obituary
Page: 25
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Alan Arkin, the wry character actor who demonstrated his versatility in everything from farcical comedy to chilling drama as he received four Academy Award nominations and won an Oscar in 2007 for Little Miss Sunshine, has died. He was 89.
His sons Adam, Matthew and Anthony confirmed their father’s death through the actor’s publicist on Friday. “Our father was a uniquely talented force of nature, both as an artist and a man,” they said in a statement.
A member of Chicago’s famed Second City comedy troupe, Arkin was an immediate success in movies with the Cold War spoof The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming and peaked late in life with his win as best supporting actor for the surprise 2006 hit Little Miss Sunshine. More than 40 years separated his first Oscar nomination, for The Russians are Coming, from his nomination for playing a conniving Hollywood producer in the Oscar-winning Argo.
In recent years he starred opposite Michael Douglas in the Netflix comedy series The Kominsky Method, a role that earned him two Emmy nominations.
“When I was a young actor people wanted to know if I wanted to be a serious actor or a funny one,” Michael McKean tweeted Friday. ‘I’d answer ‘Which kind is Alan Arkin?’ and that shut them up.”
Arkin once joked to The Associated Press that the beauty of being a character actor was not having to take his clothes off for a role. He wasn’t a sex symbol or superstar, but was rarely out of work, appearing in more than 100 TV and feature films. His trademarks were likability, relatability and complete immersion in his roles, no matter how unusual, whether playing a Russian submarine officer in The Russians Are Coming who struggles to communicate with the equally jittery Americans, or standing out as the foul-mouthed, drug-addicted grandfather in Little Miss Sunshine.
“Alan’s never had an identifiable screen personality because he just disappears into his characters,” director Norman Jewison of The Russians Are Coming once observed. “His accents are impeccable, and he’s even able to change his looks. … He’s always been underestimated, partly because he’s never been in service of his own success.”
While still with Second City, Arkin was chosen by Carl Reiner to play the young protagonist in the 1963 Broadway play Enter Laughing, based on Reiner’s semi-autobiographical novel.
He attracted strong reviews and the notice of Jewison, who was preparing to direct a 1966 comedy about a Russian sub that creates a panic when it ventures too close to a small New England town. In Arkin’s next major film, he proved he could also play a villain, however reluctantly. Arkin starred in Wait Until Dark as a vicious drug dealer who holds a blind woman (Audrey Hepburn) captive in her own apartment, believing a drug shipment is hidden there.
He recalled in a 1998 interview how difficult it was to terrorize Hepburn’s character.
“Just awful,” he said. “She was an exquisite lady, so being mean to her was hard.”
Arkin’s rise continued in 1968 with The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, in which he played a sensitive man who could not hear or speak. He starred as the bumbling French detective in Inspector Clouseau that same year, but the film would become overlooked in favor of Peter Sellers’ Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies.
Arkin’s career as a character actor continued to blossom when Mike Nichols, a fellow Second City alumnus, cast him in the starring role as Yossarian, the victim of wartime red tape in 1970’s Catch-22, based on Joseph Heller’s million-selling novel. Through the years, Arkin turned up in such favorites as Edward Scissorhands, playing Johnny Depp’s neighbor; and in the film version of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross as a dogged real estate salesman. He and Reiner played brothers, one successful (Reiner), one struggling (Arkin), in the 1998 film The Slums of Beverly Hills.
“I used to think that my stuff had a lot of variety. But I realized that for the first twenty years or so, most of the characters I played were outsiders, strangers to their environment, foreigners in one way or another,” he told The Associated Press in 2007.
“As I started to get more and more comfortable with myself, that started to shift. I got one of the nicest compliments I’ve ever gotten from someone a few days ago. They said that they thought my characters were very often the heart, the moral center of a film. I didn’t particularly understand it, but I liked it; it made me happy.”
Other recent credits included Going in Style, a 2017 remake featuring fellow Oscar winners Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman, and The Kominsky Method. He played a Hollywood talent agent and friend of Douglas’ character, a once-promising actor who ran an acting school after his career sputtered.
He also was the voice of Wild Knuckles in the 2022 animated film Minions: The Rise of Gru.
Arkin also directed the film version of Jules Feiffer’s 1971 dark comedy Little Murders and Neil Simon’s 1972 play about bickering old vaudeville partners, The Sunshine Boys. On television, Arkin appeared in the short-lived series Fay and Harry and played a night court judge in Sidney Lumet’s drama series 100 Centre Street on A&E. He also wrote several books for children.
Born in New York City’s borough of Brooklyn, he and his family, which included two younger brothers, moved to Los Angeles when he was 11. His parents found jobs as teachers, but were fired during the post-World War II Red Scare because they were Communists.
“We were dirt poor so I couldn’t afford to go to the movies often,” he told the AP in 1998. “But I went whenever I could and focused in on movies, as they were more important than anything in my life.”
He studied acting at Los Angeles City College; California State University, Los Angeles; and Bennington College in Vermont, where he earned a scholarship to the formerly all-girls school.
He married a fellow student, Jeremy Yaffe, and they had two sons, Adam and Matthew.
After he and Yaffe divorced in 1961, Arkin married actress-writer Barbara Dana, and they had a son, Anthony. All three sons became actors: Adam starred in the TV series “Chicago Hope.”
“It was certainly nothing that I pushed them into,” Arkin said in 1998. “It made absolutely no difference to me what they did, as long as it allowed them to grow.”
Arkin began his entertainment career as an organizer and singer with The Tarriers, a group that briefly rode the folk musical revival wave of the late 1950s. Later, he turned to stage acting, off-Broadway and always in dramatic roles.
At Second City, he worked with Nichols, Elaine May, Jerry Stiller, Anne Meara and others in creating intellectual, high-speed impromptu riffs the fads and follies of the day.
“I never knew that I could be funny until I joined Second City,” he said.
Bluegrass musician Bobby Osborne, who helped popularize the song “Rocky Top,” died early Tuesday, according to a statement from the college where he worked. He was 91. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Osborne and his brother Sonny made up The Osborne Brothers, and their version of […]
Varnell Harris Johnson, who held senior executive roles at Capitol-EMI, Blue Note, Jive, Island, Elektra Records and more throughout his career in music and who was president of the Living Legends Foundation, has died. He was 76.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Johnson — or “VJ,” as his peers knew him — passed away on Wednesday (June 21) at 6 p.m. ET of congestive heart failure, Billboard has learned.
Johnson has been credited for recruiting several Black executives, including many women, into key music industry positions. He had an ear for talent and had a hand in bringing Tina Turner over to Capitol Records as a solo artist, and brought the Isley Brothers with him from Elektra to Island. With his knowledge of how influential gospel music was to the community, he helped establish the gospel-focused Verity Records.
“This is a major loss,” says David C. Linton, friend of Johnson and chairman of the Living Legends Foundation. “At the time he broke into the industry, he was able to work in every aspect of the business. Varnell was one of the first Black executives to have total autonomy within the label system. He not only signed some great artists, but he also hired other Black executives and molded so many of our careers. He had a lot of ‘firsts’ in his career. He was always caring, he promoted women, and you could always call him for advice – he was that great link.”
Living Legends Foundation vice president Jacqueline Rhinehart, a marketing professional, remembers him as “the quintessential record man. He was a straight shooter and someone who was great at maintaining relationships at all levels of the industry … He never lost his role as an influencer — it wasn’t reliant on what job he held at what label.”
“He was a people person, a good person to know,” Ray Harris, a veteran record promotion executive and a founding member of the Living Legends Foundation, says. “And I have such a deep appreciation for him because he got on board with the Living Legends Foundation right from the beginning. The organization grew substantially thanks to his participation and leadership. He was always a voice of common sense, wisdom, and calm, and we’re going to miss that voice.”
Johnson was born in Philadelphia. He played football and basketball at Simon Gratz High School and graduated at 16. He then enlisted in the Army at 17, serving as a combat medic in the Vietnam War. Following an honorable discharge, he went to Temple University and graduated with a marketing and advertising degree. Harold Childs, a Philadelphia neighbor, influenced Johnson to get into the music business.
His career in music started as a gofer at A&L Record Distributors before becoming general manager for Philly Groove Records. His was then hired as a marketing/promotion director at GMC, which led to him landing at EMI/United Artists’ newly formed R&B division in Los Angeles in 1979.
Johnson moved to parent company Capitol Records as vice president of A&R, working with artists including René & Angela, A Taste of Honey, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, George Clinton, Freddie Jackson, Natalie Cole, Peabo Bryson, Roberta Flack, Tina Turner and Ashford & Simpson. His next gig, as vice president of promotion and marketing at Capitol’s Manhattan/Blue Note Records division, brought him back to the East Coast. There, he worked with Dianne Reeves, Bobby McFerrin, Phyllis Hyman, The O’Jays and Shirley Jones.
Johnson was hired as vice president of marketing and promotion at Jive Records in 1992. He worked with R. Kelly, A Tribe Called Quest, KRS One and Aaliyah at Jive. Next, he made his mark at Elektra Records, where he served as vice president and worked with Keith Sweat, Kut Klose and Ron Isley, and then was offered the position of senior vice president and general manager for Island Records’ Black music division; the Isley Brothers followed him, joining a roster with Dru Hill, Karen Clark Sheard and Kelly Price.
Johnson went on to run Junes Entertainment Inc., his own consulting firm, and most recently resided in New Jersey. He is survived by his wife Darlene, son Varnell, (nicknamed “June”) and daughter Tracey.
Funeral arrangements will be announced at a later date.
Teresa Taylor, a former drummer for Texas psychedelic noise merchants Butthole Surfers died of complications from lung disease on Monday at age 60. The group announced the news in a post in which they wrote, “Teresa Taylor passed away peacefully this weekend after a long battle with lung disease. She will live in our hearts forever. RIP, dear friend.”
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
The news was also confirmed by Taylor’s partner, Cheryl Curtice, who wrote, “Teresa passed away clean and sober, peacefully in her sleep, this weekend. She was so brave, even in the face of her horrible disease. We were all fortunate to have her beautiful, strong spirit in our lives. She will be forever missed. We will have a memorial service sometime in the future. I love you, beloved Teresa.”
Taylor was also well known for appearing on the poster for director Richard Linklater’s breakthrough 1990 film Slacker, in which she was famously depicted standing with her hands in her front pockets, staring into the distance while wearing a baseball hat and sunglasses. She also appeared in the film, playing a character named “Pap Smear Pusher” who enthusiastically tries to sell a jar she claims contains Madonna’s pap smear.
The percussionist — who also went by the stage name Teresa Nervosa — was born in Arlington, TX in 1962 and met future bandmate and fellow Surfers drummer King Coffey when they both played in a high school marching band. She later joined the San Antonio-bred punk band fronted by Gibby Haynes with the name not safe for mainstream TV and radio whose sonic attack blasted fans with waves of chaotic noise, disturbing surgery videos and strobe lights.
Taylor played drums alongside Coffey from 1983-1985 and then again from 1986-1989, taking a leave after suffering from seizures she said were caused by a brain aneurysm; she underwent brain surgery in 1993 and came back for a brief period to play live with the Surfers in 2009. For a band known for confounding audiences with their pummeling, sometimes disorienting visual and audio assault, the sight of the two percussionists playing their respective stand-up kits next to each other became a vital part of their stagecraft, as did their long-running fib that they were actually siblings and not just bandmates.
She joined the band in the studio for a run of their beloved early albums, including 1984 full-length debut, Psychic… Powerless… Another Man’s Sac, as well as 1986’s Rembrandt Pussyhorse, 1987’s Locust Abortion Technician and 1988’s Hairway to Steven, among others.
In Nov. 2021, Taylor revealed that she had been diagnosed with end-stage lung disease in a Facebook post.
See the Surfers’ and Curtice’s posts, and Taylor’s Slacker scene, below.
Big Pokey has died, a representative for the Houston rapper confirms to Billboard. He was 45.
A mainstay on the local hip-hop scene in Houston, Big Pokey — whose real name is Milton Powell — collapsed on stage Saturday night (June 17) during a performance at Pour 09 Bar in Beaumont, Texas, according to local news stations. He was rushed to the hospital, where he passed away. His cause of death is pending.
An “in loving memory of” statement shared on Big Pokey’s official Instagram account Sunday night reads: “It is with deep sadness that we share the news of the passing of our beloved Milton ‘Big Pokey’ Powell. Big Pokey passed away on June 18, 2023. He was well-loved by his family, his friends, and his loyal fans. In the coming days, we will release information about his celebration of life and how the public can pay their respects. We ask that you respect his family and their privacy during this difficult time. Big Pokey will forever be ‘The Hardest Pit in the Litter.’”
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Pour 09 Bar wrote in an update on Facebook, “We would like everyone to send their prayers to Big Pokey and his family. Out of respect for those involved we will not be commenting on the incident to allow his family and friends ample time to mourn and make a statement when they are ready. This is a tragedy that no one expected and only our prayers go out to his family and friends.”
Big Pokey dropped six full-length studio albums throughout his career, beginning with Hardest Pit in the Litter in 1999. His most recent album, Sensei, was released in 2021.
In 2005, the rapper joined Paul Wall on the single “Sittin’ Sidewayz,” which charted on the Billboard Hot 100.
“The City of Houston and I extend our prayers and condolences to our own Screwed Up Click legendary rapper #BigPokey family and friends,” Sylvester Turner, mayor of the city of Houston, tweeted on Sunday, referring to local hip-hop collective Screwed Up Click. “Though many called him ‘low key,’ his presence was larger than life in helping to catapult our hip hop scene nationally. We are grateful.”
Bun B, also based out of Houston and part of Screwed Up Click, paid tribute to Big Pokey on Instagram: “I wasn’t ready for this,” he said. “One of the most naturally talented artists in the city. Low key, humble mountain of a man who moved with honor and respect. He was easy to love and hard to hate. He’d pull up, do what he had to do and head home. One of the pillars of our city. If heart of gold was a person. Iconic member of the SUC. There will never be another and will be missed dearly. We love and honor you Sensei. Rest in heaven.”
In another post, Bun B encouraged others to listen to Big Pokey’s Sensei. “Let’s get on all the streaming platforms and make this the number one album in the country today. Jump on @youtube @spotify @applemusic @tidal @pandora and anywhere else for the legend @sucbigpokey today. Let’s send his family a message that we loved him! Long Live Big Pokey!”
The City of Houston and I extend our prayers and condolences to our own Screwed Up Click legendary rapper #BigPokey family and friends. Though many called him “low key”, his presence was larger than life in helping to catapult our hip hop scene nationally. We are grateful. st pic.twitter.com/5VI7nAL2V2— Sylvester Turner (@SylvesterTurner) June 18, 2023
Johnny Rowan, who drummed for ’90s alt rockers Urge Overkill under the name Blackie Onassis, has died at age 57, the band announced Wednesday (June 14). “Urge Overkill is saddened to report that Blackie has passed away,” read a post on the band’s social media accounts. “Please respect our privacy at this time. We are […]
Astrud Gilberto, “The Girl From Ipanema” singer who would make bossa nova a sensation in the 1960s, died at 83 on Monday (June 5). Paul Ricci, a friend and former collaborator of Gilberto’s, confirm the news of the Brazilian singer’s death on social media at the request of her son Marcelo. “She was an important […]
Cynthia Weil, the prolific lyricist who wrote dozens of indelible pop hits with husband Barry Mann over a six-decade career has died at 82. According to the Associated Press, Weil’s death of undisclosed causes was confirmed on Friday (June 2) by Interdependence Public Relations, which represents Mann’s daughter, Dr. Jenn Mann.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Weil and Mann were one of the most formidable songwriting teams to set up residence in Manhattan’s famed Brill Building in the 1960s, which was also home to fellow pop songwriting powerhouses including Carole King and Gerry Goffin. Weil’s tear-stained ballads about young love, undying devotion and social struggles include such classics as the Crystals’ “Uptown,” the Drifters’ “On Broadway,” The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” and the Animals’ anti-war anthem “We Gotta Get Out of This Place.”
Longtime friend King paid homage to Weil in a statement that featured an image of her with Mann, Weil and her then-husband Goffin at a BMI dinner in 1962, writing, “We lost the beautiful, brilliant lyricist Cynthia Weil Mann… The four of us were close, caring friends despite our fierce competition to write the next hit for an artist with a #1 song. Sometimes we wrote in different combinations, e.g., Mann and Goffin ‘Who Put The Bomp?’ and King and Weil ‘One To One.’ Cynthia’s high professional standard made us all better songwriters. My favorite Cynthia lyric is, “Just a little lovin’ early in the mornin’ beats a cup of coffee for startin’ out the day.” If we’re lucky, we know this is true, but she wrote it — and then she rhymed “mornin’” with “yawnin’” in the next verse. May the legacy of lyrics by Cynthia Weil continue to speak to and for generations to come. Rest in peace with love and gratitude.”
Weil was born on Oct. 18, 1940 in New York City and studied ballet and piano as a child, but after graduating from Sarah Lawrence University with a theater major she scored a job working for composer Frank Loesser at 20 and soon met Mann, whom she married in 1961. After scoring their first hit that year with Tony Orlando’s “Bless You,” the pair became regular collaborators with “Wall of Sound” producer Phil Spector, with whom they worked on the Ronettes’ “Walking in the Rain” and the Crystals’ “He’s Sure the Boy I Love.”
They landed their most enduring chart-topper in 1965 with the blue-eyed soul smash “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” a No. 1 hit produced by Spector that has been covered dozens of times and became the most-played song on radio and TV in the 20th century according to BMI.
The width and breadth of their songwriting ranged from lounge singers Eydie Gorme (“Blame it on the Bossa Nova”) and her duet partner Steve Lawrence (“Don’t Be Afraid, Little Darlin’”), to pop group Jay and the Americans (“Only in America,” a collaboration with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller), rock band Paul Revere & the Raiders (the anti-drug tune “Kicks”), singing TV group The Partridge Family (“I Really Want to Know You” and “I’m on the Road”) and British siren Dusty Springfield (“Just a Little Lovin’” from her iconic 1969 Dusty in Memphis album).
The 1970s brought collabs with rockers Blood Sweat & Tears (“So Long Dixie”), country singer B.J. Thomas (“Here You Come Again”) and the Grass Roots (“Mamacita”), as their hot streak continued into the 1980s with Bill Medley’s “Don’t Know Much,” which was a No. 2 hit for Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville in 1989, winning a Grammy in 1990 for best pop performance by a duo or group with vocal. They did it again in 1981 with the Quincy Jones/James Ingram ballad “Just Once,” which hit No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for a best male pop vocal performance Grammy in 1982.
Weil and Mann also wrote hits for Dionne Warwick (“Never Gonna Let You Go”), Bette Midler (“All I Need to Know”), Jeffrey Osborne (“We’re Going All the Way”), the Pointer Sisters (“Baby Come and Get It”) and Ronstadt and James Ingram (“Somewhere Out There”), a No. 2 hit they collaborated on with James Horner for the animated movie An American Tail that won Grammys in 1988 for song of the year and best song written specifically for a motion picture or television.
She also scored hits on her own or with other writers for the Pointers (“He’s So Shy”), Barry Manilow (“Somewhere Down the Road”), Lionel Richie (“Running with the Night,” “Love Will Conquer All”), Peabo Bryson (“If Ever You’re in My Arms Again”), Chaka Khan (“Through the Fire”), Sheena Easton (“So Far So Good”) and Martina McBride (“Wrong Again”).
Weil was the first woman recipient of the Ahmet Ertegun Award at the 2010 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction (which she shared with Mann), and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987 and landed the first-ever National Academy of Songwriters Life Achievement Award (both with Mann), as well as the Songwriting Hall of Fame’s highest honor, the Johnny Mercer Award in 2011. She is survived by Mann, 84, and their daughter, Jenn.
Jacky Oh, a former castmember of Nick Cannon’s Wild ‘N Out, has died at 32. At press time a cause of death had not been announced. BET confirmed the news in an Instagram post, which read, “We, the BET family, extend our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Jacky Oh and DC Young […]
Puerto Rican rapper Pacho El Antifeka died on Thursday (June 1) after being fatally shot in Puerto Rico. He was 42 years old.
The artist born Neftalí Álvarez Núñez was found dead inside a black 2008 Infinity car near the Plaza Tropical shopping center in Bayamón, according to Telemundo Puerto Rico. Law enforcement responded to the location after receiving calls of shots being fired.
The rapper’s death was later confirmed on his official Instagram account with a post featuring a powerful drawing created by “Arte Cardé.” It shows the musician in the passenger seat of a car and God taking the wheel.
“A great one has left us, but the most important thing is that he will be eternal in our memories and hearts because of those huge marks that he left, nobody will erase them. Impossible to forget someone so special and someone as friendly as Pacho was. Your legacy is still here, and your family and work team will not let your music die because we all know that you made music from the heart for your fans…because that was what you loved to do music,” read part of the caption.
With a career that spanned nearly 20 years, Pacho El Antifeka was known for hits such as “Como Soy” with Daddy Yankee and Bad Bunny; “Pa Morir Se Nace” with Farruko; “Tu No Eras Asi” with Rauw Alejandro; “Triste” with Nicky Jam; and “No Te Veo” with Jay Wheeler and Wisin y Yandel, to name a few. Last year, Pacho went viral on social media for replying to Residente’s “Bzrp Music Session” aimed at J Balvin. Pacho was signed to the indie urban label Duars Entertainment.
Many of his reggaeton colleagues including — Daddy Yankee and Hector El Father — reacted to the news of his death on social media.
“I am not the one to judge anyone’s personal life but I can judge the way people treat me; based on that judgment, I can choose my friends. I am aware that you have always treated me with respect, appreciation, honesty, sincerity, and loyalty,” Daddy Yankee wrote in an Instagram post. “For me those qualities are worth a lot because they are not easily found in these times […] And I assure you brother that you were a real person with me from our beginnings at an early age, dreaming of this career. I am glad to know that I was able to contribute to you in life.”
“Only God knows how much your departure hurts me,” Hector El Father shared, also on Instagram. “You always called me to ask for prayer and to take my services to the caserios (barrios). You always let me know the desire you had to get closer to God and all your struggles. I only ask God that in that last second of life, you have remembered what I always told you: ‘Cry out to God and ask him for forgiveness.’”
See more reactions below: