It is with profound sorrow that we have to announce the passing of Woolly Wolstenholme. In recent weeks Woolly's mental health had taken a turn for the worse and sadly he took his own life on Monday 13th December 2010. In this difficult time our thoughts are with Woolly's partner, Sue. We would ask all of Woolly's fans to remember his incredible contribution to popular music and his unique presence on stage. from: http://www.woollywolstenholme.co.uk/news.htm
John Warhola, brother of artist Andy Warhol and guardian of his legacy, died Christmas Eve in Pittsburgh. He was 85.
"My grandfather told my father, 'Your role is to take care of Andy and make sure he goes to school, because he's going to be successful someday,'" Warhola's son, Donald, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
After their father's death, John Warhola worked odd jobs to support their mother and pay for the education of his brother, who moved to New York and became Andy Warhol. Warhol died in 1987.
Donald Warhola said his uncle called his father every Sunday to keep up on the family.
"My father … played a pivotal role in helping Andy become what he wanted to become. He did that out of the love of his heart," said Donald Warhola.
Warhola was a board member of the Andy Warhol Foundation and helped establish the Warhol museums in Pittsburgh and the family's ancestral home in Medzilaborce, Slovakia.
"We are losing our own father, our founder," said Michal Bycko of the Slovak museum. "With the sudden departure of John Warhola, our museum is losing its soul."
Warhola is survived by his brother, Paul, and sons, Donald, Mark and Jeffrey.
http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2010/12/25/John-Warhola-artists-brother-dies-at-85/UPI-42391293301212/
Lina Romay, who sang with the Latin-inflected Xavier (ig-ZAY'-vee-yur) Cugat orchestra in the early 1940s before beginning a decade-long career as a film and TV actress, has died. She was 91.
Romay's son Jay Gould says his mother died Dec. 17 of natural causes at a hospital in Pasadena.
Romay began her entertainment career by touring as the Cugat orchestra's lead singer.
A performance with the orchestra in the 1942 Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth film "You Were Never Lovelier" led to roles in some 15 other films and appearances on the Milton Berle Show, the Red Skelton Show and other TV programs.
Her show business career ended in 1953, but from the late 1970s into the 1980s, she worked as a Spanish-language radio announcer for horse races at Hollywood Park Racetrack.
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_16938445?nclick_check=1
Hey Surf Music fans,
Bob Demmon of the 60’s rock n surf music band The Astronauts passed away yesterday. He was known as one of the finest rhythm guitarists in the surf genre and was an all around great man. After the Beatles helped to end The Astronauts run of several great albums he eventually ended up being a music teacher and band director at a High School in San Diego. I had the great luck to become best friends with his son and so I learned to play guitar from Bob and his sons and Bob would tell us classic band stories from their days of touring and doing bit parts in Hollywood beach movies. The classic thing was the band was originally from Boulder and when they had their big break to sign a record deal the ‘surf craze’ was hitting and the record execs wanted to know if they did surf music, ‘oh yeah that’s what we do”. Thus the song kuk describing how they didn’t fit into the surf scene. Their song "baja" has alwasys been my favorite surf instrumental. He may not have been a surfer but his sons grew up at the beach and his oldest son is a dedicated life long surfer. As kids we used to use the original Astronauts gear jamming in their house or garage and his sons had a great band in high school using the Astronauts original gear! He was a big influence on a lot of kids and led a great life and he will never be forgotten.
http://forum.surfermag.com/forum/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=1944124&Main=1943953
3D pioneer Chris Condon, who was d.p. on 1983's "Jaws 3D" and founded StereoVision, died Dec. 19 in Encino, Calif., of complications from a stroke. He was 87.
Condon invented 3D camera lenses, including a widescreen 3-D lens for 35mm and 70mm reflex motion picture cameras. Besides his work as cinematographer for "Jaws 3D," he made films in the format including "The Volcano Creature"; "The CIA Girls of Capitol Hill"; "Surfer Girls," which he also wrote; and "Mr. Howard's Crazy Airline."
Jim Chabin, prexy of the Intl. 3D Society, called Condon a mentor to many of the current generation of 3D professionals. "He was 3D before 3D was cool," Chabin said. "A lot of people feel he paved the way for 3D now."
The society bestowed its inaugural lifetime achievement award on Condon in October, but because he was too ill to attend the ceremony it was taped and played for Condon. "He loved the new 3D movies," Chabin said.
Born Christo Dimitri Koudounis, Condon served in the Army Air Force during WWII in the Pacific Theater. After leaving the military he moved to Santa Monica, where he was employed by Douglas Aircraft before beginning his career as an photo-optical designer and manufacturer at Century Precision Optics.
His 40-year career in 3D was inspired at the 1953 premiere of Warners' "House of Wax," starring Vincent Price. At the suggestion of Allan Silliphant he began developing a 3D camera lens that required use of a single camera (improving upon the dual-camera rigs used for 3D productions of the 1950s). From 1969-98 Condon's StereoVisionUSA lenses were used on more than 50 3D feature and industrial film projects in the U.S. and abroad, including in France, Israel, Japan and India.
He founded Magnavision in 1969. The company released its first 3D pic, "The Stewardesses," in 1971 after which the name was changed to StereoVision Entertainment.
The following year, Condon got a patent for a special widescreen 3D camera lens for 35mm and 70mm reflex motion picture cameras.
StereoVision supplied a range of 3D equipment, from cameras for production to projection optics for exhibitors. The company helped with production of Indian 3D film "Chota chetan" in 1984, and its products are used in Japan.
And after working as d.p. on "Jaws 3D," he lensed "Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn" and lensed and produced 1987's "Evil Spawn."
He continued to work as a consultant for 3D productions throughout the world until his retirement in 2008.
Condon, with Joseph Mascelli, wrote the American Cinematography Manual for the American Cinematographers Society in 1963.
Survivors include a daughter; three brothers; and a sister.
Actor Steve Landesberg Dies
The Hollywood Reporter, 7:38 PM 12/20/2010
Steve Landesberg, who recently starred in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, has died. He was 65.
"I'm sorry to report the loss of Steve," Landesberg's agent tells THR.
The actor, who was known for his role on the long-running television series Barney Miller passed away Friday morning from cancer, after fighting the disease for a long time.
Landesberg played a pediatrician, Dr. Rosenbaum, in 2009’s Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and portrayed Arthur Dietrich on Barney Miller, which aired on the small screen from 1975-82.
Landesberg was born Nov. 23, 1945 in New York City. He has appeared in several TV series, including: Head Case; Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law; Cosby; The Golden Girls; Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers; Everybody Hates Chris; and Seinfeld.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/forgetting-sarah-marshall-actor-steve-61788
CLINTON--Mildred. Died on December 18, 2010. An actress on stage, radio, film and television, she was a lifelong member of AFTRA and SAG. She was the daughter of Judge Charles Solomon and wife of Vincent Clinton. She was beloved by her surviving sisters, Isabel and Anna, brother-in-law Morris, nieces and nephew, their spouses and children. A graveside service will be Tuesday, 11am at Mt. Ararat Cemetery, Farmingdale, NY. Contributions in her name can be made to The Actors Fund, 729 7th Ave., New York, NY 10019.
Fred Foy, famous for Lone Ranger intro, dies at 89
Dec 22, 4:06 PM (ET)
By JAY LINDSAY
BOSTON (AP) - Fred Foy, the announcer best known for his passionate lead-in to "The Lone Ranger," has died at his Massachusetts home. His daughter says he died Wednesday of natural causes. He was 89. Nancy Foy says her father landed the job as the announcer on "The Lone Ranger" radio program in 1948. Radio historian Jim Harmon says Foy's introduction and narration was so good it "made many people forget there were others before him." Foy's son, Fritz, says the signature opening, "Hi-Yo, Silver!" was done by an actor for the radio, but his father boomed it out for the TV series along with the rest of the famous introduction. Nancy Foy says that to the end of his life, her father never tired of repeating the intro to anyone who would ask. Fred Foy is survived by his wife of 63 years, Frances, and their three children.
