Lifestyle
'Candyman' star Tony Todd dies at 69
The actor Tony Todd has died. He was best known as the star of the Candyman horror movies. Todd died Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles, his manager Jeffrey Goldberg confirmed. He was 69. The cause of death has not been shared.
“I had the privilege to have Tony as my friend and client for over 30 years and I will miss that amazing man every single day,” Goldberg said in an email to NPR.
At 6’5″, Todd was a very tall, highly versatile actor with hundreds of screen credits to his name, including Platoon, The Rock and Final Destination.
He shot to stardom in 1992 playing the ghost of a murdered Black artist in the horror movie Candyman. Todd reprised the role three more times in subsequent films in the series.
“My beloved. May you rest in power sweet to the sweet in heaven,” said Virginia Madsen, Todd’s Candyman costar in a tearful post on Instagram. “The great actor Tony Todd has left us and now is an angel. As he was in life.”
Tony Todd was born in 1954 in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Hartford, Conn. He studied at the Eugene O’Neill National Theater Institute in Waterford, Conn., and Trinity Rep Conservatory in Providence, R.I.
In addition to his on-screen career, Todd also appeared in shows on and off Broadway and was a prolific voice actor with credits in movies, TV shows and video games.
“Those who knew him will remember his warm laugh, generous spirit, and his dedication to his craft,” Goldberg said. “Whether on stage, on screen, or in personal conversations, Tony brought an unyielding honesty that resonated deeply with his friends, family, and fans.”
Lifestyle
Ruby slippers worn in 'The Wizard of Oz' are auctioned for a record $28 million
MINNEAPOLIS — A pair of iconic ruby slippers that were worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz and stolen from a museum nearly two decades ago sold for a winning bid of $28 million at auction Saturday.
Heritage Auctions had estimated that they would fetch $3 million or more, but the fast-paced bidding far outpaced that amount within seconds and tripled it within minutes. A few bidders making offers by phone volleyed back and forth for 15 minutes as the price climbed to the final, eye-popping sum.
Including the Dallas-based auction house’s fee, the unknown buyer will ultimately pay $32.5 million.
Online bidding, which opened last month, had stood at $1.55 million before live bidding began late Saturday afternoon.
The sparkly red heels were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005 when Terry Jon Martin used a hammer to smash the glass of the museum’s door and display case.
Their whereabouts remained a mystery until the FBI recovered them in 2018. Martin, now 77, who lives near Grand Rapids in northern Minnesota, wasn’t publicly exposed as the thief until he was indicted in May 2023. He pleaded guilty in October 2023. He was in a wheelchair and on supplementary oxygen when he was sentenced last January to time served because of his poor health.
His attorney, Dane DeKrey, explained ahead of sentencing that Martin, who had a long history of burglary and receiving stolen property, was attempting to pull off “one last score” after an old associate with connections to the mob told him the shoes had to be adorned with real jewels to justify their $1 million insured value. But a fence — a person who buys stolen goods — later told him the rubies were just glass, DeKrey said. So Martin got rid of the slippers. The attorney didn’t specify how.
The alleged fence, Jerry Hal Saliterman, 77, of the Minneapolis suburb of Crystal, was indicted in March. He was also in a wheelchair and on oxygen when he made his first court appearance. He’s scheduled to go on trial in January and hasn’t entered a plea, though his attorney has said he’s not guilty.
The shoes were returned in February to memorabilia collector Michael Shaw, who had loaned them to the museum. They were one of several pairs that Garland wore during the filming, but only four pairs are known to have survived. In the movie, to return from Oz to Kansas, Dorothy had to click her heels three times and repeat, “There’s no place like home.”
As Rhys Thomas, author of The Ruby Slippers of Oz, put it, the sequined shoes from the beloved 1939 musical have seen “more twists and turns than the Yellow Brick Road.”
Over 800 people had been tracking the slippers, and the company’s webpage for the auction had hit nearly 43,000 page views by Thursday, said Robert Wilonsky, a vice president with the auction house.
Among those bidding to bring the slippers home was the Judy Garland Museum, which posted on Facebook shortly after that it did not place the winning bid. The museum had campaigned for donations to supplement money raised by the city of Grand Rapids at its annual Judy Garland festival and the $100,000 set aside this year by Minnesota lawmakers to help the museum purchase the slippers.
After the slippers sold, the auctioneer told bidders and spectators in the room and watching online that the previous record for a piece of entertainment memorabilia was $5.52 million, for the white dress Marilyn Monroe famously wore atop a windy subway grate.
The auction also included other memorabilia from The Wizard of Oz, such as a hat worn by Margaret Hamilton, who played the original Wicked Witch of the West. That item went for $2.4 million, or a total final cost to the buyer of $2.93 million.
The Wizard of Oz story has gained new attention in recent weeks with the release of the movie Wicked, an adaptation of the megahit Broadway musical, a prequel of sorts that reimagines the character of the Wicked Witch of the West.
Lifestyle
Bill Romanowski Says He's Feeling Great Despite '20 Documented Concussions'
TMZSports.com
Bill Romanowski tells TMZ Sports despite the repeated head trauma he suffered during his NFL career, he’s still feeling great … although he admits he has to work at it daily.
The legendary tough guy played linebacker for four different teams in the league from 1988 to 2003 … and he revealed to us this week he ended up with “20 documented concussions” in that timeframe.
But, he said as of now, he’s showing no signs of ill effects from the brain blows — although he did relent he’s working like a dog daily to make sure things stay that way.
“I got this saying,” he told us, “‘Don’t let the old man in, because he’s knocking every day.’ I work at it.”
The 58-year-old says he takes “a million supplements every day” — including products from his Lean1 nutrition line — and he works out all the time as well.
Romo says he swims, lifts weights … and even gets in red-light treatment therapy too.
It’s all clearly important to him, especially in the wake of Brett Favre‘s recent Parkinson’s diagnosis … as well as his family’s genetic background.
Romo told us his mom died in a battle with Alzheimer’s, so he’s “worried” about his future.
But, check out the energy he had in our interview … it’s obvious he’s not slowing down any time soon.
Lifestyle
Where tradwives and leftists agree : Code Switch
The rise of momfluencers and tradwives are filling a void for modern mothers. In this episode, we continue our conversation about the hellscape of modern motherhood, and look into an alternative to the tradwife lifestyle.
We want to hear from our listeners about what you like about Code Switch and how we could do better. Please tell us what you think by taking our short survey, and thank you!
This episode was produced by Jess Kung. It was edited by Courtney Stein. Our engineer was Josephine Nyounai.
-
Technology1 week ago
Elon Musk targets OpenAI’s for-profit transition in a new filing
-
Sports1 week ago
One Black Friday 2024 free-agent deal for every MLB team
-
News1 week ago
Rassemblement National’s Jordan Bardella threatens to bring down French government
-
Technology1 week ago
9 ways scammers can use your phone number to try to trick you
-
World1 week ago
Georgian PM praises country's protest crackdown despite US condemnation
-
World6 days ago
Freedom is permanent for Missourian described as the longest-held wrongly incarcerated woman in US
-
Technology2 days ago
Struggling to hear TV dialogue? Try these simple fixes
-
Sports1 week ago
With F1 entry, General Motors has a shot to become America’s team on the grid