About: Matthew Rettenmund

Recent Posts by Matthew Rettenmund

Nehemiah Persoff, ‘Some Like It Hot’ & ‘Yentl’ Actor, Dies @ 102

Nehemiah Persoff, ‘Some Like It Hot’ & ‘Yentl’ Actor, Dies @ 102
The man whose character was the subject of Barbra Streisand's plaintive ballad "Papa Can You Hear Me" has died at 102. In "Judgment Night," a classic Twilight Zone episode (Image via video still) Nehemiah Persoff, a veteran character actor with well over 200 performances to his name, died Tuesday, April 5, 2022. The charter member…
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Rock-Era Teen Idol Bobby Rydell, ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ Star, Dies @ 79

Rock-Era Teen Idol Bobby Rydell, ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ Star, Dies @ 79
Bobby Rydell, one of the quintessential teen idols of the early rock era, died Tuesday, April 5, 2022. He was 79. Rydell, who survived a double-organ (liver and kidney) transplant in 2012, succumbed after a bout with pneumonia just shy of his 80th birthday. His great, radio announcer Jerry Blavat, confirmed Rydell's death, writing on…
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Diana Ross NEVER Won a Competitive Grammy? How?

Diana Ross NEVER Won a Competitive Grammy? How?
Every year around Grammys time, a list circulates of top stars who have never managed to win a competitive Grammy — and it is topped by the great Diana Ross, who just turned 78. (Not 96, as some Jeopardy! nerds mistakenly believed.) She deserves Grammys — all over her body of work. (Image via Capitol) Queen…
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50-Year-Old Footage of Prince Discovered

50-Year-Old Footage of Prince Discovered
When a Minneapolis news station unearthed footage of a teachers' strike from 50 years ago, there was another gem uncovered at the same time — the only known video footage of future icon Prince at age 11. One of Prince's archivists reacted with glee over the find. (Image via video still) Asked what he thought…
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Estelle Harris, Mrs. Costanza & Mrs. Potato Head, Dies @ 93

Estelle Harris, Mrs. Costanza & Mrs. Potato Head, Dies @ 93
Estelle Harris, Mrs. Costanza on Seinfeld, has died at 93. The mother of all mothers (Image via NBC) ExtraTV reports she died in Palm Desert, California, of natural causes. She was with her son, Glen Harris, who said, "Her kindness, passion, sensitivity, humor, empathy and love were practically unrivaled, and she will be terribly missed…
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Barrie Youngfellow of ‘It’s a Living’ Dies @ 75

Barrie Youngfellow of ‘It’s a Living’ Dies @ 75
From L-R: Youngfellow (bottom) with her It's a Living castmates, on Three's Company with John Ritter & in The Scarlett O'Hara Wars (Images via ABC) One of my favorite-ever TV theme songs has to be the one for It's a Living/Making a Living — it's so ebullient, so Broadway. "Life's not the French Riviera!" it shouts,…
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Debbie Reynolds: A 90th Birthday Remembrance

Debbie Reynolds: A 90th Birthday Remembrance
Today, April 1, marks the 90th anniversary of the birth of Debbie Reynolds. Debbie at Cinecon in '12 (Image by Matthew Rettenmund) I first encountered her at her Cafe Carlyle show in NYC in 2009. She was just great! And she guess my partner and I were gay, inviting me to "touch my one good…
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