Korla Pandit was a pioneer in the musical genre known as “exotica.” He played the Hammond organ and grand piano, giving a new, otherworldly life to standard tunes like “Over the Rainbow,” adding rapid runs, unusual breaks, and piano intermezzo. Beginning in 1949, Korla Pandit’s Adventures In Music was featured on Los Angeles’ KTLA. Korla …
With Billie Holiday as an influence, Abbey Lincoln made a career performing standards, as well as her deeply personal original songs in jazz clubs through the country. She sang on her husband Max Roach‘s civil rights-themed album We Insist! in 1960. Her own lyrics were often connected to the civil rights movement. Abbey was cast …
Terry Jones was the heart and soul of the British comedy troupe Monty Python. And he played some pretty funny characters. He passed away in January 2020 from advanced dementia. He was 77. As fellow Python John Cleese said: “Two down, four to go.”
I remember when Kobe Bryant was a phenom at Lower Merion High School, just outside of Philadelphia. There was a lot of controversy and second-guessing when he decided to forgo college and make himself available for the NBA Draft upon his graduation from high school. The rest, as they say, is history. Obviously, he made …
Chicago-born Bee Palmer was a popular dancer in the early part of the 20th century. She toured with some notable jazz musicians, always under the name “Bee Palmer’s New Orleans Rhythm Kings.” The Rhythm Kings, however, were more successful after they parted ways with Bee. In 1910, Bee introduced a new provocative dance, shaking her shoulders …
Just after the conclusion of the Test for Echo tour, the nineteen-year-old daughter of Rush drummer Neil Peart was killed in a car accident. Ten months later, his common-law wife died of cancer. Distraught, Neil told his band mates to consider him retired, He set out on a long and extensive “trip to nowhere” that …
In 1968, seventeen year-old Barbara Hoyt ran away from her Seattle home with her sights set on Los Angeles. Alone in the big city, Barbara was befriended by a man who called himself “Karate Dave.” He took the teen to see some friends who were living at a place called Spahn Ranch, an abandoned movie …
Sue Lyon was 14 years old when she was cast in the title role in Stanley Kubrick’s 1962 film Lolita, opposite her 53 year-old co-star James Mason. Director Kubrick described the actress as the “perfect nymphet.” Sue was slightly older than the character depicted in Vladimir Nabokov’s novel, but Kubrick had to make this change to …
In 1970, The Bonzo Dog Band broke up by mutual agreement – except for saxophonist Rodney Slater, who was stunned when leader Viv Stanshall made the announcement onstage at Loughborough University. The band members went their separate ways, though they reunited briefly in 1972 to record Let’s Make Up and Be Friendly. The album, however, …
Sid Haig made a career out of playing slimy henchmen, seedy heavies and unsavory criminals. Dissatisfied with the path his career was taking, he decided to retire from acting in 1992, opting to become a certified hypnotherapist. During his hiatus, he received a script for an upcoming film. He would play a mysterious gangster who …
