Obituaries
Entries from July 2010
Peter Fernandez, who provided the voice for the title character in the cult 1960s Japanimation TV series Speed Racer, has died at age 83. Fernandez also wrote the famous title song for the series. He was associated with other well-known Japanese animation series and even made a cameo in the 2008 big screen live action version of Speed Racer. For more click here
Vonetta McGee, one of the most prominent actresses to gain fame during the period of Blaxploitation films in the 1970s, has died at age 65. She had been battling health problems since she was teenager and had been on life support for the last few days. McGee resented the term Blaxploitation and felt frustrated that she never received studio support to emerge as a bigger star. Still, she worked consistently and in hit films like Blacula, Shaft in Africa, Melinda and Thomasine and Bushrod. She also had a few key roles in The Lost Man opposite Sidney Poitier, and most notably, as the female lead, Jemima Brown, in Clint Eastwood's 1975 spy thriller The Eiger Sanction. In later years, she had a recurring role on TV series L.A. Law. For more click here
Click here to watch the original trailer for The Eiger Sanction
Alan
Hume, one of
the most accomplished directors of photography has died
aged
85.A
veteran of over
100 films, Alan Hume began his career as a clapper boy on David Lean's
In
Which We Serve, Great Expectations and Oliver Twist. He progressed up the
ranks to
focus puller by his third film with Lean. When
Our Girl Friday
(starring a young Joan Collins) came along in 1953, Hume was promoted to
camera
operator and shot 27 more films as camera operator in 7 years. He gained
a
reputation for being fast, efficient and a brilliant photographer -
which deeply
impressed Carry On producer Peter Rogers, who put Hume under contract
and
offered him the chance to become a director of photography in 1960 on No
Kidding. Over the next forty years, Hume lit over 150 films and TV shows.Among
his credits
were fifteen Carry On films, Star Wars: Return of the
Jedi,
Stepping Out, Shirley Valentine, A Fish Called Wanda, The Land That Time
Forgot,
Shout At The Devil and TV shows The Avengers, Space Precinct and
Acapulco HEAT. James Bond producer Albert R. Broccoli was so impressed by Hume's work that he hired him for four 007 blockbusters: The Spy Who Loved Me, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy and A View to a Kill.
Alan
Hume was regarded as a true gentleman within his chosen industry. As a friend and supporter of Cinema Retro, we mourn his loss.- Dave Worrall and Lee Pfeiffer
(Cinema Retro columnist Gareth Owen co-authored Alan Hume's 2004 autobiography A Life Through the Lens: Memoirs of a Film Cameraman. To read about Hume's remarkable career, click here to order from Amazon USA , click here to order from Amazon UK.)
By Lee Pfeiffer
Producer Elliott Kastner has died at age 80. Known for his humorous personality and penchant for off-color jokes, Kastner was a larger-than-life character. Although born in America, he made England his home through much of his career and maintained an office at Pinewood Studios until the end of his life. Kastner moved from the music industry into film production with his first credit as producer on the 1965 film Bus Riley's Back in Town. He was one of the first producers to secure independent financing for his films, then sell the distribution rights to major studios. Kastner had many high profile films to his credit including Harper with Paul Newman, The Missouri Breaks and The Nightcomers- both with Marlon Brando, and perhaps most notably the 1969 MGM WWII film Where Eagles Dare with Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood. The film was based on a story by Alistair MacLean and Kastner went on to adapt other works by the author for the screen including Breakheart Pass, Fear is the Key and When Eight Bells Toll. He also brought the character of detective Philip Marlowe back to the screen in the 1970s with The Long Goodbye, The Big Sleep and Farewell, My Lovely, the latter two starring Robert Mitchum.
Continue reading "BREAKING NEWS! ELLIOTT KASTNER, FAMED PRODUCER, DEAD AT AGE 80"
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