Cemetery with crosses - legends lost but remembered: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 17:32, 15 April 2024

This page is our personal hall of faml'e. A reminder to us all that even though considered a B-genre, Spaghetti Westerns were full of great characters, played by great people. Many have passed away, and while we are young growing up re-watching all these classics, many more will probably leave us. May they be remembered. What follows, is a work-in-progress, a growing list of legends who have passed away...

Sorted by last name: A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

FRESH GRAVES

BROWNE, Robin (Michael Robin Graham Browne) - 11/24/1941, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England, U.K. - 3/28/2024, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, U.S.A.

British cinematographer Robin Browne passed away at his home in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan on March 28, 2024. He was born Michael Robin Graham Browne in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England on November 24, 1941. , was a cinematographer specializing in aerial photography and special effects. His father was Bernard Browne, a director of photography who worked with Alexander Korda at Denham studios. A few of the films he worked on were: “Battle of Britain” (1969); “Catch 22” (1970); t”A Bridge Too Far” (1977); “Krull” (1983); “A Passage to India” (1984); “The Jewel of the Nile” (1985); “King Kong Lives” (1986); “Gorillas in the Mist” (1988). Browne worked as a model unit director and cameraman on the 1986 Euro-western “Sky Bandits”.

DUX, Eckart (Eckart Hermann Dux) - 12/19/1926, Berlin, Germany - 4/9/2024, Sassenburg, Lower Saxony, Germany

Veteran German actor and voice dubber Eckart Dux died in Sassenburg, Lower Saxony, Germany on April 9th he was 97. Born Eckart Herman Dux in Berlin on December 19, 1926. Dux completed his training as an actor with Else Bongers in Berlin and made his stage debut in 1948 at the city's Renaissance Theatre. He then had numerous roles on the Berlin stage and in theatres in Munich, Hamburg, Frankfurt and Stuttgart. He also had many roles as a character actor in film and television. From 1949, he became the longest active German-speaking voice actor, dubbing Hollywood films into German. In the 1950s and 1960s he was regularly the German voice of Audie Murphy. He also dubbed Anthony Perkins in many roles including Psycho, Steve Martin, Fred Astaire, George Peppard (in the action series The A-Team) and Jerry Stiller. He has also worked as an actor and narrator on radio and audio books. Dux was married to the actress Gisela Peltzer in the 1950s, and then later to the editor Marlies Dux [1945- ] in 1970. Dux’s work in Euro-westerns consisted of appearing as Jimmy in the 1964 TV western film ‘Prairie Saloon’ and he was the German voice of Mark Damon in “Ringo’s Golden Pistol” and Phillippe Leroy in “Yankee” both in 1966. Brad Harris in “Rattler Kid” 1967, George Hilton in 1968’s “The Ruthless Four”, Christian Duroc, J. P. Compain the 1969 TV mini-series “The Leatherstocking Tales”. He was Dean Reeds voice in “Adios, Sabata” and the voice of Lucky Luke in both the animated “Lucky Luke: Ballad of the Daltons” in 1978 and “Lucky Luke: The Daltons on the Run” in 1983 and as Sam Hawkens in 2009’s “WinneToons - Die Legende vom Schatz im Silbersee”.

CRUZ, Ernesto Gómez - 11/7/1933, Veracruz, Verazcruz, Mexico - 4/6/2024, Mexico City, Federal District, Mexico

Veteran Mexican actor Ernesto Gómez Cruz died from complications of Alzheimer’s in Mexico City on April 6th. He was 90. Gómez Cruz was born in Veracruz, Mexico, on November 7, 1933. His first professional job was as a photographer; Later, through a friend, he was introduced to dramatic arts. Thus, he moved to the Aztec capital where he studied acting at the National Institute of Fine Arts. Although he had musical interests, he discarded them because he considered that he did not have enough preparation. He made his film debut in 1967 with the film “Los caifanes”, where his performance as El Azteca which earned him the national Silver Goddess Award. Subsequently, he would obtain other awards and recognitions such as the Ariel. Ernesto’s only Euro-western was as the witch in 2006’s “Bandidas” with Penélope Cruz and Salma Hayek.

INANOGLU, Türker - 5/18/1936, Safranbolu, Turkey - 4/2/2024, Istanbul, Turkey

Turkish producer, director, and writer Türker İnanoğlu died in Istanbul, Turkey on April 2nd he was 87. İnanoğlu became interested in the cinema when he was a student at the Istanbul Academy of Applied Fine Arts in 1957. After working as an assistant to directors Ömer Lütfi Akat and Nişan Hançer in eleven movies, he directed his first feature Senden Ayrı Yaşayamam in 1960. After directing nine movies he founded his own film company Erler Film in 1960, which is today the oldest film production company in Turkey still in business. Since then, he produced 126 black-and-white and color films, among them 21 co-productions with Greece, Italy and Iran. He executed also the productions of American, Japanese, French and German filmmakers’ documentary films shot in Turkey. He directed 82 movies. He produced only Spaghetti western “Cowboy Kid” in 1973 directed by Guido Zurli in which his son was İlker starred.

WEPPER, Fritz - 8/17/1941, Munich, Bavaria, Germany - 3/25/2024, Munich, Bavaria, Germany

German actor Fritz Wepper died in Munich, Germany on March 25, 2024. He was 82. He started his acting career in a production of Peter Pan at the age of eleven. He got his first important film role in Tischlein deck dich, a film adaption of the Brothers Grimm fairytale The Wishing Table. Fritz is best known for his role as Inspector Harry Klein in the long-running crime series ‘Derrick’ (1974–1998). Wepper is also remembered for his roles in the films “Cabaret” (1972) and “The Bridge” (1959) and as Mayor Wöller in the TV series ‘Um Himmels Willen’ (2002–2021). Wepper appeared in one Euro-western as Tampico in the 1963 television production of “Ein Sheriff für den Sarg”.

BERETTA, Daniel (Daniel Jean Georges Beretta) - , Audincourt, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France - 3/23/2024, France

French singer, actor and voice dubber Daniel Beretta died on March 23rh. He was 77. Beretta was born on December 24, 1946 in Audincourt, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France. He started his career as a Chanson Singer-Songwriter, having given several concerts at the Olympia and Bobino concert halls and wrote several songs for the likes of Mireille Mathieu and Nino Ferrer. He also notably adapted and performed songs for the French version of “Jesus Christ Superstar” as well as the stage adaptation of “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg”. Having trained as a musician also allowed him to sing in his animation dubs (such as Lumière's music numbers in “Beauty and the Beast”, again). He dubbed Arnold Schwarzenegger in the French versions of all his films since 1987. Daniel was also the announcer for the French radio RFM from 2000 to 2008. His daughter, Barbara Beretta, is also a professional voice actress. He quietly retired for health reasons in the early 2020s. Daniel Beretta appeared in one Euro-western “In the Dust of the Sun” in 1971 as Hawk Bradford.

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 === FRESH GRAVES ===
-*'''WESTBURY, Ken (Albert Kenneth Westbury)''' - 1/5/1927, Sherpherd’s Bush, London, England, U.K. - 4/28/2023, Staines, Middlesex, England, U.K.
+*''' BROWNE, Robin (Michael Robin Graham Browne)''' - 11/24/1941, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England, U.K. - 3/28/2024, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, U.S.A.
-Veteran British cameraman, cinematographer Ken Westbury died in the U.K. on April 28, 2023. He was 96. Born Albert Kenneth Westbury on January 5, 1927, in Shepherd’s Bush, London, England, he had a 40+ year career, mainly working on BBC programs and productions. He began his career as clapper for the British Ealing Studios and then when Ealing was purchased by MGM, Ken went to work for the BBC as a cinematographer and cameraman. He worked on two TV Eurowesterns: “Dr. Who: The Gunfighters” in 1966 and 1971’s “The Last of the Mohicans”.
+British cinematographer Robin Browne passed away at his home in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan on March 28, 2024. He was born Michael Robin Graham Browne in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England on November 24, 1941. , was a cinematographer specializing in aerial photography and special effects. His father was Bernard Browne, a director of photography who worked with Alexander Korda at Denham studios. A few of the films he worked on were: “Battle of Britain” (1969); “Catch 22” (1970); t”A Bridge Too Far” (1977); “Krull” (1983); “A Passage to India” (1984); “The Jewel of the Nile” (1985); “King Kong Lives” (1986); “Gorillas in the Mist” (1988). Browne worked as a model unit director and cameraman on the 1986 Euro-western “Sky Bandits”.
-*'''BROWN, Jim (James Nathaniel Brown)''' 2/17/1936, St. Simons Island, Georgia, U.S.A. - 5/18/2023, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
+*''' DUX, Eckart (Eckart Hermann Dux)''' - 12/19/1926, Berlin, Germany - 4/9/2024, Sassenburg, Lower Saxony, Germany
-Jim Brown, the NFL titan who appeared in “The Dirty Dozen,” a number of Blaxploitation films and Oliver Stone’s “Any Given Sunday,” The Running Man,” Tim Burton’s “Mars Attacks” and Spike Lee’s “He Got Game,” to name a few films, died May 18, 2023 in Los Angeles. He was 87. In nine extraordinary seasons as a fullback with the Cleveland Browns, Brown set an array of NFL records. In 2002 the Sporting News named him the greatest professional football player ever. That phenomenal athleticism and a charismatic personality made him bankable as the first African American action star. The 1969 Western “100 Rifles” starred Brown as an Arizona lawman who ventures into Mexico to find Burt Reynolds’ Yaqui Joe, a Native American who robbed a bank to buy rifles for his people. There he tangles with a beautiful native leader played by sex symbol of the day Raquel Welch; much was made in the press of the interracial love scene featuring Brown and Welch, but Brown apparently grew impatient with the actress because of the control her people exerted over the film. “When I’m on a picture,” he told Ebert at the time, “I have two bosses, the director and the producer. My co-star is not my boss.” Brown also starred opposite Lee Van Cleef in three Spaghetti westerns: “El Condor.”, “Take a Hard Ride” and “Kid Vengeance”.
+Veteran German actor and voice dubber Eckart Dux died in Sassenburg, Lower Saxony, Germany on April 9th he was 97. Born Eckart Herman Dux in Berlin on December 19, 1926. Dux completed his training as an actor with Else Bongers in Berlin and made his stage debut in 1948 at the city's Renaissance Theatre. He then had numerous roles on the Berlin stage and in theatres in Munich, Hamburg, Frankfurt and Stuttgart. He also had many roles as a character actor in film and television. From 1949, he became the longest active German-speaking voice actor, dubbing Hollywood films into German. In the 1950s and 1960s he was regularly the German voice of Audie Murphy. He also dubbed Anthony Perkins in many roles including Psycho, Steve Martin, Fred Astaire, George Peppard (in the action series The A-Team) and Jerry Stiller. He has also worked as an actor and narrator on radio and audio books. Dux was married to the actress Gisela Peltzer in the 1950s, and then later to the editor Marlies Dux [1945- ] in 1970. Dux’s work in Euro-westerns consisted of appearing as Jimmy in the 1964 TV western film ‘Prairie Saloon’ and he was the German voice of Mark Damon in “Ringo’s Golden Pistol” and Phillippe Leroy in “Yankee” both in 1966. Brad Harris in “Rattler Kid” 1967, George Hilton in 1968’s “The Ruthless Four”, Christian Duroc, J. P. Compain the 1969 TV mini-series “The Leatherstocking Tales”. He was Dean Reeds voice in “Adios, Sabata” and the voice of Lucky Luke in both the animated “Lucky Luke: Ballad of the Daltons” in 1978 and “Lucky Luke: The Daltons on the Run” in 1983 and as Sam Hawkens in 2009’s “WinneToons - Die Legende vom Schatz im Silbersee”.
-*'''YELIZAROV, Anatoly''' - 2/16/1943, Saint Petersburg, Russia, U.S.S.R. - 5/8/2023, Moscow, Russia
+*'''CRUZ, Ernesto Gómez''' - 11/7/1933, Veracruz, Verazcruz, Mexico - 4/6/2024, Mexico City, Federal District, Mexico
-Honored artist of Russia, the master of pantomime Anatoly Yelizarov was found dead in his apartment in Moscow on May 8, 2023. He was 80 years old. Yelizarov was born on February 16, 1943, in Leningrad. From the age of 13, he studied the art of pantomime in the Mime studio of the famous circus artist Rudolf Slavsky. Since the 1960s, the artist began to tour in the USSR and abroad. The Soviet and foreign press compares him to the master of French mime Marcel Marceau. Yelizarov also starred in the films “Aibolit-66” by Rolan Bykov, “Completely Lost” by Georgy Danelia, “The Sun, Again the Sun” by Svetlana Druzhinina, “The Crew” by Alexander Mitta, “The Imaginary Sick” by Leonid Nechaev. He appeared in only one European western in a small cameo role as the man with top hat and cane in 1973’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”.
+Veteran Mexican actor Ernesto Gómez Cruz died from complications of Alzheimer’s in Mexico City on April 6th. He was 90. Gómez Cruz was born in Veracruz, Mexico, on November 7, 1933. His first professional job was as a photographer; Later, through a friend, he was introduced to dramatic arts. Thus, he moved to the Aztec capital where he studied acting at the National Institute of Fine Arts. Although he had musical interests, he discarded them because he considered that he did not have enough preparation. He made his film debut in 1967 with the film “Los caifanes”, where his performance as El Azteca which earned him the national Silver Goddess Award. Subsequently, he would obtain other awards and recognitions such as the Ariel. Ernesto’s only Euro-western was as the witch in 2006’s “Bandidas” with Penélope Cruz and Salma Hayek.
-*'''JOHNSTONE, Iain (Iain Gilmour Johnstone)''' - 4/8/1943, Reading, Berkshire, England, U.K. - 5/4/2023, London, England, U.K.
+*'''INANOGLU, Türker''' - 5/18/1936, Safranbolu, Turkey - 4/2/2024, Istanbul, Turkey
-It was reported in the British paper The Guardian on May 18th that English author, broadcaster and television producer Iain Johnstone died suddenly in London, England on May 4, 2023. Born Iain Gilmour Johnstone on April 8, 1943 in Reading, Berkshire, England, Johnstone was a film critic for The Sunday Times for twelve years and producer and fill in presenter of the ‘Film 82’. Johnston produced other British TV programs such as the BBC Two chat show ‘Friday Night, Saturday Morning’, ‘The Frost Interview’ and ran the BBC's Watergate coverage. Johnstone co-wrote the film Fierce Creatures (1997) with John Cleese, and made eight documentaries with Steven Spielberg. Johnstone was also a biographer of Tom Cruise and Clint Eastwood. Johnstone produced the 1977 TV documentary ‘The Man With No Name’ on the career of Clint Eastwood.
+Turkish producer, director, and writer Türker İnanoğlu died in Istanbul, Turkey on April 2nd he was 87. İnanoğlu became interested in the cinema when he was a student at the Istanbul Academy of Applied Fine Arts in 1957. After working as an assistant to directors Ömer Lütfi Akat and Nişan Hançer in eleven movies, he directed his first feature Senden Ayrı Yaşayamam in 1960. After directing nine movies he founded his own film company Erler Film in 1960, which is today the oldest film production company in Turkey still in business. Since then, he produced 126 black-and-white and color films, among them 21 co-productions with Greece, Italy and Iran. He executed also the productions of American, Japanese, French and German filmmakers’ documentary films shot in Turkey. He directed 82 movies. He produced only Spaghetti western “Cowboy Kid” in 1973 directed by Guido Zurli in which his son was İlker starred.
-*'''AUSTIN, Ray (Raymond John DeVere Austin)''' - 12/3/1932, London, England, U.K. - 5/17/2023, Earlysville, Virginia, U.S.A.
+*'''WEPPER, Fritz''' - 8/17/1941, Munich, Bavaria, Germany - 3/25/2024, Munich, Bavaria, Germany
-British born producer, director, stuntman and coordinator Ray Austin died at his home in Earlysville, Virginia on May 17, 2023. He was 90 years old. Born in London on December 3, 1932. He started his career as a stunt performer on such films as “North by Northwest” (1959) and “Spartacus” (1960). From 1965 to 1967 he served as stunt coordinator on 50 episodes of “The Avengers”. For The Champions he initially became involved as a second unit director, subsequently rising to the position of full director. His work as a television director included episodes of “The Avengers” (1968), “Space: 1999” (1975–1976), “The New Avengers” (1976–1977), and “V” (1984). He directed 50 of the 88 episodes of the Euro-western series ‘Zorro’, which was filmed in Madrid between 1989 and 1992 for the American ABC Family Channel. He has also directed some made-for-TV films, including “The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E.” (1983), and some feature films such as “Virgin Witch” (1972) and “House of the Living Dead” (1974). Austin was married from 1976 to actress Yasuko Nagazumi, who performed in some of the series he worked on, notably ‘Space: 1999’. He later divorced Nagazumi and married British producer and writer Wendy DeVere Knight-Wilton in 1984.
+German actor Fritz Wepper died in Munich, Germany on March 25, 2024. He was 82. He started his acting career in a production of Peter Pan at the age of eleven. He got his first important film role in Tischlein deck dich, a film adaption of the Brothers Grimm fairytale The Wishing Table. Fritz is best known for his role as Inspector Harry Klein in the long-running crime series ‘Derrick’ (1974–1998). Wepper is also remembered for his roles in the films “Cabaret” (1972) and “The Bridge” (1959) and as Mayor Wöller in the TV series ‘Um Himmels Willen’ (2002–2021). Wepper appeared in one Euro-western as Tampico in the 1963 television production of “Ein Sheriff für den Sarg”.
-*'''SAVINA, Federico''' - 6/9/1935, Turin, Piedmont, Italy - 5/10/2023, Rome, Lazio, Italy
+*'''BERETTA, Daniel (Daniel Jean Georges Beretta)''' - , Audincourt, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France - 3/23/2024, France
- Godspeed, Maestro.
+French singer, actor and voice dubber Daniel Beretta died on March 23rh. He was 77. Beretta was born on December 24, 1946 in Audincourt, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France. He started his career as a Chanson Singer-Songwriter, having given several concerts at the Olympia and Bobino concert halls and wrote several songs for the likes of Mireille Mathieu and Nino Ferrer. He also notably adapted and performed songs for the French version of “Jesus Christ Superstar” as well as the stage adaptation of “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg”. Having trained as a musician also allowed him to sing in his animation dubs (such as Lumière's music numbers in “Beauty and the Beast”, again). He dubbed Arnold Schwarzenegger in the French versions of all his films since 1987. Daniel was also the announcer for the French radio RFM from 2000 to 2008. His daughter, Barbara Beretta, is also a professional voice actress. He quietly retired for health reasons in the early 2020s. Daniel Beretta appeared in one Euro-western “In the Dust of the Sun” in 1971 as Hawk Bradford.
-Today the cinematic arts lose a mentor, an artist, and a gentleman: Federico Savina.
-If you ever heard music by Nino Rota, Ennio Morricone, and even Jerry Goldsmith and Leonard Bernstein, chances are you have been in contact with his mixing or soundtrack restoration work.
-A pioneer of new technology in sound, he's been a Dolby consultant during the stereo, early surround and digital transitions, contributing to the establishment of what we know today as the Dolby standards.
-He could dub an entire sequence, music and dialogue, all in one pass, running faders in real time on an analog desk with no meters, on a student film he had never seen before, and he was 80 at the time!
-Federico was the brother of the late composer Carol Savina.
-Federico was the music editor on Ennio Morricone’s 1971’s score for “Duck You Sucker!