Obituaries for 2020

[Gefn]

Anne Cox Chambers, wealthy newspaper heiress, dies at 100


ATLANTA (AP) — Anne Cox Chambers, a newspaper heiress, diplomat and philanthropist who was one of the country's richest women, died Friday at the age of 100.

Chambers' nephew James Cox Kennedy announced her death to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, her company's flagship newspaper.

“Aunt Anne was a wonderful, kind and elegant lady who cared deeply about her family, her company and her country,” said Kennedy, who served as Cox Enterprises chief executive officer from 1988 to 2008 and continues as chairman. “She took the responsibility of good fortune very seriously and gave back to the best of her ability to the many causes she cared about.”

https://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Anne-Cox-Chambers-wealthy-newspaper-heiress-15019276.php

[TomSea]

Mercenary 'Mad Mike' Hoare dies aged 100

Michael "Mad Mike" Hoare, widely considered the world's most famous mercenary, has died aged 100.

Born in India to Irish parents, he led campaigns in the Congo in the 1960s that earned him fame at the time, and a controversial legacy years later.

His career reached an embarrassing end in 1981, when he was jailed for leading a failed coup in the Seychelles.

Read more at: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51352075

Note, one movie was made about his mercenary troops,

Actors Richard Harris, Roger Moore, Richard Burton and Hardy Krüger starred in the 1978 film The Wild Geese, based on Mike Hoare's mercenaries

The BBC article above is indepth about some of the places where he operated.

On the topic of "mercenaries", here is a fair read from the Daily Mail.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7954259/New-book-tells-story-elite-band-ex-special-forces-wreaked-havoc-world.html

An SOF (Soldier of Fortune) type saga, not really that appropriate.  These guys did some heavy stuff and a lot of those stories are embellished too.

[Gefn]

Breaking

Kirk Douglas dead at 103

https://people.com/movies/kirk-douglas-dead/

RIP

[verga]

Breaking

Kirk Douglas dead at 103

Tragic loss. Great actor. RIP

[mountaineer]

A very long life and great body of work.

[jmyrlefuller]

A little fuller obit:

Kirk Douglas
Centenarian actor dies at 103



Douglas was born into a working-class Jewish household in upstate New York. Wheeling and dealing his way into an acting education at St. Lawrence University, he eventually caught the attention of Lauren Bacall in New York City, which kicked off a professional acting career that lasted six decades.

Wikipedia states: "His popular films include Out of the Past (1947), Champion (1949), Ace in the Hole (1951), The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), Lust for Life (1956), Paths of Glory (1957), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), The Vikings (1958), Spartacus (1960), Lonely Are the Brave (1962), Seven Days in May (1964), The Heroes of Telemark (1965), Saturn 3 (1980) and Tough Guys (1986)." One of the most successful actors of the Hollywood era of the mid-20th century, Douglas's tireless approach to acting earned him three Academy Award nominations, but he never won any, instead receiving a lifetime achievement award in 1996.

Douglas's career was curtailed by a stroke in 1996, but he continued to occasionally act into his 90s. He maintained an active presence on the Internet and was still said to be walking around for his 100th birthday; his last public appearance was in 2018, by which point he was wheelchair-bound.

Douglas died February 5 from old age. His son, Michael Douglas, later became an accomplished actor and director in his own right.

Obituary from the Hollywood Reporter

Wikipedia

IMDB

Stage credits


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[Applewood]

One of the greats of American cinema.  Rest in peace, Mr. Douglas.

One of my favorite films Douglas did with Burt Lancaster, Tough Guys (Eli Wallach is the elderly, half-blind hitman with a contract on them):


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[skeeter]

Tragic loss. Great actor. RIP

Wow, 103. Nothing to lament there, only celebrate.

Loved his acting.

[verga]

One of the greats of American cinema.  Rest in peace, Mr. Douglas.

One of my favorite films Douglas did with Burt Lancaster, Tough Guys (Eli Wallach is the elderly, half-blind hitman with a contract on them):


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Thank you, I was trying to remember the name of that movie

[Elderberry]

Navy Times by Hillel Italie 2/6/2020

 LOS ANGELES — Kirk Douglas, the muscular actor with the dimpled chin who starred in “Spartacus,” “Lust for Life” and dozens of other films and helped fatally weaken the Hollywood blacklist, has died at 103, People magazine reported Wednesday.

"It is with tremendous sadness that my brothers and I announce that Kirk Douglas left us today at the age of 103," his son Michael said in a statement obtained by People.

“To the world, he was a legend, an actor from the golden age of movies who lived well into his golden years, a humanitarian whose commitment to justice and the causes he believed in set a standard for all of us to aspire to.”

Kirk Douglas was nominated three times for Oscars — for "Champion," "The Bad and the Beautiful" and "Lust for Life."

He later received an honorary award for “50 years as a creative and moral force” in the movie industry.

More: https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2020/02/06/kirk-douglas-wwii-navy-vet-hollywood-star-dead-at-103/


This Dec. 19, 1969 photo shows actor Kirk Douglas and his wife, Anne, attending the premiere
of "Hello Dolly" in Los Angeles. Kirk Douglas died Wednesday at age 103. (David F. Smith/AP)

[Applewood]

Thank you, I was trying to remember the name of that movie

Tough Guys wasn't a major hit, but  I think this was the last of several films they both starred in.  Even if the film was a turkey, it was great to watch two seasoned pros who seemed to have fun with it.  And Eli Wallach was funny as the hit man.

[goatprairie]

Douglas was a real actor and not just a "movie star" like a lot of Hollyweird denizens from that era.
Don't want to knock The Duke, but John Wayne basically played himself in every movie.
In fact, when Douglas took the chance to play Vincent Van Gogh in "Lust For Life," Wayne asked him why he'd want to play someone like Van Gogh when he could have accepted typical Hollyweird BIG STAR kind of roles.
But, of course, Douglas could do westerns extremely well. One of his best roles was the role of Marshal Matt Morgan in "Last Train From Gun Hill" one of the least known but best westerns of the fifties.
Anthony Quinn was also very good in the film.

[EasyAce]

Kirk Douglas shone in maybe the only Western film I'd still watch other than The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly, playing a marshal whose Indian wife was killed by the sons of his best friend (played just as well by Anthony Quinn), Last Train from Gun Hill . . .


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(Confession: I first saw Last Train from Gun Hill when I was a kid and the title made me curious---because my paternal grandparents lived on Gun Hill Road in the north Bronx!)

[Applewood]

@goatprairie

Regarding John Wayne:  I think you may be right -- he did essentially play himself in most movies -- with the possible exception of his last, The Shootist.  IMHO, there seemed to be a little bit of acting range there.   He handled the part of a dying gunslinger rather well, I thought.

The one thing that made me particularly sad about Kirk Douglas' passing is that he is just about the last of the old school actors.  Seemed to me he could do just about anything in any genre.  Most of today's actors could 't hold a candle to him in that regard. 

A Navy vet too -- many Hollywood stars of Douglas' era answered the call to serve, or if they didn't or couldn't, they enthusiastically supported the military.  Many of today's actors are too busy drinking, snorting or shooting something to serve or make an appearance to entertain the troops. 

Rest in peace.

[jmyrlefuller]

Orson Bean
C-list character actor and comedian dies at 91



Bean, a regular television presence despite not having a regular starring role until the 1990s Western drama Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, appeared regularly in guest appearances, as a recurring actor on anthology shows during the Golden Age of the 1950s, on Broadway, in small parts on film, and as a panelist on game shows. Bean, a conservative, ironically briefly ended up on the Hollywood blacklist in the early 1950s (how he ended up on Broadway) when he dated a communist. He was a founding member of the Sons of the Desert, the Laurel and Hardy fan club.

Bean was married three times and had four children, one of whom, Susanna, married Andrew Breitbart. He died January 7 as the result of being struck by a two-car pile-up while crossing the street.

Obituary from the Daily Mail

Wikipedia

IMDB

Stage credits

[mountaineer]

His father was a co-founder of the ACLU, but "Orson" was a conservative. A very witty fellow. I remember a bit he did about trying to purchase some personalized handkerchiefs at a haberdashery. He told the proprietor he wanted them to say, "Your name here," just like the ones in the window. The man kept insisting they had to bear the purchaser's monogram, but Bean said, no, I want mine to read, "Your name here."

[TomSea]

Kevin Conway Dies: ‘Gettysburg’, ‘Thirteen Days’ & ‘Invincible’ Actor Was 77
February 7, 2020 2:55pm

Kevin Conway, a veteran actor known for his work in Gettysburg, Thirteen Days and Invincible, among others, died Wednesday of a heart attack, his publicist told Deadline. He was 77.

New York City-born Conway worked as an IBM sales analyst before becoming an actor at age 24. He went on to a decades-long career with dozens of credits in film, television and on the stage. His first major screen role was playing Roland Weary in the 1972 film Slaughterhouse Five, based on the Kurt Vonnegut novel. He went on to play Crum Petree, the insane mailman in the 1988 film Funny Farm; Frank Papale in the 2006 Disney football drama Invincible; and General Curtis LeMay in the 2000 historical drama Thirteen Days. He also played the fictional Sgt. Buster Kilrain in Ron Maxwell’s 1993 epic Gettysburg (see photo above) and its 2003 follow-up Gods and Generals.

His television work included playing Roger Chillingworth in a 1979 TV production of The Scarlet Letter, a role later played by Robert Duvall in 1995’s The Scarlet Letter. Conway also had a memorable guest-starring role on NBC’s Homicide: Life on the Street. In the 1995 episode titled “Heartbeat,” he played Joseph Cardero, the prime suspect in a cold-case murder who is obsessed with Edgar Allan Poe. Cardero ultimately meets his end in the same manner his victim did – and with a chilling nod to Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart.

Read more at: https://deadline.com/2020/02/kevin-conway-dead-gettysburg-thirteen-days-invincible-actor-director-was-77-1202854335/

I have seen '13 days' which is about the Cuban missile crisis and he played General Curtis Lemay.  Most articles name mainly his role in 'Gettysburg'.

[sneakypete]

Orson Bean
C-list character actor and comedian dies at 91



Bean, a regular television presence despite not having a regular starring role until the 1990s Western drama Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, appeared regularly in guest appearances, as a recurring actor on anthology shows during the Golden Age of the 1950s, on Broadway, in small parts on film, and as a panelist on game shows. Bean, a conservative, ironically briefly ended up on the Hollywood blacklist in the early 1950s (how he ended up on Broadway) when he dated a communist. He was a founding member of the Sons of the Desert, the Laurel and Hardy fan club.

Bean was married three times and had four children, one of whom, Susanna, married Andrew Breitbart. He died January 7 as the result of being struck by a two-car pile-up while crossing the street.

Obituary from the Daily Mail

Wikipedia

IMDB

Stage credits

@jmyrlefuller

"C list actor"?????

Hell,even I instantly knew who you were talking about when you mentioned his name,and I am hardly a "fan boy" of tv and movie stars. Ok,Ok,there is Sophia,but she is more of a Goddess than a human,and NOBODY is going to EVER mistake her for a man. Anybody that does should be locked away for their own safety.

[musiclady]

I have seen '13 days' which is about the Cuban missile crisis and he played General Curtis Lemay.  Most articles name mainly his role in 'Gettysburg'.

He was wonderful in Gettysburg.  I also enjoyed his work in Invincible (playing Vince Papale's father).

[musiclady]

Orson Bean
C-list character actor and comedian dies at 91



Bean, a regular television presence despite not having a regular starring role until the 1990s Western drama Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, appeared regularly in guest appearances, as a recurring actor on anthology shows during the Golden Age of the 1950s, on Broadway, in small parts on film, and as a panelist on game shows. Bean, a conservative, ironically briefly ended up on the Hollywood blacklist in the early 1950s (how he ended up on Broadway) when he dated a communist. He was a founding member of the Sons of the Desert, the Laurel and Hardy fan club.

Bean was married three times and had four children, one of whom, Susanna, married Andrew Breitbart. He died January 7 as the result of being struck by a two-car pile-up while crossing the street.

Obituary from the Daily Mail

Wikipedia

IMDB

Stage credits

I always thought he was kind of annoying (the roles he played, that is).

Strange for a 91 year old to die being hit by a car......

[Cyber Liberty]

I always thought he was kind of annoying (the roles he played, that is).

Strange for a 91 year old to die being hit by a car......

Apparently he was "collateral damage" from a two-car collision.  He was probably walking down a sidewalk, minding his own business.

[jmyrlefuller]

@jmyrlefuller

"C list actor"?????

Hell,even I instantly knew who you were talking about when you mentioned his name,and I am hardly a "fan boy" of tv and movie stars. Ok,Ok,there is Sophia,but she is more of a Goddess than a human,and NOBODY is going to EVER mistake her for a man. Anybody that does should be locked away for their own safety.

That's what distinguishes the C-listers from the D-listers.

A C-lister is a recognizable talent who specializes in bit parts and character roles.

The D-listers are people you look at and say, "How did they become famous?" or "Who?"

[Applewood]

I remember Orson Bean primarily from his guest appearances on talk shows,  One in particular was the Mike Douglas Show which ran in the afternoons locally back in the 1960s.  Bean was a frequent guest.  Seemed like a decent fellow and a funny guy.

Sad that he was falsely accused of being a communist.  That was my objection to McCarthy and others.  Good that they wanted to stamp out communism, but unfortunately, they often were overzealous.  A number of people were ruined by false or unproven accusations.  Just being seen with a known or suspected communist could get you into trouble.

Anyway, rest in peace, Orson Bean.

[Ghost Bear]

I always thought he was kind of annoying (the roles he played, that is).

Strange for a 91 year old to die being hit by a car......

Actually, one of my grandfathers went the same way, at the age of 93. He was walking home from his weekly poker party (a little tipsy, as usual when leaving his weekly poker party), stepped off a curb without looking, and was hit by a car. Which in my mind just goes to show, when it's your time, it's your time.   

[EasyAce]

Sad that he was falsely accused of being a communist.  That was my objection to McCarthy and others.  Good that they wanted to stamp out communism, but unfortunately, they often were overzealous.  A number of people were ruined by false or unproven accusations.  Just being seen with a known or suspected communist could get you into trouble.

Anyway, rest in peace, Orson Bean.

@Applewood
If you've ever seen the Jim Carrey film The Majestic, Carrey portrayed fictitious apolitical screenwriter Peter Appleton, who was named a Communist for no better reason that he'd once accompanied a girlfriend to a Party-offshoot meeting in his college days---a girlfriend who eventually named him a co-Communist to save her own hide. I often wondered if those who came up with The Majestic had Orson Bean in mind when they created the Appleton character, even though Bean was an actor and not a writer at the time he was accused.