Wednesday, December 28, 2016

2016 is not done killing

DEBBIE REYNOLDS
DEAD AT 84

Debbie Reynolds -- who rose to stardom in "Singin' in the Rain" and quickly became a staple among Hollywood royalty -- died Wednesday as a result of a stroke, TMZ has learned ... just one day after her daughter Carrie Fisher passed away ... this according to her son Todd.

Debbie was rushed to a hospital shortly after 1 PM when someone at the Beverly Hills home of her son, Todd, called 911 to report a possible stroke. We're told Debbie and Todd were making funeral plans for Carrie, who died Tuesday of cardiac arrest.

Debbie famously divorced Eddie Fisher in 1959 after his affair with Elizabeth Taylor. Debbie married 2 more times in 1960 and 1984.

She played iconic roles in "Tammy and the Bachelor" and "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" ... for which she earned an Oscar nomination.

Carrie's relationship with Debbie was the focus of Carrie's semi-autobiographical book, "Postcards from the Edge," which was later adapted for the big screen, starring Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine.

Debbie's survived by her son Todd, who tells us, "She's with Carrie."

Via Reddit: link

40 comments:

edutcher said...

One of the last stars of the Silver Age of the movies.

You hate to do it, but I was wondering who would be third.

ampersand said...

The girl who played the youngest of the Partridge family died,Suzanne Crough 52.

chickelit said...

In the future, celebrities will die more frequently, perhaps peaking at a rate of one per day. We must learn to focus on something else.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I propose we wait to stop focusing on celebrity deaths until after Bob Dylan dies.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Or Pete Rose. Whichever comes later.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Btw. Chick 🐥 I seen your KLEM posts get a lot of attention. Thanks for whatever it is you're doing.

windbag said...

I wonder which ones this week get an audition for PA announcer?

AllenS said...

Heart broken.

ndspinelli said...

Her death is heartbreaking. Along w/ her talent, Reynolds was straightforward, brutally honest, and funny. Her daughter was just famous for being famous. A sorta Reality TV star who couldn't come down to that level and do TV.

ndspinelli said...

Lem, both Pete and Dylan don't look very healthy. You know what, I can and do listen to, and read opposing views and do change mine. I have been very tough on Rose. I will never forget his cardinal sin. But, I saw Pete signing autographs @ a store in Vegas. He seemed to truly engage w/ people. He was counting his money like the degenerate gambler he is, but he seemed to be real. Then, I saw Roger Boswell interviewed, he said the same about Rose. How Rose always knew the names of the blue collar grounds crew and would always have real conversations w/ them. Finally, I had a conversation w/ a friend from Philly who worked security for the Phillies. It was a part time gig, he had a real job w/ the Feds. My friend had the same take as Boswell. I am no longer relentless on Pete.

edutcher said...

ndspinelli said...

Her death is heartbreaking. Along w/ her talent, Reynolds was straightforward, brutally honest, and funny.

I remember how, back in the 70s when the porn industry wanted Linda Lovelace to crash one of Hollyweird's big charitable functions (where they helped people, not causes), Ruta Lee said, if they tried it, it would be over hers and Debbie Reynolds' dead bodies. That's the kind of woman Debbie Reynolds was.

PS Those who remember Irene from TOP (she lost her fight with cancer a week ago) and followed her blog know how tickled she would have been to hear that (Ruta Lee is Lithuanian).

A6NimitzGuy said...

The year is young yet..

A6NimitzGuy said...

Hilarious how many knuckleheads there are that think she deliberately stroked out so she could go be "up there" with her dopey daughter. Celebrity women can do ANYTHING!

MamaM said...

Her daughter was just famous for being famous

Her daughter was an author who touched peoples lives with her books.

ricpic said...

The old hootie owl hootie-hoos to the dove,
Tammy, Tammy, Tammy's in love.

I'm old enough that I was a schoolboy when that was being played incessantly. But what I heard was hootie-hoots and for some reason for me the owl was in the trees:

The old hootie owl hootie-hoots in the trees,
Tammy, Tammy, you're the bees knees.

Now I ask you, was my version not an improvement on the original?

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

GayPatriot has a tweet: Dear 2016 (with a picture of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg)

Trooper York said...

Carrie Fischer was an iconic star of one of the most popular movies of all time. Also later in life a wonderful character actress in things like the Amazon series "Catastrophe" where she is hilarious.

Her career ranged from fresh faced sexy ingenue to grizzled character actress.

I thought the stars she most resembled were Joan Blondell or Shelly Winters.

Trooper York said...

A big shot film critic walked into the store yesterday and bought a dress for a big event.

She is a friend of another big shot movie critic who used to post at TOP and who lives in the neighborhood that I bump into occasionally to wave hello. We had a nice discussion about movies and how a lack of historical knowledge and perspective lead people to foolish statements. Now you can go too far in the other direction and say that nobody approaches the artistry of Fritz Lang or Sergei Eisenstein or Akira Kurosawa. Great artist all but still people who work in the popular vernacular can be just as great an artist as they are.

My main point to her was that just because something is hugely popular does not mean it has no artistic merit. The snobbishness and insularity of the mainstream critics often cause them to lose touch with the people. You know. The ones who pay for all of this.

Leland said...

2016 took another one... inventor of the Red Solo Cup, Robert Hulseman. Stay safe, everyone! We don't need to lose another one of us.

ricpic said...

Do movie critics even write about movies as an "art form" these days? Didn't that peak out with Pauline Kael? The most interesting comment I ever read about movies in general is that it is important to remember they are the work of a committee. It is close to a miracle that a committee makes something coherent, never mind great.

ndspinelli said...

Well, seems we have the President and VP of the Carrie Fischer Fan Club here. There are thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of actors and writers who are exponentially more talented than Carrie Fischer. She got her break because of her very talented and successful mother, depriving us of a talented actor or writer not the beneficiary of nepotism. She wasn't even as talented as her ham n' egger old man. There are a good number of exceptions to the untalented nepotism pathology. Laura Dern is every bit as talented as her old man. Michael Douglas, the same. This woman got her big role because of her name and she was less talented than the fucking robots in that same flick.

Many are saying Debbie died of a broken heart. I think she just wanted to upstage her problem child.

Trooper York said...

The Hate is strong with this one.

ndspinelli said...

Leland, I bought a pack of red Solo cups @ Costco a couple years ago. I still have plenty. I wonder if Hulseman ever saw beer pong being one of the main uses of his ubiquitous cups.

ndspinelli said...

LOL! It's "contempt" not hate. Ask your blog mama.

Trooper York said...

Some movie critics do write very interesting and informative reviews. One of the best of them is our old friend Blake who used to post comments at many of the sites we were all involved in back in the day.

His original blog "The Bit Maelstrom" has morphed into a couple of other blogs. His movie reviews and mediations on the cinema are now at "Moviequique" which has just about the best movie talk around.

Trooper York said...

I will let other people judge there peeper.

You are just chock full of hate for an rather inoffensive person.

Personally I am not that big a fan of Carrie Fisher. She was your typical Hollywood liberal yenta. Not my cup of tea. I prefer slutty hose bags like Sheree North. In the history of Hollywood she is a very recognizable type. Yes she did get breaks because of her parents instead by sucking dick like Marilyn or Carole Lombard or Lucille Ball. She went from the ingénue when she was young and hot to the old wisecracking veteran like a Joan Blondell or Shelly Winters or the career that is in store for people like Charlize Theron and Scarlet Johansen.

Certainly not deserving of contempt. Maybe you should go out for a walk. At the Mall. I hear there are some Somali cab drivers going over today to visit the Hoffritz store.

ndspinelli said...

LOL! You and mama make a great tag team. I'm a very happy man. Anyone who knows me will tell you that. I just got done rolling on the floor and dancing w/ my 1 year old grand-daughter. I unabashedly love kids. And, I walk every day, even in the cold. But, I'll be in San Diego next week walking the beach, and even happier, although missing that baby! But thanks for the heartfelt advice. How's your exercise regimen going?

I merely gave my opinion on Carrie Fischer. I actually find her offensive. You just took it to the personal level between you and me. I understand why. Just let it go. Happy New Year.

deborah said...

"GayPatriot has a tweet: Dear 2016 (with a picture of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg)"

Harsh!

I'm meh about Fisher. I think she probably had it rough as an actor's kid, and I don't begrudge her the Princess Leia role...iconic movie, good for her.

I'm meh about Debbie Reynolds. She did a good job as Charlotte in Charlotte's Web.

deborah said...

By the way, someone needs to kick that mannequin at Lee Lee's in the ass. He's behind in Hell needs a new PA announcer.

Methadras said...

This is what I had to say about it in my necro-vived blog.

http://thebusybeeblog.blogspot.com/

ndspinelli said...

deborah, You are a good team player. This is a better place when you're posting.

ndspinelli said...

meth, I didn't know you had a blog!! Kudos.

MamaM said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
MamaM said...

2016 took another one... inventor of the Red Solo Cup, Robert Hulseman

Tell me the Grim Reaper wasn't looking for Hans Solo and went after the first H-Solo that came up in the search. If I was Chewbacca, I'd stay home for the weekend. Who knows which party animal might be next?

From the Tober, who knows a thing or two about girly men:

Now a red solo cup is the best receptacle
For barbecues tailgates fairs and festivals
And you sir do not have a pair of testicles
If you prefer drinking from glass

MamaM said...

When it comes to projections, ass kicking, tag teaming, pointed you-hooing and shout-outs to blog mamas, along with other cheeseheaded foamations, this blog has it all, contained under the Cover of Levity. Though not as quite as pointed in content as the Big Tent, there's more than enough contempt and play acting present to keep the brew bubbling and interest piqued.

Happy New Year to all the Lemites who gather to deliver and receive something for almost nothing, allowing others, and especially myself the opportunity to find a pony in the pile every now and again.

As a classic example of finding something unexpected and worth reading via Lem's Levity6, happened again with Lelands mention of Robert Hulseman, which turned up this article about an inventor who gave back: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/red-solo-cup-developer-robert-hulseman-dies-age-44450500

The elder Hulseman was known for his generosity and devotion to the Catholic church. He didn't give to large, well-endowed institutions but favored smaller, even struggling charities. "If ever a place was in trouble, he would come through and help them out," his son said.

Imposing at 6-foot-2, he was always smartly dressed. His children bought him blue jeans one Christmas "as a joke," his son said, adding: "He took them back and exchanged them for khakis."

Hulseman also invented the Traveler coffee cup lid, with his friend and employee Jack Clements, a design the Museum of Modern Art added to its permanent collection.



Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

A little bit spiteful there, Spinelli.

Carrie Fisher (not Fischer) was greater in life and in talent than you say. This whole need to slap down and say "not the greatest!" is just something I'll never understand. Apparently the world should have blown up after da Vinci died. There have been wonderfully talented and touching people since. We live in a different world and their impact still often touches on the remarkable - or at least something close. I guess if we lived in a simpler and more primitive time then the achievements of the greats would seem greater still. But the world isn't going back in that direction - yet. In the meantime, you'll just have to accept that the party is bigger, the guests more numerous, and the entertainers have more noise to be overheard above. But a great deal of them are still quite great, regardless. And just like the partygoers, there are more of them as well, too. Population booms will do that to you.

ndspinelli said...

RITMO, If you read what I said, not what others pontificate about what they think I said, I am not doing a "slap down" on Carrie Fisher because she's "not the greatest." I slapped her down because I find her lacking in talent, beauty, skill, or personality. And, I find her voice, fingernails on the blackboard creepy. So, if you want to amend your critique based on my saying now, there will be room for a talented actor w/o connections to have a shot now that the bitch is dead and out of the way, please feel free. You see, she's not da Vinci, she's not even the artist who paints dogs playing poker. All this outrage over what I've said about this ham n' egger seems more than a bit contrived. But, let's say for the sake of discussion your being taken aback is because you all feel for the dead loser and like her work. Fine. Then we simply disagree. No big fucking deal. But, the more you folks chastise me for having the temerity to say what I think, the more I'll skull fuck the dead bitch. "Spiteful?" I'm just getting warmed up. Your move.


William said...

Can anyone without the benefit of IMDb or Google tell the difference between Jean Peters and Jean Arthur or Carol Landis and Carole Lombard. They were all famous in their day, but it doesn't last. Beautiful too. That doesn't last either. In the end, the only thing that endures is the money you pass on to your children.......I liked Carrie Fisher. She was appealing and likable as Princess Leia. I suppose Natalie Portman is a more accomplished actress, but Carrie Fisher was far more successful in rallying the forces of the rebel alliance. If they had to depend on Natalie Portman for leadership many galaxies would still be under the thumb of the Empire.

The Dude said...

I always like the dogs playing poker. Cassius Marcellus Coolidge was a great painter.

As 2016 winds down at least we can be thankful that Abe Vigoda is still with us.

ndspinelli said...

Sixty, Thanks for the lead. I just looked @ Wikipedia and learned his paintings go back over a century. I never would have guessed that.