Famous & Infamous

Palermo: folks celebrate Ferragosto holiday and the feast of the Assumption. Photo by Igor Petyx/EPA, posted at theguardian.com:

Headline from nypost.com: “Famous Amos cookies founder Wally Amos dead at 88.” RIP. Great product. Thank you, Sir. Photo from Google Images:

RIP stellar actress Gena Rowlands, 94, who had been struggling with Alzheimer’s for several years. Born in Wisconsin, she arrived in NYC circa 1950 and studied drama at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. She began her career doing repertory theater. She made her Broadway debut in The Seven Year Itch in 1956 and later starred opposite Edward G. Robinson in Middle of the Night. There are 106 titles beneath her name at IMDb, screen career spanning 1954–2017. She did numerous guest shots on primetime TV and was part of the Peyton Place ensemble, doing 39 episodes. She was an eight-time Emmy nominee, winning four. She was nominated for two Oscars: terrific in the grim A Woman Under the Influence (1977) and Gloria (1981), both directed by her husband, John Cassavetes. Other notable big screen roles: the great Lonely Are the Brave (1962), A Child Is Waiting (1963), Tony Rome (1967), Two-Minute Warning (1975), Opening Night (1977), The Brink’s Job (1978), The Notebook (2004), the latter directed by her son Nick Casavettes. She received an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement. Here’s a quote attributed to her about her husband: “We had a great deal of freedom when John acted. We traveled a lot and it was fun. But with directing … really. I think people don’t have all their marbles who prefer directing to acting because you write for three months, you cut for maybe six months. He’s the most terrifying perfectionist about what he wants. As an artist, I love him. As a husband, I hate him.” They were married from ’54 until his passing in ’89. Her second marriage lasted from 2012 until her death. She had three children with Casavettes, Nick, Zoe and Xan. All have amassed credits in acting, directing and writing. Awesome, Madam. Thank you. Photo from GI:

Excerpt from an NYP article by Mary K. Jacob: “For the second year running, the nation’s capital has topped the list of places where Americans would least want to live, with a whopping 33% of survey respondents ranking it among the top five worst cities.” Anyone surprised? Most folks cite housing costs and crime. I would add proximity to a swamp.

Can this be possible in the USA? Headline from foxnews.com: “‘So abhorrent’: Federal judge rules against UCLA in lawsuit over ‘Jew Exclusion Zone’.” WTF? I thought colleges were all about inclusion.

The 3D art continues to bolster the Anti-Inflation Book Shop. My thanks to all who bought, and to the woman who donated Happiness by Danielle Steel, and to the home attendant who purchased it minutes later.

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