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Sonny Barger, the notorious founding member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, author, ex-convict, occasional Sons of Anarchy actor and one of the bikers who provided the violent, bloody security at the infamous 1969 Rolling Stones Altamont concert, died of Wednesday of cancer. He was 83.

Barger announced his own death in a pre-written message subsequently posted today on his Facebook page: “If you are reading this message, you’ll know that I’m gone. I’ve asked that this note be posted immediately after my passing. I’ve lived a long and good life filled with adventure. And I’ve had the privilege to be part of an amazing club. Although I’ve had a public persona for decades, i’ve mostly enjoyed special time with my club brothers, my family, and close friends.

“Please know that I passed peacefully after a brief battle with cancer. But also know that in the end,...

Choosing and justifying a list of essential Grateful Dead shows — 20, 200, or even 2,000 — is treacherous work. Passionate challenge from fans, especially hardcore Deadheads and veteran tape traders, is guaranteed. Endless debate over set-list minutiae is inevitable. In fact, there is only one definitive list of the Dead’s greatest concerts — and it includes every show they played, in every lineup, from their pizza-parlor-gig days as the Warlocks in 1965 until guitarist Jerry Garcia‘s death in 1995.

That long, strange trip was a continually unfolding tale of highs and trials, dedicated evolution and surrender to the moment,...

Jefferson Starship have shared “It’s About Time,” a new single co-written by Grace Slick. The track appears on their upcoming EP Mother of the Sun, out August 21st.

“Old white men have had their turn,” lead singer Cathy Richardson declares in the video over blaring guitars. “Thousands of years, what have we learned?”

“I watched the Women’s March with Grace at her house back in 2017,” Richardson tells Rolling Stone. “She said, ‘This is just like the Sixties!’ and I suggested that we write a female empowerment song for the times that encapsulated the movement.

Every year, the Oscars, Emmys and Grammys must choose which notable performers and creators to memorialize in their In Memoriam segments, and the three organizations will have many talented entertainers to remember at 2019’s ceremonies.

The past year saw the loss of celebrated stars of the big screen, such “Smokey and the Bandit” star Burt Reynolds, who died Sept. 6. Reynolds, who was 82, earned an Oscar nom for “Boogie Nights” and also appeared on television in “Evening Shade.”

Among the other notable movie performers lost this year were “Superman” and “Smallville” actress Margot Kidder, who died May 13; “The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter” star Sondra Locke, who was also a film director and died Nov. 3; and Susan Anspach, who starred in “Five Easy Pieces” and “Blume in Love” and died April 2.

Several stars known for their work in the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s passed away in 2018, including Dorothy Malone, who starred...

I couldn’t let the passing of Marty Balin go by without playing all my Jefferson Airplane LPs. They were one of the first great live bands that I ever saw. I bought all their LPs on the day that they hit the stores.

Working at the Fillmore East, I got to know him a little bit. He was a really sweet gent. His love songs were at the very heart of what made that band so special.

Drummer Spencer Dryden died in 2005, guitarist and co-founder Paul Kantner passed in 2016 on the same day as the band’s first vocalist, Signe Anderson. Marty, wherever you are, I know that for you and the band, it’s always The Summer of Love.

The post Tribute to Marty Balin appeared first on Trailers From Hell.

Will Vinton, the Oscar- and Emmy-winning filmmaker who co-created the animation process known as “claymation” and is best known for the hugely successful “California Raisins” ad campaign, died Wednesday following a 12-year battle with multiple myeloma. He was 70.

“He saw the world as an imaginative playground full of fantasy, joy, and character. He instilled in us the greatest values of creativity, strength, and pride in ones own work. He created stories and characters filled with laughter, music, and powerful lessons that are globally beloved,” Vinton’s family said in a statement posted on his Facebook account.

“He brightened any room with his signature mustache, and he continued to make jokes and laugh until the very end. His work will live on in animation history and will continue to inspire creative thinkers and makers.”

Also Read: Charles Aznavour, Iconic French Singer, Composer and Actor, Dies at 94

An Oregon native, Vinton studied...

Reel-Important People is a monthly column that highlights those individuals in or related to the movies that have left us in recent weeks. Below you'll find names big and small and from all areas of the industry, though each was significant to the movies in his or her own way. Perry Miller Adato (1920-2018) - Documentary Filmmaker. She primarily directed artist-focused biographical documentaries, including the Emmy-nominated Picasso: A Painter's Diary and the American Masters entries Eugene O'Neill: A Glory of Ghosts and Alfred Stieglitz: The Eloquent Eye, plus Georgia O'Keefe and Gertrude Stein: When This You See, Remember Me. She died on September 16. (Nyt) Marty Balin (1942-2018) - Singer, Songwriter, Guitarist. One of the founders...

Jefferson Airplane guitarist Jorma Kaukonen mourned and praised former bandmate Marty Balin, who died Thursday at age 76, in an emotional statement on his blog. “Marty’s passing reaffirms the power of love, the power of family, the power of possibilities,” he wrote.

Kaukonen moved from grief to optimism throughout the note. “Marty and I were young together in a time that defined our lives,” he said of their shared experience in the San Francisco psych-rock band. “Had it not been for him, my life would have taken an alternate path I cannot imagine.

Marty Balin -- one of the founding members of Jefferson Airplane -- died Thursday, according to his rep. The legendary Bay Area musician's family confirmed his passing, but isn't releasing a cause of death. Balin's best known for forming the pioneering psychedelic rock band with Paul Kantner in 1965, which popularized the "San Francisco Sound" of the era. Marty was one of the vocalists in the band's classic lineup in the late '60s, which headlined...

Jefferson Airplane vocalist-guitarist Marty Balin, who co-founded the San Francisco psychedelic rock band in 1965 and played a crucial role in the creation of all their 1960s albums, including Surrealistic Pillow and Volunteers, died Thursday at the age of 76. Balin’s rep confirmed the musician’s death to Rolling Stone, though the cause of death is currently unknown.

“Rip Marty Balin, fellow bandmate and music traveler passed last night,” Jefferson Airplane bassist Jack Casady said in a statement. “A great songwriter and singer who loved life and music. We shared some wonderful times together.

“I’m not the first rock & roll octogenarian, am I?” jokes David Freiberg, hours before he and Jefferson Starship are set to take the stage in Carson City, Nevada.

Frieberg, who turns 80 today, is right; he’s not the only pop act still performing regularly in his eightieth year. From Frankie Valli and British blues stalwart John Mayall (both 84) to R&B veteran Sam Moore (82) to folkies like Peter Yarrow and Tom Paxton (both 80), Freiberg is joining a small, prestigious club. But he’s unique in other ways. He’s...

Irish-born stage, film and TV actor’s credits included Brazil, The Sweeney.

Derrick O’Connor, the Irish character actor who played the villain Pieter Vorstedt in Lethal Weapon 2, has died in Santa Barbara, California, from pneumonia. He was 77.

O’Connor was born in Dublin in 1941 and grew up in London. He had lived in the United States since 1990 and most recently lived in the Santa Ynez Valley, north of Santa Barbara, with his wife Mimi.

O’Connor was perhaps best known in the UK and Australia for starring roles in TV shows Stringer, Fox, The Sweeney, and Knockback, and...

Irish character actor Derrick O’Connor, who portrayed the villain in Lethal Weapon 2 and appeared in three of Terry Gilliam’s films among numerous other credits, has died. O’Connor died Friday of pneumonia in Santa Barbara, his publicist Jane Ayer announced. He was 77.

O’Connor’s decades-long career included memorable film performances in Lethal Weapon 2, roles in Gilliam’s films Time Bandits, Brazil and Jabberwocky, as Thomas Aquinas opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in End of Days, as an aspiring buccaneer in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest and in John Boorman’s Hope and Glory.

Widely regarded as a superb actor, O’Connor was noted for often paring down – or fully eliminating – his lines in a scene in order to emphasize the physical aspects of his role – a skill that earned him the admiration of many who directed him, especially Terry Gilliam. In Gilliam’s Time Bandits,...

Versatile Irish character actor Derrick O’Connor died from pneumonia on June 29 in Santa Barbara, Calif. He was 77.

O’Connor was born in Dublin and raised in London. He had lived in the U.S. since 1990 and was most recently living in the Santa Ynez Valley, north of Santa Barbara with his wife, Mimi.

The actor starred in three of director Terry Gilliam’s films: “Time Bandits,” “Brazil,” and “Jabberwocky.” He played the villain Pieter Vorstedt in “Lethal Weapon 2” and worked opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in “End of Days.”

He also appeared in John Boorman’s “Hope and Glory and “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.” One of his first movie roles came in the 1973 British science-fiction film “The Final Programme.”

His notable U.S. television appearances include “Alias,” “Carnivale,” “Tracey Takes On,” “Monk,” “Murder, She Wrote,” and “Ghost.” In the U.K. and Australia, he was best...

Another death has occurred in the Jefferson Airplane family. Signe Anderson, the original female singer for the group, died January 28 — the same day that founding member Paul Kantner died, Rolling Stone reports. Anderson was 74. Also Read: Hollywood's Notable Deaths of 2016 (Photos) “One sweet Lady has passed on. I imagine that she and Paul woke up in heaven and said ‘Hey what are you doing here? Let’s start a band’ and no sooner then said Spencer was there joining in!” Jefferson Airplane founder Marty Balin wrote on Facebook, referring to the group’s drummer Spencer Dryden, who died in 2005. “Heartfelt.

Paul Kantner, founding member of psychedelic rock pioneers Jefferson Airplane who died Thursday at age 74, received a touching tribute from his former bandmate Marty Balin. In a Facebook post published late Thursday, Balin said that he and Kantner “opened new worlds.” “So many memories rushing through my mind now. So many moments that he and I opened new worlds,” Balin wrote in the post, which is accompanied by a vintage photo of Kantner and Balin. Also Read: Paul Kantner, Jefferson Airplane Founding Member, Dies at 74 “He was the first guy I picked for the band and he was the first guy.

Guitarist and founding member of Jefferson Airplane Paul Kantner has died at the age of 74, according to multiple reports. Kantner's publicist confirmed the news to the San Francisco Chronicle that said he died Thursday of multiple organ failure. He is survived by the remaining founding members of the band Jack Casady, Grace Slick, Marty Balin and Jorma Kaukonen. Kantner was also a founding member of the band's spin-off project Jefferson Starship. Forming the band in 1965 with Balin, the pair had met in the Drinking Ground, a folk bar in San Francisco. The band - known for their hits "White Rabbit...

Paul Kantner, co-founder of Jefferson Airplane and pioneer of the psychedelic rock scene in mid-1960s San Francisco, died earlier today of multiple organ failure. His publicist confirmed the news to the San Francisco Chronicle. Kantner had suffered a heart attack earlier this week and had dealt with a series of health problems throughout the past year. He was 74.Kantner founded Jefferson Airplane in 1965 at a bar in San Francisco with Marty Balin. The group featured vocals and guitar from Balin and Kantner, lead vocals from Grace Slick, a blues-rock sound from guitarist Jorma Kaukonen and bass player Jack Casady, and drums from Spencer Dryden. It was one of the first of its kind to achieve mainstream success with singles such as “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit.” Five of the band’s first seven albums went gold, including Surrealistic Pillow (1967) and Crown of Creation (1968). Jefferson Airplane also performed at Woodstock and Altamont,...

Exclusive: As Charles Manson gears up for his behind-bars nuptials to a young follower named Star, a February shoot has been set for long-gestating indie drama Manson Girls. Susanna Lo is directing the film about the female devotees who joined Manson’s flock in the 1960s and helped carry out brutal killings meant to start an apocalyptic race war. Bill Moseley (The Devil’s Rejects) will portray Manson in the film, which TriCoast Worldwide boarded this month at Afm.

Rather than probe the twisted brain of Manson himself, Manson Girls will chronicle how eight young women in his brood came from diverse and even privileged backgrounds to become the most notorious female serial killers of the decade’s Love Generation. The pic will follow the girls’ pre-Manson teen years through their indoctrination into the Family and up to the bloody summer of 1969 when their violent “Helter Skelter” campaign that...

DVD Playhouse—December 2009

By

Allen Gardner

Public Enemies (Universal) Johnny Depp portrays legendary Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger in co- writer/director Michael Mann’s take on America’s first “Public Enemy Number One.” Like many big studio releases today, Public Enemies has it all: A-list talent before and behind the camera, but lacks a heart or soul that allows its audience to connect with it. Film plays out like a “true crime” TV show with re-enactments of famous events cast with top actors and shot by the best technicians in the business, with little, if any, character or story development to hold it together in between. A real disappointment from one of our finest filmmakers and finest actors. The lone standout: the great character actor Stephen Lang as a hard-eyed lawman who’s seen a lot, but manages to retain a tiny piece of his heart. For a better take on the same subject,...

From Mvd comes the new DVD release, Marty Balin - Live At The Boston Esplanade, a rare 2008 solo performance by the 'Rock & Roll Hall of Fame' inductee, founding member of The Jefferson Airplane and key personality of the 'San Francisco sound' that also launched The Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Steve Miller Band and Janis Joplin. Balin's first solo effort was recorded June 14, 2008 at the Hatch Shell in Boston, featuring tracks "Volunteers", "3/5ths of a Mile In Ten Seconds", "White Rabbit", "Somebody To Love" (with Didi Stewart on vocals), a new version of "Somebody To Love", "Today", "Summer Of Love" and Balin's Jefferson Starship hits "Miracles", "Count On Me", "Runaway", his 1980 solo hit "Hearts" and a cover of Canadian folk artist Bruce Cockburn's "Rocket Launcher". Also included is interview footage with original Jefferson Airplane lead singer Signe Anderson and rock journalists Jeff Tamarkin and Craig Fenton. Other points of...

By Matt Singer

In honor of their 40 years on movie screens, from 1968's "Sympathy for the Devil" to last week's release of "Shine a Light," we're taking a look at The Rolling Stones' filmography, featuring enough collaborations with great directors to make any actor jealous and enough abandoned or aborted projects to give any movie investor heartburn.

Gimme Shelter (1970)

Directed by Albert Maysles, David Maysles, and Charlotte Zwerin

The Film: The Rolling Stones watch the events of their recent American tour as they play out before them on a flatbed editing machine. Though their return to the States was filled with plenty of highlights, including a triumphant series of concerts at Madison Square Garden and a successful recording session at Muscle Shoals Studios, all that really seems to matter is the disastrous result of their free concert held outside of San Francisco at the Altamont Speedway. Intended as a companion...