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A few years back Amazon had an unbelievable deal where you could get almost the entirety of Lightfoot's catalogue on mp3 for $7.99. I knew the hits and liked them but was blown away by the quality of the deeper cuts. Songs like "All I'm After", "The Soul Is The Rock", "Lazy Mornin'", "14 Karat Gold" and many others have become favorites. What a talent. Spinning his wonderful Shadows album on the turntable right now in his honor.

Seems like he was very much appreciated in the U.S. He had a number of chart hits, appeared on American TV semi-regularly, and he could count Bob Dylan as one of his biggest fans.

Playwright and theater archivist Robert Patrick.

Chris Strachwitz, Arhoolie founder, archivist, and so much more who also did film work that included work with Les Blank

Tibetan novelist/filmmaker Pema Tseden. Tharlo is a really enjoyable film, and his stories/novels are definitely worth seeking out. Quite a bit of his output has been translated into English

Absolutely gutted by this. Pema Tseden is, as far as anyone can tell, the first ethnically-Tibetan director to come out of China, and just about all of the others who have followed (Lhapal Gyal, Sonthar Gyal, Dargye Tenzin, Loden, et al.) were essentially mentored by him. His son Jigme Trinley made a bottle-thriller a couple of years ago called One and Four, which is enjoyably twisty if derivative.

I like all of Pema Tseden's features, but my favorite is Jinpa, a gorgeous and genuinely weird mystical revenge story in which the key scene is a nearly ten-minute argument with a waitress.

Actor Terrence Hardiman, aged 86. He was mostly on TV, with most obituaries highlighting his title role in the BBC children's series The Demon Headmaster, but he had leading roles in others, including the third series of Secret Army. On the big screen he was in Gandhi (playing UK prime minister Ramsay MacDonald) and others.

Rita Lee, Brazil's Queen of Rock, known for her work with os Mutantes.

Actor Terrence Hardiman, aged 86. He was mostly on TV, with most obituaries highlighting his title role in the BBC children's series The Demon Headmaster, but he had leading roles in others, including the third series of Secret Army. On the big screen he was in Gandhi (playing UK prime minister Ramsay MacDonald) and others.

As well as sporting a gem of a 70s mustache in Crown Court...

…children’s series?

Basically, a daytime courtroom drama. Actors would play out a court case (usually over three
episodes). The novelty being that the jury were members of the public and would decide on
the final verdict.

JSC wrote: Tue May 09, 2023 10:00 pm Basically, a daytime courtroom drama. Actors would play out a court case (usually over three
episodes). The novelty being that the jury were members of the public and would decide on
the final verdict.

The loss of Crown Court as a viable cultural reference makes me feel very old.

Network has put out a few volumes on DVD. Although some have already gone
out of print and are fetching huge prices on eBay.

JSC wrote: Tue May 09, 2023 10:28 pm Network has put out a few volumes on DVD. Although some have already gone
out of print and are fetching huge prices on eBay.

Also if you are in the UK, Talking Pictures TV are currently repeating Crown Court, at a rate of a case a week. If they repeat the whole lot, that'll be a few years' worth as there were three hundred cases in all!

JSC wrote: Tue May 09, 2023 10:00 pm Basically, a daytime courtroom drama. Actors would play out a court case (usually over three
episodes). The novelty being that the jury were members of the public and would decide on
the final verdict.

As the Foreman of the Jury spoke to deliver the verdict, under Equity rules they too had to be played by a professional actor. The rest of the (non-speaking) Jury were indeed members of the public who tried the court case and then reached the verdict.

Ex-sales rep Jack Rebney, at 93. Star of one of the first major internet viral videos and subject of the film Winnebago Man.
https://ew.com/movies/jack-rebney-dead- ... ebago-man/



And the video of course.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDQQfBrSUs0&t=123s

Cinematographer Ken Westbury, aged 96. He began as a clapper loader in 1943 and his last film as cinematographer, after much work on television and in the cinema, was in 2007. He was BAFTA-nominated for Dr Fischer of Geneva (1985) and The Singing Detective (1987).

I can't see an online obituary yet, but word has it that Australian actor Ralph Cotterill died on or before 9 May, aged 91.

Along with his Visconti roles, and given that Caligula is just getting its re-cut version premiered at Cannes, we should also spare a thought for Helmut Berger's role in the other Tinto Brass epic scaled production Salon Kitty. It is fascinating that Visconti's The Damned resulted in its cast splitting apart into two other polar opposite films that explored Nazism through a more permissive 70s lens with Berger and Ingrid Thulin going into Salon Kitty; and Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling spinning off into altogether more highbrow The Night Porter. Although I disagree with Mark Kermode in that linked piece that its a "post-Night Porter" film - its more influenced by The Damned and especially Cabaret.

Andy Rourke of the Smiths. A gut punch...

Just the other day marked 40 years since the release of their first single, “Hand in Glove,” so I was giving some of their early work a spin. It is such a terrible shame that their legacy has been so tarnished by Morrissey’s more recent antics (“Bigmouth Strikes Again” indeed) and by the irreconcilable feuding that so consumed all the band members. A unique and vital band, and music that meant a great deal to me as a lonely, gloomy gay kid in Northern Ohio.

Matt wrote: Fri May 19, 2023 4:57 pm Just the other day marked 40 years since the release of their first single, “Hand in Glove,” so I was giving some of their early work a spin. It is such a terrible shame that their legacy has been so tarnished by Morrissey’s more recent antics (“Bigmouth Strikes Again” indeed) and by the irreconcilable feuding that so consumed all the band members. A unique and vital band, and music that meant a great deal to me as a lonely, gloomy gay kid in Northern Ohio.

Absolutely. As Marr writes in his memoir, he and Morrissey seriously discussed a reunion, even meeting in-person about it, though Joyce wouldn't have participated. (I'm guessing their relationship was too strained to make that a consideration.) But that was before Morrissey took a really bad turn into reactionary politics, and I can't see it ever happening now. Without Rourke or presumably Joyce, it would fall a bit short anyway. They were an amazing rhythm section, and at times Rourke's melodic baselines almost felt like a second lead guitar.

I remember when I first moved here - the same year as Rourke apparently - it was thrilling to see him pop up at Marr's shows. I hoped they would do a full-blown show together rather than one or two numbers every so often, but it never happened. One of my favorite shows in recent years was seeing Marr up close at Warsaw in Greenpoint, only for $20 thanks to a scalper unloading what he had. (I wasn't sure I could make it due to prior obligations so I held out until the last minute - got there maybe 10 minutes before Marr took the stage.) Rourke wasn't there but it was marvelous. Highly recommended to all Smiths fans, I didn't even know his solo work that well and it all sounded great.

We also just lost the great Scottish bassist John Giblin, who played with Kate Bush, Peter Gabriel, Joan Armatrading, and Simple Minds, among many other artists