Robin Leach, the entertainment journalist and host whose syndicated TV series Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous hit smack-dab in the zeitgeist of the “greed is good” era during its heyday in the 1980s and early ’90s, has died. He was 76. Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous ran in syndication from 1984-1995, showcasing the glitz and glamour of celebrities and moguls and always from exotic and luxurious locales. And it always ended with Leach’s famed tagline, toasting viewers with “champagne wishes and caviar dreams.” Leach, born in London in 1941, was a Daily Mail reporter by age 18. He moved to the U.S. in 1963 where he wrote for the likes of the New York Daily News and helped launch People writing that magazine’s first several cover stories. He later launched Go Magazine and was show business editor of Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid The Star. On the TV side, he became CNN’s first showbiz reporter and shot the Entertainment Tonight pilot and was that show’s global roving senior correspondent for a time before taking on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. He also was part of the development of the Food Network. He moved to Las Vegas in 1999.
I definitely remember watching that show growing up and wishing I could live one of those "champagne wishes and caviar dreams" lifestyles.
Still on my list, while a little bit more of my childhood continues to die day-by-day.
The Big Bang Theory is going out on top. Chuck Lorre just announced that the comedy will end its run in May 2019 with its upcoming 12th season. The Big Bang Theory still will rank as the longest-running multi-camera series in television history per WBTV, spanning 12 seasons and a record-breaking 279 episodes, . “We are forever grateful to our fans for their support of The Big Bang Theory during the past twelve seasons. We, along with the cast, writers and crew, are extremely appreciative of the show’s success and aim to deliver a final season, and series finale, that will bring The Big Bang Theory to an epic creative close,” WBTV, CBS and Chuck Lorre Productions said in a joint statement. The show’s original quintet are the highest-paid actors on TV with paychecks of around $1 million an episode.
I think I could live on $1 million dollars a week.
If you're Madonna going to the MTV Awards, evidently you just throw on a bathrobe and EVERY piece of jewelry you have in your collection and bolt out the door.
I'm no fashionista, but even I know that less is much often better than more.
When the cast of Wonder Woman: 1984 posed for a random Breakfast Club-like photo, a fan took the photo and created a closer rendition of the original poster to pull it all together.
Aretha Franklin, who died Thursday at 76, was a once-in-a-generation singer. She was the Queen of Soul, but she also ventured into — and mastered — virtually every style of music, from jazz and classical to rhythm and blues. She passed away at her home in Detroit. Though her musical contributions were diverse, ranging in tone from spiritual to gaudy, her inimitable singing style came from a single source. She practically grew up in church, and the emotional intensity and personal connection she nurtured there with the music never left her. It informed virtually every one of her 77 top-100 songs, including 21 No. 1 R&B hits. She won 18 Grammy Awards and was the first female artist inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in 1987. Not only was her multi-octave mezzo-soprano an instrument of stunning beauty, range and power, but her piano playing — often in counterpoint to her singing — was just as accomplished. She influenced countless singers — Whitney Houston, Adele, Patti LaBelle, Natalie Cole, Chaka Khan, Mariah Carey, Luther Vandross, Jennifer Hudson, Fantasia. But her legend was forged not just on her ability to hit all the notes and embellish them with astonishing technical flourishes, but also to convey emotional nuance and deep feeling.
She had an amazing career and made such an impact on countless people from all over the world. She will definitely be missed.
Charlotte Rae, the actress who became known to millions of TV viewers as the tough but admirable Mrs. Garrett on Diff’rent Strokes and The Facts of Life, has died. She was 92 years old. Rae died Sunday at her Los Angeles home. Rae got her start in the theater, eventually acting on Broadway. However, it’s her television work that made her a household name. She was best known as Edna Garrett, a flame-haired housekeeper to three children on Diff’rent Strokes. She continued the role on the Strokes spin-off, The Facts of Life. Rae, who was born Charlotte Rae Lubotsky in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1926, began her career in New York City. She cut her teeth on the stage, performing in Broadway plays like The Threepenny Opera and Li’l Abner, later picking up two Tony nominations in 1966 (for best featured actress in a musical in Pickwick) and 1969 (best actress in a play in Morning, Noon and Night). She first played Mrs. Garrett, a frank, funny housekeeper with a distinctive bouffant, in 1978 in Diff’rent Strokes. She carried on the role until 1984, going between that show and The Facts of Life. Though the actress left the role behind in the mid-1980s, she kept acting, returning to the stage and turning up in shows like ER and Pretty Little Liars, as well as movies like Ricki and the Flash, acting alongside Meryl Streep.
She had quite a long career and will definitely be missed.
I applaud male model Tyson Beckford's air-tight plan to deny that he's gay today by posting a shirtless selfie on Instagram announcing that he's not gay.