RIP Ted Boy Marino

 Mario Marino, known as Ted Boy Marino, was born on October 18, 1939 in Fuscaldo Marina,  Calabria, Italy. He came to Buenos Aires in 1953, in the hold of a ship, at 12 years of age, along with his parents and five other siblings. He worked as a shoemaker in Buenos Aires, but took advantage of his free time to learn wrestling and practice weightlifting. In 1962 he was already participating in programs on Telecatch channels 9 and 12 of Buenos Aires from Montevideo.

In 1965, Marino reached Brazil. Shortly thereafter, he was hired as a fighter on Telecatch by TV Excelsior, where he was a great success. In the wrestling ring, along with other fighters like Tigre Paraguaio (Paraguayan Tiger), Electra, he defeated Alex and other villains like Aquiles (Achilles), Verdugo, Rasputim (Rasputin), Barba Negra (Blackbeard), El Chasques and Múmia (Mummy). He soon became a wrestling legend in Brazil

In the 1980s, with the decline of the Telecatch genre in Brazil, he began working on TV shows. Marino served as a co-star in the television program Os Trapalhões, usually in the role of villain, in addition to cameos on comedy programs such as Escolinha do Professor Raimundo. He also performed in theaters and clubs in the Brazilian states.

Marino died on September 27, 2012 in Rio de Janiero after emergency surgery for thrombosis, in Pro-Cardiac Hospital in Botafogo after nearly nine hours of operation, Ted succumbed to a cardiac arrest and died.

MARINO, Ted Boy (Mario Marino)

Born: 10/18/1939, Fuscaldo Marina, Colabria, Italy

Died: 9/27/2012, Rio de Janiero, Brazil

Ted Boy Marino’s western – actor:

Bang Bang (TV) - 2005

RIP Edgar Külow

 Just a few days after his 87th birthday actor, comedian, writer and director Edgar Külow has died. A news release stated he fell at his home and suffered a hip fracture and had to be operated on but died of complications on September 29^th in Berlin. A native of Westphalia, Külow was born on September 10, 1925 in Werdohl. Edgar took acting lessons in Leipzig, worked at the local radio station, then as a writer, director and sometimes manager of the cabaret "Pepper Mill". Later he worked for other cabarets and the satirical magazine "Eulenspiegel". He was, for a few years, a member of the cast of the satirical television series "Tele-BZ". He became a member of several TV casts, designed numerous, often quirky supporting roles, and was until recently still active as an actor. He also wrote several books, including "Koslowski in Weimar" and "Koslowski in parliament". Külow appeared in one Euro-western as O’Hara with Dean Reed in “Kit & Co.” (1974).

KULOW, Edgar

Born: 9/10/1925, Werdohl Westphalia, Germany

Died:  9/29/2012, Berlin, Berlin, Germany

Edgar Külow's western - actor:

Kit & Co. 1974 (O’Hara)

RIP Ira Miller

Miller, Ira October 14, 1940 - September 23, 2012 Ira Miller, well known comedic actor, died September 23rd after a long battle with cancer. Born in 1940 and raised in Chicago, Ira was a member of The Second City in the 60?s. As a film actor he was a regular for Mel Brooks, appearing in eight movies, starting with "Blazing Saddles". Other films included "Armed and Dangerous", "Jackson County Jail" and "Who's Harry Crumb?" Ira directed and co-wrote the underground hit film "Loose Shoes" which starred Bill Murray, Howard Hesseman and Betty Thomas. He was a beloved teacher for The Second City Training Center in Los Angeles. He leaves behind a brother and sister in law Ronald and Patricia Miller, four nieces and a nephew. In lieu of flowers- it is requested that donations be made to Los Angeles Jewish Family Services and Project Angel Food. Arrangements for memorial services are pending.

Published in the Los Angeles Times on September 30, 2012

MILLER, Ira
Born: 10/14/1940, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.
Died: 9/23/2012, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

Ira Miller's western - actor:
Blazing Saddles - 1974 (Baker Man)

RIP Herbert Lom

Herbert Lom, best known as Inspector Clouseau's long-suffering boss in the "Pink Panther" movies, died Thursday October 26, 2012, his son said. He was 95. Alec Lom said his father died peacefully in his sleep.

Herbert Lom had a handsomely lugubrious look that was suited to comedy, horror and everything in between. It served him well over a six-decade career in which roles ranged from Napoleon Bonaparte — whom he played twice — to the Phantom of the Opera. The London-based star appeared in more than 100 films, including "Spartacus" and "El Cid," and acted alongside film greats including Charlton Heston and Kirk Douglas.

Born Herbert Karel Angelo Kuchacevic ze Schluderpacheru in Prague in 1917, Lom came to Britain at the start of World War II and began his career as a radio announcer with the BBC's overseas service. His first major movie role was as Napoleon in 1942's "The Young Mr. Pitt." The career that followed saw him cast often as a villain. In "The Ladykillers," one of the best-loved British films of the 1950s, Lom played a member of a ruthless crime gang fatally outsmarted by a mild-mannered old lady. Horror roles included the title character in Hammer Studios' "The Phantom of the Opera" in 1962, and Van Helsing in 1970's "Count Dracula," opposite Christopher Lee.

A postwar American career was stymied when Lom was denied a visa, though he later appeared on U.S.A. TV series including "The Streets Of San Francisco" and "Hawaii Five-O." In the 1950s, Lom also had success on the London stage playing the King of Siam in the original London production of the "The King And I" at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, opposite Valerie Hobson. Lom appeared in two Euro-westerns: “The Treasure of Silver Lake” (1962) and “Villa Rides” (1968).

LOM, Herbert (Herbert Charles Angelo Kuchacevich ze Schluderpacheru)

Born: 9/11/1917, Prague, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary

Died: 9/26/2012, London, England, U.K.

Herbert Lom’s westerns – actor:

The Treasure of Silver Lake – 1962 (Colonel Brinkley)

Villa Rides – 1968 (General Huerta) 

RIP Andy Williams

 Singer Andy Williams died at his home in Branson, Mo., on Tuesday after a year-long battle with bladder cancer, according to his publicist Paul Shefrin. He was 84.

A best-selling singer in the1950s, Williams became a TV star in the '60s with his own weekly show and a series of holiday classics.

Born Dec. 3, 1927, in Wall Lake, Iowa, Williams started his music career at the age of eight as part of the Williams Brothers Quartet, featuring his three brothers: Bob, Dick and Don. The singing group was heard on the radio show, "Iowa's Barn Dance Show," in Des Moines, Iowa, before getting picked up by stations in Chicago and Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1944, the quartet recorded the hit "Swinging on a Star," which led to even more success, as the group began touring the country.

The brothers group disbanded in 1951, prompting Williams to move to New York in hopes of starting a solo career. While there, the Iowa native became a regular on Steve Allen's "Tonight Show." He soon landed a record deal with Candence Records and scored a top 10 hit with "Canadian Sunset." Many 1950s hits followed, including "Butterfly," "Lonely Street" and "The Hawaiian Wedding Song" for which he received the first of his five Grammy nominations.

Throughout the '50s, Williams made TV appearances, and by the early 1960s, he signed with Columbia Records and became a hit-making machine with the Oscar-winning song, "Moon River" from the film "Breakfast at Tiffany's," starring Audrey Hepburn.

Williams' TV career took off in 1962 with the start of "The Andy Williams Show," a weekly series on NBC. The show lasted nine years and would go on to win three Emmy Awards for best musical/variety series. It was around this time that Williams' annual holiday specials, featuring the Williams family, became classics.

He rolled out the $12 million Andy Williams Moon River Theater in Branson in 1992, where he performed for sold-out crowds through the years. A lover of live performing, Williams would play two concerts a night, six days a week for nine months of the year. In recent years, he cut back to just one gig a night.

Williams and his wife split their time between Branson and La Quinta, Calif. In 2007, he opened the Moon River Grill restaurant in Branson, featuring some his mother's favorite recipes.

Williams had no plans to slow down either. In 2001, he told The Associated Press, "I'll keep going until I get to the point where I can't get out on stage." Williams continued to perform even after his cancer diagnosis in 2011.

He received 18 gold and three platinum albums over his long career, and in 2009, published the autobiography, "Moon River and Me: A Memoir."

Williams is survived by his wife, Debbie, and his three children, Robert, Noelle and Christian.

WILLIAMS, Andy (Howard Andrew Williams)

Born: 12/3/1927, Wall Lake, Iowa, U.S.A.

Died: 9/25/2012, Branson, Missouri, U.S.A.

Andy Williams western – singer:

The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean – 1972 

RIP Michael Rye

 Voiceover actor Michael Rye dies at 94

Bridged the generations from radio to videogame work

By VARIETY STAFF

Michael Rye, a voiceover actor who brought his sonorous voice to lead roles in many radio shows and television cartoon series, died in Los Angeles on Sept. 21 after a brief illness. He was 94.

In radio's heyday, the Chicago-based Rye crowded some 40 network shows into an average week. He was Jack Armstrong on "Jack Armstrong -- The All American Boy," Gary Curtis on "Ma Perkins," Tim Lawrence on "The Guiding Light," Pembrook on "Backstage Wife." His Hollywood radio credits included "Meet Millie," "Lux Radio Theater," "Suspense," "The Whistler" and "This Is Your FBI."

Later, his voice would be heard on cartoon series "The Lone Ranger." He voiced Duke Igthorn and King Gregor on Disney's "Gummi Bears" and Green Lantern and Apache Chief on "Super Friends." As part of the Hanna Barbera stock company, Rye had many roles on "Scooby Doo," "Pound Puppies" and other HB cartoon series.

Rye segued into television with roles on "G.E. Theater," "Schlitz Playhouse," "Wagon Train," "77 Sunset Strip," "M Squad," "Dr. Kildare," among others.

Until the late '90s, Rye voiced many national television and radio commercials. He narrated thousands of industrial training films, videos and interactive software of all types and even contributed to videogames.

Rye had a significant first on his vita: He voiced the first full-length recorded book, "The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin."

J. Riorden Billsbury was born in Chicago.

He served a two-year term as national president of the Information Film Producers of America (IFPA) in the 1970s. Rye was also a member of AFTRA and SAG and an honorary lifetime member of Sperdvac, the Society to Preserve and Encourage Radio Drama, Variety and Comedy.

Rye is survived by his wife, Patricia Foster Rye.

Donations may be made to the American Cancer Society.

RYE, Michael (John Michael Riordan Billsbury)

Born: 3/2/1918, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.

Died: 9/21/2012, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

Michael Rye’s westerns – actor/voice actor:

The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin (TV) – 1958 (Ace Rocklin)

Wagon Train (TV) – 1958 (Hanlon)

The Lone Ranger (TV) – 1966 [voice of the Lone Ranger]

Daniel Boone (TV) – 1981 [voice]