TV projects over six decades, including Away From Her, Due South, The Red Green Show, Babar and the Adventures of Badou, The Grand Seduction and The Shipping News, The Forest Rangers, Quentin Durgens, M.P., the original Street Legal and Republic of Doyle, among others.

In the U.S., where he lived in Los Angeles for six years, he...

Exclusive: We hear that Netflix has preemptively picked up scribe Greg Russo’s spec script Seismic for six figures.

The thriller from the Mortal Kombat co-writer follows a single mother who fights to reunite with her missing son amid chaos after the Earth’s surface is decimated by a mysterious attack.

Shawn Levy, Dan Cohen & Dan Levine are producing for 21 Laps alongside Adam Kolbrenner for Lit Entertainment Group. Max Gains is overseeing for 21 Laps. and Patrick White is overseeing for Lit.

New Line’s Mortal Kombat opened to a robust 23.3 million stateside in April 2021 as theaters were finding their footing as part of a day-and-date HBO Max theatrical strategy during the pandemic. The pic went on to make about 84M worldwide.

Russo wrote Robotech for Sony with James Wan directing and Heatseekers for Paramount with Timur Bekmambetov attached to direct and Michael Bay and Chris Morgan producing. Other recent work...

Henry Silva, who starred in Johnny Cool, fought Frank Sinatra in The Manchurian Candidate and was one of Sinatra’s fellow thieves in Ocean’s 11, among dozens of screen roles spanning a half-century, died Wednesday of natural causes at the Motion Picture and Television Fund Hospital in Woodland Hills, CA. He was 95.

An actor whose distinctive face often led to typecasting as the heavy, his 130-plus film and TV credits also include The Bravados, starring Gregory Peck (1958); Cinderfella, with Jerry Lewis (1960); the Rat Pack-led Western Sergeants 3 (1962); Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979); Love and Bullets with Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland and Rod Steiger (1979); the Burt Reynolds pics Sharky’s Machine (1981) and Cannonball Run II (1982); Warren Beatty’s Dick Tracy (1990); Steven Seagal’s first film Above the Law (1988); and Jim Jarmusch’s Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai with Forest Whitaker (1999).

Along with the title role opposite Elizabeth Montgomery in Johnny Cool...

Destroyer’s last album, 2020’s Have We Met, was recorded mostly at Dan Bejar’s kitchen table — whispered phantasmagorias woven after his family was asleep. Bejar’s latest, Labyrinthitis, is an apt insomniac’s companion as well — but this time it’s for lonely dancers who linger on the floor until the sun comes up, high on adrenaline… or something else.

The Vancouver singer-songwriter has spent his career happily swerving between sounds and moods, from the Bowie-esque (2001’s Streethawk: A Seduction) to the meta-yacht (2011’s Kaputt) to the acerbic Springsteenian...

Veteran actor Gavin MacLeod, who starred in lead roles in The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Love Boat, has passed away. He was 90.

MacLeod died early Saturday morning in the company of his loved ones and caretakers, his nephew Mark See told TMZ. The actor had been in and out of the hospital for months with varying illnesses, but an official cause of death has not been reported.

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Gregory Sierra, who was a key part of two major 1970s sitcoms as Julio Fuentes on Sanford and Son and Sgt. Miguel “Chano” Amenguale on Barney Miller, has died. He was 83.

Sierra died Jan. 4 in Laguna Woods, California, from cancer, according to a family spokesman. His death just became public today.

Born in New York’s Spanish Harlem, Sierra worked with the National Shakespeare Company and in the New York Shakespeare Festival. He also appeared in off-Broadway plays and was a standby on Broadway for The Ninety Day Mistress in 1967.

Moving to Los Angeles, Sierra had guest appearances on such shows as It Takes a Thief, Medical Center, The High Chaparral, Mod Squad, The Flying Nun and Kung Fu.

In films he was also a supporting actor in Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970), Getting Straight (1970), Papillon (1973), The Towering Inferno (1974) and the Orson Welles project The Other Side of the Wind.

Lynn Kellogg, an actress and singer who originated the role of Sheila in the first Broadway production of “Hair,” died on Nov. 12, according to the New York Times. She was 77.

Her publicist, Timothy Philen, told the New York Times that Kellogg’s cause of death was Covid-19. According to Kellogg’s husband, John Simpers, Kellogg was infected at a recent gathering at a Branson, Mo. theater, where most of the people in attendance were not wearing masks. Kellogg had previously been diagnosed with a non-life-threatening form of leukemia, which made her more susceptible to the virus.

Kellogg was born on April 2, 1943 in Appleton, Wis., as one of four children. She attended the University of Wisconsin, but dropped out after one year. In 1964, she made her television debut on the series “The Edge of Night.”

In the original 1968 Broadway production of “Hair,” Kellogg played Sheila, who transforms from a debutante into...

Lynn Kellogg-Simpers, who played the original Sheila in the 1968 Broadway production of Hair, has died at 77. She had non-terminal leukemia complicated by Covid-19, according to her husband, John Simpers.

He said she had recently attended a gathering in a theater in Branson, Missouri. Many in attendance were not wearing masks.

In addition to Broadway, Kellogg-Simpers’s television appearances include the daytime series The Edge of Night, The Beverly Hillbillies, It Takes a Thief” and Mission: Impossible.”.

She also had a supporting role in the Elvis Presley film, Charro!

A talented singer, Kellogg-Simpers appeared on The Johnny Cash Show and entertained Vietnam War troops. She also toured as a folk musician.

Late in her career, she developed the Sunday morning series Animals, Animals, Animals starring Hal Linden, which won a Peabody Award and a Daytime Emmy for outstanding children’s informational series.

Oscar-winning composer, Grammy-winning arranger, jazz pianist and bandleader, pioneer in the digital recording world: Dave Grusin could retire on his laurels. But at 86, he’s itching to get back on the road and perform again.

“Oh, if they ever let us,” he tells Variety from his Montana ranch. “Not to have anything to do, it’s disconcerting to say the least.” Adds Grusin’s longtime bandmate, guitarist Lee Ritenour: “He’s gotten used to it, traveling the world and being appreciated. I think he enjoys that.”

And yet, if the pandemic continues to torture artists throughout 2021, there are still all those Grusin soundtracks to appreciate: the fragile beauty of “The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter” (1968), the atmospheric colors of “Three Days of the Condor” (1975), the hymn-like simplicity of “On Golden Pond” (1981), the delightfully upbeat “Tootsie” (1982), the Mexican folk influences of “The Milagro Beanfield War” (1987), the late-night jazz of “The Fabulous Baker Boys...

Billy Goldenberg, the Emmy-winning composer and songwriter, died Monday night at his home in New York City. He was 84.

Goldenberg wrote the themes for such 1970s TV series as “Kojak,” “Harry O” and “Rhoda,” composed the pilot scores for “Night Gallery” and “Columbo,” and won Emmys for the TV-movie “Queen of the Stardust Ballroom” and miniseries “The Lives of Benjamin Franklin,” “King” and “Rage of Angels.”

He expanded his 1975 “Queen of the Stardust Ballroom” song score, with lyricists Marilyn and Alan Bergman, into the score of the 1978 Broadway musical “Ballroom,” directed and choreographed by Michael Bennett of “A Chorus Line” fame. It earned eight Tony nominations including Best Musical.

Reminiscing Wednesday about their collaboration on “Ballroom,” Alan Bergman told Variety: “Billy was one of the rare composers who was also a dramatist. Lots of people can write melodies, but you could tell Billy the situation, what the characters were feeling,...

Actress Carol Lynley, best known for her role in the 1972 film “The Poseidon Adventure,” died at her Pacific Palisades home Tuesday after suffering a heart attack, according to her friend, actor Trent Dolan. She was 77.

Lynley began her career as a child model, appearing on the cover of Life magazine at the age of 15, before starring in Disney’s “The Light in the Forest” and the independent film “Holiday for Lovers.” Shortly after, she secured a breakout role in the 1958 Broadway play “Blue Denim” and its subsequent film adaptation, in which she played 15-year-old Janet Willard tasked with figuring out how to undergo an illegal abortion.

The play, written by James Leo Herlihy, received immediate criticism for its laissez-faire attitude toward abortion, leading to a revised ending in the film that sees Janet go through with her pregnancy. Despite the controversy, the role earned Lynley a nomination for a Golden...

Tom Jennings, a retired Hollywood talent agent and casting director, was killed in a household fire on Bainbridge Island in Washington State on April 18, his family announced Tuesday. He was 81.

Jennings’ notable clients during his long career included Julian Fellowes, Burl Ives, Lee Van Cleef and Gene Simmons.

Along with partner Walter Beakel, he founded the boutique talent agency Beakel and Jennings in 1976.

Also Read: Peggy Lipton of 'Mod Squad' and 'Twin Peaks' Dies at 72

Born in Evanston, Illinois in 1937, Jennings grew up in Santa Barbara, California, and later attended Hanover College in Indiana before serving in the Marine corps. He began his career in Hollywood in the late 1950s as an agency assistant to Bing Crosby at Artists Agency Corporation, later moving on to General Artists where he assisted Bill Sargent with the cult music series “The Teenage Music International.”

Following his departure from General Artists in the early ’60s,...

Michele Carey, Elvis Presley‘s former costar in Live a Little, Love a Little, has died. She was 75.

The actress, who retired in 1986, passed away on Nov. 21, according to spokesperson Michael Anthony, who confirmed the news on her Facebook page on Saturday.

“Today I have the saddest task, one I had never hoped to do during my lifetime, and that is to report to the many friends and fans of Michele Carey that what you have read online is terribly true,” the post read.

“Michele passed away on November 21st with her family by her side at the tender age...

Celeste Yarnall, a busy episodic TV and film actress primarily of the 1960s and ’70s and remembered by fans of the original Star Trek series for her one-time appearance as Yeoman Martha Landon, died October 7 at her home in Westlake Village, CA. She was 74.

Her death followed a battle with ovarian cancer and was first reported on the website StarTrek.com. In 2014 and 2015, Yarnall wrote several guest columns for the website about her diagnosis.

Yarnall, a familiar presence in later years on the Star Trek convention and autograph circuit, also has a firm, if small, place in Elvis Presley history: In 1968’s Live a Little, Love a Little, the actress — beautifully decked out in a glittery silver mini-dress and, briefly, a white fur coat — played a party-goer who draws Presley’s single-minded attention. He sings “A Little Less Conversation” to her in perhaps the film’s most memorable scene, a...

Ralph Woolsey, an Emmy-winning cinematographer who worked on such series as Batman and It Takes a Thief and films including The Iceman Cometh and The Great Santini, has died. He was 104. The American Society of Cinematographers, which gave him its career award in 2003, said he died March 23 at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills.

The Asc described Woolsey as a consummate technician whose Hollywood career paralleled the birth and early evolution of television cinematography, including the transition from black-and-white to color. Among the many series he shot were Maverick, 77 Sunset Strip — for which he earned Emmy noms in 1959 and 1960, respectively — Batman and Mister Roberts. He won the 1968 Emmy for It Takes a Thief, starring Robert Wagner.

Born on New Year’s Day 1914, in Oregon, the first movies Woolsey saw were silent. He began his career while a student at the University of Minnesota, making conservation...

Soon-Tek Oh, a pioneering figure in Asian-American theater who voiced Fa Zhou in two “Mulan” films and acted with Roger Moore in “Man with the Golden Gun,” has died. He was 85.

The Korean-American actor died Wednesday in Los Angeles after a long fight with Alzheimer’s, according to actor Chil Kong. Kong co-founded the Lodestone Theatre Ensemble in Los Angeles under Oh’s guidance.

In addition to his voice credits in “Mulan,” Oh acted in numerous television series throughout his career, beginning in the ’60s with credits on series like “It Takes a Thief” and “I Spy” and spanning through the ’90s with repeat appearances on shows including “Hawaii Five-o,” “M*A*S*H,” and “Charlie’s Angels.” He also acted in “Magnum, P.I.,” “Cagney & Lacey,” and “Hill Street Blues” and the mini-series “East of Eden.”

In 1974, Oh appeared as Lieutenant Hip in “Man With the Golden Gun.” In the film, Hip...

By Dean Brierly

“It Takes a Thief,” the iconic adventure/espionage series that many consider Robert Wagner’s defining role, has had an interesting if somewhat checkered DVD release history. As reported in Cinema Retro back in 2010, the first digital presentation of Alexander Mundy’s nefarious exploits appeared in July of that year courtesy of the German company Polyband, which released all 16 season one episodes in a pair of three-disc sets, followed up with a four-disc set featuring 12 of the 26 season two episodes, but then inexplicably ended its release program. These Region 2 sets, which have English as well as German audio options, are still available at Amazon Germany.

In October 2010, Australia’s Madman Entertainment jumped into the fray, putting out the complete first season in a five-disc set, and subsequently issuing seasons two and three as seven-disc sets. These Region 4 sets are now out of print.

Meanwhile, American fans clamoring...

Cinema Retro columnist Tom Lisanti co-authored (with Louis Paul) the book "Femme Fatales: Women in Espionage Films and Television, 1962-1973" for McFarland publishers. The book has just been issued in a softcover edition, revised and updated. Here is Tom Lisanti's story behind the creation of the book.

It was a long time coming, fifteen years in fact, but McFarland and Company finally released a soft cover edition of the very popular and well-received Film Fatales: Women in Espionage Film & Television, 1962-1973 by Louis Paul and myself. The book profiles 107 dazzling women (Ursula Andress, Raquel Welch, Dahlia Lavi, Carol Lynley, Elke Sommer, and Sharon Tate, among them) who worked in the swinging sixties spy genre on the big and small screens. Some include interviews with these sexy spy gals. This new edition contains some profile revisions and updates and a few new photos.

The idea for this book was all Louis Paul’s.

The director that epitomized the 1970’s, Joseph Sargent, has sadly passed away. (1925-2014)

With a career lasting 50 years, Sargent brought to the big screen such thrilling cinema as The Taking Of The Pelham One Two Three, MacArthur, White Lightning and Colossus: The Forbin Project.

Directors Guild of America President Paris Barclay made the following statement upon learning of the passing of director Joseph Sargent:

“When it comes to directing Movies for Television, Joe’s dominance and craftsmanship was legendary – for the past 50 years. With eight DGA Awards nominations in Movies for Television, more than any other director in this category, Joe embodied directorial excellence on the small screen. He was unafraid of taking risks, believing in his heart that television audiences demanded the highest quality stories – whether chronicling uncomfortable historic events like the infamous Tuskegee syphilis study in Miss Evers’ Boys, or compelling personal stories about inspiring individuals like...

Glen A. Larson, the television writer-producer who created Battlestar Galactica, among many other hits series, died on Friday at the age of 77. Larson's son told The Hollywood Reporter that he died of esophageal cancer at UCLA Medical Center.

Larson's incredibly fruitful television career came after a stint in the 1950s pop group the Four Preps. After working as a story editor and producer on It Takes a Thief, he created his first show with the western Alias Smith and Jones, followed by The Six Million Dollar Man. In 1976, Larson introduced Quincy,...

Glen A. Larson, the wildly successful television writer-producer whose enviable track record includes Quincy M.E., Magnum, P.I., Battlestar Galactica, Knight Rider and The Fall Guy, has died. He was 77. Larson, a singer in the 1950s clean-cut pop group The Four Preps who went on to compose many of the theme songs for his TV shows, died Friday night of esophageal cancer at UCLA Medical Center in Santa Monica, his son, James, told The Hollywood Reporter. Larson also wrote and produced for such noteworthy series as ABC’s It Takes a Thief, starring his fellow Hollywood High

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The towering actor who played the mercenary assassin Jaws in a pair of Roger Moore-era 007 movies and the enigmatic alien in one of the most famous episodes of The Twilight Zone died today. Richard Kiel would have turned 75 on Saturday. His agent of 35 years, Steven Stevens Sr, told Deadline that Kiel died this afternoon at St. Agnes Medical Center in Fresno, CA. The 7-foot-2 actor with the crooked smile got his start in early-1060s TV, appearing in such series as Laramie, Thriller and The Rifleman. He appeared in the 1962 sci-fi feature The Phantom Planet before landing the chilling Twilight Zone role. In “To Serve Man,” he played a representative of an advanced, giant alien race called the Kanamits, who alight on Earth amid what seems to be peace and good will. Kiel delivers a mysterious encrypted book to a meeting of the United Nations, and the episode soars from there.

Davina McCall's Sport Relief documentary attracted 3.65 million on Thursday evening, overnight data reveals.

BBC One's Beyond Breaking Point achieved an audience share of 17.3% at 9pm on a quiet Thursday night.

The One Show was the most-watched programme outside of news and soaps with 4.44m (21.8%) at 7pm. Later, Holiday Hit Squad brought in 3.10m (14.6%), and Question Time was seen by 2.35m (21.8%) at 10.35pm.

On BBC Two, The Hairy Bikers' Asian Adventure cooked with 2.14m (10.1%) at 8pm, while the second part of The Worricker Trilogy - Turks & Caicos - starring Bill Nighy appealed to 2.29m (11.5%) at 9pm.

On ITV, Ade Edmondson's new series Ade at Sea interested 2.63m (12.4%) at 8.30pm, followed by documentary Dangerous Dogs with 1.97m (9.3%) at 9pm (269,000/1.7% on +1).

Channel 4's Hoarder Next Door fascinated 1.47m (6.9%) at 8pm (166k/0.8%). Inside Rolls-Royce gathered 2.13m (10.1%) at 9pm (361k/2.3%) and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown amused 982k (6.1%) at 10pm (221k...

Celebrity Juice returned for its new series with over a million viewers on Thursday night, according to early data.

ITV2's comedy panel show brought in 1.14 million viewers (7.1%) at 10pm, following the recent Ant & Dec special (135,000/1.6% on +1).

Earlier, The Big Reunion continued with 331k (1.6%) at 9pm.

BBC One's Holiday Hit Squad jointly topped the ratings overall outside of soaps with 3.44m (16.7%) at 8pm, along with Famous, Rich & Hungry at 9pm, also with 3.44m (16.6%). Question Time interested 2.34m (22.1%) at 10.35pm.

On BBC Two, the Hairy Bikers' Asian Adventure brought in 2.15m (10.4%) at 8pm, followed by the film My Week With Marilyn with 1.37m (7.0%) at 9pm.

ITV's coverage of Tottenham's Europa League loss to Benfica scored 3.13m (15.3%) at 7.45pm.

On Channel 4, The Hoarder Next Door gathered 1.66m (8.0%) at 8pm (163k/6.8% on +1), while Live From Space entertained 1.40m (6.8%) at 9pm (178k/1.2%). How To Be a Billionaire was seen by 618k (4.2%) at...

Birds of a Feather came out on top for its current series finale on Thursday outside of soaps, according to overnight figures.

The recently-renewed ITV sitcom dropped over 500,000 viewers from its last episode in mid-February, amusing 4.81 million (12.9%) at 8.30pm (116k/0.5% on +1).

On BBC One, Holiday Hit Squad returned with 3.18m (14.3%) at 8pm, followed by Diy Sos with 4.26m (19.1%) at 9pm. Question Time interested 2.61m (23.5%) at 10.35pm.

BBC Two's Permission Impossible gathered 1.25m (6.1%) at 7pm, while the Hairy Bikers' Asian Adventure cooked with 2.10m (9.4%) at 8pm. New period drama 37 Days appealed to 2.21m (9.9%) at 9pm.

On Channel 4, The Hoarder Next Door fascinated 1.22m (5.5%) at 8pm (221k/1.0%), and The Floods that Foiled New Years brought in 1.71m (7.7%) at 9pm (312k/2.0%).

Channel 5's It Takes a Thief To Catch a Thief intrigued 1.20m (5.4%) at 8pm (127k/0.6%). The Hotel Inspector was seen by 1.03m (4.6%) at 9pm (132k/0.8%) and 70 Stone and Almost Dead attracted 974k (6.1%) at 10pm.

The year now ending marks another 12-month period of losing talents who have given television viewers entertainment or information ... and some of those passings, even more sadly, came as major and untimely shocks. Zap2it remembers:

Paul Walker: The actor best-known for the "Fast & Furious" movies had career roots in such TV shows as "Who's the Boss?" "Highway to Heaven" and "Touched by an Angel."

James Gandolfini: He projected so much older as mobster Tony Soprano, many were surprised to learn the three-time Emmy winner only was in his 30s and 40s when he played the part.

Cory Monteith: As Finn Hudson on "Glee," the Canadian-born performer touched fans of all ages both in life and afterward.

Jean Stapleton: Forever TV's top "dingbat," the "All in the Family" actress earned three Emmys as lovably daffy Edith Bunker.

Jonathan Winters: The improvisation genius who inspired his...

This Week:

Neill Blomkamp’s Chappie adds Sigourney Weaver; a feature film based on It Takes a Thief is in the works; the Star Blazers adaptation has set Christopher McQuarrie to direct; Robert Zemeckis will direct The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane; and Victor Rasuk joins Fifty Shades of Grey as Jose.

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Chappie, the latest film from sci-fi director Neill Blomkamp (Elysium), has begun filming in Johannesburg.

This casting news comes hot on the heels of the announcement that Sigourney Weaver has been added to the film’s cast. It’s unclear, however, what role the actress might take on at this time.

Weaver joins a cast that already includes Hugh Jackman, Dev Patel, ...

Click to continue reading Movie News Wrap Up: ‘Fifty Shades of Grey,’ ‘Star Blazers,’ ‘Chappie’ & More

The post Movie News Wrap Up: ‘Fifty Shades of Grey,’ ‘Star Blazers,’ ‘Chappie’ & More appeared first on Screen Rant.

Reaffirming that every old action show is destined to live again (not so fast, Street Hawk), big-screen remakes of The Rockford Files and It Takes A Thief are edging ever closer to joining the yellowing TV Guide that is the modern box office. As we first relayed last year, Vince Vaughn is both producing and starring in the Rockford update, with Vaughn taking over the James Garner role of a downtrodden P.I. who prefers talking his way out of trouble, and bringing his own talent for just talking and talking, until you surrender yourself to be arrested or killed ...

Universal Pictures has plans to bring the 1968 ABC series It Takes a Thief to the big screen, Variety reports. Hollywood newcomer Greg Russo has come aboard to provide the screenplay. Robert Wagner, Malachi Throne and Fred Astaire starred in the original show, which ran for 66 episodes and followed cat burglar Alexander Mundy (Wagner) as he agrees to work for the United States Secret Intelligence Agency in exchange for his release from prison. It's quite likely that the studio has hopes of turning the 60's spy series into a franchise, similar to what Paramount Pictures did with Mission: Impossible and what Warner Bros. is aiming for with their upcoming The Man From U.N.C.L.E. . John Davis and Joseph Singer are attached to produce.