[MaxBigfoot]

It's amazing how many of those old shows that are so prominent in my memories only ran a few seasons.   

[TheZookie007]

It's amazing how many of those old shows that are so prominent in my memories only ran a few seasons.   

That's the power of nostalgia, and of re-runs!

[TheZookie007]

Technoblade, Minecraft YouTuber, Dead at 23


A week after the death of Minecraft content creator Technoblade, a tribute to his positive personality has brought the YouTube community together. Sad-ist, an animation channel with 2.75 million subscribers, has combined one of Technoblade’s quotes with a drawing of the Minecraft mode SkyBlock.

The one-minute video features Technoblade’s description of SkyBlock, which is one of the most popular and difficult survival modes in a game filled with survival modes. Technoblade was well-known for his SkyBlock videos, one of which has received more than 35 million views to date.

Technoblade died in late June, about a year after he first told his fans that doctors had discovered a sarcoma in his right arm. Sad-ist’s animation doubles as a fundraiser for the Sarcoma Foundation of America (SFA), which is committed to researching a cure for the deadly form of cancer named in its title. Sad-ist also supported their fundraiser by heading to Twitch, where they created drawings based on viewer suggestions.

If you’d like to do your part to honor Technoblade’s legacy, you can support the SFA fundraiser via the organization’s website.

[TheZookie007]

The New York Times: "Businesswoman Ivana Marie Zelníčková Dies at 73"
She helped build a NYC real estate empire, though she was better known for being one half of the quintessential 1980s power couple.

[TheZookie007]

Paul Sorvino, father of Academy Award-winning actress Mira Sorvino, has died of natural causes. He was 83.

Best known for his role as mobster Paul Cicero in Goodfellas, Sorvino was at first reluctant to take it. Not only because he was a proud Italian-American, loath to re-emphasize the stereotypes, but also because "I’m a poet, I’m an opera singer, I’m an author … none of it is gangster."

In 2018 the world learned how passionate Sorvino could be offscreen. Responding to revelations of abuse and blackballing that his daughter Mira, endured at the hands of disgraced mogul Harvey Weinstein, Sorvino told TMZ he hoped Weinstein would do jail time: “Because if not, he has to meet me.” Sorvino then related in no uncertain terms what would happen to Weinstein should he get a hold of him.


He is survived by his third wife, Dee Dee Sorvino, three children, Mira, Amanda, and Michael; and five grandchildren.

[TheZookie007]

Tony Dow, the all-American Wally on ‘Leave it to Beaver,’ dies at 77
The sitcom, which depicted an idyllic suburban American household, became a cultural touchstone of the baby boom generation

Tony Dow, the actor who endeared himself to millions of TV viewers as Wally Cleaver, the all-American big brother on the wholesome sitcom Leave It to Beaver, died July 26 at his home in Topanga, California. He was 77. The cause was complications from liver cancer, said his manager, Frank Bilotta.

Leave It to Beaver, airing from 1957 to 1963, depicted an idyllic suburban postwar American household and became a cultural touchstone of the baby boom generation. Hugh Beaumont was the handsome, ever-patient father, Ward Cleaver, and Barbara Billingsley played the glamorous and understanding matriarch, June, who vacuumed in high heels and always tucked her boys into their beds.

The sitcom began on CBS but appeared for most of its run on the third-place ABC network and never was a big ratings success. But thanks to its gentle, wry humor and an appealing ensemble cast, it thrived in syndication. The show lasted far longer than more popular family sitcoms of that era, including The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, Father Knows Best and The Donna Reed Show, TV scholar Robert Thompson has noted.

After the success of the show, he found it hard to get work, and suffered from depression. Eventually, he did get more work, in addition to acting in revivals of the show with most of the original cast. He had modest success as a sculptor, with work appearing in galleries and international exhibitions. Starting with The New Leave It to Beaver in 1988, Mr. Dow also began a career as a TV director, and his credits included episodes of Babylon 5 and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

His first marriage, to Carol Marlow, ended in divorce. In 1980, he married Lauren Shulkind, whom he met when she was working for an advertising firm and looking for an “all-American guy” to cast in a McDonald’s commercial. In addition to his wife, survivors include a son from his first marriage, Christopher; a brother; and a granddaughter.


Members of the original cast of Leave It To Beaver — from left, Ken Osmond, Tony Dow, Barbara Billingsley and Jerry Mathers — reunited in 1982 for the filming of a TV special, Still the Beaver. (Wally Fong/AP)

[salem]

Iconic actor David Warner has died, aged 80

From the BBC website

Actor David Warner, who starred in films such as The Omen and Tron, has died at the age of 80 from a cancer-related illness.

His family said they were sharing the news "with an overwhelmingly heavy heart".

Warner was also known for playing Billy Zane's villainous sidekick Spicer Lovejoy in James Cameron's 1997 blockbuster Titanic.

He recently appeared as naval eccentric Admiral Boom in Mary Poppins Returns.

Warner died on Sunday at Denville Hall, a care home for those in the entertainment industry.

"Over the past 18 months he approached his diagnosis with a characteristic grace and dignity," his family said in a statement given to the BBC.

"He will be missed hugely by us, his family and friends, and remembered as a kind-hearted, generous and compassionate man, partner and father, whose legacy of extraordinary work has touched the lives of so many over the years. We are heartbroken," it continued.

Warner often played the baddie, taking on villainous roles in films such as The Thirty Nine Steps (1978) and Time Bandits (1981).

Many will recall his character, photographer Keith Jennings, who met an inglorious end in 1976's supernatural classic, The Omen.

In an interview for a programme on horror films fronted by Mark Gatiss, when asked if he knew what had happened to his severed head, Warner deadpanned: "I lost it in the divorce."

Warner played Bob Cratchit in George C Scott's 1984 adaptation of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol, noting it was a pleasure to play a character that wasn't a villain for a change.

He also enjoyed a successful television career, with roles in Wallander - playing Kenneth Branagh's father - Penny Dreadful, Ripper Street, Doctor Who and the original Twin Peaks among others.

Warner was also known for playing various characters in the Star Trek franchise and starred in several Doctor Who audio plays.


I will always remember him from his appearances in Star Trek V, Star Trek VI and Star Trek: The Next Generation, as well as his appearance in Doctor Who alongside Matt Smith and Jenna Coleman in the episode 'Cold War'

[rtpoe]

CHOCO TACO (1983-2022)

“Over the past 2 years, we have experienced an unprecedented spike in demand across our portfolio and have had to make very tough decisions to ensure availability of our full portfolio nationwide,” Unilever, the parent company of Klondike, which made the Choco Taco, said in a statement to The Washington Post. “A necessary but unfortunate part of this process is that we sometimes must discontinue products, even a beloved item like Choco Taco.”

The Choco Taco was the answer to a simple question: What if ice cream was tacos? That kind of question makes perfect sense to a kid, and it must have been validating to think that some enlightened grown-ups at the food factory (or whatever) saw fit to answer it.

The Choco Taco was born in Philadelphia, where it was invented by a former Good Humor truck driver named Alan Drazen. At the time, chimichanga and fried ice cream slinger Chi-Chi’s was the country’s hot casual restaurant franchise, while the moment when salsa became more popular than ketchup was just a few years away. “Mexican food was the fastest-growing segment of the food industry, and the taco was the most recognizable shape,” says Drazen. That shape made for a whole different ice cream-eating experience. “When you eat a sugar cone, you generally eat the nuts, chocolate, and ice cream on the top, and then when you get to the cone, you’re [only] eating ice cream and cone,” Drazen says. “With the Choco Taco you’re getting the ice cream, cone, nuts, and chocolate with just about every bite.”

Over the years there have been multiple Choco Taco flavors, including Heath Bar, a generic toffee flavor, peanut butter, cookies-and-cream, strawberry, and yes, “fried ice cream,” though neither breading nor hot oil was involved. “That was a caramel, dulce de leche kind of flavor,” Drazen says.

There are some fans in high places that want it to come back. Senator Chris Murray (D-CT) tweeted: "Tomorrow I am introducing legislation to invoke the Defense Production Act to mandate the continued manufacture of Choco Tacos. Please call your Senator and demand they co-sponsor." And tech entrepreneur Alexis Ohanian also offered to be the Choco Taco’s white knight. “Dear @Unilever — I’d like to buy the rights to your Choco Taco and keep it from melting away from future generations’ childhoods,” he tweeted on Monday.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/25/business/choco-taco-discontinued/index.html

[TheZookie007]

I have never heard of the Choco Taco before today.

Rest in pieces (in people's tummies)

[solvegas]

Tony Dow, the all-American Wally on ‘Leave it to Beaver,’ dies at 77
The sitcom, which depicted an idyllic suburban American household, became a cultural touchstone of the baby boom generation

Tony Dow, the actor who endeared himself to millions of TV viewers as Wally Cleaver, the all-American big brother on the wholesome sitcom Leave It to Beaver, died July 26 at his home in Topanga, California. He was 77. The cause was complications from liver cancer, said his manager, Frank Bilotta.

Leave It to Beaver, airing from 1957 to 1963, depicted an idyllic suburban postwar American household and became a cultural touchstone of the baby boom generation. Hugh Beaumont was the handsome, ever-patient father, Ward Cleaver, and Barbara Billingsley played the glamorous and understanding matriarch, June, who vacuumed in high heels and always tucked her boys into their beds.

The sitcom began on CBS but appeared for most of its run on the third-place ABC network and never was a big ratings success. But thanks to its gentle, wry humor and an appealing ensemble cast, it thrived in syndication. The show lasted far longer than more popular family sitcoms of that era, including The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, Father Knows Best and The Donna Reed Show, TV scholar Robert Thompson has noted.

After the success of the show, he found it hard to get work, and suffered from depression. Eventually, he did get more work, in addition to acting in revivals of the show with most of the original cast. He had modest success as a sculptor, with work appearing in galleries and international exhibitions. Starting with The New Leave It to Beaver in 1988, Mr. Dow also began a career as a TV director, and his credits included episodes of Babylon 5 and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

His first marriage, to Carol Marlow, ended in divorce. In 1980, he married Lauren Shulkind, whom he met when she was working for an advertising firm and looking for an “all-American guy” to cast in a McDonald’s commercial. In addition to his wife, survivors include a son from his first marriage, Christopher; a brother; and a granddaughter.


Members of the original cast of Leave It To Beaver — from left, Ken Osmond, Tony Dow, Barbara Billingsley and Jerry Mathers — reunited in 1982 for the filming of a TV special, Still the Beaver. (Wally Fong/AP)

I believe that Jerry Mathers (The Beaver) is now the last surviving member of that show, Leave it to Beaver, which back in the 70's was a staple of the re-runs you used to see in the UHF channels. Every so often you had to readjust the Rabbit ears (UHF antenna) to get the signal. I still remember the shows theme tune. 

[Hiram]

Doctor Who and Wombles actor Bernard Cribbins has died aged 93, his agent has confirmed.   

During a career that spanned seven decades, Cribbins narrated the 1970s children's programme The Wombles.  He also played the Doctor's companion Tom Campbell in the 1966 film Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D. returning 41 years later in the revived TV series.

[salem]

Bernard Cribbins had not long finished doing some filming for the 60th annivesary. It will make the episodes very poignant. I wonder if they will work his death into the script somehow.

In the End of Time Part 1, there is a scene between David Tennant and Bernard Cribbins where they are discussing their mortality. Bernard's character Wilf says a line like 'We all have to die sometime' to which the 10th Doctor replies, 'Don't you dare!'. Wilf then replies with something along the lines of 'I'll try my best'. Almost brought a tear to my eye watching that.

Cribbins was sensational in The End of Time, some of the exchanges between Tennant and Cribbins were very emotional. I am looking forward to seeing them together again in the 60th specials.

[rtpoe]

He also appeared with Peter Cushing in the Doctor Who Movie!

[Cutter]

Trek Comms are closed.

Nichelle Nichols, Lt Uhura of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC 1701 has passed.

Unhappyness.

[CarlTL]

Trek Comms are closed.

Nichelle Nichols, Lt Uhura of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC 1701 has passed.

Unhappyness.

She had been suffering from either Dementia or Altimeters for the past few years. She's finally at peace.