The RIP Thread

[Frothy Afterbirth]

'Gone Girl' actress Lisa Banes dead at 65 after hit-and-run: 'A tremendous loss'
Suzy Byrne·Editor, Yahoo Entertainment
Tue, June 15, 2021, 6:47 AM


Larry Busacca/Getty Images

Lisa Banes, who appeared in the films Gone Girl and Cocktail, has died 10 days after being the victim of a hit-and-run in NYC. She was 65.

"We are heartsick over Lisa's tragic and senseless passing," the actress's manager David Williams said in a statement. "She was a woman of great spirit, kindness and generosity and dedicated to her work, whether on stage or in front of a camera and even more so to her wife, family and friends. We were blessed to have had her in our lives."

An NYPD spokesperson said Banes died Monday at Mount Sinai Morningside. She was hospitalized June 4 after being struck by a scooter or motorcycle while crossing Amsterdam Avenue at 64th Street, in a crosswalk, on Manhattan's Upper West Side. At the time, she was on her way to meet friends for dinner but planned to stop at her alma mater, the Juilliard School, at Lincoln Center.

The driver left the scene — and no arrests have been made.

Williams said his understanding is that Banes suffered a traumatic brain injury and was unable to recover.

Banes's wife, Kathryn Kranhold, a contributing reporter for the Center for Public Integrity, had made a plea "to pray for Lisa" after the accident — and called for anyone with information about the accident to contact police.

Banes resided in Los Angeles but was in NYC to perform in The Niceties, a two-woman show being streamed online by the Manhattan Theater Club. The theatre club's website now pays tribute to Banes.

Banes has appeared in many films, including supporting roles in 2014's Gone Girl starring Ben Affleck, as Amy's mother Marybeth Elliot, and 1988's Cocktail with Tom Cruise.

On TV, she's had roles on Once and Again, Nashville, Madam Secretary, Masters of Sex, China Beach and One Life to Live, to name a few.

She also regularly appeared on stage, including Broadway appearances in the Noel Coward play Present Laughter in 2010, the musical High Society in 1998 and the Neil Simon play Rumors in 1988.

Tributes to Banes have started on social media, including two from her wife. "My Lisa," Kranhold captioned one photo of them together. "Our Lisa Banes. Our huge loss."



Here are some others, including Seth MacFarlane, who worked with her on The Orville. He said, "Her stage presence, magnetism, skill and talent were matched only by her unwavering kindness and graciousness toward all of us," and called her death "a tremendous loss."

Anyone with information about Banes's death is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via the website or on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

Richard Donner Dies: ‘Superman’, ‘Lethal Weapon’ And ‘The Goonies’ Director Was 91
By Patrick Hipes
July 5, 2021 12:31pm



Richard Donner, the prolific Hollywood director and producer whose helming credits include some of the most iconic movies of the 1970s and ’80s including the Christopher Reeve-starring Superman, The Goonies and the Mel Gibson-Danny Glover buddy cop series Lethal Weapon, has died. He was 91.

Donner passed away Monday, according to his wife, the producer Lauren Schuler Donner, and his business manager. No cause of death has been revealed.

The Bronx-born Donner, a genial man with a booming voice, started his career directing for television. His TV credits include a laundry list of staple shows from the ’60s including Route 66, The Rifleman, The Twilight Zone, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Gilligan’s Island, Perry Mason and The Wild Wild West. His debut feature X-15 in 1961 with Charles Bronson (and a young Mary Tyler Moore) was followed by the 1968 crime comedy Salt & Pepper starring Sammy Davis Jr. and Peter Lawford, and 1969’s Lola with Charles Bronson and Susan George. He segued to films full time with 1976’s spooky The Omen.

That led to 1978’s Superman, the original superhero movie that starred Reeve as the Man of Steel along with Margot Kidder, Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman and Ned Beatty. The Warner Bros blockbuster with a budget of about $55 million grossed more than $300 million at the global box office. The first movie tentpole based on a superhero comic character, it scored three Oscar nominations and won a special Academy Award for its visual effects. It also cast the die for the superhero franchise space now dominated by the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC Universe of films.

A dispute with the producers famously resulted in Donner taking his name off directing Superman II when Richard Lester was brought in after Donner had shot the majority of the movie; a director’s cut of the film with many of the excised Donner-directed scenes was released in 2006.

By that time however Donner had moved on to other blockbuster successes in just about every genre, directing Jackie Gleason and Richard Pryor in comedy The Toy (1982), and in 1985 helming both the medieval period adventure Ladyhawke and the seminal kids’ adventure pic The Goonies. That pic, about a group of friends hunt for treasure and come of age in in coastal Astoria, OR, had a script penned by Chris Columbus based on a story by Steven Spielberg.

“Dick had such a powerful command of his movies, and was so gifted across so many genres,” Spielberg said in a statement today on hearing of Donner’s death. “Being in his circle was akin to hanging out with your favorite coach, smartest professor, fiercest motivator, most endearing friend, staunchest ally, and — of course — the greatest Goonie of all. He was all kid. All heart. All the time. I can’t believe he’s gone, but his husky, hearty, laugh will stay with me always.”

Those mid-’80s movies were followed by another franchise-launching blockbuster at Warner Bros, 1987’s Lethal Weapon. The film included a role that turned Mad Max star Gibson into a global superstar. Donner directed all four of the Lethal Weapon movies in an 11-year span. They grossed more than $900 million globally.

Donner and Gibson would reteam as director and star in the movies Maverick (1994) and Conspiracy Theory (1997). His directing credits also include the 1988 Christmas staple Scrooged with Bill Murray; the 1980 drama Inside Moves with John Savage and David Morse co-written by Barry Levinson; and 1992’s coming-of-age drama Radio Flyer.

Mel Gibson On ‘Lethal Weapon’ Director Richard Donner’s Passing: ‘Magnanimous Of Heart And Soul’

Danny Glover On Richard Donner: ‘My Heart Is Broken’

Donner’s final film as a director was 2006’s actioner 16 Blocks starring Bruce Willis (and a reunion with Morse), the latest in a line of action stars the director worked with that included Sylvester Stallone (Assassins), Gerard Butler and Paul Walker (Timeline) and of course Gibson.

Donner and his producer-wife Lauren Schuler Donner produced dozens of films under their The Donners’ Company production banner including the X-Men franchise (Lauren Schuler Donner produced; Richard Donner was an EP) that has spawned a remarkable 13 films over a two-decade span at 20th Century Fox/20th Century Studios, including introducing the world to Ryan Reynolds’ smart-aleck Deadpool. The latest pic in the X-Men series, The New Mutants, bowed in August 2020. In total, those films grossed nearly $2.5 billion globally. The duo also produced 1993’s Free Willy. That modestly-budgeted feel-good film went on to make $153 million globally.

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

Filmmaker Robert Downey Sr., father of Robert Downey Jr., dies at 85

The "Iron Man" star called his father "a true maverick filmmaker."
By Stephen Iervolinovia
July 7, 2021, 11:58 AM


Michael Loccisano/FilmMagic, FILE

Robert Downey Sr., the director and actor father of Robert Downey Jr., has died at 85, the Marvel movie star announced Wednesday on Instagram.

"Last night, dad passed peacefully in his sleep after years of enduring the ravages of Parkinson's," the "Iron Man" star, 56, wrote, calling his father "a true maverick filmmaker [who] remained remarkably optimistic throughout" his health battle.

"According to my stepmom's calculations, they were happily married for just over 2,000 years," he added of Downey Sr.'s wife, Rosemary Rogers-Downey, calling her "a saint" and noting that "our thoughts and prayers are with you."

Downey Jr.'s mother, his father's first wife, Elsie Ann Downey, died in 2014.

Born in 1936, Robert Downey Sr. started his entertainment career as an actor after a stint in the Army. Throughout his career, he starred in TV shows and films, with credits including "The Twilight Zone" and "Saturday Night Live" on the small screen and "To Live and Die in L.A." and "Boogie Nights" on the big screen.

However, it was his career as a director and screenwriter decades earlier that left more of an impression, including the 1969 race-based satire "Putney Swope" and the 1970 comedy "Pound," which ranks as a 5-year-old Downey Jr.'s first acting credit.

Downey Jr. also appeared in his father's 1997 movie, "Hugo Pool."

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

[Frothy Afterbirth]

Paul Orndorff, WWE Hall of Famer Known as ‘Mr. Wonderful,’ Dies at 71
By Antonio Ferme


John Barrett/PHOTOlink /MediaPunch /IPX


Paul Orndorff, the WWE Hall of Famer who fought in the first-ever WrestleMania, died on Monday. He was 71.

His son, Travis Orndorff, revealed the news in an Instagram post. Last month, he said his father had CTE and was declining in health.

“It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of my father, Paul Parlette Orndorff Jr.,” Orndorff wrote. “He is better known as ‘Mr. #1derful’ Paul Orndorff. Most of you will remember him for his physique. Many will remember his intensity. But if I could only get you to understand and see his heart. He will always be Pop, Paw Paw, and Daddy at home. And as much as many of you hated him as a wrestler, he absolutely loved you for it. He was an amazing father that showed me more love than I ever deserved. I love you Daddy.”

Orndorff began wrestling in 1976 and was best known for his time on the World Wrestling Federation roster during its golden era in the 1980s. “Rowdy” Roddy Piper became his manager in January 1984, and named him “Mr. Wonderful” and helped him get into the main event of the first WrestleMania. Orndorff would go on to face opponents that included Hulk Hogan, Tito Santana, Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, “The Tonga Kid” and “Mean” Mark Callous.

Many of his former competitors posted on social media to honor the late fighter. Hogan wrote, “Just got slammed with the Paul Orndorff news, RIP my brother, love you and thank you for always making me fight for everything in our matches, heaven just got even more Wonderful, love U4Life.”



Just got slammed with the Paul Orndorff news,RIP my brother,love you and thank you for always making me fight for everything in our matches,heaven just got even more Wonderful,love U4LifeHH

— Hulk Hogan (@HulkHogan) July 12, 2021

The Iron Shiek wrote, “PAUL ORNDORFF. MY BROTHER. YOU WERE THE TOUGHEST. WE TRAIN TOGETHER. WE RIDE TOGETHER. YOU WERE EXCELLENT BUBBA. I AM SO SAD I LOVE YOU FOREVER REST IN PEACE.”

PAUL ORNDORFF. MY BROTHER. YOU WERE THE TOUGHEST. WE TRAIN TOGETHER. WE RIDE TOGETHER. YOU WERE EXCELLENT BUBBA. I AM SO SAD I LOVE YOU FOREVER REST IN PEACE pic.twitter.com/RXovORjxVp

— The Iron Sheik (@the_ironsheik) July 12, 2021

Ric Flair, who faced off against Orndorff during the summer of 1982 wrote, “So Sorry To Hear Of The Passing Of Paul Orndorff aka Mr. Wonderful aka The Brandon Bull. Great Guy, Legit Tough! He Was Another Amazing Athlete That I Had The Pleasure Of Wrestling An Hour For The NWA Championship On Many Occasions! Rest In Peace!”

So Sorry To Hear Of The Passing Of Paul Orndorff aka Mr. Wonderful aka The Brandon Bull. Great Guy, Legit Tough! He Was Another Amazing Athlete That I Had The Pleasure Of Wrestling An Hour For The NWA Championship On Many Occasions! Rest In Peace! 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/5dFDmqZh2N

— Ric Flair® (@RicFlairNatrBoy) July 12, 2021

Professional wrestling booker Eric Bischoff wrote, “So sorry to hear this news. I always enjoyed working with Paul. He was a good friend to my son Garett and I and we shared some memorable times away from the wrestling business. Rest easy my friend.“

So sorry to hear this news. I always enjoyed working with Paul. He was a good friend to my son Garett and I and we shared some memorable times away from the wrestling business. Rest easy my friend. pic.twitter.com/GMuZuIMuUY

— Eric Bischoff (@EBischoff) July 12, 2021

Adam “The Edge” Copeland, who trained with Orndorff and Hogan wrote, “Paul Orndorff was the first wrestler I hated & feared as a child. I was at the Big Event in Toronto. Changed my life. Years later the morning before WrestleMania 21, I trained with him and Hulk. I was a little kid again. One of my fondest memories. Thank you for all of them Paul.”

Paul Orndorff was the first wrestler I hated & feared as a child. I was at the Big Event in Toronto. Changed my life. Years later the morning before WrestleMania 21, I trained with him and Hulk. I was a little kid again. One of my fondest memories. Thank you for all of them Paul. pic.twitter.com/h7crlyHme6

— Adam (Edge) Copeland (@EdgeRatedR) July 12, 2021

Orndorff left the WWF in 1988 with an untreated neck injury, yet continued to wrestle in the WCW and won the World Television Championship and the WCW World Tag Team Championship. He suffered another neck injury after delivering a piledriver at the 2000 Fall Brawl, which led to his final retirement. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005 and appeared in a few WWE events after that, including WrestleMania XXX.

Before starting his wrestling career, Orndorff gained popularity as a running back at the University of Tampa, where he scored 21 career touchdowns and gained more than 2,000 all-purpose yards. After being picked in the 12th round of the 1973 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints, he failed to pass the physical. Orndorff played for the World Football League’s Jacksonville Sharks for one year before kickstarting his training as a professional wrestler.

His son has launched a GoFundMe page to assist with his father’s funeral expenses.

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

Charlie Robinson Dies: ‘Night Court’ & ‘Buffalo Bill’ Actor Was 75
By Erik Pedersen
July 12, 2021 4:44pm


Evertt Collection


Charlie Robinson, a prolific actor who played the clerk on Night Court for most of the NBC sitcom’s run and before that was a regular on its lauded series Buffalo Bill, died Sunday of cancer complications at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 75.

His manager, Lisa DiSante, told Deadline that Robinson died of cardiac arrest with multisystem organ failures due to septic shock, and metastatic adenocarcinoma.

Robinson racked up more than 125 TV and film credits — including an impressive five series-regular roles — during a half-century career that stretched into 2021. He got his start guesting on such 1970s-80s series as Cannon, The White Shadow, Lou Grant, St. Elsewhere and Hill Street Blues and the sequel miniseries Roots: The Next Generation. His first recurring role was on the short-lived NBC primetime soap Flamingo Road.

In 1983, Robinson was cast in Buffalo Bill, the sitcom starring Dabney Coleman as a despicable host of local talk show in the titular New York city. Robinson played Newdell, a makeup man who took no guff from anyone, including the irascible host. The series scored Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy noms for both of its seasons but failed to secure a wide audience and was canceled in 1984.

Turns out, that was just the career break Robinson needed.

That fall, he returned to the Peacock network as Mac Robinson, the new clerk on Night Court. He would stay with the series for the rest of its nine season run. Unlike his previous series, Night Court was an early hit, landing in the year-end top 20 among primetime shows during his first season in 1984-85. Airing in the plum post-Cheers slot at 9:30 p.m. Thursdays, it went on to place in the seasonal top 10 for the next three seasons, finally wrapping in 1992.

But Robinson would return in the fall of 1992 with a series regular role in yet another sitcom, this time opposite Jay Thomas and Susan Dey in CBS’s Love & War. The opposites-attract comedy lasted three seasons — — giving Robinson a remarkable run of 12 consecutive TV seasons as a series regular spanning three different shows.

And he was back the following TV season as a regular on Ink, the 1996-97 CBS sitcom starring Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen. On that one, Robinson played Ernie Trainor, a seen-it-all police reporter. It lasted one season.

Robinson continued to work mostly in TV through the end of his life. He recurred on ABC’s Home Improvement from 1995-99 before landing yet another series-regular role — time time on the CBS detective drama Buddy Faro, starring Dennis Farina. Robinson played El Jefe, who followed the title character from Mexico to L.A. and became part of his crime-solving team. The show had a brief run in fall 1998.

On the big screen, he appeared in such films as Apocalypse Now, The River, Gray Lady Down, Beowulf, Set It Off, Antwone Fisher, Even Money, Jackson and Steam.

After the turn of the century, Robinson landed one more series-regular role — as Wilfred, the caretaker of Froggy Cottage in Greg Garcia’s anthology comedy The Guest Book.

During the past two decades, Robinson recurred as Sgt. Jeffries on the CW dramedy Hart of Dixie and as Mr. Munson on CBS’ Mom. He also guested on such popular series as My Wife and Kids, The Bernie Mac Show, Charmed, House, How I Met Your Mother, My Name Is Earl, 30 Rock, Big Love, Key and Peele, Grey’s Anatomy and This Is Us.

Among his final roles was recurring on Freeform’s pandemic-themed 2020 limited series Love in the Time of Corona.

Robinson also enjoyed a lauded stage career. He won an Ovation Award for Best Actor for playing Troy in Fences and an NAACP Theatre Award for playing Simon in The Whipping Man.

His widow, Dolorita Noonan-Robinson, paid tribute to the actor today:

“Once referred to by Martin Landau as ‘the greatest, underestimated actor in Hollywood,’ Charlie Robinson was the love of my life, husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather. He was truly the working actor’s actor, and of all his passions, his craft took center stage, with his family being the wind beneath his wings, so he could soar to unbelievable heights! On behalf of my husband and family, I thank you for being part of the audience.”

His reps at Artists & Representatives also issued a remembrance today.

“We are heartbroken by the loss of our dear friend and longtime client, Charlie Robinson. Charlie was an inspiration to all who knew him. His beautiful spirit defined his life and guided his prolific artistic journey. Our hearts go out to his loved ones in their time of grief.”

Along with his wife, Robinson is survived by children Luca, Charlie, Christian and Byron; and grandchildren, great-grandchildren. Funeral plans were incomplete.

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

Rapper Biz Markie, known for 'Just a Friend,' dies at 57
The rapper's 1989 single has been played for decades.
By Mark Osborne
July 16, 2021, 6:04 PM

Rapper Biz Markie has died. He was 57 years old.

Markie, whose real name was Marcel Theo Hall, was a rapper, producer and DJ in his career, but will forever be known for his quirky, 1989 single "Just a Friend."

"It is with profound sadness that we announce, this evening, with his wife Tara by his side, Hip Hop pioneer Biz Markie peacefully passed away," his representative said in a statement. "We are grateful for the many calls and prayers of support that we have received during this difficult time. Biz created a legacy of artistry that will forever be celebrated by his industry peers and his beloved fans whose lives he was able to touch through music, spanning over 35 years."

"Just a Friend" was featured on Markie's second studio album, "The Biz Never Sleeps." It rose to No. 9 on the U.S. charts and went platinum for selling over 2 million copies.



Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, FILE

The song was the only one from Markie to chart in the top 100 in his career, but it cemented his legacy in hip-hop forever. It wasn't just the song that was iconic, so was the video, which featured the rapper don a powder-white wig as he played the piano and belted out the classic chorus: "You, you've got what I need/ but you say he's just a friend/ and you say he's just a friend/ oh baby, you, you've got what I need."

The chorus, easy to sing along to as it repeated and grew louder as Markie grew more impassioned by his hard-luck dating life, won over both rap and mainstream fans as the genre was still bursting into the country's consciousness.

He released five solo studio albums in his career, most recently "Weekend Warrior" in 2003.

His genial personality and outgoing antics earned him several cameos in TV and films, including "Men in Black II," "Empire" and "Black-ish."

The rapper had struggled with his health in recent years. He was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in 2011, but said in 2014 that he was making health changes and had lost 140 pounds since the diagnosis.

"I wanted to live," Markie told ABC News at the time. "Since I have to be a diabetic, If I didn't make the changes, it was going to make the diabetes worse. I'm trying to get off [diabetes medications]. The way you gotta do it is lose the weight. I'm off half my meds, I just got to get off the rest."

"They said I could lose my feet," he added. "They said I could lose body parts. A lot of things could happen."

He had been married to his wife, Tara Davis, for 15 years. His wife had last posted on her Instagram on Father's Day, sharing photos of Biz Markie with his children, and writing, "As always, thank you for your kind messages, phone calls, video messages and prayers. Biz loves them and is still in it to win it."

"He leaves behind a wife, many family members and close friends who will miss his vibrant personality, constant jokes and frequent banter," his representative said in the statement. "We respectfully request privacy for his family as they mourn their loved one."

ABC News' Morena Basteiro contributed to this report.

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

Jackie Mason, comic who perfected amused outrage, dies at 93
CANVAS Arts Jul 25, 2021 7:54 PM EDT



Bobby Bank/WireImage

NEW YORK — Jackie Mason, a rabbi-turned-comedian whose feisty brand of standup comedy led him to Catskills nightclubs, West Coast talk shows and Broadway stages, has died. He was 93.

Mason died Saturday at 6 p.m. ET at Mt. Sinai Hospital in Manhattan after being hospitalized for over two weeks, the celebrity lawyer Raoul Felder told The Associated Press.

The irascible Mason was known for his sharp wit and piercing social commentary, often about being Jewish, men and women and his own inadequacies. His typical style was amused outrage.

“Eighty percent of married men cheat in America. The rest cheat in Europe,” he once joked. Another Mason line was: “Politics doesn’t make strange bedfellows, marriage does.” About himself, he once said: “I was so self-conscious, every time football players went into a huddle; I thought they were talking about me.”

His death was mourned far and wide, from fellow comedian Gilbert Gottfried, who called him “one of the best,” to Fox News Channel personality Sean Hannity, who hailed Mason as “irreverent, iconoclastic, funny, smart and a great American patriot.” Henry Winkler tweeted: “Now you get to make heaven laugh.”

Mason was born Jacob Maza, the son of a rabbi. His three brothers became rabbis. So did Mason, who at one time had congregations in Pennsylvania and North Carolina. Comedy eventually proved to be a more persistent calling than God.

“A person has to feel emotionally barren or empty or frustrated in order to become a comedian,” he told The Associated Press in 1987. “I don’t think people who feel comfortable or happy are motivated to become comedians. You’re searching for something and you’re willing to pay a high price to get that attention.”

Mason started in show business as a social director at a resort in the Catskills. He was the guy who got everybody up to play Simon Says, quiz games or shuffleboard. He told jokes, too. After one season, he was playing clubs throughout the Catskills for better money.

“Nobody else knew me, but in the mountains, I was a hit,” Mason recalled.

In 1961, the pint-sized comic got a big break, an appearance on Steve Allen’s weekly television variety show. His success brought him to “The Ed Sullivan Show” and other programs.

He was banned for two years from the “Sullivan” show when he allegedly gave the host the finger when Sullivan signaled to him to wrap up his act during an appearance on Oct. 18, 1964.

Mason’s act even carried him to Broadway, where he put on several one-man shows, including “Freshly Squeezed” in 2005, “Love Thy Neighbor” in 1996 and “The World According to Me” in 1988, for which he received a special Tony Award.

“I feel like Ronald Reagan tonight,” Mason joked on Tony night. “He was an actor all his life, knew nothing about politics and became president of the United States. I’m an ex-rabbi who knew nothing about acting and I’m getting a Tony Award.”

Mason called himself an observer who watched people and learned. From those observations he said he got his jokes and then tried them out on friends. “I’d rather make a fool of myself in front of two people for nothing than a thousand people who paid for a ticket,” he told the AP.

His humor could leap from computers and designer coffee to then-Sen. John Kerry, former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Donald Trump. He was able to articulate the average Joe’s anger, making the indignities of life seem funny and maybe just a little bit more bearable.

“I very rarely write anything down. I just think about life a lot and try to put it into phrases that will get a joke,” he said. “I never do a joke that has a point that I don’t believe in. To me, the message and the joke is the same.”

On TV, Mason was a reliable presence, usually with a cameo on such shows as “30 Rock” or “The Simpsons” or as a reliable guest on late night chat shows. He performed in front of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and his show “Fearless” played London’s West End in 2012.

He portrayed a Jewish ex-pajama salesman in love with an Irish-Catholic widow portrayed by Lynn Redgrave in a series called “Chicken Soup” in 1989 but it didn’t last. During the O.J. Simpson murder trial, the British Broadcasting Corp.’s Scottish service hired Mason as a weekly commentator. He was in “Caddyshack II,” a notorious flop.

Mason’s humor sometimes went too far, as when he touched off a controversy in New York while campaigning for GOP mayoral candidate Rudolph Giuliani against Democrat David Dinkins, who was Black. Mason had to apologize after saying, among other things, that Jews would vote for Dinkins out of guilt.

Felder, his longtime friend, told the AP that Mason had a Talmudic outlook on life: “That whatever you would say to him, he would start an argument with you.”

He is survived by his wife, producer Jyll Rosenfeld, and a daughter, Sheba.

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

Joey Jordison, Slipknot co-founder and drummer, dies at 46
Clad in masks and playing unusually aggressive even for the heavy metal genre, Slipknot exploded from the unlikely locale of Des Moines, Iowa, in the 1990s.
July 27, 2021, 3:36 PM PDT / Source: Reuters
By Variety


Naki / Redferns file

Joey Jordison, co-founder and original drummer of the aggressive hard rock band Slipknot, has died, according to a statement from his family. A cause of death was not immediately disclosed, although the statement says he died "peacefully in his sleep." He was 46.



Martin Philbey / Redferns file

"Joey's death has left us with empty hearts and feelings of indescribable sorrow. To those that knew Joey, understood his quick wit, his gentle personality, giant heart and his love for all things family and music. The family of Joey have asked that friends, fans and media understandably respect our need for privacy and peace at this incredibly difficult time. The family will hold a private funeral service and asks the media and public to respect their wishes."

Clad in masks and playing a style of music unusually aggressive even for the heavy metal genre, Slipknot exploded onto the music scene from the unlikely locale of Des Moines, Iowa, in the 1990s.

Jordison was a highly visible member of the band, whose music relied on his pummeling rhythms and endurance; he also cowrote many of their songs. He was a member from their formation in 1995 until his departure in late 2013. While no official statement was made, sources say he was fired from the band; Jordison said he did not leave voluntarily.

In addition to Slipknot, he also played guitar in the band Murderdolls and drums in Scar the Martyr and his most recent band, Sinsaenum.

Formed by members of a dizzying array of Des Moines-area hard rock bands, Slipknot made its debut in December of 1995. Jordison, along with bassist Paul Gray — who died in 2010 — and percussionist Shawn Crahan, was a core early member, suggesting the band's name and working with the others to plot its strategy.

The group self-released its debut album, "Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat.," on Halloween Day, 1996, with vocalist Corey Taylor replacing original singer Anders Colsefni several months later.

As the buzz around their performances increased, veteran metal producer Ross Robinson signed on to helm an album with the group, and they signed with hard rock powerhouse Roadrunner Records in 1998. An appearance on the 1999 metal-oriented Ozzfest tour, coinciding with the release of their self-titled official debut album, vaulted the band into stardom.

With their overpowering stage shows and masked identities, Slipknot was more about the experience than music, and the group soon acquired a rabid following. Not surprisingly, the members were often combative, and the group's lineup had many changes throughout its history.

By the early 2000s, Slipknot was one of the biggest hard rock bands in the world, working with producer Rick Rubin on their 2004 third effort, "Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses" and winning their first Grammy in 2006.

However, internal problems remained, exacerbated by Gray's death from a drug overdose in 2010. The group was uncertain whether to continue, but resumed touring the following year and began work on an album in 2013.

But Jordison was apparently fired late in 2013, saying in a Facebook post that he "did not quit" and was "shocked" and "blindsided."

He later revealed that he suffered from a neurological disorder that impaired his drumming, although he played drums in his most recent band, Sinsaenum. He formed Scar the Martyrn shortly after leaving Slipknot. That group split in 2016; he joined Sinsaenum shortly after and played with them until the present.

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[Frothy Afterbirth]

A legend has passed.


ZZ Top Bassist Dusty Hill Dead At Age 72

July 28, 20214:09 PM ET
Anastasia Tsioulcas


Rick Kern/WireImage/Getty Images

Dusty Hill, bassist for the enduring Texas blues rock band ZZ Top for over half a century, has died at age 72. The trio's other members, Billy Gibbons and Frank Beard, announced Hill's death in a Facebook post. Gibbons and Beard said that Hill had died in his sleep at his home, but did not provide a date.

"We are saddened by the news today that our Compadre, Dusty Hill, has passed away in his sleep at home in Houston, Tex.," they wrote. "We, along with legions of ZZ Top fans around the world, will miss your steadfast presence, your good nature and enduring commitment to providing that monumental bottom to the 'Top'. We will forever be connected to that 'Blues Shuffle in C.' You will be missed greatly, amigo."

Hill — whose given names were Joseph Michael — was born in Dallas on May 19, 1949. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, into which ZZ Top was inducted in 2004, Hill already was a touring musician by age 15, and at 20 was working as a sideman with Texas country-blues icon Lightnin' Hopkins.

In ZZ Top, Hill played bass guitar, sang and played keyboards. The trio was founded by Gibbons in 1969, and both Hill and Beard signed on in 1970. They celebrated their 50th anniversary with a San Antonio concert on Feb. 14, 2020—the band's only engagement before pandemic forced a celebratory tour to be postponed.

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