"A Woman Under the Influence" Actress Gena Rowlands 1930-2024 Memorial Video

Virginia Cathryn "Gena" Rowlands (June 19, 1930 – August 14, 2024) was an American actress, whose career in film, stage, and television spanned nearly seven decades. 

A four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner, she collaborated with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, including A Woman Under the Influence (1974) and Gloria (1980), both of which earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress. 

She also won the Silver Bear for Best Actress for Opening Night (1977). She appeared in Woody Allen's Another Woman (1988), and her son Nick Cassavetes's film, The Notebook (2004). 

In 2021, Richard Brody of The New Yorker said, "The most important and original movie actor of the past half century-plus is Gena Rowlands." In November 2015, Rowlands received an Honorary Academy Award in recognition of her unique screen performances.

Rowlands was married to John Cassavetes from March 9, 1954, until his death on February 3, 1989. They met at the American Academy at Carnegie Hall, where they were both students. They had three children, all actor-directors: Nick, Alexandra, and Zoe.

Rowlands married retired businessman Robert Forrest in 2012.

On June 24, 2024, Nick Cassavetes announced that his mother had been living with Alzheimer's disease for the previous five years. Rowlands died from complications of Alzheimer's disease at her home in Indian Wells, California, on August 14, 2024, at the age of 94.

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"Newhart" Actor & Comedian Bob Newhart 1929-2024 Memorial Video

George Robert Newhart (September 5, 1929 – July 18, 2024) was an American comedian and actor. He was known for his deadpan and stammering delivery style. Beginning as a stand-up comedian, he transitioned his career to acting in television. He received numerous accolades, including three Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2002.

Newhart came to prominence in 1960 when his record album of comedic monologues, The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart, became a bestseller and reached number one on the Billboard pop album chart and won two Grammy Awards for Album of the Year, and Best New Artist. That same year he released his follow-up album, The Button-Down Mind Strikes Back! (1960), which was also a success, and the two albums held the Billboard number one and number two spots simultaneously. He later released several additional comedy albums.

Newhart hosted a short-lived NBC variety show titled The Bob Newhart Show (1961) before starring as Chicago psychologist Robert Hartley on The Bob Newhart Show from 1972 to 1978. For the latter, he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Male TV Star. He then starred as Vermont innkeeper Dick Loudon on the series Newhart from 1982 to 1990 where he received three nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. He also had two short-lived sitcoms, Bob (1992–1993) and George and Leo (1997–1998).

Newhart acted in films such as Hot Millions (1968), Catch-22 (1970), Cold Turkey (1971), In & Out (1997), and Elf (2003). He also voiced Bernard in the Disney animated films The Rescuers (1977) and The Rescuers Down Under (1990). 

Newhart played Professor Proton on the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory from 2013 to 2018, for which he received his first ever career Emmy Award, for the Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. He also reprised his role as Professor Proton in the prequel series Young Sheldon (2017–2020).

Bob Newhart died from complications of several short illnesses at his home in Los Angeles on July 18, 2024, at the age of 94.

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"The Shining" Actress Shelley Duvall 1949-2024 Memorial Video

Shelley Alexis Duvall (July 7, 1949 – July 11, 2024) was an American actress and producer. Known for her collaborations with Robert Altman and for playing eccentric characters, she won a Cannes Film Festival Award and was nominated for a British Academy Film Award and two Emmy Awards. Four of her films are preserved in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

Born in Texas, Duvall was discovered by Altman, who was impressed by her upbeat presence and cast her in the black comedy film Brewster McCloud (1970). Though hesitant to become an actress, she continued to work with him, appearing in the Western films McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) and the crime film Thieves Like Us (1974). Her breakthrough came with his musical film Nashville (1975), and she won acclaim for starring in his drama film 3 Women (1977). She followed this with a supporting role in Woody Allen's romantic comedy film Annie Hall (1977).

Duvall gained further prominence for her leading roles as Wendy Torrance in Stanley Kubrick's horror film The Shining and Olive Oyl in Altman's adventure film Popeye, both in 1980. 

She appeared in Terry Gilliam's fantasy film Time Bandits (1981), Tim Burton's short comedy horror film Frankenweenie (1984), and Fred Schepisi's comedy film Roxanne (1987). 

She ventured into producing television programming aimed at children and youth in the latter half of the 1980s, creating and hosting the programs Faerie Tale Theatre (1982–1987), Tall Tales & Legends (1985–1987), Nightmare Classics (1989) and Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories (1992–1994).

During the 1990s, Duvall acted sporadically, playing supporting roles in Steven Soderbergh's thriller film The Underneath (1995) and Jane Campion's drama film The Portrait of a Lady (1996). 

After appearing in Gabrielle Burton's comedy film Manna from Heaven (2002), she left acting until returning for her final role in the horror film The Forest Hills (2023). Her mental health in the interim was covered by the media, briefly turning her private life public. Duvall died of diabetes complications on July 11, 2024.

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