Log In


Reset Password
Film, TV and Streaming

Hollywood dims with passing of celebrities

Recent loses reminds us that life is short
Actress Lauren Bacall, seen here in 1965, died on Aug. 12 at age 89.

With the passing of film icon Lauren Bacall at age 89, all of the movie stars referenced in Madonna’s 1990 pop hit “Vogue” have now left us.

Those who are old enough to remember the star in her prime – in the 1946 film “The Big Sleep,” co-starring husband Humphrey Bogart, or 1953’s “How to Marry a Millionaire” alongside Marilyn Monroe – probably felt nostalgic and a little sad at the news.

Madonna herself clearly found a big inspiration from the era with her Blonde Ambition period in the early 1990s, and fellow celebrities like Kathleen Turner and Karlie Kloss were called “the new Bacall” for their sultry stares reminiscent to the classic actress.

This week another another cinema legend, British actor and director Richard Attenborough, died. He was 90.

Attenborough began his career appearing in classics such as “Brighton Rock” and “The Great Escape” before going behind the camera for “Gandhi” and “Chaplin.” But members of younger generations might recognize him best as the park creator in “Jurassic Park” and as Santa Claus in the remake of “Miracle on 34th Street.”

Already ending on a somber note with the shocking suicide of Robin Williams at age 63, this summer is a rude awakening of how fast time can pass.

When familiar faces on TV and in movies leave, it makes many of us contemplate our own lives and landmarks. Though this writer was born long after Bacall and Attenborough were popular on screen, watching their films, it’s strange to know there aren’t many figures left from the old days of filmmaking.

Williams alone reminds us how quickly life can end. He has had fans since his “Mork & Mindy” days of the early 1980s and newer ones from his family films like “Dead Poet’s Society” “Aladdin” and “Mrs. Doubtfire.”

But as short as life is, a memory from a piece of film can last more than a lifetime.

“Thank God for film. It can capture a moment and hold it there forever,” Liza Minnelli said in the 1974 documentary “That’s Entertainment!”

As we mourn, we also celebrate their talents and contributions to entertainment and art.

mbianco@durangoherald.com. Megan Bianco is a movie reviewer and also contributes other entertainment related features and articles.



Reader Comments