CAUSE: During a concert on March 6, 1994 in Richmond, Virginia, Sinatra fell off his stool while singing ‘My Way’ and hit his head on a speaker. Examined by a hospital, he was allowed home the same night. He played his last show on American soil at the Sands in Atlantic City, New Jersey on November 20, 1994. On November 1, 1996 he was admitted to room 8016 of the VIP wing at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, 8700 Beverly Boulevard, where he was treated for a pinched nerve and a minor bout of pneumonia. He was released eight days later on November 9. In January 1997 he was hospitalised with a sudden heart attack. On January 23, 1998 he was taken from his home, 915 North Foothill Road, Beverly Hills 90210, and again taken to Cedars-Sinai and checked for high blood pressure. He was released the next day. He was readmitted three days before Valentine’s Day for “tests” and again released. On May 14, he was at home with a nurse (his wife was out at dinner with friends) when he suffered another heart attack. He was taken to Cedars-Sinai at 9.18pm but died there at 10.35pm. He was 82. He was buried on May 20 at a funeral attended by, among others, Milton Berle, Diahann Carroll, Tony Curtis, Vic Damone, Tony Danza, Dom DeLuise, Kirk Douglas, Faye Dunaway, Bob Dylan, Mia Farrow, Larry King, Jack Lemmon, Jerry Lewis, Sophia Loren, Lorna Luft, Ed McMahon, Liza Minnelli, Wayne Newton, Jack Nicholson, Anthony Quinn, Nancy Reagan, Debbie Reynolds, Don Rickles, Jill St John, Tom Selleck, Bruce Springsteen, Gregory Peck, Connie Stevens, Marlo Thomas, Ben Vereen and Robert Wagner. Sinatra was buried in Desert Memorial Park Cemetery, 69920 Ramon Road, Cathedral City, California 92234. In January 2000 Frank, Jr announced he was dropping the junior from his name, even though, technically, he was never Frank, Jr in the first place. With Sinatra in his coffin were a number of items to help him on his way. They were a roll of dimes (from son Frank), a cigarette lighter (from his niece) and a packet of Camel cigarettes (from stepson Bobby), a bottle of Jack Daniel’s, a ring (from Mia Farrow), and a packet of Tootsie Rolls (from daughter Nancy).
FURTHER READING: Sinatra – Arnold Shaw (London: Coronet 1970); Sinatra – Earl Wilson (London: W.H. Allen 1976); The Revised Compleat Sinatra – Albert I. Lonstein & Vito R. Marino (New York: Cameron Publications, 1979); The Frank Sinatra Scrapbook – Richard Peters (London: Pop Universal, 1982); His Way The Unauthorised Biography Of Frank Sinatra – Kitty Kelley (London: Bantam Press, 1986); Frank Sinatra My Father – Nancy Sinatra (London: Coronet, 1986); Sinatra The Man And The Myth – Bill Adler (New York: Signet, 1987); All Or Nothing At All A Life Of Frank Sinatra – Donald Clarke (London: Macmillan, 1997); All The Way A Biography Of Frank Sinatra – Michael Freedland (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1997); Sinatra Behind The Legend – J. Randy Taraborrelli (New York: Birch Lane Press, 1997); Mr S The Last Word On Frank Sinatra – George Jacobs and William Stadiem (London: Sidgwick & Jackson, 2003); Sinatra – Richard Havers (London: Dorling Kindersley, 2004).
Penny Singleton
(MARIANNA DOROTHY AGNES LETITIA MCNULTY)
Born September 15, 1908
Died November 12, 2003
Forever Blondie. Penny Singleton had two claims to fame. She brought Chic Young’s cartoon strip character Blondie Bumstead to life in a popular series of films and was the voice of the mother on the television cartoon series The Jetsons. Singleton was born the daughter of Benny McNulty, a Philadelphia journalist, and got her start in show business by winning an amateur contest and was touring in vaudeville in her early teens. After her Broadway début in the late-Twenties, she began appearing in films, at first under her real name. It was her portrayal of Blondie in 28 films made from 1938 to 1950 that sealed her fame. The series was about the misadventures of a small-town family. Arthur Lake played Blondie’s husband, the bumbling Dagwood Bumstead. Lake and Singleton also co-starred as the Bumsteads on radio. No one else ever played Blondie and Dagwood on the big screen. The films were Blondie (1938), Blondie Meets The Boss (1939), Blondie Takes A Vacation (1939), Blondie Brings Up Baby (1939), Blondie On A Budget (1940), Blondie Has Servant Trouble (1940), Blondie Plays Cupid (1940), Blondie Goes Latin (1941), Blondie In Society (1941), Blondie Goes To College (1942), Blondie’s Blessed Event (1942), Blondie For Victory (1942), It’s A Great Life (1943), Footlight Glamour (1943), Leave It To Blondie (1945), Life With Blondie (1945), Blondie’s Lucky Day (1946), Blondie Knows Best (1946), Blondie’s Big Moment (1947), Blondie’s Holiday (1947), Blondie In The Dough (1947), Blondie’s Anniversary (1947), Blondie’s Reward (1948), Blondie’s Secret (1948), Blondie’s Big Deal (1949), Blondie Hits The Jackpot (1949), Blondie’s Hero (1950) and Beware Of Blondie (1950). Commented Singleton, “I’m proud and grateful I was Blondie. She was dumb and shrewish sometimes. But she was real and sympathetic and warm, a real woman, a human being. And that’s how I tried to play her.” Oddly, Singleton was naturally a brunette and dyed her hair blonde to play the part and kept it that way. Singleton went on to do the voice of Jane Jetson in The Jetsons, Hanna-Barbera’s futuristic counterpart to its highly successful Flintstones cartoon. The show ran in prime time for just one season, September 23, 1962– September 8, 1963, but has been widely seen in syndication. Singleton also appeared in the 1964 film The Best Man but her scenes were cut before release. She spent most of her time touring in nightclubs and in road shows of plays and musicals like Call Me Madam. In 1937 she married Lawrence Singleton, a dentist who predeceased her, and had one daughter, Dorothy. The couple was divorced in 1939. In 1941 she married the Blondie producer (Salathiel) Robert Sparks (b. Peebles, Adams County, Ohio, February 4, 1898, d. July 22, 1963) and had another daughter, Susan.
CAUSE: Penny Singleton died in Sherman Oaks, California, aged 95, of complications from a stroke.
Curt Siodmak
Born August 10, 1902
Died September 2, 2000
Teutonic horrormeister. Born in Dresden, Saxony, Germany, the younger of two sons of a banker, Siodmak became a journalist while brother Robert (b. Dresden, Saxony, Germany, August 8, 1900, d. Locarno, Ticino, Switzerland 1973) followed their father into finance. Siodmak married Henrietta in 1925 and two years later they were hired as extras on Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927) to get a story on the director. Siodmak began to contribute to silent films in Germany. In 1929 both brothers worked on the documentary People On Sunday, as did Billy Wilder and Fred Zinnemann. Siodmak wrote several more films but with the rise of Hitler decided to move abroad in the Thirties. The Siodmaks moved to France where they made La Crise Est Finie (1935) and then Curt left to go to England while Robert Siodmak stayed in Paris until 1939. In England he worked on, among other films, I, Claudius (1937), the famously unfinished Charles Laughton masterpiece. In the same year he moved to New York where he began writing and directing. His films included Her Jungle Love (1938) which starred Dorothy Lamour, The Invisible Man Returns (1939), The Wolf Man (1941) starring Lon Chaney and The Invisible Agent (1942). In 1942 he published the horror novel Donovan’s Brain which was filmed three times between 1943 (as The Lady And The Monster starring Erich von Stroheim) and 1962 (as Over My Dead Body). He wrote a number of other novels and short stories that were filmed. Unlike Robert Siodmak, Curt Siodmak’s directorial career never really took off and his films remained in the horror genre rather than moving to mainstream fare. However, those films were in themselves memorable. In particular I Walked With A Zombie (1943) and The Beast With Five Fingers (1946) starring Peter Lorre are fondly remembered by horror aficionados. He wrote a German version of Sherlock Holmes And The Deadly Necklace (1962) which starred Christopher Lee and was directed by Terence Fisher. In the Sixties and Seventies he found work difficult to come by but maintained his enthusiasm for the genre.
CAUSE: He died of natural causes aged 98.
Alexis Smith
(GLADYS SMITH)
Born June 8, 1921
Died June 9, 1993
Shrewd performer. Born in Penticton, British Columbia, Canada, she became an actress while a student and was signed to a contract by Warner Bros in 1940. Her performances were acclaimed by her admirers but she never really became a star. Sh
e appeared in Steel Against The Sky (1941) as Helen Powers, Passage From Hong Kong (1941), Affectionately Yours (1941) as a bridesmaid, Dive Bomber (1941) as Linda Fisher, The Smiling Ghost (1941) as Elinor Bentley Fairchild, Gentleman Jim (1942) as Victoria Ware, The Constant Nymph (1943) as Florence Creighton, The Doughgirls (1944) as Nan Curtiss, The Adventures of Mark Twain (1944) as Olivia Langdon Clemens, Conflict (1945) as Evelyn Turner, Rhapsody In Blue (1945) as Christine Gilbert, San Antonio (1945) as Jeanne Starr, Of Human Bondage (1946) as Nora Nesbitt, Night And Day (1946) as Linda Lee Porter, The Two Mrs Carrolls (1947) as Cecily Latham, Stallion Road (1947) as Rory Teller, The Woman In White (1948) as Marian Halcombe, Whiplash (1948) as Laurie Durant, The Decision Of Christopher Blake (1948) as Mrs Blake, One Last Fling (1949) as Olivia Pearce, Any Number Can Play (1949) as Lon Kyng, South Of St Louis (1949) as Rouge de Lisle, Undercover Girl (1950) as Christine Miller, Montana (1950) as Maria Singleton, Wyoming Mail (1950) as Mary Williams, Here Comes The Groom (1951) as Winifred Stanley, Split Second (1953) as Kay Garven, Beau James (1957) as Allie Walker, This Happy Feeling (1958) as Nita Hollaway, and The Young Philadelphians (1959) as Carol Wharton, after which she retired from movies to concentrate on theatre. It would be 16 years before she appeared in front of the cameras again when she played Deidre Milford Granger in Jacqueline Susann’s Once Is Not Enough (1975). Her subsequent film appearances were sporadic as she concentrated on television and television films. She played Clayton Farlow’s demented sister Jessica Montfort on Dallas in 1984 and again in 1990. On June 18, 1944, the bisexual Smith married actor Craig Stevens (b. Liberty, Missouri, July 8, 1918, as Gail Shikles, Jr, d. Los Angeles, California, May 10, 2000, from cancer) at the Church of the Recessional, Forest Lawn, Glendale, California. There were no children.
CAUSE: She died of cancer in Los Angeles, California, one day after her 72nd birthday.
Sir C. Aubrey Smith, CBE
Born July 21, 1863
Died December 20, 1948
The only English Test cricketer to become a successful Hollywood actor. Charles Aubrey Smith was born in the City of London, the son of a doctor, and educated at Charterhouse and Cambridge. Unlike other thespians, Smith’s entry in Who’s Who was a paradigm of modesty. It listed his name, profession (Film Actor), date of birth, the names of his parents, the year of his marriage (1896) but not the name of his wife, the fact he had one daughter who is similarly unnamed, h is education, his hobby (cricket), his address and his clubs. Prior to becoming an actor Smith was a fine cricketer, winning a Blue at Cambridge in 1882. That year he joined Sussex, where he played for the next 14 seasons, captaining the side from 1887 until 1889. In 1887–1888 he toured Australia, winning 14 and losing two of the 25 fixtures and the following winter captained the first English side (Major Warton’s) to venture to South Africa. The side won 13 and lost four of its 19 matches. On March 12–13, 1889, the tourists played South Africa at St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth. This later became known as the first South African Test although it wasn’t recognised as such at the time. In the Test Smith scored 3 and took 5 for 19 and 2 for 42 playing his part in England’s victory. On the tour he took 134 wickets at a cost of 7.61 runs apiece. He stayed in South Africa after the tour to captain Transvaal against Kimberley in the first Currie Cup match on April 5, 7–8, 1890. A useful right-arm fast bowler, his best bowling performances were taking 5 for 8 for Sussex against Cambridge in 1885 and 7 for 16 against the MCC at Lord’s in 1890. His highest innings was 142 for Sussex against Hampshire at Hove in 1888. He stood over six feet tall and had such a peculiar bowling action that he was known as “Round The Corner Smith”. He played 99 First Class matches for Sussex scoring 2,315 runs, averaging 14.55, and taking 208 wickets for 5006 runs, averaging 24.06. A sporting all-rounder, he also played outside right at football for Old Carthusians and Corinthians. Following his retirement from the sporting arena, he moved into the theatrical one becoming an accomplished stage (début aged 30) and silent screen actor. He made his first film during World War I and was most adept at playing nobility or soldiers. He was twice the Duke of Wellington, in The House Of Rothschild (1934) and Sixty Glorious Years (1938), but was probably best known for Colonel Zapt in The Prisoner Of Zenda (1937). His other films included: Red Pottage (1918) as Lord Newhaven, the title role in The Temptation Of Carlton Earle (1923), The Unwanted (1924) as Colonel Carrington, Such Is The Law as Sir James Whittaker, Surrender (1931) as Count Reichendorf, Son Of India (1931) as Dr Wallace, Never The Twain Shall Meet as Mr Pritchard, The Man In Possession (1931) as Mr Dabney, Daybreak (1931) as General von Hertz, Contraband Love (1931) as Paul Machin, JP, The Bachelor Father (1931) as Sir Basil Winterton, Just A Gigolo (1931) as Lord George Hampton, Guilty Hands (1931) as Reverend Hastings, Polly Of The Circus (1932) as Reverend James Northcott, Tarzan The Ape Man (1932) as James Parker, Love Me Tonight (1932) as Duke d’Artelines, Trouble In Paradise (1932) as Adolph Giron, Queen Christina (1933) as Aage, Adorable (1933) as The Prime Minister, Bombshell (1933) as Mr Middleton, Curtain At Eight (1934) as Jim Hanvey, Cleopatra (1934) as Enobarbus, The Scarlet Empress (1934) as Prince August, Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back as Captain Nielsen, Jalna as Uncle Nicholas, The Gilded Lily (1935) as Duke of Loamshire, Clive Of India (1935) as Prime Minister, Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936) as Earl of Dorincourt, Romeo And Juliet (1936) as Lord Capulet, The Garden Of Allah (1936) as Father Roubier, Victoria The Great (1937), Thoroughbreds Don’t Cry (1937) as Sir Peter Calverton, Wee Willie Winkie (1937) as Colonel Williams, The Hurricane (1937) as Father Paul, Kidnapped (1938) as Duke of Argyle, The Sun Never Sets (1939) as Sir John Randolph, The Four Feathers (1939) as General Burroughs, Another Thin Man (1939) as Colonel MacFay, Balalaika as General Karagin, Rebecca as Colonel Julyan, Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde (1941) as Bishop Manners, Forever And A Day (1943) as Admiral Eustace Trimble, Madame Curie (1943) as Lord Kelvin, Secrets Of Scotland Yard (1944) as Sir Christopher Belt, And Then There Were None (1945) as General Sir John Mandrake, Rendezvous With Annie (1946) as Sir Archibald Clyde, Unconquered (1947) as the Lord Chief Justice, An Ideal Husband (1947) as the Earl of Caversham and Little Women (1949) as Mr James Laurence. In 1938 he was awarded the CBE, becoming a knight six years later.
CAUSE: He died, aged 85, in Beverly Hills, California, from pneumonia. His home was called “The Corner House”. He left £1,038 19s 2d.
Jay R. Smith
Born August 29, 1915 Found dead October 5, 2002
Freckled Little Rascal. Born in Los Angeles, California, Jay R. Smith was a member of the troupe known now as The Little Rascals but in their heyday were called Our Gang and starred in a plethora of Hal Roach comedies. Smith appeared in 36 of the shorts; his first was Boys Will Be Joys (1925) when the series had already been running for three years. His freckled face gave rise to him being called ‘Spec’ or ‘Speck’. Like the pop group Menudo, The Little Rascals were replaced when they became too old for the series. The original idea for Smith was for him to be a leading light in the series but he only ever seemed to play supporting roles except in one film Rainy Days (1928). Smith also appeared in Forty-Five Minutes (1926), which was distinguished only insofar as it was the first Hal Roach to feature both Laurel and Hardy. Smith left the series after the gang’s sixth talkie Moan And Groan, Inc (1929). As he collected his last wage packet, he commented, “Well, I don’t know what you’re gonna do without me.” He was only half-joking when he recalled the studio going bankrupt – albeit 30 years later. After seeing service in the Second World War, Smith opened a paintshop. He moved to Kailua, Hawaii, before settling in Las Vegas.
CAUSE: On October 1, 2002 he was seen by his family. Four days later, his corpse was discovered in the Nevada desert near Apex. A vagrant he had befriended was charged with his murder.
Carrie Snodgress
Born October 27, 1946
Died April 1, 2004
Unfulfilled promise. Caroline Snodgress was born in Park Ridge, Illinois, and educated initially at Northern Illinois University before switching to the Goodman Theater
School in Chicago. She worked in television before making her film début in a bit part in Easy Rider (1969). Her first major part was as Janice Angstrom in Rabbit, Run (1970). Her third film, Diary Of A Mad Housewife (1970), garnered a Best Actress Academy Award nomination for her role as the frustrated housewife Tina Balser. She also won two Golden Globes (Best Actress and Best Newcomer) but gave it all up in 1971 to live with the musician Neil Young, by whom she had a son Zeke who was born in 1972 with cerebral palsy. For eight long years she eschewed acting and by that time the chance of stardom was gone. She commented, “I was never really a career woman, you see. My life always came first. When I got nominated for Diary Of A Mad Housewife, I didn’t think, ‘Aah, now I’ll get more money.’ My dream had always just been to do my work well, fall in love and build a life for myself.” She returned with a small part in Brian DePalma’s The Fury (1978). She said, “When I came back, the industry didn’t trust me. Rock’n’roll carries a heavy stigma. They didn’t want to fool around with a dropout.” In 1981 she made her first appearance on Broadway in A Coupla White Chicks Sitting Around Talking. Her other films included: Love’s Dark Ride (1978) as Nancy Warren, The Attic (1979) as Louise, Homework (1982) as Dr Delingua, Trick Or Treats as Joan, A Night In Heaven as Mrs Johnson, L.A. Bad (1985) as Margot, Pale Rider (1985) as Sarah Wheeler, Murphy’s Law (1986) as Joan Freeman, Blueberry Hill (1988) as Becca Dane, Chill Factor (1990) as Amy Carlisle, Across The Tracks (1991) as Rosemary Maloney, The Ballad Of Little Jo (1993) as Ruth Badger, 8 Seconds (1994) as Elsie Frost, Blue Sky (1994) as Vera Johnson, White Man’s Burden (1995) as Josine, Stranger In The Kingdom (1998) as Ruth Kinneson, Wild Things (1998) as Ruby, In The Light Of The Moon (2000) as Augusta, Bartleby (2001) as the book publisher and The Forsaken (2001) as Ina Hamm. In 1979, a well-known industry songwriter/producer ex-boyfriend Jack Nitzsche broke into her home while drunk and pistol-whipped her. Pleading guilty, he was fined and put on three years probation. In 1981 she married the painter Robert Jones but they separated after a short period.
Fade to Black: A Book of Movie Obituaries Page 161
