Peter Van Norden obit

Peter Van Norden Dies: ‘Police Academy 2’ & ‘The Naked Gun 2½’ Actor Was 75

 He was not on the list.

Peter Van Norden, the actor who appeared in Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment and The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear, has died. He was 75.

The actor’s wife Wendy was by his side as he died peacefully Thursday morning in a Southern California hospice facility, where he was struggling with multiple health conditions, according to TMZ.

Born December 16, 1950 in New York City, Van Norden graduated magna cum laude from Colgate University in Upstate NY before moving to Los Angeles in the 1970s, making his onscreen debut in the Lloyd Kaufman-helmed ’79 comedy Squeeze Play!.

Van Norden later appeared in the Troma Entertainment founder’s 1981 comedy Waitress!, also starring in films like Headin’ for Broadway! (1980), Hard to Hold (1984), Roadhouse 66 (1984), The Accused (1988) and Gigli (2003).

In 1985, he joined the Police Academy franchise with the second installment, playing Officer Vinnie Schtulman. Van Norden later played George H.W. Bush’s chief of staff John H. Sununu in The Naked Gun 2½ (1991).

On TV, Van Norden appeared in shows like Cheers, TJ Hooker, St. Elsewhere, Family Ties, Hill Street Blues, Newhart, Matlock, LA Law, The Stand, Tales from the Crypt, Murder She Wrote, Nash Bridges, Family Matters, ER, Days of Our Lives and 9-1-1.

Van Norden is survived by wife Wendy and son Robert.

 

Filmography

           

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (July 2026)

Film

Year     Title     Role     Notes

1979    Squeeze Play!  Beauty Parlor Manager          

1980    Headin' for Broadway Auditioner      

1981    Waitress!          Policeman       

1984    Hard to Hold   Casserole        

Roadhouse 66 Moss   

1985    Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment    Officer Vinnie Schtulman      

1988    The Accused   Paulsen           

1991    The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear          John Sununu  

2003    Gigli    Morgue Attendant      

Television

Year     Title     Role     Notes

1982    Cheers Cymbals Player           Episode: "Friends, Romans, and Accountants"

1982–1983      St. Elsewhere  Patient / Bill Fulkerson           2 episodes

1982    T. J. Hooker    Lenny  Episode: "Thieves' Highway"

1983    Malibu Bumbo TV movie

Blood Feud     Pierre Salinger

1985    Three's a Crowd          Herbert Potts   Episode: "A Friend in Deed"

Silver Spoons  Larry   Episode: "All the Principal's Men"

Family Ties     Janitor  Episode: "The Real Thing: Part 2"

1989–1996      Murder, She Wrote      Henryk Stuyvesant / Dr. Sid Lantz / CIA Agt. Dennis Quinlan         3 episodes

1990    In the Heat of the Night          Sgt. D'Agostino           2 episodes

1991    Matlock           Nick Saddler   Episode: "The Suspect"

1994    The Stand        Ralph Brentner            Miniseries; 4 episodes

Barbara Ling obit

Barbara Ling, Oscar-Winning Production Designer on ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,’ Dies at 73

Her credits also included ‘The Pee-Wee Herman Show,’ ‘Falling Down, ‘The Doors,’ ‘Fried Green Tomatoes’ and ‘Michael.’ 

She was not on the list.

Barbara Ling, the production designer who turned back time and won an Oscar for re-creating 1969 Los Angeles for Quentin Tarantino’s acclaimed Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, has died. She was 73.

Ling died Thursday in Santa Barbara after a battle with cancer, a spokesperson for WME announced.

A Los Angeles native, Ling also tooled around her hometown for the present-day, Michael Douglas-starring Falling Down (1993), then reteamed with director Joel Schumacher to set up the fictional Gotham City for Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997).

In a career that spanned more than four decades, Ling served as the production designer on two 1991 classics, Oliver Stone’s The Doors and Jon Avnet’s Fried Green Tomatoes, on which she also was an associate producer.

She also teamed with director Scott Hicks on Hearts in Atlantis (2001), No Reservations (2007), The Lucky One (2012) and Fallen (2016).

Most recently, she worked on Marc Forster’s A Man Called Otto (2022), starring Tom Hanks, and on the blockbuster biopic Michael (2026), directed by Antoine Fuqua.

On Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), Ling shared the Oscar for best production design with set decorator Nancy Haigh; the two had worked together once before, on the 1988 film Checking Out.

Tarantino’s “main thing from the moment we sat down was, ‘I want this to be real. I want to see. I want to smell and I feel that Hollywood. I don’t want to do green screen over here or have the digital interpretation. Let’s really change the billboards, and let’s put the real facades back on,’” Ling said in a 2019 interview.

“That is, to me, very exciting. It’s something we don’t do much of anymore. I knew that what he wanted was to encompass himself and the actors into an environment that you could feel is real. You’re not just staring at something that’s a piece of green screen where we piece together later. That was the starting ground of this.

“I had to go out and figure out where I could attach real things to. It was quite an engineering feat to do, particularly on Hollywood Boulevard, to say, ‘I want the Pussycat Theater back.’ To build those marquees, it’s added weight. These are old and fragile buildings that we were working with. We had to also work with engineers to make sure we weren’t going to pull the facade off once we rebuilt the old signs. It was laborious but well worth it.

“The night of the first shoot when all the neon lit up and the period cars came out and [Arianne Phillips’] costumes were out there, you absolutely believed you were in 1969 because everything was real. It was a movie filming a real street. We pretty much carried that theme through Westwood [to re-create the Bruin Theater] and everywhere we shot.”

After winning her Oscar, Ling lamented to reporters backstage that “L.A. is not a preservation city, never has been. Now there’s been a nonstop movement of apartment building and glass towers. … What we did will be impossible to do next year. It’s unfortunate. We hope this will bring some nostalgia back and stop things from being torn down.”

Born in August 1952, Barbara Claire Ling began her career designing sets and lighting for more than 200 theater, opera and musical productions. Among her early efforts was the 1981 HBO special The Pee-Wee Herman Show, taped at the Roxy in West Hollywood.

She made the leap to filmmaking when David Byrne enlisted her to design his directorial debut, True Stories (1986).

Her credits also included Heaven (1987), Less Than Zero (1987), V.I. Warshawski (1991), With Honors (1994) and Sydney Pollack’s Random Hearts (1999), among the films that demonstrated she was equally comfortable with period authenticity, contemporary realism and stylized fantasy.

Survivors include her wife, Lindsay, and their sons, Clay and Will.

 

Filmography

Year     Film     Director           Notes

1986    True Stories     David Byrne   

1987    Making Mr. Right       Susan Seidelman        

Heaven            Diane Keaton  Documentary

Less than Zero Marek Kanievska       

1989    Checking Out  David Leland 

1990    Men Don't Leave        Paul Brickman

1991    The Doors       Oliver Stone   

V.I. Warshawski          Jeff Kanew     

Fried Green Tomatoes Jon Avnet        

1993    Falling Down  Joel Schumacher        

1994    With Honors    Alek Keshishian         

1995    Batman Forever          Joel Schumacher        

1997    Batman & Robin        

2001    Hearts in Atlantis         Scott Hicks     

2007    No Reservations         

2012    The Lucky One          

2016    Fallen 

2019    Once Upon a Time in Hollywood       Quentin Tarantino       Academy Award for Best Production Design

Art Directors Guild Award for Excellence in Production Design for a Period Film

Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Production Design

Nominated – BAFTA Award for Best Production Design

Nominated – Satellite Award for Best Art Direction and Production Design

2022    A Man Called Otto      Marc Forster   

2026    Michael           Antoine Fuqua

Don Iwerks obit

Donald Iwerks, Disney Camera Technician and Co-Founder of Iwerks Entertainment, Dies at 96

He was not on the list. 

Donald Iwerks, son of Mickey Mouse co-creator Ub Iwerks, whose groundbreaking innovations transformed cinematic storytelling and immersive entertainment, died July 9. He was 96.

Iwerks spent over six deacdes on projects for The Walt Disney Company, along with his own studio, Iwerks Entertainment. Don pioneered innovations in projection technology, 3D and large-format filmmaking, and immersive attractions that changed how audiences experience stories.

Among his innovations were pioneering Circle-Vision films and the 3D camera system for “Captain EO” to giant-screen theaters and motion simulator attractions, his work helped shape the future of location-based entertainment while inspiring generations of filmmakers, Imagineers, and inventors.

To fans, Iwerks was known as the model for the hands of the Abraham Lincoln Audio-Animatronics figure in Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln at Disneyland.

Those original hand casts became a standard for Disney’s Audio-Animatronics figures, earning the nickname the “Iwerks Hands” and appearing on many similar figures in Disney parks around the world.

In a statement to Variety, Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro said, “Don embodied that rare combination of heart, ingenuity, and passion that has always defined Disney. Through his innovative contributions to some of our most iconic films and attractions, he helped create experiences that have delighted generations of fans around the world. All of us at The Walt Disney Company will miss him deeply, and we send our most heartfelt condolences to his family, whose enduring connection to Disney has helped shape its legacy for over a century.”

Born on July 24, 1929, Iwerks grew up in Southern California in a family where imagination and invention were woven into everyday life. As the eldest son of Disney Legend Ub Iwerks and Mildred Iwerks, he inherited his father’s inventive spirit.

In 1952, he transferred to the famed Studio Machine Shop. There, working alongside his father, the self-taught engineer helped develop cameras, optical printers, special effects systems, and innovations that would shape Disney films, attractions, and theme parks for generations, from the original Circle-Vision camera system, refinements to the sodium traveling matte process used in “Mary Poppins” and numerous projection technologies for Disney attractions around the world.

He co-founded Iwerks Entertainment with former Disney executive Stan Kinsey. Under his technical leadership, the company became a global pioneer in giant-screen theaters, motion simulators, and immersive 3D experiences installed in nearly 300 venues across 38 countries, introducing millions of people to new ways of experiencing stories.

His work earned Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ honorary Gordon E. Sawyer Award Oscar, a Academy Scientific and Technical Award, the Themed Entertainment Association Lifetime Achievement Award, Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and recognition as a Disney Legend in 2009. He and his father were further honored with a dedicated Main Street, U.S.A. window at in Magic Kingdom at

Walt Disney World Resort, celebrating their lasting contributions to Disney storytelling and innovation.

In 2007, Diane Disney Miller entrusted him with restoring many of Disney’s historic camera systems for exhibition at The Walt Disney Family Museum, including the Multiplane camera, the original Circle-Vision camera rig, the underwater cameras from “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” and the optical printer and Technicolor camera used to combine live-action and animation in“Mary Poppins”.

At age 90, he wrote the biography, “Walt Disney’s Ultimate Inventor: The Genius of Ub Iwerks,” published by Disney Editions in 2019, preserving his father’s legacy as the co-creator of Mickey Mouse and one of motion picture history’s greatest technical innovators.

Iwerks is survived by his beloved wife of 54 years, Betty; his sons, Larry, John and wife Chris, and his daughter, Leslie and great nephew Mike.

Camera and Electrical Department

Impressions de France (1982)

Impressions de France

8.0

Short

CircleVision-200 Camera

1982

 

Italia '61

2.5

camera supervisor

1961

 

Additional Crew

Magic Journeys (1982)

Magic Journeys

8.2

Short

manager, technical development and services

1982

 

Tron (1982)

Tron

6.7

mechanical designs and conversions

1982

 

Thanks

Walt Disney in The Age of Believing: The Disney Live Action Classics (2008)

The Age of Believing: The Disney Live Action Classics

7.9

TV Movie

grateful thanks

2008

 

Mr. Lucke (2002)

Mr. Lucke

5.6

special thanks

2002

 

Walt Disney in Walt: The Man Behind the Myth (2001)

Walt: The Man Behind the Myth

7.6

TV Movie

grateful acknowledgment

2001

 

The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story (1999)

The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story

7.7

special thanks

1999

 

Self

Dizney Coast to Coast (2014)

Dizney Coast to Coast

TV Series

Self

2020

1 episode

 

The Imagineering Story (2019)

The Imagineering Story

8.9

TV Mini Series

Self

2019

2 episodes

 

Walt Disney in The Age of Believing: The Disney Live Action Classics (2008)

The Age of Believing: The Disney Live Action Classics

7.9

TV Movie

Self - Interviewee

2008

 

Redefining the Line: The Making of One Hundred and One Dalmatians (2008)

Redefining the Line: The Making of One Hundred and One Dalmatians

7.4

Video

Self

2008

 

The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story (1999)

The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story

7.7

Self

1999

Calvin Hayes obit

British musician Calvin Hayes dies aged 63 after collapsing at home

 

He was not on the list.

Calvin Hayes, the British musician and co-founder of 1980s pop band Johnny Hates Jazz, has died at the age of 63 after collapsing at his home.

The keyboardist and drummer was found dead at his property in Washington in the US, his wife Kathy has confirmed.

Hayes rose to performing in Johnny Hates Jazz in 1986 alongside singer Clark Datchler and bassist Mike Nocito.

The band’s breakthrough came with their 1987 single Shattered Dreams, which became an international hit and reached the Top 10 in several countries.

Following that, their debut album Turn Back the Clock came out in 1988, which topped the UK charts.

The album produced four UK Top 20 singles, including Shattered Dreams, I Don’t Want to Be a Hero, Turn Back the Clock and Heart of Gold.

Between 1987 and 1988, Johnny Hates Jazz also made eight appearances on Top of the Pops.

After the band’s initial success, the group’s singer Datchler left to pursue a solo career, while Hayes and Nocito continued with a new vocalist Phil Thornalley.

However, the new band’s progress was halted after Hayes was involved in a near-fatal car crash that left him in a body cast for almost a year.

Hayes was also the son of legendary record producer Mickie Most, who worked with artists including Hot Chocolate.

Throughout his career, he played for a range of other artists, including on the drums for Kim Widle’s promotional band.

In a 1988 interview, Wilde described Hayes as ‘the greatest thing that has ever happened to me’ when the pair started to develop a relationship.

Eventually, they went their separate ways but it is believed they stayed in touch.

During the 1990s, Hayes stepped away from the spotlight of music before Johnny Hates Jazz reunited for a series of nostalgia concerts across Europe and Southeast Asia in 2010.

Patricia Greene obit

Patricia Greene, world’s longest serving soap actress ever, dies

 

She was not on the list.

Patricia Greene, the world’s longest serving actor in a soap opera, has died at the age of 95.

The English actress was best known for voicing matriarch Jill Archer in BBC Radio 4’s The Archers, a role she held continuously for almost 70 years after joining the long-running drama in 1957.

Born in Allenton, Derby, in 1931, Greene became one of British broadcasting’s most recognisable voices.

After training at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London, she decided to pursue acting when she saw her father moved to tears during a theatre performance.

Her life was then forever changed after she landed the role of Jill Archer.

Attracting roughly five million weekly listeners, The Archers remains one of BBC Radio’s most popular shows, with Queen Camilla ranking as one of the most passionate fans.

In 2021, Camilla publicly declared herself an ‘Archers addict’ during a speech at Clarence House while she hosted a reception to mark the 70th anniversary of the soap opera.

In 2011, she even played herself in an episode and she has met the cast on several occasions, including Greene.

Outside of The Archers, Greene appeared in the 1961 British film The Kitchen and the TV series It’s a Woman’s World.

She also played several roles in the ITV soap Crossroads between 1965 and 1969.

On top of that, she appeared in BBC dramas Doctors and Casualty in 2000 and voiced Jill Archer in an episode of sitcom One Foot in the Grave.

In 1959, Greene married actor George Selway before the couple divorced.

She later married Cyril Austen Richardson in 1972, and they had one son together. Richardson died in 1986.

In 2023, Greene moved into an assisted living facility but continued recording episodes of The Archers until her death.

Her remarkable career earned her an MBE in 1997. Meanwhile, the University of Derby awarded her an honorary Master of Arts degree in 2017.

Greene’s seven-decade run as Jill Archer secured her place in broadcasting history as the world’s longest-serving soap actor, making her one of the most enduring stars the genre has ever produced.

 

Actress

The Archers (2007)

The Archers

8.2

Podcast Series

Jill Archer

2007–2025

576 episodes

 

Casualty (1986)

Casualty

6.2

TV Series

Ivy Watson

2000

1 episode

 

Doctors (2000)

Doctors

4.5

TV Series

Margaret Richmond

2000

2 episodes

 

Annette Crosbie and Richard Wilson in One Foot in the Grave (1990)

One Foot in the Grave

7.9

TV Series

Jill Archer (voice)

1990

1 episode

 

Crossroads (1964)

Crossroads

4.5

TV Series

Mrs. GreyMrs. LynchPrison Officer Sharpe ...

1965–1970

28 episodes

 

Victoria Regina (1964)

Victoria Regina

5.4

TV Mini Series

Other Part

1964

1 episode

 

Julie Samuel in It's a Woman's World (1964)

It's a Woman's World

TV Series

Mary

1964

1 episode

 

The Kitchen (1961)

The Kitchen

6.2

Anne

1961

 

A Man for All Seasons

TV Movie

Woman

1957

 

Self

Arena (1975)

Arena

7.7

TV Series

Self

2007

1 episode

 

Goodbye Pebble Mill

TV Special

Self

2004

 

Call My Bluff (1996)

Call My Bluff

6.0

TV Series

Self

1997–1999

5 episodes

 

Forty Minutes (1981)

Forty Minutes

6.6

TV Series

SelfSelf - Jill Archer

1989

1 episode

 

Terry Wogan in Wogan (1982)

Wogan

6.2

TV Series

Self

1985

1 episode

 

The Time of Your Life (1983)

The Time of Your Life

4.6

TV Series

Self

1985

1 episode

 

Archive Footage

Decade of Doctors

TV Series

Self - Margaret Richmond (archive footage, uncredited)

2010

1 episode

Wally Funk obit

Historic aviator Wally Funk dies at the age of 87

Funk was the oldest person to travel to space in 2021 and was the last surviving member of the Mercury 13.

 She was not on the list.

Aviation trailblazer Wally Funk, who lived in Grapevine and was the oldest woman to launch into space, has died, according to the city.

Funk died Wednesday at her apartment in an assisted living facility in the Dallas-Fort Worth suburb of Grapevine, according to City Councilwoman Duff O'Dell, who described herself as Funk's caregiver. O'Dell said she was by Funk's side and that Funk had fallen a couple of times recently and had an infection in her leg.

“It took its toll,” O'Dell said in a phone interview with The Associated Press.

In 2021, Funk was celebrated by the city of Grapevine for her historic spaceflight aboard a Blue Origin New Shepherd rocket. The mission was six decades in the making, as Funk, known as a pioneer for women in aviation and spaceflight, underwent a series of tests as part of NASA’s first human spaceflight program, “Project Mercury,” in the 1960s.

Funk was one of 13 women selected to undergo the tests, known as the “Mercury 13." Though it is commonly held that the group of women qualified to fly in space but were excluded because of their gender, Funk was adamant she was not selected because she did not have an engineering degree.

“Wally Funk never stopped believing that one day she would reach space. Her passion for flight, perseverance, and love of exploration will continue to inspire generations of Americans. Godspeed, Wally,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman posted Thursday on X.

O’Dell said Funk was the “most eternally optimistic person” she had ever met.

“She was told by many, many, many men, ‘No, you can’t do this. No, you can’t do that,” O’Dell said. “And she never got mad about it. She just was more determined.”

For 60 years, Funk has been a member of the Ninety-Nines group. The international organization includes licensed female pilots from 44 countries.

At the age of 22, Funk already had the resume of lifetime achievements. She earned top aviation ratings in college, was a professional certified pilot, and became the first female civilian flight instructor at a U.S. military base — all at a time when women were systematically barred from many parts of life.

For Funk, all of it was in service of fulfilling one mission: becoming one of the first female astronauts. In 1961, the aviation whiz caught a break when, despite being under the required age of 24, she became the youngest of the so-called Mercury 13 women, who underwent testing to demonstrate that women could qualify for NASA's astronaut corps.

But because she was a woman, Funk's dreams of flying into space never came to fruition.

Until 60 years later on July 20, 2021.

Funk, no stranger to breaking records, made history as the oldest astronaut when she emerged from the Blue Origin New Shepherd capsule after landing in the West Texas desert, with a big grin and arms opened wide. A look of pure elation spread across her face.

Indeed, Funk excelled across the board in every test she was given while participating in NASA's 1961 Women In Space Program — sometimes even surpassing the men selected for the counter-astronaut program at the time. During one test, Funk was placed in a sensory deprivation tank where she remained for more than 10 hours before the researchers finally brought her out because they wanted to go home.

With more than 19,600 flying hours under her belt, Funk also likely has more time in the air than the three crewmen who joined her in space combined. She’s taught 3,000 students to fly.

Funk was born in New Mexico in 1939 and grew up in Taos. She never married, famously saying she was "married to airplanes." In 2024, three years after her trip to space, Funk was inducted into the Lone Star Flight Museum Hall of Fame.

Bonnie Tyler obit

'Heartbroken' Catherine Zeta-Jones leads tributes to singer Bonnie Tyler

 She was not on the list.

Oscar-winning actress and Wednesday star Catherine Zeta-Jones has led the tributes to singer Bonnie Tyler, known for hits including Total Eclipse of the Heart and Holding Out for a Hero, who has died at the age of 75.

The popular Welsh powerhouse singer died "unexpectedly" on Wednesday night at a Portugal hospital, "as a result of the illness that she was being treated for", her family said in a "heartbroken" statement released on the star's official website.

Zeta-Jones paid her respects on Instagram, saying her heart was "broken" with the news that "our dearest Bonnie Tyler has passed away".

Tyler is survived by her husband of more than 50 years, Robert Sullivan, who is Zeta-Jones's cousin.

The Chicago movie star, who shared a photograph of herself with the singer, continued: "A one of kind artist, who so easily could have been a comedian because she was one of the funniest people I ever met.

"Thank you Bonnie for the joy you brought so many. Sleep tight beautiful lady."

Back in 2000, Zeta-Jones asked Tyler to sing Total Eclipse of the Heart at her wedding to fellow film star Michael Douglas in New York.

Writing on the late singer's Instagram page, Zeta-Jones also commented: "Our Queen Bonnie….. you were such a part of my life."

Tyler's fellow pop star Sir Cliff Richard said he was mourning "another wonderful friend gone too soon".

"Bonnie's infectious zest for life entertained so many around the world," he wrote on social media, describing her as "a good friend to all, including me".

Rock star Bryan Adams wrote on X that Tyler "had such a great voice", adding he would "always be grateful of her beautiful version" of his track, Straight From The Heart.

In May, Tyler, from Skewen in south Wales, was placed into an induced coma after having emergency intestinal surgery in Portugal.

Last month, her spokesperson said she was out of the coma but remained "very unwell and in intensive care".

The official family statement, released on Thursday morning, continued: "We will issue a further statement shortly but for now ask for privacy to deal with this tragedy."

A Downing Street spokesman said UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer was "saddened" to hear about the death of "one of Britain's greatest recording artists".

Describing Tyler as an "iconic figure", he stressed "she leaves behind a catalogue of music... which continues to touch lives, flood dance floors and fill karaoke booths."

'Amazing voice' and 'Welsh icon'

Rhun ap Iorwerth, the First Minister of Wales called the singer a "true icon", while Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens called Tyler "the sound of my teenage years".

Screenwriter and television producer Russell T Davies, who was born in Wales, offered: "What a fabulous Welsh woman!"

Tyler had been due to perform at the Sunshine Festival in Worcester this summer, along with a number of European dates.

She had also been booked to sing at Cardiff's Utilita Arena on 17 December.

Pete Waterman, the Stock Aitken Waterman music producer famous for a string of hits during the 80s with stars including Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan, likened Tyler's distinctive vocals to Tina Turner's.

"She had an amazing voice and was equal to Tina Turner in my opinion," he told the BBC.

"If you think of Tom Jones, he was the closest Britain had to a soul star, and Bonnie was that too and she was as good as Tina Turner. You could imagine Tina singing Heartache."

He added that in her early career she was managed by Gordon Mills, "who already had Tom Jones and Englebert Humperdinck".

"Like Brian Epstein had done with the Beatles, he had created sort of a Welsh sound and taken on Welsh artists from the clubs, he was a massive impresario."

Welsh broadcaster Carol Vorderman highlighted Tyler's spirit, saying: "As a Welsh woman Bonnie and her music represented so much to us, it was about fighting and power and living life without apology.

"May you rest in Musical Glory Bonnie."

Family friend Owen Money told the BBC the singer "was one of those ladies who just loved life", and he was "in disbelief" at the news of her death.

The musician and radio presenter said his friendship with Tyler went back decades.

"I've known her since before she was famous, in the late 60s when she was starting out in Swansea.

"She's like family really. I was up her house last summer and the first thing she did was open a bottle of champagne.

"Not only were we friends but we were fans of each other. She was still huge in Europe, Germany, Holland, she was just so good. She's a Welsh icon."

Tyler, born Gaynor Hopkins, grew up in a council house in Neath.

She was discovered by talent scout Roger Bell in a club in Swansea, and released her first single Lost in France in 1977.

It's a Heartache, her country-pop ballad released the same year, reached number four on the UK singles chart and number three on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Her biggest hit, the rockier Total Eclipse of the Heart, arrived six years later in 1983 - this time topping the charts on both sides of the Atlantic.

In doing so she became the first Welsh person to score a number one hit in the US.

The dramatic track, penned by Meat Loaf's lyricist Jim Steinman, was originally titled Vampires in Love, as it had been written for a musical version of Nosferatu.

"I never get tired of singing it," she recently told BBC News. "I love it because everyone can't wait to sing it."

Eurovision entry

She received a Grammy nomination for the hit, and two further nominations for the album Faster Than the Speed of Night and the single Here She Comes.

Steinman also wrote her other major 1980s pop-rock anthem, the lustful and bombastic Holding Out for a Hero, which was recorded for the Footloose film soundtrack and later appeared in Shrek 2.

Tyler represented the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013, finishing 19th out of 26 acts, and was made an MBE for her services to music in 2023.

Last year, she released a club version of Total Eclipse of the Heart, produced by David Guetta and Hypaton, called Together.

The raspy-voiced singer performed her aptly-titled track on board a cruise ship in the Caribbean as the solar event swept the US in 2017.

And this year - 43 years after its release - the original song passed the billion streams mark on Spotify.

"I'm really happy, when you think about it, there's only 8.3 billion people in the world," she said.

But the star noted in January that despite barely seeing a penny from her biggest song, she had never lost her enthusiasm for it.

"I never get tired of singing it, I love it because everyone can't wait to sing it," she said

Phil Regan obit

Former All-Star pitcher, longtime coach Regan dies at 89

 

He was not on the list.

Phil Regan, a former All-Star pitcher who later managed the Orioles and spent decades as a pitching coach for teams including the Cubs and Mets, has died at age 89.

Regan died Wednesday, according to a report from ESPN's Jeff Passan, citing Regan's attorney, Matt Blit.

The righty made his MLB debut with the Tigers in 1960 and spent six seasons in Detroit before stints with the Dodgers, Cubs and White Sox. His best season came in 1966, when he went 14-1 with a 1.62 ERA and had an NL-best 21 saves during an All-Star campaign with the Dodgers that led to him being named both the Sporting News NL Reliever of the Year and the publication's NL Comeback Player of the Year.

Two years later, in a season split between the Dodgers and Cubs, he led the Majors with 27 saves and earned his second NL Reliever of the Year honor. Regan retired after the 1972 season with a 96-81 record, a 3.84 ERA and 92 saves.

After his retirement as a player, Regan made the transition into coaching, starting with Grand Valley State College, where he coached from 1974-82. He later held MLB coaching jobs with Seattle (1984-86), Cleveland (1994, '99) and the Cubs (1997-98). Regan was named manager of the Orioles ahead of the 1995 season and led the team to a 71-73 record and a third-place finish in the AL East.

He also spent time as a pitching coach in the Minors with the Mets and eventually was named the team's Minor League pitching coordinator. In 2019, at age 82, Regan was named the Mets' interim pitching coach.

Regan's coaching career also included a stint as pitching coach with Team USA during the 2000 Summer Olympics.

He was a baseball pitcher, scout and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, and Chicago White Sox; he also managed the Baltimore Orioles

During the 1966 season, when Regan was Walter Alston's favorite pitcher from the Dodger bullpen, teammate Sandy Koufax nicknamed Regan "the Vulture", due to his knack of earning wins in late-inning relief situations.

Regan earned varsity letters in basketball, football, and baseball at Wayland High School in Wayland, Michigan. After one year at Western Michigan University, he signed with the Detroit Tigers in 1956. He compiled a 61–42 record and 3.76 earned run average as a starting pitcher in the Tigers' farm system before earning a call up to the majors midway through the 1960 season.

Regan made his major league debut on July 19 against the Washington Senators. Entering the game already behind 3–0, he allowed just two hits in five innings of work, including a home run to Harmon Killebrew.

He made his first career start in the second game of a doubleheader with the Baltimore Orioles on July 23. He left the game with two outs in the ninth inning with the score tied at three, and the bases loaded. Relief pitcher Clem Labine walked Jim Gentile to drive in the winning run, and hand Regan his first career loss. Splitting his time between starts and relief appearances, he was 0–4 with a 4.50 ERA his rookie season. His first career win also came against Baltimore during his second season in the big leagues, when he went 10–7 with a 5.25 ERA.

Over six seasons, Regan went 42–44 with a 4.50 ERA for the Detroit Tigers. He was 0–4 with a 4.99 ERA in 1965 when he was demoted to triple A Syracuse. He earned a call up that September, and made two appearances, but it was while he was with Syracuse that Regan learned of interest in him from the Dodgers organization.

Regan called Tigers General Manager Jim Campbell asking to be traded, and on December 15, 1965, he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for infielder Dick Tracewski.

With Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Claude Osteen, and Don Sutton in the starting rotation, Regan was used strictly as a reliever in 1966. He responded by going 14–1 with a 1.62 ERA, 88 strikeouts in 116 innings pitched and a National League leading 21 saves to help the Dodgers capture the National League pennant by a game and a half over the San Francisco Giants. It was on August 1 of that year, by Regan's own account, that he first acquired the "Vulture" moniker from Koufax, the latter having just exited his second consecutive game, tied 1-1, only to see Regan "swoop in" for the last-minute win.

The Sporting News named him the NL Reliever of the Year and NL Comeback Player of the Year in 1966. He also earned the only All-Star nod in his career, but did not appear in the game. He appeared in two games of the 1966 World Series, allowing just one base runner via a walk, and retiring the other five he faced.

Regan won his first two decisions in 1967 to give him 15 consecutive wins before finally losing to the Houston Astros on May 15. He won both games of a doubleheader with the New York Mets on April 21, 1968. Two days later, he was traded with Jim Hickman to the Chicago Cubs for Jim Ellis and Ted Savage.

Regan provided similar heroics for his new team. In his first two appearances as a Cub, he saved both games of an April 28 doubleheader with the Houston Astros. Despite missing the first 14 games of the Cubs' schedule, Regan led all of Major League Baseball with 25 saves in 1968 on his way to capturing a second Sporting News Reliever of the Year Award.

He was involved in a bizarre incident on August 18, 1968, against the Cincinnati Reds. Regan apparently had good stuff that day, too good for home plate umpire Chris Pelekoudas. Despite no illegal substances being found on the ball, Pelekoudas called 14 illegal pitches on Regan based simply on the movement of the ball. Regan met with NL President Warren Giles on August 20, and was absolved of any wrongdoing. The incident earned Regan a reputation that followed him the rest of his career.

Immediately upon retirement, Regan went into coaching. He accepted his first coaching job at Grand Valley State University in his home state of Michigan simply because it was close to home. He was head coach from 1973 to 1982, winning the Great Lakes Conference title and the NAIA District 23 Championship twice each.

Regan's work at Grand Valley earned him a call from Seattle Mariners general manager Dan O'Brien Sr. After spending the 1983 season as the Mariners' minor league pitching instructor and advance scout, Regan was promoted to major league pitching coach in 1984. His tenure in Seattle was interrupted by a two-game suspension in 1985 when he bumped umpire Derryl Cousins during a bench clearing brawl between the Mariners and California Angels on August 12.

Regan resigned from his position with the Mariners following the 1986 season. In 1987, he began a six-year stint with the Dodgers as their major league special assignment and advance scout. Regan was up for the Florida Marlins managerial job, late in 1992, but withdrew his name from consideration. A year later, he joined the Cleveland Indians as pitching coach during the strike-shortened 1994 season.

In 1995, Regan received his only major league managerial position, managing the Baltimore Orioles to a 71–73 record. Due to the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike carrying into the 1995 season, the league played a shortened 144-game schedule that commenced on April 25. The Orioles missed the playoffs, ultimately finishing third in the American League East. After just one season at the helm, Regan was fired, and replaced by Davey Johnson.

The remainder of his professional coaching career:

1987–1989 – Managed Leones del Escogido to the Dominican Championship. Won the Caribbean World Series, in 1988.

1989–2009 – Managed teams in the Venezuelan Winter League, including Leones del Caracas, Navegantes del Magallanes, Cardenales de Lara, Bravos de Margarita, and Tiburones de La Guaira.

1996 – Managed Los Angeles Dodgers Triple-A affiliate Albuquerque Dukes (finished with a record of 67–76).

1997 – Served as Chicago Cubs pitching coach (1997–1998).

1999 – Served as Cleveland Indians pitching coach.

2000 – Served as Team USA pitching coach at Summer Olympics in Sydney.

2002 – Served as West Michigan Whitecaps manager (2002–2003).

2009–2015 – St. Lucie Mets pitching coach.

2016–2019 – New York Mets minor league assistant pitching coordinator.

2019 – Promoted to New York Mets interim pitching coach on June 20 after Dave Eiland was fired. Retired following the season.

2019–2020 – Came out of retirement to become the Toros del Este pitching coach (won the Dominican Championship).

Minor league teams he played for include the Jamestown Falcons, Durham Bulls, Birmingham Barons, Charleston Senators, Denver Bears, and the Syracuse Chiefs.

On February 21, 2023, Regan sued the Mets organization for age discrimination and wrongful termination for his departure as pitching coach following the 2019 season. The suit also alleged a harassment and a hostile work environment.

Rodney Franklin obit

R&B and Jazz great Rodney Franklin dies at 67

 

He was not on the list.

(July 9, 2026) We received the sad news this morning of the passing of R&B and Jazz great Rodney Franklin. Franklin’s family issued the following statement through his niece, Jamaica Hughes, on the GoFundMe page that had been set up to assist with his medical bills:

“Rodney Thomas Franklin passed away peacefully today, July 8, 2026. While we will miss him immensely, we rejoice in knowing that he is no longer in pain and is at peace. He was a beloved father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend. We are currently processing today’s events and will up day you all with next steps soon. We humbly thank you for your support. Please keep the family in your prayers.”

For a period in the 1980s, Rodney Franklin was among the most popular jazz pianists around, and with good reason. As the talent behind more than a dozen albums, he helped to usher in the period where R&B and jazz were blending into a tasty stew that became popular under the moniker “contemporary jazz.”

Born in Berkeley, California in 1958, Franklin was a child prodigy on the piano, and was already playing in bands around town by his mid-teens. He recorded with the band In One Piece at the shocking age of 14.

By the time Franklin graduated high school, he was gigging around California with such notables as Freddie Hubbard and Marlena Shaw. He was signed by Columbia Records and released his debut album, In the Center, in 1978. But it was his 1980 follow up album, You’ll Never Know, that shot him onto the charts, hitting the top 10 Jazz and spawning the international crossover hit, “In the Groove.”

Over the period 1980-88, Franklin became a fixture on the jazz charts, releasing an album nearly every year and building a strong audience for his soulful version of contemporary jazz. His 1985 ballad, “Song for You” became a surprise Quiet Storm radio favorite, and the beautiful number continues to garner play decades later.

While Franklin’s recording career was over by the turn of the century, he continued to be a draw in the Bay Area, where he regularly performs in clubs. Rodney Franklin was a big part of the palette of musical styles that blended together to make the 70s and 80s so interesting, and we will miss him.

Harris Katleman obit

Harris Katleman Dies: TV Exec Who Helped Develop ‘The Simpsons’, ‘CHiPS’, ‘Medical Center’ & ‘L.A. Law’ Was 97

 

He was not on the list.

Harris Katleman, whose executive positions in television had him overseeing the development of such classic series as The Simpsons, NYPD Blue, CHiPS, Medical Center, In Living Color, Doogie Howser, M.D. and The Courtship of Eddie’s Father, died July 8 of natural causes in Los Angeles. He was 97.

His death was announced by family.

Born in Omaha on August 19, 1928, Katleman moved with his family to Beverly Hills at the age of 8 and left UCLA at 19 to join MCA Artists as an “office boy.” Four years later, Katleman, a protége of Lew Wasserman, was selected to head the Television Department in New York, where he reorganized the operation and is credited with quadrupling the business.

Over the course of his tenure at MCA, Katleman represented talent such as Jackie Gleason and was involved in signing Clark Gable and Howard Keel.

Katleman left MCA to join Goodson-Todman Productions, initiating four network series: The Web, The Rebel, Branded and The Richard Boone Repertory Theatre. During this time, Harris also packaged and executive produced two theatrical releases — Ride Beyond Vengeance (1966) and Broken Sabres (1965) — under a joint venture between Goodson-Todman and Columbia Pictures.

Katleman moved on to become President of MGM Television and Senior Vice President of MGM Inc. He was instrumental in developing How the West Was Won, Babe, CHiPS, Medical Center, and The Courtship Of Eddie’s Father. He resigned in 1977 to launch Bennett Katleman Productions at Columbia Pictures and helped launch the NBC miniseries From Here to Eternity and the ABC series Salvage 1.

In 1980, Katleman was named President/CEO of Twentieth Century Fox Television. In addition to overseeing production on the final four years of M*A*S*H and Trapper John, M.D., Katleman developed and sold L.A. Law, The Simpsons, Anything but Love, In Living Color, Doogie Howser, M.D., Civil Wars, NYPD Blue, Hooperman, The Tracey Ullman Show and Mr. Belvedere.

Katleman was a member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and served a two-year term as President of the Hollywood Radio & Television Society. He also sat on the Board of Governors for Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and served on the Board of Directors of Brentwood Country Club and The Lakes Country Club in Palm Desert.

Katleman’s memoir You Can’t Fall Off the Floor was published in 2018 by RosettaBooks.

Preceded in death by his parents and a sister, Katleman is survived by children Steve, an entertainment lawyer; Michael, a TV director and producer; and Lisa Sherman as well as seven grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

William D. Zabel obit

Lawyer who helped legalize interracial marriage dies at 93

William D. Zabel, who helped win Loving v. Virginia and later recovered $7.2 billion for Madoff victims, died at 93. 

He was not on the list.

William D. Zabel helped write an amicus brief for the American Civil Liberties Union in Loving v. Virginia, the Supreme Court case decided on June 12, 1967, that unanimously struck down Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage as a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. He considered that work his proudest accomplishment. His career included high-profile divorce cases and Wall Street litigation.

The case ended state bans across the country and became the civil-rights precedent Zabel later identified as one of the two most important achievements of his legal life, alongside co-founding Schulte Roth & Zabel in 1969.

By 1965, Zabel had published an Atlantic article, “Interracial Marriage and the Law,” arguing against the constitutionality of anti-miscegenation statutes. In his Harvard Law School reflections, Zabel wrote that his thinking was sharpened after a case involving a wealthy New York businessman who disinherited his daughter for marrying an African American man. After law school, Zabel traveled to Mississippi to support civil-rights workers, and as an undergraduate at Princeton he and his roommate petitioned the FBI to look more deeply into the acquittal of the men who killed Emmett Till.

Zabel later negotiated the $7.2 billion settlement from the estate of Jeffry Picower in the Madoff recovery effort. Harvard Law School called it the largest civil judgment against an individual in American jurisprudence at the time. The money helped restore losses to victims of Madoff’s fraud, and the Madoff Victim Fund made final payments to customers in 2025.

Human Rights First renamed its annual award after William D. Zabel, and Princeton established the William D. Zabel ’58 Professorship of Human Rights in his honor.

Joanna Pettet obit

Beloved Actress Joanna Pettet Has Died at 83

Actress Joanna Pettet, known for her film and television work in the 1960s and ’70s, has died at the age of 83. 

She was not on the list.

Actress Joanna Pettet, a versatile talent who graced both the Broadway stage and classic Hollywood screens for decades, has passed away at the age of 83.

The news was shared by her close friend, Pam DuBois, who noted that Pettet passed away on a deeply significant date—the 31st anniversary of the death of her beloved son, Damien, who predeceased her.

“We all loved Jo—but there was one person who loved her more,” DuBois wrote. “And yesterday on the 31st anniversary of his death, Damien Zach took his mother to heaven and there she will stay with him forever.”

Key Takeaways

Actress Joanna Pettet has died at the age of 83.

Her passing was announced by close friend Pam DuBois.

Pettet died on the 31st anniversary of her son Damien’s passing.

She enjoyed a successful career on Broadway, in film, and on television.

Pettet was remembered for roles in Casino Royale, Charlie’s Angels, and Murder, She Wrote.

A Career That Spanned Broadway, Film, and Television

Born in London and raised in Canada, Pettet moved to the United States as a teenager to study drama in New York City. Her talent was evident early on, leading to her Broadway debut when she was just 19 years old.

That early stage success quickly translated to a prolific career on the screen.

Film fans will remember her best for her high-profile big-screen credits, including her role as Mata Bond in the 1967 James Bond satire Casino Royale, as well as starring roles in The Best House in London and Double Exposure.

Remembering Joanna Pettet

Beyond cinema, Pettet became an incredibly familiar face to television audiences throughout the 1960s, 70s, and 80s.

She guest-starred on an impressive roster of hit series. That includes dramas, comedies, and mysteries.

Her extensive television credits included appearances on Route 66, The Doctors, Dr. Kildare, Mannix, Night Gallery, Thriller, Police Woman, Charlie’s Angels, The Love Boat, Hotel, and Murder, She Wrote.

Pettet was previously married to actor Alex Cord for several years.

Even the leaders of her church paid tribute to her. “Joe Joe” Jo Anna Pettet Nov. 16, 1942 – July 7, 2026. What an honor to have shared in the journey of faith with so many who have been inspired by the Lord’s goodness. Thank you for being part of our ministry’s story and for walking in the light of His love. Pastor Mark Gaston and Evangelist Bernice Gaston Last Days Ministries Christian Center”

“Farewell,” they said, “Hollywood Lost An Angel. Heaven Gained Another Angel.”

Soap Opera News’ thoughts and prayers go out to all of Joanna’s friends, family, and longtime fans during this difficult time.

Pettet was born in London, England on 16 November 1942, the daughter of Harold Nigel Egerton Salmon and Cecily J. Tremaine, who were married in Chelsea, London in 1940. Her father, a British Royal Air Force pilot, was killed in the Second World War in 1943. After the war, her mother remarried and settled in Montréal, where Joanna was adopted by her stepfather and assumed his surname of "Pettet".

When Pettet was 16, she moved to New York City.

 

Filmography

Film

Year     Title     Role

1966    The Group       Kay Strong Peterson

1967    The Night of the Generals       Ulrike von Seidlitz-Gabler

Casino Royale Mata Bond / James Bond

Robbery          Kate Clifton

1968    Blue     Joanne Morton

1969    The Best House in London     Josephine Pacefoot

1974    Welcome to Arrow Beach       Grace Henry

1978    The Evil          Dr. Caroline Arnold

1982    Double Exposure        Mindy Jordache

Black Commando       Desdemona

1987    Sweet Country Monica

1990    Terror in Paradise        Dr. Fletcher

Television

Year     Title     Role     Notes

1964    Route 66          Millie Wilkins "Child of a Night"

1965    The Doctors    Judy Lloyd      "1.481"

The Nurses      Carol Lloyd     "A Dangerous Silence"

The Trials of O'Brien  Liz Martin       "Picture Me a Murder"

1966    The Fugitive    Tina Andresen "Shadow of a Swan"

A Man Called Shenandoah     Julia Riley       "The Riley Brand"

Dr. Kildare      Yvonne Barlow           Guest role (season 5)

1967    Three for Danger        Serena TV film

1970    Night Gallery  Elaine Latimer "The House"

1971    Claire Foster    "Keep in Touch - We'll Think of Something"

Mannix            Cindy Warren  "A Button for General D."

1972    The Delphi Bureau     April Thompson          "Pilot"

Miss Stewart, Sir         Kate Stewart    TV film

The Weekend Nun      Sister Mary Damian/Marjorie Walker            ABC Movie of the Week

Banacek          Christine Verdon         "Project Phoenix"

Footsteps         Sarah Allison   TV film

Night Gallery  Rhona Warwick / The Girl with the Hungry Eyes      "The Caterpillar", "The Girl with the Hungry Eyes"

1973    McCloud         Melissa Thompson      "The Solid Gold Swingers"

Pioneer Woman           Maggie Sergeant         TV film

1974    Medical Center           Molly   "Girl from Bedlam"

A Cry in the Wilderness          Delda Hadley  TV film

Police Story     Adria   "Glamour Boy"

1974–1975      Thriller            Sylvia Dee / Jody Baxter        "A Killer in Every Corner", "A Midsummer Nightmare"

Harry O           Glenna Nielson / Breda Beach           "Forty Reasons to Kill: Parts 1 & 2", "Group Terror"

1975    Caribe  Andrea "Vanished"

The Desperate Miles   Ruth Merrick   TV film

Police Woman Glenna Burns / Beth Lord       "Silence"

1976    The Dark Side of Innocence   Jesse Breton    TV film

Captains and the Kings           Katherine Hennessey  TV miniseries

1977    Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected        Julie Thomas   "You're Not Alone"

Sex and the Married Woman  Leslie Fitch     TV film

1979    Heaven Only Knows  Lynn Harpster TV film

1979–1982      The Love Boat            Carol Hanson / Angelina Blenderman / Lenore Pitchford      3 episodes

1980    Charlie's Angels          Barbara Brown           "Nips and Tucks"

Cry of the Innocent     Cynthia Donegin / Candia Leighton   TV film

The Return of Frank Cannon  Alana Richardson        TV film

1980–1983      Fantasy Island Nona Lauren / Celeste Vallon / Vanessa Walgren       3 episodes

1981    Aloha Paradise            Fiona   2 episodes

Tales of the Unexpected         Betsy   "A Glowing Future"

1982    The Littlest Hobo        Cynthia Masters          "Forget Me Not"

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers        Meg Palmer     "Christmas Song"

1983    Knots Landing Det. Janet Baines        Recurring role

1984    The Yellow Rose         Lane Roberts   "Running Free"

Knight Rider   Joanna St. John           "Mouth of the Snake"

The Fall Guy   Herself "Always Say Always"

Finder of Lost Loves  Claire Hardy   "Undying Love"

1984–1985      Hotel   Lauren Chapman / Sally Banks          "Reflections", "Lost and Found"

1987    Murder, She Wrote      Virginia McCormack  "The Way to Dusty Death"

1989    ABC Afterschool Special        Carolyn Adams           "Just Tipsy, Honey"

Awards and nominations

Awards

Year     Award  Category          Production       Result

1965    Theatre World Award  Outstanding New York city stage debut performance, either on Broadway or Off-Broadway Poor Richard   Won

1974    Western Heritage Awards        Television Feature Film          Pioneer Woman           Won