Category Archives: ’50s

Joyce Randolph, Last Surviving ‘Honeymooners’ Star, Dies @ 99

On Saturday, January 13, 2024, we lost Joyce Randolph, one of the last remaining connectors to '50s TV. (Images via CBS & and by Matthew Rettenmund) The original Trixie on The Honeymooners (1955-1956) — after replacing Elaine Stritch in the role on Cavalcade of Stars (1951-1952) sketches — died at 99 at her NYC home.…
Read more

Shecky Greene, Iconic Las Vegas Stand-Up King, Dies @ 97

January 1, 2024 Shecky Greene, a Las Vegas legend for a stand-up career that left his name synonymous with laughter, died at his home on New Year's Eve. He was 97. Mugging in History of the World Part I (Image via 20th Century Fox) Greene died of natural causes, his wife told The Las Vegas Review-Journal.…
Read more

20 Most Impactful Celebrity Deaths of 2023

January 1, 2024 Simply the best (Image via Capitol) Every year, I highlight the 20 celebrity deaths that seem to have been the most culturally impactful. Usually, it's a mix of legends who have faded away after seeming they might last forever, and younger, shocking departures. Every Other Year from 1976 on RIGHT HERE! This…
Read more

Ryan O’Neal, ’70s Superstar, Dies @ 82

Ryan O'Neal's acting career began in 1960, with a bit part on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. With Tony Dow on 'Beaver (Image via video still) It is interesting to think of him on shows like that and Leave It to Beaver, on which he appeared in 1961, considering the mega-star he became a…
Read more

Norman Lear, TV Icon, Dies @ 101

Via ExtraTV: It seemed he would never stop. (Image via THR) Norman Lear, the indefatigable TV legend who created classic, genre-defining, culture-driving series, died Tuesday at his L.A. home. He was 101, and had continued working until the end of his storied life. His death was confirmed to The New York Times by his family spokeswoman, Lara…
Read more

Watch Judd Apatow’s Doc on the Friendship Between Don Rickles & Bob Newhart

Judd Apatow contributes a touchingly observed documentary short about the lifelong friendship between Don Rickles and his wife and Bob Newhart and his wife. It's especially compelling considering their acts were so diametrically opposed, yet in their personal lives, they were absolutely devoted to each other. The couples frequently traveled together and even lived within…
Read more

William Frawley? Don’t Make Me Laugh

Many of us are actively alarmed by the invasion of AI technology, and the possibility it raises of creating entirely false historical narratives. After all, if an engineer and scientist is uncritically sharing this pretty obviously AI-created image/story: This story is fake. This picture is fake. (Image via Twitter) ... where will it end? Nothing…
Read more