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Mimi Hines, the delightful Canadian-born actress, singer and comedian who stepped in for Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice in the original Broadway production of Funny Girl, has died. She was 91.

Hines died Monday of natural causes at her home in Las Vegas, her friend and attorney Mark Sendroff told The Hollywood Reporter.

Hines was married to late actor-comic Phil Ford from 1954 until their 1972 divorce, and as “Ford and Hines,” they had a thriving nightclub act that was featured on variety/talk programs like Jack Paar’s The Tonight Show.

In her Broadway debut, Hines starred in Funny Girl from December 1965 through its final performance in July 1967. When she got the gig, she told The New York Times — who described her as a “mischievous sprite” — that she was not nervous.

“It’s always easier to follow a good actress than a bad one,” she said. “Miss Streisand is wonderful. [And] there is...

Mimi Hines, who along with her comedy and musical partner (and husband) Phil Ford was a staple of late-night talk shows and variety shows of the 1960s before making a name for herself on Broadway as the replacement for Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl, died peacefully of natural causes on Monday, October 21, at her home in Las Vegas. She was 91.

Her death was announced by her longtime attorney Mark Sendroff.

Born July 17, 1933, in Canada, the singer and comedian Hines met Ford in 1952 at the Last Chance Saloon in Anchorage, Ak, and began performing as a duo. They were invited to appear on The Tonight Show on August 28, 1958, where Hines’ performed of the Meredith Willson song “Till There Was You.” Legend has it that the performance brought host Jack Paar to tears, and soon the duo Ford and Hines were an in-demand booking, with appearances on The Garry Moore Show, The Hollywood Palace,...

Kathryn Crosby, who starred in such films as Operation Mad Ball, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and Anatomy of a Murder before she curtailed her acting career as the wife of Hollywood legend Bing Crosby, has died. She was 90.

Crosby died peacefully at her home in Hillsborough, California, surrounded by her family, according to a family spokesperson.

Billed under her stage name, Kathryn Grant, the Houston native made five features for famed film noir director Phil Karlson, including Tight Spot (1955), The Phenix City Story (1955) and The Brothers Rico (1957).

She also played the younger sister of Martha Hyer’s character in another film noir, the Blake Edwards-directed Mister Cory (1957), starring Tony Curtis, and portrayed a budding trapeze artist in The Big Circus (1959), starring Victor Mature.

Soon after wrapping production in Spain with her turn as the damsel in distress Princess Parisa in the Ray Harryhausen fantasy The 7th Voyage of Sinbad...

Steve Lawrence, the singer who teamed with his wife Eydie Gormé to form one of the most popular nightclub and concert duos of their generation, died of complications from Alzheimer’s disease today. He was 88.

His son, the composer and performer David Lawrence, said in a press statement, “My Dad was an inspiration to so many people. But, to me, he was just this charming, handsome, hysterically funny guy who sang a lot. Sometimes alone and sometimes with his insanely talented wife. I am so lucky to have had him as a father and so proud to be his son. My hope is that his contributions to the entertainment industry will be remembered for many years to come.”

Popularly know as Steve and Eydie, the couple achieved nationwide recognition in the mid-1950s after appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Steve Allen. They continued performing together until Gormé’s retirement...

Shecky Greene has sadly passed away.

The Las Vegas headliner and stand-up comedian passed away on Sunday (December 31) at the age of 97.

He died at his home in Las Vegas of natural causes, his wife of 41 years, Marie Musso Greene, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Along with his Vegas shows, he was also a frequent guest and even occasional guest host on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.

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In addition, he starred as Pvt. Braddock on the first season of Combat!, as well as movies like Tony Rome, The Love Machine, Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood, History of the World: Part One and Splash.

He was a fixture on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Hollywood Palace, as well as The Love Boat, Laverne & Shirley, The Fall Guy, The A-Team, Roseanne and as Paul Reiser’s great-uncle on Mad About You.

Shecky Greene, the legendary Las Vegas headliner and stand-up comedian who entertained audiences for years while battling demons that included stage fright, alcoholism, prescription-drug abuse and gambling, died Sunday. He was 97.

Greene died on New Year’s Eve of natural causes at his home in Las Vegas, his wife of 41 years, Marie Musso Greene, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

He also was known for his dozens of appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, where he served as an occasional guest host.

Greene’s garrulous act in the 1950s and ‘60s helped transform the hotel lounge into another place for patrons to be entertained, turning Vegas into a 24-hour party town. His specialty was improvisation, and he could take virtually any situation and make it funny.

The stocky Chicago native sang, did impressions, told stories and often went off on wild tangents, and his brand of comedy was quite...

Herman Rush, who produced several television shows and was the former president of Columbia Pictures Television, has died. He was 94.

Rush died on Dec. 12 of natural causes in Los Angeles, his daughter Mandie told The Hollywood Reporter.

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1929, Rush grew up in a show-business family, with his uncle Manie Sacks being Frank Sinatra’s first manager.

In 1951, Rush began his career in television, working first as a salesman for Official Film before moving up to several different leadership positions. He later purchased Flamingo Films, a television syndication firm, in 1957 and turned it into a major independent syndication company.

Throughout the ’60s and early ’70s, he was with Creative Management Associates as the president of the television division. He also worked for CMA’s predecessor organization, General Artists Corporation, now known as International Creative Management, and played a huge role in the agency’s entry into television packaging.

Ric de Azevedo, who performed as a member of the voluminous King Family and served as a TV producer on Private Benjamin, California Dreams, Young Maverick and the Dukes of Hazzard spinoff Enos, has died. He was 75.

De Azevedo died March 14 in Fruit Heights, Utah, after an undisclosed illness, his family announced.

Survivors include a brother, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles actor Cam Clarke, and a cousin, singer and My Three Sons actress Tina Cole.

De Azevedo also worked as a postproduction executive at Universal Studios, as director of postproduction for Warner Bros. Television from 1983-93 and as director of film services for Warner Bros. Studios, where he helped develop the organizational system for the studio’s vault assets.

Known for his soulfully expressive singing voice, de Azevedo appeared with 37 family members on the ABC musical variety series The King Family Show in 1965-66 and 1969. He also performed alongside The King Family’s teen offshoot,...

Walter Coblenz, the Oscar-nominated producer behind “All the President’s Men” and the Emmy-nominated limited series “The Blue Knight,” has died. He was 93.

Coblenz, who served as the senior vice president of Tristar Pictures and Carolco Pictures, oversaw productions on such titles as “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” “The Natural,” “Places in the Heart” and more. His other notable credits include “The Candidate,” “The Onion Field,” “Money Talks,” “The Legend of the Lone Ranger” and “Her Majesty.”

He garnered an Emmy nomination for producing the drama miniseries “The Blue Knight,” about a veteran Los Angeles cop.

Coblenz died March 16, his son said in a statement.

Beginning his career in Hollywood as a stage manager for “The Jerry Lewis Show” and “The Hollywood Palace,” Coblenz later served as an assistant director on the series “Daktari” and Robert Redford and Gene Hackman-starring sports drama “Downhill Racer.” He later reunited with Redford on “All the President’s Men,...

Mort Sahl, the acerbic comic whose pioneering style paved the way for such boundary-breaking comedians as Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor and George Carlin, died Tuesday at his home in Mill Valley, CA. He was 94.

A friend confirmed his death to The New York Times.

Showbiz & Media Figures We’ve Lost In 2021 – Photo Gallery

Known for his topical social commentary, he boldly skewered politicians and others in a harsh but clean stand-up act. He hosted the first Grammy Awards in 1959, co-hosted the 1959 Academy Awards and a year later became the first comedian featured to be featured on the cover of Time magazine. He also guest-hosted The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson multiple times during the 1960s.

Born on May 11, 1927, in Montreal, Sahl’s family moved to Los Angeles when he was a child. After a stint in the Air Force, he graduated from USC in 1950. By the mid-’50s he was doing stand-up,...

Robert Fletcher, a costumer designer whose more than six decades of credits on screen and the Broadway stage included the first four Star Trek films, died April 5 in Kansas City, Missouri. He was 98.

A cause of death was not disclosed, but a spokesman for the three-time Tony-nominated Fletcher said the designer died peacefully.

Fletcher’s work on the Star Trek films – Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock and The Voyage Home – earned him three Saturn Awards nominations including a win in 1987 for the fourth film in the series. He was especially remembered for establishing the look and style of the movie franchise’s Klingon and Vulcan characters.

For the stage, Fletcher designed sets and costumes for Lincoln Kirstein’s ballet and opera projects, worked with Jerome Robbins, designed the costumes for the original Broadway productions of...

Marvyn Roy, a magician and illusionist known as "Mr. Electric," died Wednesday in Los Angeles of a cerebral hemorrhage, his publicist announced. He was 95.

Roy and his late wife, Carol, found fame over five decades with a magic act based around light bulbs that became known as Artistry in Light. They opened for the likes of Liberace and Dean Martin and once toured Russia with Ed Sullivan, appearing on his CBS program four times in one year.

They also performed on The Merv Griffin Show, The Hollywood Palace and The Tonight Show and played such showrooms as ...

Chicago – It’s the Eve of Christmas Eve, and what better time to figure out what the holiday film what-to-watch list will be. Enter “Pat & Ken At the Holidays,” featuring Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com and his faithful companion Ken Candela, whose off-kilter commentary has blessed him with the nickname, The Movie Wag.

Since 2009 on their YouTube channel, the holiday duo has been assessing the myriad numbers of Christmas-themed films … old, new and weird. Embedded below is an example from 2019, “The Hollywood Palace.’ In the tumultuous and divisive year of 1968, ABC-tv turned to its old pal Bing “Der Bingle” Crosby and his second family to get the nation through its year of riots, assassinations and war, with a Christmas TV special for the ages. Ho ho ho …

For the rest of the 2019 line up, click the appropriate link …

“A Christmas Carol” (1984) With George C. Scott as Scrooge, click here.

“Santa Claus Conquers the Martians...

Morgana King, who is best known for playing Marlon Brando’s wife in Godfather I & II, died March 22 from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. She was 87.

According to the Washington Post, her death was not previously reported. The Riverside County coroner’s office confirmed her death.

Born Maria Grazia Messina on June 4, 1930, in Pleasantville, NY, she grew up with five siblings in New York City. Her parents were from Italy. She was recognized for her singing talents at a young age and continued to hone her skills which led to a scholarship at the Metropolitan School of Music.

For more than 50 years, King was a jazz singer who performed in clubs and recorded nearly 20 albums. Her talent was admired by such greats as Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, Dinah Washington and opera star Eileen Farrell. In 1964, she received a Grammy Award nomination for Best New Artist.

She performed on The Andy Williams Show...

Talent manager George Shapiro helped put Jerry Seinfeld and Andy Kaufman on the map. But that’s only a sliver of his showbiz accomplishments, which include packaging such TV fare as “The Steve Allen Show,” “That Girl,” “Gomer Pyle, Usmc” and specials for Carol Channing, Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. These days, Shapiro, 86, is busier than ever, serving as the producer of the Seinfeld Netflix series “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee,” and serving as manager to his 96-year-old uncle, Carl Reiner; he was also executive producer on last year’s HBO documentary about people over 90, “If You’re Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast.” A decade after launching his career as a William Morris Agency mail clerk in New York in 1955, Shapiro received his first mention in Variety on April 22, 1965, an item in Army Archerd’s column, saying “Melody and George Shapiro (Wm. Morrisman) were expecting a baby.

Bob Haro may be popularly known as “The Father of Freestyle” but long before he and other BMX racers enjoyed pushing the stylistic limits of what they could do on their bikes, Japanese ballerina Lilly Yokoi was miles ahead. Known as “The Ballerina On The Golden Bicycle,” Yokoi appeared The Hollywood Palace in 1965, a TV variety show hosted by Joan Crawford. There she stunned the world while performing some amazing bike tricks, predating the International BMX Federation by a decade. Watch the video below.-

The post Video of the Day: First Recorded BMX, Flatland-Style Bike Tricks appeared first on Sound On Sight.

The singer and classic TV performer has died at the age of 84. Eydie Gorme passed away on today in Las Vegas after a short undisclosed illness. A well known nightclub performer in New York, Gorme joined Steve Allen’s local TV show in 1953. She soon was partnered with another singer on the show Steve Lawrence and the duo moved upward with Allen in 1954 when his show became NBC’s Tonight Show in 1954. The couple married on December 29, 1957. The next year, The Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme Show debuted on NBC and lasted one season. Still, both solo and with Lawrence, the Grammy winner would show up on the small screen often over the next three decades. Gorme appeared on the Gary Moore Show, What’s My Line?, Password All-Stars, The Ed Sullivan Show, The Bob Hope Show, the Carol Burnett Show among other. As well as a big music hit...

Ah, the lure of sweet, sweet nostalgia. Television has been lured many times by her siren call with “Happy Days”, “The Wonder Years”, and “Mad Men”. Several film directors have indulged in this desire to return to simpler times (usually in their own younger years) from George Lucas’s American Graffiti and Woody Allen’s Radio Days. Although it should be noted that Allen had his biggest box office success with 2011′s Midnight In Paris, which could be considered an anti-nostalgia flick (turns out that the people from the era you longed for also longed for an earlier time). Now TV mastermind David Chase, creator of “The Sopranos”, follows Lucas in returning to the golden 60′s in his feature film directing debut Not Fade Away. Music played a major role in the 1973 classic about California cruisers and music factors into Chase’s story of East Coast pals. But instead of...

The following article is a reprint of our review that ran during the New York Film Festival. For a film that’s ostensibly set to the vibrant pulse of early ‘60s rock 'n' roll and blues -- The Rolling Stones, the early Beatles, Bo Diddley, etc. -- David Chase’s directorial debut, “Not Fade Away,” sure has a curious, circuitous and eventually long-winded tempo. Set in 1964, just a few months after the Kennedy assassination with Vietnam, the Civil Rights movement and the sexual revolution in the air, “The Sopranos” creator’s ambitions are decidedly simpler and much more small scale. The set up is simple: The Rolling Stones make their U.S. television premiere on “The Hollywood Palace” in the summer of 1964 and three best friends from the suburbs of New Jersey -- Douglas (John Magaro), Eugene (Jack Huston from “Boardwalk Empire”) and Wells (Will Brill) -- enthralled with their swaggery blues beat,...

-- As drummer in a forgotten New Jersey band in the 1960s, David Chase never got close – never even got close to close – to making it in music. Yet from a sound check of his rock-infused HBO series "The Sopranos," it's clear the music never faded away.

So what better way for the TV revolutionary to make his film directing debut than with a story that's all about the music? Chase's "Not Fade Away" – a somewhat autobiographical drama about a Jersey boy playing drums in a `60s band and dreaming of stardom – would be called a promising first feature from some unknown filmmaker doing the rounds at Sundance. Coming from a Hollywood heavyweight who's spent decades in the TV trenches, it's a hopeful sign, or maybe just wishful thinking, that more of the quality that has fled film for television might somehow be channeled back to the big-screen.

"Not Fade Away" is a sweet,...

For a film that’s ostensibly set to the vibrant pulse of early ‘60s rock 'n' roll and blues -- The Rolling Stones, the early Beatles, Bo Diddley, etc. -- David Chase’s directorial debut, “Not Fade Away,” sure has a curious, circuitous and eventually long-winded tempo. Set in 1964, just a few months after the Kennedy assassination with Vietnam, the Civil Rights movement and the sexual revolution in the air, “The Sopranos” creator’s ambitions are decidedly simpler and much more small scale. The set up is simple: The Rolling Stones make their U.S. television premiere on “The Hollywood Palace” in the summer of 1964 and three best friends from the suburbs of New Jersey -- Douglas (John Magaro), Eugene (Jack Huston from “Boardwalk Empire”) and Wells (Will Brill) -- enthralled with their swaggery blues beat, are compelled to form a rock band (Joe Patuto, played by Brahm Vaccarella joins...

Dick Tufeld, announcer and voice actor perhaps most well known as the vocal cords behind the Robot in Lost In Space, has passed away. Tufeld was a survivor of cancer, and suffered from Parkinson’s disease. He was 85 years old.

Tufeld’s notable contributions include: The Amazing Mr. Malone, Falstaff’S Fables, Space Patrol, Three Star Final, Zorro, Walt Disney’S Wonderful World Of Color, Surfside 6, The Hollywood Palace, The Julie Andrews Hour, Time Tunnel, and Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea.

The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the Fred Weekend Shopping Guide - your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…

(Please support Fred by using the links below to make any impulse purchases - it helps to keep us going…)

If The Departed was Scorsese’s attempt to get a hold on Boston, Ben Affleck’s The Town (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$35.99 Srp) is a homegrown take on the intricate web of Goodfellas, right down to a heist that ultimately tears everyone apart. Sure, it’s a simplistic view of a remarkably good flick, but why don’t you give it a spin for yourself?...

No matter how huge a band gets, there are always speed bumps along the way. Pick a massive rock band — the Beatles, Green Day, U2 — and you'll find any number of slip-ups, dead ends and minor disasters littering the side of the road on the route to worldwide dominance. Such was the case of the Rolling Stones, who began their first ever tour of the United States on this day in 1964, and the results were cagey at best.

When the tour began, the group had only just released an album in the United States (the U.S.-only England's Newest Hitmakers arrived in stores at the end of May), which meant that their exposure was limited and the gigs less than prestigious. In one notorious incident, the band performed on an episode of "The Hollywood Palace," which was a variety show hosted by Dean Martin. The group did not play well,...