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Prior to "Gilligan's Island," Natalie Schafer had a professional acting career that lasted for decades. When she was still in her 20s, Schafer began appearing in numerous Broadway productions, often in smaller roles, and rarely in a play that ran for a very long time. She was an expert in playing a certain kind of high-society bourgeoisie biddy, and tended to play comedically clueless archetypes. Beginning in the 1940s, Schafer started to appear in films as well, appearing in multiple features a year. In the 1950s, she stretched into television, and was soon playing guest characters on many of the hottest anthology shows of the day.

At some point along the way, Shafer began telling people that she was 12 years younger than she actually was, likely hoping to avoid a stubborn, unjust stigma in Hollywood against older women. She had a stipulation in her contract that she receive no extreme closeups,...

Alan Hale, Jr. became a performer as part of his family's legacy. His mother was actress Gretchen Hartman who appeared in dozens of films in the 1910s, while his father, Alan Hale (real name: Rufus Edward MacKahan) racked up hundreds of credits in the silent era, typically as a reliable sidekick to Errol Flynn. Hartman retired from acting in 1929, and Hale, Sr. continued to work until his death in 1950. Alan Hale, Jr. first appeared on the screen as an infant, "starring" opposite his mother. Hale made his Broadway debut in 1931, when he was only 10, appearing in a very, very short-lived show called "Caught Wet" (it opened and closed in the same month). In 1933, Hale played uncredited role in William Wellman's Depression-era drama "Wild Boys of the Road," and it may be the first movie a casual observer would recognize him in. 

Staring in 1941, Hale began his acting career in earnest,...

Over the course of a screen acting career that stretched across fifty years, Charles Cyphers racked up 100 credits, but he’s best known for his collaborations with John Carpenter, having appeared in the director’s Assault on Precinct 13, Halloween, Someone’s Watching Me!, Elvis, The Fog, and Escape from New York. His most popular character was Sheriff Leigh Brackett from the 1978 Halloween, a role he reprised in 1981’s Halloween II and, after a forty year absence from the Halloween franchise, 2021’s Halloween Kills. Sadly, we’ve lost this great character actor, as Variety reports that Cyphers has passed away “from a brief illness” at the age of 85.

Cyphers’ manager Chris Roe confirmed his passing to Variety and provided the following statement: “Charles was a lovable and sensitive man. He always had the best stories, and you got a full performance while he told you. He was a close friend and...

Welcome to Random Roles, wherein we talk to actors about the characters who defined their careers. The catch: They don’t know beforehand what roles we’ll ask them to talk about.The actor: Kelly Reichardt, Gus Van Sant, Todd Haynes, Kathryn Bigelow. All names that appear multiple times in...

Heartbreak comes frequently for Friday the 13th fans. The franchise has had a rough ride over the last couple decades, getting bogged down in legal issues and creative false stars. We get a video game, then the rug is pulled out from under it when it’s just getting started. A movie almost happens, then gets scrapped just weeks before filming was scheduled to begin. The Crystal Lake TV show was just a couple months from filming, then the showrunner gets fired. But worse than all of that is the fact that we’re in a time when actors from our beloved films are passing away very often. Just last month, we lost Erich Anderson, who was in the cast of Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter. Now Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI director Tom McLoughlin has broken the news that Whitney Rydbeck, who played the ill-fated paintball player Roy in his film,...

Terrence Beasor, a veteran character and voice-over actor best known for Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, The Gods Must Be Crazy and recurring roles on The Middle and Raising Hope, has died. He was 89.

A rep said Beasor died May 28 at his home in Santa Monica with his wife of 55-plus years, actress Muriel Minot, by his side.

Beasor appeared on dozens of TV shows during his 40-year career, including The Incredible Hulk, The Greatest American Hero, The A-Team, Hardcastle and McCormick, Hill Street Blues, Cheers, L.A. Law, Dynasty, Hunter, Knot’s Landing, Simon & Simon, Police Squad!, Chicago Hope, The Office, Parks and Recreation, Scandal, Angie Tribeca, The Grinder, Hot In Cleveland, Scrubs, Gilmore Girls, The District, Suddenly Susan, Days of Our Lives and Murder, She Wrote.

He also did voice work on several Star Trek series and video games and offscreen announcing on movies and TV shows including Jaws: The Revenge,...

Beth Peters, a veteran actress and singer best known for playing the recurring role of Mrs. Whitaker on General Hospital, has died. She was 92. The passing was confirmed by Peters’ son, Sean Williams, who told Variety she died on Thursday, March 14, in central Florida after a short illness. An exact cause of death was not given. In an obituary provided to Variety by Williams, Peters’ General Hospital character description reads, “The motherly Mrs. Whitaker dispensed country wisdom from her farm kitchen in Beecher’s Corners, serving as a surrogate mother to Laura Spencer, played by Genie Francis, as the teenager’s story arc saw her fall in love with Luke Spencer, portrayed by Anthony Geary.” Peters appeared in eight episodes of the iconic ABC soap opera from 1980 to 1982 and returned in 1983 and 1994. Her other television credits include Quantum Leap, Mr. Belvedere, Beyond Belief, Simon and Simon, The Waltons, and Highway to Heaven.

General Hospital star Beth Peters has sadly passed away at the age of 92. For those familiar with the iconic soap, she played the role of Mrs. Whitaker in the 1980s. Keep reading for more details on what caused her death and the legacy she left behind.

General Hospital Star Beth Peters Dead At 92

It has not been an easy time in Port Charles with the passing of Jackie Zeman, Sonya Eddy, Robyn Bernard, and Tyler Christopher. Yet, the show must go on and it has, bringing back Steve Burton in the role of Jason Morgan to excite fans. Unfortunately, another General Hospital cast member has taken their final bow. Beth Peters, who played the role of Mrs. Whitaker, passed away on Thursday, March 14th. She was 92 years young, per Variety. Her role on Gh was short-lived, just eight episodes, but it was impactful.

‘General Hospital’ logo/Credit: ABC YouTube

According to her obituary,...

Beth Peters, an actor and singer who had a recurring role on “General Hospital,” died on March 14 in central Florida after a short illness. She was 92.

In the early 1980s, Peters appeared in eight episodes of the popular ABC soap opera as the character Mrs. Whitaker. In an obituary for Peters provided to Variety by her son, her character description reads, “The motherly Mrs. Whitaker dispensed country wisdom from her farm kitchen in Beecher’s Corners, serving as a surrogate mother to Laura Spencer, played by Genie Francis, as the teenager’s story arc saw her fall in love with Luke Spencer, portrayed by Anthony Geary.”

Peters started her acting and singing career as a teenager in coastal New Jersey. In 1955, she appeared on Broadway for the first time as an extra for the play “Inherit the Wind,” later taking on the role of Mrs. Brady in the last months of the show’s production.

Actress Robyn Bernard, acclaimed for her portrayal of Terry Brock in the iconic soap opera General Hospital, passed away on March 12 at 64.

The news of her death emerged as she was found deceased in an open field behind a business establishment in San Jacinto, California, as confirmed by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, according to Variety.

The cause of her death remains undisclosed and is still under investigation. The coroner’s office identified Bernard through her fingerprints after law enforcement was called for a death investigation, as reported by TMZ.

The Riverside County Coroner has stated that the cause of death has not yet been determined. An autopsy is set to take place on Wednesday, with toxicology tests expected to take several weeks.

Bernard’s legacy in television was notably marked by her portrayal of Brock, a character she portrayed across 145 episodes of ABC series between 1984 and 1990.

Terry Brock...

Robyn Bernard, who played Terry Brock on “General Hospital” for 6 years and also acted in France, died Tuesday in San Jacinto, Calif. She was 64.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s department confirmed her death Wednesday and said they found Bernard in an open field behind a business. Cause of death has not been revealed and local detectives are investigating.

Bernard, born May 26, 1959, in Gladewater, Texas, was drawn to performance from a young age. She got her start singing gospel songs with her younger sister Crystal, who went on to star on the 1990 sitcom “Wings.”

Robyn Bernard was credited as Bernard Robin for her first credited role in Jean-Jacques Beneix’s stylish 1981 French hit “Diva.”

She would go on to guest star on shows such as “Whiz Kids,” “The Facts of Life” and “Simon and Simon.”

Bernard started on “General Hospital” in September 1984. During her time on the drama series, which holds...

Robyn Bernard, who starred on General Hospital for several years in the 1980s, has died. She was 64.

According to the Riverside County Coroner’s Office, the actress’ body was found in a field behind a business in San Jacinto, California, early Tuesday morning. The cause of death was not immediately available, and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office is continuing to investigate.

Bernard, the older sister of Wings actress Crystal Bernard, was born on May 26, 1959, in Gladewater, Texas. She landed her first acting role in Diva in 1981.

But she didn’t score her big break until 1984, when she was cast as Terry Brock on the ABC soap opera General Hospital. She played the daughter of David Groh’s villainous D.L. Brock for 145 episodes until her exit in 1990. On the show, Terry developed a drinking problem, which ultimately impacted her character’s music career.

Bernard’s other acting credits included...

Robyn Bernard, who played Terry Brock on General Hospital in more than 140 episodes from 1984-90, died March 12 in San Jacinto, CA, law enforcement officials said Wednesday. She was 64.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said Bernard was found in an open field behind a business but did not reveal a cause of death (see the report here). Detectives were investigating, but sheriff’s Sgt. Wenndy Brito-Gonzalez said, “Foul play was not suspected in this death.”

Bernard was born on May 26, 1959, in Gladewater, Texas. She began performing at a young age, singing gospel songs with her younger sister, future longtime Wings star Crystal. The elder Bernard’s first screen appearance was in the 1981 film Diva, and she followed that with guest spots on such series as The Facts of Life, Simon & Simon and Whiz Kids.

Her signature role began in September 1984, playing singer Terry Brock aka Terry O’Connor. During her run on the ABC daytime drama,...

Former General Hospital actress Robyn Bernard was found dead in San Jacinto, California. The actress was 64, and while there were no signs of foul play, investigators are still looking into her death. Here is what we know about the passing of the former soap opera star.

Robyn Bernard Found Dead In California

Robyn Bernard, who played Terry Brock on the long-running ABC soap opera General Hospital, is dead at 64. According to TMZ, police found her dead in the morning hours on March 12 in San Jacinto, California. Her identity was discovered after police ran her fingerprints.

It is unclear what happened or where she was actually found. In the reports, the police were called to an area south of a 7-Eleven gas station on Commonwealth and San Jacinto Ave and found the dead body there. Despite this, the police say they do not believe there was foul play. However, an autopsy...

Actress Robyn Bernard, best known for her ’80s stint as aspiring singer Terry Brock on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital, has died. She was 64.

According to TMZ, Bernard’s body was found Tuesday in San Jacinto, Calif. A cause of death is pending.

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Bernard joined General Hospital in 1984 as Terry, the daughter of David Groh’s villainous D.

Jean Allison, the familiar character actress who appeared on dozens of TV shows, from Have Gun — Will Travel, Bonanza, Hawaiian Eye and The Rifleman to McCloud, Adam-12, The Waltons and Highway to Heaven, has died. She was 94.

Allison, a resident of Rancho Palos Verdes, died Feb. 28, her family announced.

Allison made her big-screen debut as a woman menaced by a psychopath (Michael Higgins) in the United Artists drama Edge of Fury (1958), and her film résumé also included The Devil’s Partner (1960), Paul Sylbert’s The Steagle (1971), Robert Benton’s Bad Company (1972) and Paul Schrader’s Hardcore (1979).

Born in New York on Oct. 24, 1929, Allison attended Marymount High School in Tarrytown, New York, and Adelphi College, also in New York.

While appearing on stage in the Patricia Joudry drama Teach Me How to Cry, she was spotted and signed by agent Doovid Barskin. Her first TV gig came in 1957 on CBS’ General Electric Theater.

Charles Dierkop, the busy character actor who played tough guys in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting and the 1970s Angie Dickinson series Police Woman, has died. He was 87.

Dierkop died Sunday at Sherman Oaks Hospital after a recent heart attack and bout with pneumonia, his daughter, Lynn, told The Hollywood Reporter.

The Wisconsin native also appeared alongside Rod Steiger in Sidney Lumet’s The Pawnbroker (1964), played the mobster Salvanti in Roger Corman’s The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre (1967) and was a murderous Santa Claus in the cult horror movie Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984).

After portraying an uncredited pool-hall hood in the Paul Newman-starring The Hustler (1961), Dierkop got to work with Newman again in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) when he was hired to play Hole in the Wall Gang outlaw George “Flat Nose” Curry.

Dierkop had broken his nose in fights several times as a kid,...

Harry Johnson, an actor who appeared on dozens of shows throughout his 40-year career, including Battlestar Galactica, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Law & Order, has died. He was 81.

Johnson died Tuesday, his rep Jonathan Erickson confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. The cause of death is unknown at this time.

“It is with great sadness that we acknowledge the passing of Atb Talent client Harry Johnson,” Atb Talent Agency shared in a statement. “With a career spanning over 40 years, Harry was a true talent and cherished member of the community. His impact on the entertainment industry will be remembered and celebrated. Our hearts go out to his friends and family, including Christiane, his wife of 15 years and stepchildren, Oliver and Penelope. May his memory be a blessing to all.”

Born on Dec. 27, 1942, in Plainfield, New Jersey, Johnson began his acting career in 1978, when he appeared in the pilot episode of Battlestar Galactica,...

Harry Johnson, an actor who starred in hit series such as Battlestar Galactica, Law & Order, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has died after a long illness. He was 81. Johnson’s passing was confirmed by his wife, Christiane, who told Deadline he died on Tuesday, January 2, in Los Angeles, just six days after his 81st birthday. Born on December 27, 1942, in Plainfield, New Jersey, Johnson (often credited as Chip Johnson in the 1970s and 80s) got his start on the multi-part pilot episode of Battlestar Galactica in 1978. From there, he appeared in several classic TV series, including B.J. and the Bear, Quincy M.E., The Incredible Hulk, Days of Our Lives, Simon & Simon, M*A*S*H, The A-Team, and many more. Johnson continued to pop up across various TV shows throughout the 1990s and 2000s, including the likes of Jake and the Fatman, Party of Five, Melrose Place, Roswell, The Guardian, Judging Amy,...

Harry Johnson, an actor with scores of credits spanning 40 years that ranged from the original Battlestar Galactica to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, several Dick Wolf series and the famous “Harry & Louise” commercials, died January 2 of in Los Angeles after a long illness. He was 81.

His wife, Christiane, confirmed his passing to Deadline.

Born on December 27, 1942, in Plainfield, NJ, he often credited as Chip Johnson in the 1970s and ’80s and was among the last contract players for Universal Studios. Johnson began his screen career with the multi-part pilot episode of Battlestar Galactica in 1978 and went on to guest-star on dozens of TV series including M*A*S*H, Quincy M.E., The Incredible Hulk, Simon & Simon, The Greatest American Hero, Highway to Heaven, The A-Team, L.A. Law, Dynasty, Who’s the Boss?, Thirtysomething, Melrose Place, Party of Five, Roswell, Resurrection Blvd., Judging Amy, Days of Our Lives and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

He was...

On Jan. 4, 1984, NBC unveiled Night Court, which went on to air for nine seasons and get a recent revival. The Hollywood Reporter weighed in with a full review, headlined “Night Court convicted of being consistently amusing TV sitcom,” as it entered its sophomore run:

Night Court is a consistently funny sitcom created by Reinhold Weege, a writer-producer for the old Barney Miller series. Its venue, weekly parade of various weirdos, and quirky regulars are reminiscent of Miller. And, like Miller, Night Court has more laughs per episode than most sitcoms.

Anchoring the series is Harry Anderson, as unorthodox Manhattan arraignment court judge, Harry Stone. Judge Stone is sharp and fair, but he seizes every available opportunity to turn due process of law into an excuse for levity. Anderson manages to wring just the right amount of irony out of lines like, “Being a judge means never having to say you’re sorry.

Shelley Smith, the ’70s super model turned actor known for her work on “The Associates” and “For Love and Honor,” died Tuesday after going into cardiac arrest days earlier. She was 70.

Smith died at Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital, her husband Michael Maguire said in a video posted to Facebook on Wednesday.

“She loved helping people. Most of all, she helped me. She made me a much better person than I ever would have been. We had a great marriage,” Maguire said in the video. “I don’t know how to go on without her. But I know that we had an incredible relationship and it was as pure as anything could be.”

Smith kicked off her modeling career in the early 1970s, landing the cover of Harper’s Bazaar and getting features in Vogue, Mademoiselle and Glamour magazines. In 1979, she stepping into the television world and made her star debut on “The Associates” alongside Martin Short,...

Nicolas Coster, the British-American actor who played an evasive lawyer in All the President’s Men, a fiendish kidnapper in All My Children, zany businessman Lionel Lockridge on Santa Barbara, and the father of Lisa Whelchel’s Blair Warner in The Facts of Life, died Monday at a hospital in Florida. He was 89.

His death was announced by his daughter Dinneen Coster on social media. “There is great sadness in my heart this evening, my father actor Nicolas Coster has passed on in Florida at 9:01 pm in the hospital,” Dinneen Coster wrote on Facebook. “Please be inspired by his artistic achievements and know he was a real actor’s actor!”

A cause of death was not given.

A prolific actor whose career spanned decades on television and encompassed both leading and character roles,...

Veteran stage and screen actor Gerald Castillo, who appeared in major TV series including “Saved By the Bell,” “General Hospital,” “Hill Street Blues,” “M*A*S*H” and “Dallas,” died May 4 at his home in Houston. He was 90.

Known for his work as Major Slater on “Saved by the Bell” and Judge Davis Wagner on “General Hospital,” Castillo developed a following for his roles in the two series.

Born in Chicago on Dec. 23, 1932, Gerald studied acting and stage direction at the Goodman Theater. Following his education, he acted on stages all across the nation, performing opposite Sherman Hemsley, Rita Moreno, Jessica Tandy, James Broderick and Jeanne Crain. After performing with Hemsley, “The Jeffersons” star convinced Castillo to pursue a film and TV career in Los Angeles.

Castillo then appeared in several feature films, including “Delta Force II,” “Kinjite,” “Death Wish IV,” “State of Emergency,” “Through Naked Eyes,” and “Above Suspicion.”

Castillo also guest starred in several TV series,...

Lance Kerwin, a former child star known for television projects James at 15, Salem’s Lot and The Loneliest Runner, has died. He was 62.

Kerwin died Tuesday morning, according to his daughter Savanah. A cause of death was not given.

In 1976, he starred as the younger version of Michael Landon’s character in NBC’s Landon-directed made-for-tv movie The Loneliest Runner, playing a boy who loves to run. He followed that with the title role in the network’s drama series James at 15 (later known as James at 16) that launched in 1977 and ran for 20 episodes.

Kerwin co-starred alongside David Soul and James Mason in the 1979 television horror miniseries Salem’s Lot, based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name. The project earned three Emmy nominations.

The youngest of five brothers, Kerwin was born in Newport Beach, California, on Nov. 6, 1960.

He also appeared in 1970s episodes of such TV series as Emergency!,...

Lance Kerwin, who starred in the 1979 miniseries “Salem’s Lot” and the TV series “James at 15,” has died. He was 62.

His daughter Savanah Kerwin shared the news Wednesday on Facebook: “I am so sorry to those we have not been able to reach out to personally to notify but Lance Kerwin passed away yesterday morning. We appreciate all the kind words, memories, and prayers that have been shared. As the coming weeks progress, I will share more information about after life ceremonies. He loved each and every one of you.”

No cause of death was given.

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Kerwin played Mark Petrie in Tobe Hooper’s eerie adaptation of the Stephen King tale. The character’s love of horror movies helps him defend himself when his best friend becomes a vampire and shows up outside his bedroom window one...

Clarence Gilyard, a veteran actor who had notable roles in Die Hard, Matlock and Walker, Texas Ranger who would later become a theater professor and author, has died. He was 66.

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas College of Fine Arts, where Gilyard taught, announced his death on Monday afternoon, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He had been suffering from a long illness. No further details were released.

In a rich and varied career that spanned five decades, Gilyard achieved success in film, television and on stage. For film fans, he is perhaps best known for playing Theo, Hans Gruber’s cocky computer hacker in 1988’s Die Hard. In the 1990s, Gilyard was a familiar face on primetime television, first for playing private investigator Conrad McMasters on the legal drama Matlock and then, in a career-defining role, as Ranger James Trivette in the long-running series Walker, Texas Ranger.

This article contains mild Moon Knight spoilers.

You wouldn’t know it if you watched the Disney+ TV series, but Moon Knight is a superhero with at least one foot planted firmly in the spookier corners of the Marvel Universe. The character first appeared as an antagonist in an issue of Werewolf by Night, for one thing, and because of his ties to an Egyptian moon god of vengeance has always flirted with the supernatural. Never has that been more true than in the current Moon Knight comic series, where the hero has opened the Midnight Mission, protecting “those who travel by night” from threats both earthly and unearthly, and populating its supporting cast and antagonists with vampires.

“The touchstone we had when we started the series was, I wanted Moon Knight back where I thought he worked best, which is on the street,” Moon Knight writer Jed MacKay tells our Marvel Standom podcast.

Michael Callan, the versatile actor who appeared in everything from broad comedies such as Cat Ballou to the original Broadway production of West Side Story to frothy romances like Gidget Goes Hawaiian and virtually every hit TV show of the ’70s and ’80s has died, according to a Deadline source. He was 86.

Callan may be most recognizable for his work as Clay Boone in Cat Ballou opposite Jane Fonda and Lee Marvin, who won an Oscar for his work in the film. In it, Callan plays and accused cattle rustler and the romantic lead opposite Fonda.

Michael Callan and Jane Fonda in ‘Cat Ballou’

On Broadway, Callan played Riff in the original production of West Side Story from 1957-1959. Just 21, the actor auditioned multiple times before landing the role that would put him on Hollywood’s radar.

Michael Callan as Riff in ‘West Side Story’ in 1959

As a result, he...

Richard Roat, a character actor with 130-plus credits spanning nearly a half-century who appeared in many of TV’s biggest shows including Seinfeld, Friends, Cheers, Murphy Brown, Dallas, Hawaii Five-o and Happy Days, has died. He was 89.

Roat died August 5 in Orange County, CA, according to his family. No other details were available.

Hollywood & Media Deaths 2022: A Photo Gallery

Born on July 3, 1933, in Hartford, Ct, Roat had a couple of bit TV roles before being cast as Dr. Jerry Chandler in the 1962 pilot of NBC soap opera The Doctors. He appeared in more than 170 episodes during the first year of the which, would go on to air for two decades.

He guested on a 1965 episode of The Fugitive and became a busy character actor during the following decade. Roat appeared in memorable 1970s comedies and dramas as Hawaii Five-o, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Columbo, Cannon, Kojak, The Bob Newhart Show,...

Bridget Hanley, star of the late ’60s TV western Here Come The Brides, died Wednesday. The 80-year-old actress had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and was living at the Motion Picture and Television Fund Wasserman Campus in Woodland Hills, according to the local paper in Edmunds, Washington, where she grew up.

Hanley played the female lead, Candy Pruitt, on ABC’s Brides from 1968-1970. Her character was the love interest of Jeremy Bolt — teen heartthrob Bobby Sherman. Bolt’s brother on the show was played by David Soul, who would soon find fame on Starsky & Hutch. The show was loosely based on Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.

The actress married E. W. Swackhamer, Jr. a producer and director on Here Come the Brides, in 1969. They were together until he died in 1994.

Hanley worked throughout the ’70s and ’80s on some of the biggest shows on TV, mostly in guest-starring roles.

Tommy Lane, an actor and stuntman who appeared in such classic films as Shaft and Live and Let Die, died Monday at Fort Lauderdale’s Florida Medical Center after a long battle with Copd. He was 83.

His daughter, Kamala Lane, confirming his passing to Deadline.

Born on December 17, 1937, in Miami, Lane primarily was active as an actor from the 1960s through the 1990s. In Gordon Parks’ classic 1971 private eye thriller Shaft, he played gangster Bumpy Jonas’ (Moses Gun) hitman, Leroy, who memorably is dragged up steps and thrown out of a window by Richard Roundtree’s detective John Shaft. In Guy Hamilton’s 1973 Bond film Live and Let Die, starring Roger Moore, he portrayed Adam, a gangster and enforcer reporting to Yaphet Kotto’s Mr. Big and Julius Harris’ Tee Hee.

Yaphet Kotto Dies: Bond Villain, ‘Homicide’ Star, ‘Alien’ & ‘Midnight Run’ Actor Was 81

Lane’s film credits also include Cotton Comes to Harlem...

Stuntman and actor Tommy Lane, who appeared in films including “Live and Let Die” and “Shaft,” died Monday in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. He was 83.

His daughter Kamala reported that he died after a long bout of Copd.

In Richard Roundtree’s “Shaft,” his character Leroy could be seen crashing through Richard Roundtree’s Times Square office window. “That’s some cold shit, throwing my man Leroy out the window. Just picked my man up and threw him out the goddamn window,” says Willy in the 1971 blaxploitation classic.

In the 1973 James Bond film “Live and Let Die,” he played Adam, one of Kananga’s henchmen who chases Roger Moore in a speedboat off the coast of the fictional island of San Monique. His character threatens, “You made one mistake back on that island, Bond. You took something that didn’t belong to you. And you took it from a friend of Mr.

Grammy-nominated jazz songwriter, singer and pianist Dave Frishberg died yesterday, according to a post on his Facebook page. His wife April Magnusson said he had been battling an illness for several years. He was 88.

Frishberg had a long and varied career that stretched from the Greenwich Village jazz scene of the ’50s to work as a studio musician in L.A. in the ’70s, to cutting his own Grammy-nominated albums and doing music for films and TV.

But his greatest fame came from his involvement with Schoolhouse Rock, a 1973-85 series of Saturday-morning shorts on ABC that used music and rhyme to help kids learn basic facts, with such memorable songs as “Elementary, My Dear”, “Conjunction Junction” and Frishberg’s “I’m Just a Bill”. “I’m Just a Bill” was famously spoofed on Saturday Night Live in 2014.

He wrote and performed other...

Markie Post, who became a star in the 1980s playing a plucky public defender on “Night Court” and had a long run of TV roles, died Saturday at her home in Los Angeles. She was 70.

Post waged a nearly four-year fight with cancer. She kept working until very recently despite her illness.

Post co-starred in the 2019 Lifetime movie “Christmas Reservations” and logged a guest shot that year on the first season of Netflix drama “Soundtrack.” In recent years, Post had recurring roles on NBC’s “Chicago, P.D.,” ABC’s “The Kids are Alright” and Netflix’s “The Santa Clarita Diet.”

Post grew up in Northern California and got her start working behind the scenes on game shows such as “Double Dare” and “Card Sharks” in the 1970s. She moved into working in front of the camera with game show appearances and guest shots on such series as “CHiPs,” “Barnaby Jones,...

Markie Post, an actress best known for playing a public defender on the 1980s sitcom “Night Court,” died Saturday at age 70.

Post succumbed to a nearly four-year battle with cancer, her manager Ellen Lubin Sanitsky told Deadline. Sanitsky did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.

In addition to her work in “Night Court,” which ran for nine seasons on NBC from 1984 to 1992, she also had memorable roles as a bail bondsman in the Lee Majors action series “The Fall Guy” in the early ’80s and in the 1992-95 comedy “Hearts Afire” about a conservative senator’s aide (John Ritter), who marries a liberal political reporter (Post).

Later, she had recurring guest roles in series like “The District” and as the mother of Sarah Chalke’s doctor character on “Scrubs.”

Post’s film credits include playing Cameron Diaz’s mother in the hit 1998 Farrelly Brothers comedy “There’s Something About Mary...

Markie Post, an actress known for her roles on sitcoms like Night Court and Hearts Afire, died Saturday. She was 70.

Per our sister site Deadline, Post had been ill with cancer for nearly four years.

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Post played Manhattan Municipal Court public defender Christine Sullivan in NBC’s Night Court, first appearing in Season 2 and then becoming a series regular in Season 3. She stayed with the...

Exclusive: Gerald McRaney, who has recurred on NCIS: Los Angeles since 2014, has been promoted to series regular for the upcoming 13th season of the CBS drama series.

McRaney plays retired Adm. Hollis Kilbride, who advises and counsels the Los Angeles division of the NCIS Special Projects unit during their undercover operations.

“When you have an actor of Gerald McRaney’s caliber, you do everything you can to make sure you get him as often as possible,” executive producer R. Scott Gemmill said. “Admiral Kilbride has been an esteemed part of our universe for seven years now and we look forward to viewers seeing him come in and shake up our NCIS: LA world.”

NCIS: LA is a drama about the high-stakes world of a division of NCIS that is charged with apprehending dangerous and elusive criminals, who pose a threat to the nation’s security.

McRaney’s promotion follows the...

Samuel E. Wright, best known for voicing Sebastian in “The Little Mermaid,” has died at 74. Although portraying the singing lobster in the beloved 1989 Disney film was Wright’s biggest claim to fame, he also appeared in numerous television shows and theatrical productions.

Wright’s hometown of Montgomery, New York shared the sad news in a Facebook post Tuesday, highlighting the actor’s impact on the community through both his performing arts conservatory and his own jubilant personality.

“Sam and his family have impacted countless Hudson Valley youth always inspiring them to reach higher and dig deeper to become the best version of themselves,” the post said, “On top of his passion for the arts and his love for his family, Sam was most known for walking into a room and simply providing Pure Joy to those he interacted with. He loved to entertain, he loved to make people smile and...

Actor Gloria Henry, who advanced from B movies in the 1940s to an iconicTV mom on the CBS sitcom “Dennis the Menace,” died Saturday, one day after her 98th birthday.

Henry’s death was revealed Sunday in an Instagram post from her daughter, Erin Ellwood an interior designer and longtime production designer. “She was such an incredible woman in so many ways,” Ellwood wrote.

Henry played Alice Mitchell, the endlessly patient, shirtwaist dress-wearing mother of the mischievous title character created as a newspaper cartoon by Hank Ketcham. The TV series adaptation ran from 1959 to 1963 with Jay North in the title role. Henry’s co-star Herbert Anderson also became an iconic TV dad with his horn rim glasses, sharp-angled suits and V-neck sweaters.

Henry maintained a steady presence in TV through the mid-1960s. But there was a long gap in her resume while she took time out from acting to...

Christopher Pennock, whose long career in daytime drama is best remembered for his portrayal of a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde character on ABC’s supernatural soap Dark Shadows, died Feb. 12 following a brief hospitalization in California. Pennock, who was diagnosed with melanoma last summer, was 76.

His death was announced on the Dark Shadows News Facebook page. Pennock’s wife, Lynn Dunn Pennock, told the site that her husband, a lifelong Buddhist, “has transitioned into the pure land of Dewachen with complete enlightenment leaving only a rainbow body behind.”

Dark Shadows actor David Selby, a friend of Pennock’s since their days on the 1960s-’70s show, wrote on his blog, “Chris was the most fun loving, generous and kind man with a great smile. He was the kind of person this world needs more of…His spirit and joy of life will be with me and all those who...

Tommy Lasorda, the colorful, quotable and revered Los Angeles Dodgers legend who managed the team to two World Series title and four National League pennants in the 1970s and ’80s, died today at 93. The Dodgers announced that the Hall of Famer “suffered a sudden cardiopulmonary arrest at his home” on Thursday night.

Lasorda had been sent home this week after being hospitalized for seven weeks in Orange County, spending much of that time in intensive care.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred issued the following statement:

“Tommy Lasorda was one of the finest managers our game has ever known. He loved life as a Dodger. His career began as a pitcher in 1949 but he is, of course, best known as the manager of two World Series champions and four pennant-winning clubs. His passion, success, charisma and sense of humor turned him into an international celebrity, a stature that he used to grow our sport.

Chicago – On November 18th, 2020, the streaming service HBO Max premiered “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Reunion.” 30 years after the popular sitcom debuted, the primary cast got together to talk about the joys and foibles of developing family ties while creating and performing their characters in the show. Among the reunited cast was Will Smith (Will), Alfonso Riberiro (Carlton), Tatyana Ali (Ashley), Karyn Parsons (Hilary), Jazz (DJ Jazzy Jeff) along with the actress who portrayed Aunt Vivian, Daphne Maxwell Reid.

Reid was the second Aunt Vivian cast on the show. Janet Hubert was the first, and left the show under tremendous stress and personal issues, which was highlighted rather poignantly on the reunion show, when her and Will Smith met to work out those issues that led to the recasting. Regardless, Daphne Maxwell Reid steered the character to the end of the show in 1996, and did one more episode (75) as Aunt Vivian than Hubert.

Anthony James, an instantly recognizable character actor who often played the creepy guy including in Best Picture Oscar winners In the Heat of the Night and Unforgiven, died May 26 of cancer. He was 77.

James had made a single brief appearance on a TV series before Norman Jewison cast him as the killer Ralph in 1967’s In the Heat of the Night, starring Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger. The film went on to win five Oscars, including Best Picture.

He would bookend his career with a key role in Unforgiven as the slimy brothel owner Skinny Dubois, who ends up on the losing end of Bill Munny’s gun. That 1992 pic starring and helmed by Eastwood won four Academy Awards, including the marquee prize, and would be James’ final screen credit.

It was the second time an Eastwood character would dispatch James in a revenge Western. Two decades earlier, his Cole...

Richard Herd, an instantly recognizable character actor who recurred as Mr. Wilhelm on Seinfeld and appeared in All the President’s Men, The China Syndrome and several Star Trek projects, among many other credits, died Tuesday in Los Angeles of cancer complications. He was 87.

Herd’s death was announced by his wife, actress Patricia Crowder Herd.

Herd is probably best known to TV audiences for his role as Mr. Wilhelm on Seinfeld, George Costanza’s New York Yankees boss who in one memorable episode is recruited by a religious cult (1996’s “The Checks”) and in another (1995’s “The Hot Tub”) is convinced George is cracking under the stress of the Big Leagues. Herd appeared in 11 Seinfeld episodes during it last four seasons, including the finale.

Herd appeared as the leader of the Watergate burglars in 1976’s All the President’s Men and as the duplicitous nuclear power plant boss in 1979’s The China Syndrome.

Chicago – Three days to go before the two-day ‘Mainframe Comic Con’ – a completely free-to-join online comic book convention – will kick off, and on the first day a rush of movie nostalgia will take place when actress Claudia Wells will be a guest representing the original “Back to the Future.” Wells portrayed Marty McFly’s girlfriend Jennifer Parker in that classic film.

The Mainframe Comic Con had the idea, during this stay-at-home timeframe, to put on an entire Comic Con – guests, artists, exhibitors and even cosplay – all online. Claudia Wells is just one of the many guests (click here for the line-up) scheduled to virtually appear on this free-to-participate comic convention event. That’s right, if you want to experience a Q&a with a cast member of “Back to the Future,” you can find her at the Mainframe Comic Con.

Power of Love: On Set with Claudia Wells, Michael J. Fox...

Lyle Waggoner, the 1960s and ’70s heartthrob known for his work on The Carol Burnett Show and TV’s Wonder Woman and later founded the set trailer business Star Waggons, has died peacefully Tuesday at his home after battling an illness, according to TMZ, which was first to report his death. He was 84.

In 1965, Waggoner tested for the title role in the 20th Century Fox/ABC series Batman but lost the job to Adam West. Instead, he landed a guest role on the Western series Gunsmoke in 1966.

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A year later, he began a seven-year stint on The Carol Burnett Show, first as an announcer. Producers later began to incorporate him into the show as a comedy sketch partner...

Tony Sokol Nov 22, 2019

Michael J. Pollard was in the classic film Bonnie and Clyde, the classic series Star Trek and named a classic album.

Michael J. Pollard, a legendary character actor who was featured in Bonnie and Clyde, the original Star Trek, and House of 1000 Corpses, died in Los Angeles from cardiac arrest on Nov. 21, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He was 80.

Pollard's breakout role was as C.W. Moss, the gas station attendant who drove getaway cars in the 1967 gangster classic Bonnie and Clyde, starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway. The role got Pollard nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. In a career spanning seven decades, Pollard created many memorable characters. He led the gang of orphan children in the 1966 Star Trek episode "Miri," which also featured Kim Darby. That same year he played character inspired by Peter Pan in in the Lost in Space episode "The Magic Mirror.

Timothy Olyphant returned to his role as Seth Bullock in the long-awaited “Deadwood: The Movie” on HBO. The actor is a previous Emmy nominee for his work on “Justified” and was nominated at the Screen Actors Guild Award as part of the cast of “Deadwood.”

Olyphant recently spoke with Gold Derby managing editor Chris Beachum about reuniting with the “Deadwood” cast after all those years, what it would mean to earn Emmy nominations for the movie and what to expect from his appearance in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” Watch the exclusive webchat above and read the complete interview transcript below.

SEEEmmy spotlight: David Milch deserves to ride off into the ‘Deadwood’ sunset with a victory for writing

Gold Derby: Timothy, after a dozen years, why was this the right time to get everybody together and bring it back?

Timothy Olyphant: I don’t know but I was free...

5:15 Pm Pt -- We just got Chazz Palminteri in NYC, and he told us he's glad he got the chance to work with Carmine ... calling him a really great man. Chazz also feels Carmine should be reinstated by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. 9:53 Am Pt -- Carmine's manager tells us, "From Broadway, to film and television, Carmine spent over six decades entertaining audiences, and nothing made him happier. His talent,...