RIP

Oh no!  But 80's a reasonable age.  She brought poetry and moral complexity to the vampire motif.  Everyone interpreted her sensual descriptions of the vampire's experience of drinking blood as sexual, but she said that wasn't it at all: it was an alcoholic's experience of having a drink.  In fact she wrote the first book in part to keep her mind off her battle with alcohol.

I tried to read her non-vampire books, but could never get into it.  Without the titillation of hunting humans and drinking blood it's easy to get bogged down in her prose.  But with the titillation it's an absolute page-turner.

Absolutely, great stuff

Truly Scrumptious. RIP

One of my all time favourite movies.

It was a James Bond film for kids. It had gadgets, a suggestively named woman, over the top bad guys. I don't understand how rotten tomatoes has a 67% rating for it.

{{{ 67% Really?! I loved this film as a kid, was so inventive and fun, plus had the scariest kids villain in cinema- the Child Catcher. }}

I hated the child catcher. Scared the hell out of me.

Lollipops children.

Still gives me chills.

For my dad it was always the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz. Really did a number on him. Spooked me pretty badly too.

I am still scared by the flying monkeys

Ooo - can you imagine the child catcher commanding a flock of flying monkeys?  

btw, Ian Fleming did not create the character, he was an insertion by Roald Dahl that was rewritten by the director (who claims HE created him). I'd like to see Roald Dahl's original script.

B... Betty White?

Oh no! Is she gone?! Never saw her on anything except game shows and interviews, but still miss her.

Few days short of her 100th birthday too. RIP.

Desmond Tutu is gone since the day after Christmas. He and Nelson Mendela defined the soul of South Africa: how could this not have made a bigger splash and I'm only learning about it today?

{{ US news, its terrible for anything thats not America. Tutu's death and funeral have been all over our news since it happened. }}

{RIP Barry Cryer. Even if you never saw Cryer perform if your British and lived between the 1960's and now you've probably laughed at jokes he has written. From the Frost report in the 60's, through writing for the Two Ronnies, Morcambe and Wise, Kenny Everett, Dave Allen, Frankie Howard, Les Dawson and many more British comedy legends right up to modern comedy panel shows like Would I lie to You? He has written and performed comedy gold for decades. I have long been a particular fan of his appearances on long standing radio comedy panel shows like I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue.
When asked how he would describe and analysis his comedy and how he writes he once replied- "Analysing comedy is like dissecting a frog. Nobody laughs and the frog dies."

So best just enjoy his work and let him make you smile. RIP. }}

Funny man. RIP

I'm not a big fan of the country duo The Judds, but it turns out Naomi Judd (the mother) just died by suicide.  What makes this especially pertinent is she wrote something very revealing just 3 years ago:

"To understand this issue better, we have to bring the study of suicide into mainstream neuroscience and treat the condition like every other brain disorder," she wrote. "People who commit suicide are experiencing problems with mood, impulse control and aggression, all of which involve discrete circuits in the brain that regulate these aspects of human experience, but we still don't understand how these circuits go haywire in the brains of suicide victims."

This is someone who is so self aware that she can speak on the causes of her upcoming suicide in starkly clinical terms.  To me this is nothing less than awe inspiring.  I'm always greatly distressed by suicide among the young, who haven't developed the self awareness to understand what's happening to them;  we need more of these fully mature people speaking out and clarifying the problem.  Too many of them use their mature coping skills to hide it, but what's needed is the opposite.

https://people.com/country/naomi-judd-depression-suicide-letter-mental-illness-awareness-week/

EDIT: turns out a doctor/coauthor may have written the above quote, not Judd.  But she could have, for she did say the following:

“I’m still recovering myself,” said Judd. “I’m still trying desperately trying to help myself. There’s never going to be a pill for it all. I read up on all the scientific literature, I go to courses. I try so hard to stay up on everything that I possibly can to get rid of this horrible curse.”

“Those thoughts of suicide don’t come anymore. But I’m vulnerable. I know I can backslide,” she added.

She was very self aware and analytical about it.

It is very sad.

I was a big Linkin Park fan growing up and both through the lyrics of the songs and in interviews it was clear that Chester Bennington was both very aware of his situation and trying to do what he could to get through it, but in the end wasn't enough.

{{ RIP Dennis Waterman. I grew up on the Sweeney and Minder and have fond memories of watching with my brother and Dad. Think that's most of the cast now sadly departed. }}

Just read that Ray Liotta has passed away aged 67

https://deadline.com/2022/05/ray-liotta-dies-67-goodfellas-1235033521/

I'm not familiar with much of his recent work but I'll always remember him for Field Of Dreams, GTA Vice City and Goodfellas (which I only rewatched last week for the first time in a deace...), great actor will be missed.

{{ RIP Bernard Cribbens. Who fans will know him as the fantastic Wilfred, Donna's granddad, and for generation of folk like me he was the voice of our childhood, narrating and lending his character voices too so many things. We can at least look forward to seeing him one last time as Wilf in the 60th Anniversary episode of Who. }}

oh no, I really like him. He is one of the last reminders of my childhood.

Came across as a really nice man.
Remember him on Jackanory doing the Hobbit.
Did a 2 week special on it, him and a few others.

He was a good Bilbo, if a little too fearful.

RIP Uhura!