RIP Sir Sean Connery

#RIP: Scottish-born actor Sir Sean Connery has died at the of 90. He played Prof. Henry Jones in “#IndianaJones and the #LastCrusade”; Zed in #Zardoz; Marshall William O’Neil in #Outland; King Agamemnon / fireman in #TimeBandits; the Green Knight in “#SwordOfTheValiant: The Legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight”; Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez in #Highlander & “Highlander 2: #TheQuickening”; King Richard in #RobinHood; King Arthur in #FirstKnight; voice of Draco in #Dragonheart; Allan Quatermain in #LeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen; Paul Bradley in #Meteor; & much more, including the original James Bond, 007.

Our sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans. May he rest in peace.

Sir Sean Connery (1930-2020)

References

• Sean Connery, famed for playing James Bond, dies age 90

RIP Diana Rigg

#RIP: actress Diana Rigg has passed away at the age of 82. She played Emma Peel / Lola in the British TV series #TheAvengers, Olenna Tyrell in #GameOfThrones, Mrs. Gillyflower in #DoctorWho, Helena in #AMidsummerNightsDream, & much more, including Tracy in the James Bond film #OnHerMajestysSecretService.

Our condolences to her family, friends and fans. May she rest in peace.

Diana Rigg (1938 – 2020)

References

• http://Diana Rigg, star of ‘Games of Thrones’ and ‘The Avengers’ dies at 82

RIP Sir Ian Holm

#RIP: we are saddened to report the passing of British actor Sir Ian Holm at the age of 88. He played old Bilbo Baggins in #TheHobbit film saga (#AnUnexpectedJourney & #TheBattleOfTheFiveArmies) and #TheLordOfTheRings film saga (#TheFellowshipOfTheRing & #TheReturnOfTheKing); Father Vito Cornelius in #TheFifthElement; Napoleon in #TimeBandits; Ash in #Alien; Terry Rapson in #TheDayAfterTomorrow; Jonas Muller (voice) in #Renaissance; Skinner (voice) in #Ratatouille; Sirius / Boris / the Devil in #SimonMagus; Naville in #ALifeLessOrdinary; Walter Bailiff in #LochNess; Pod in #TheBorrowers (miniseries); Dr. Murnau in #Kafka; Reverend Charles L. Dodgson / Lewis Carroll in #Dreamchild; Mr. Kurtzmann in #Brazil; Puck in #AMidsummerNightsDream; & more.

Our sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans. May he rest in peace.

Ian Holm (1931-2020)

References

• Ian Holm, Shakespearean Actor Who Played Bilbo Baggins, Dies at 88

RIP Gene Dynarski

#RIP: actor Gene Dynarski has passed away at the age of 86. His death was reported on April 24, 2020, but he died on Feb. 27, 2020. He played Krodac / Ben Childress in “#StarTrek: #TOS”; Cmdr. Orfil Quinteros in #TNG; Benedict in #Batman (1966 TV series); Centaur I / Guard in #VoyageToTheBottomOfTheSea; Warden Barmak in #LandOfTheGiants; Ike in #CloseEncountersOfTheThirdKind; Ernie Stefaniuk in #TheXFiles; Vasil in #TheInvisibleMan (1976 TV series); & more.

Our condolences to his family, friends and fans. 🖖 #LLAP

Gene Dynarski (1933-2020)

References

• Gene Dynarski, Actor on ‘Seinfeld’ and ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind,’ Dies at 86

RIP Malcolm Dixon

#RIP: actor Malcolm Dixon has died at the age of 66. Born in Sept., 1953 (his exact birthdate is unknown), he played Leektar the Ewok Warrior in “#StarWars VI: #ReturnOfTheJedi” (he was also a film extra in “Star Wars IV: #ANewHope), an Oompa Loompa in #WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory, a dwarf in #FlashGordon, Strutter in #TimeBandits, an additional performer in #TheDarkCrystal, Goblin Corps in #Labyrinth, Diddy in #SnowWhite (1987), Nelwyn Band Member in #Willow, & more.

Our condolences to his family, friends and fans. May he rest in peace and may the Force be with him.

Malcolm Dixon (1953-2020)

References

• Rest in peace Malcolm Dixon, ewok warrior Leektar in Return of the Jedi
• Malcolm Dixon, diminutive actor who appeared in ‘Return of the Jedi’ and ‘Time Bandits,’ dead at 66

RIP Honor Blackman

#RIP: actress Honor Blackman has passed away at the age of 94. She played Catherine Gale in #TheAvengers (1961 TV series, 43 episodes), Professor Lasky in #DoctorWho, & more, including her best known role as Pussy Galore in the James Bond spy film #Goldfinger.

Our condolences to her family, friends and fans. May she rest in peace.

Honor Blackman (1925-2020)

References

• Honor Blackman, Star of ‘The Avengers’ and ‘Goldfinger,’ Dies at 94

RIP Andrew Jack

#RIP: actor and dialect coach Andrew Jack has died at the age of 76 from #COVID19. He played Major Ematt in “#StarWars VII: #TheForceAwakens”, “Star Wars VIII: #TheLastJedi”, Moloch (voice) in “#Solo: A Star Wars Story”; & more. He was also a dialect coach (miscellaneous crew) for a large number of films, including #Dolittle, “#Avengers: #Endgame”, “Avengers: #InfinityWar”, “#Thor: #Ragnarok”, “#RogueOne: A Star Wars Story”, #GuardiansOfTheGalaxy, “#SnowWhite and #TheHuntsman”, “#CaptainAmerica: #TheFirstAvenger”, #AlienVsPredator, #TheLordOfTheRings (#TheFellowshipOfTheRing, #TheTwoTowers, #ReturnOfTheKing), & more.

Our condolences to his family, friends and fans. May he rest in peace, and may the Force be with him.

Andrew Jack (1944-2020)

References

• Andrew Jack, ‘Star Wars’ actor, dies from Covid-19

Comic Book Shops in Serious Trouble

Over the past few years, the #ComicBook industry, and comic book shops in particular, have not been doing well. Sales of newer comic books have been dropping and many comic book shops have already permanently closed. Given the shaky ground that comic book shops have been on for some time, new pressures are imperiling them even further:

1. Due to the current #pandemic, many comic books have been forced to temporarily close in areas where governments have implemented “shelter-in-place” or “stay-at-home” orders for the general public in which only critical stores can remain open and the employees who work for the critical stores and institutions can continue to go to work under these conditions. Comic book shops are classified as being “non-essential”.
2. #DiamondComic Distributors, the exclusive distributor for new releases from all of the comics’ direct market’s biggest publishers (including #DCComics, #MarvelComics, #DarkHorse Comics, #ImageComics, Dynamite Entertainment, BOOM! Studios, and IDW Publishing, as well as many small publishers), is no longer taking in new comics at its warehouse. The hold (the result of a slowdown in the economy due to the #COVID19 pandemic) will remain in place until further notice. Diamond will continue to ship out products that are already in its warehouse for the time being.
3. Comic book producers don’t generally offer comic book shops the ability to return unsold inventory for refunds. This means that comic book shops that can’t sell any products are also stuck with inventory that they can’t return. Image Comics did, however, step up and change its policy so that comic book shop owners can return unsold products.
4. Leading comic book retailer Joe Field of Flying Colors Comics & Other Cool Stuff in Concord, California, has called on comic book publishers to suspend publication and not replace print distribution with spotty distribution to stores still open or doing mail-order, or switch to digital publication.
5. Transcontinental Printing, the main Canadian printer of DC Comics, and countless other publishers, is shutting down for three weeks. The Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario are also closing all non-essential businesses until at least mid-April.

In an email sent to his customer base, Ed Greenberg (the owner of Collector’s Paradise in Los Angeles, CA), wrote the following:

“We have been selling comics for close to 26 years now, and this is truly the first time that we are uncertain about the future of our store, our industry and our favorite art form.”

References

• “The Moment We Have Been Dreading”: Coronavirus Lands Thanos-Sized Punch on Comic Shops
• Diamond Comics to Stop Receiving Shipments of New Comics Amid Coronavirus Concerns
• Diamond Will Cease Comic Book Distribution to Stores
• Image Comics Publisher Asks for Retailer Relief Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
• DC Comics’ Printer Closes Tomorrow
• Should Comics Publishers Keep Publishing by Digital or Mail Order?

RIP Lyle Waggoner

#RIP: actor Lyle Waggoner has died at the age of 84. He played Colonel Steve Trevor, Jr. / Major Steve Trevor in #WonderWoman (TV series); mechanical man #1 in #LostInSpace; Xerko in #MorkAndMindy; Al / Gilberto DeVincenzo / Monty in #FantasyIsland; & much more, including 7 years playing multiple characters on the TV variety show #TheCarolBurnettShow.

Our sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans. May he rest in peace.

Lyle Waggoner (1935-2020)

References

• Lyle Waggoner, Actor on ‘The Carol Burnett Show’ and ‘Wonder Woman,’ Dies at 84

RIP Max von Sydow

#RIP: we are saddened to report that actor Max von Sydow has died at the age of 90. He played Lor San Tekka in “#StarWarsVII: #TheForceAwakens”, Doctor Kynes in #Dune (1984), Emperor Ming in #FlashGordon (1980), Three-Eyed Raven in #GameOfThrones, King Osric in #CononTheBarbarian (1982), Director Lamar Burgess in #MinorityReport, Judge Fargo in #JudgeDredd, Henry Farber in #UntilTheEndOfTheWorld, Vigo (voice) in “#Ghosbusters II”, Doctor Paul Novotny in the sci-fi / horror film #Dreamscape, uncredited role in #TheIcePirates, & more, including playing Father Merrin in the horror films #TheExorcist & “#Exorcist II: #TheHeretic”.

Our sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans. May he rest in peace. The Force  will be with him always.

Max von Sydow (1929-2020)

References

• ‘Seventh Seal,’ ‘Star Wars’ Actor Max von Sydow Dies at 90