Latest news with #HowtheWestWasWon
Forbes
19 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Led Zeppelin's Blockbuster Album Debuts — More Than 50 Years After Its Release
45 years after Led Zeppelin split up, the legendary rock band is still regarded as not just one of the bestselling in the history of the United Kingdom, but also one of the most important. Countless musicians and groups that have followed in the decades since Led Zeppelin began releasing music have cited the act as an influence. More than half a century since the group's semi-self-titled Led Zeppelin II arrived, the project is not only back on a chart in the country that birthed the rock pioneers — it actually manages to debut on one list. Led Zeppelin II Debuts as a Top Download Led Zeppelin II appears on the Official Album Downloads chart for the first time this week. The full-length opens at No. 93 on the 100-space ranking of the top-selling titles on platforms like Amazon, Apple Music, and others. Led Zeppelin's First New Hit in Seven Years Led Zeppelin has now reached the Official Album Downloads chart with 11 projects, and it's been more than seven years since the group last collected a new arrival on the ranking. In April 2018, How the West Was Won opened at No. 83, and it hasn't been seen on the tally since. Mothership Continues to Lead Led Zeppelin first reached the Official Album Downloads chart in late November 2007. In the same week, The Complete, Mothership and Led Zeppelin IV all arrived. Of that bunch, Mothership is still the group's only No. 1, one of just two top 10s (including the act's self-titled affair), and its longest-running success. Mothership has spent 25 weeks as one of the most downloaded releases in the U.K. — more than all of the weeks accumulated by the band's other albums combined. Led Zeppelin II Produced one of the Band's Biggest Hits Led Zeppelin II arrived in late 1969, and the project became a quick commercial success on both sides of the Atlantic. In the decades since it first became available, the title has sold tens of millions of copies and produced one of the band's most famous singles. Even though Led Zeppelin is largely known as an albums act and not one that relied on hit songs, 'Whole Lotta Love' was pushed as a single from the full-length, and it hit the top 10 in the United States while also going platinum in the U.K.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ronnie Rondell Jr., Stuntman Set on Fire for Pink Floyd's ‘Wish You Were Here' Cover, Dies at 88
Ronnie Rondell Jr., a veteran Hollywood stuntman best known for being set on fire for the cover of Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here album, has died. He was 88. Rondell Jr. passed away on Tuesday (Aug. 12) at a senior living facility in Osage Beach, Mo., his family announced, according to The Hollywood Reporter. A cause of death was not given. More from Billboard Gone But Not Forgotten: Musicians We Lost in 2025 The 50 Greatest Pink Floyd Songs: Critic's Picks Pink Floyd Land First U.K. No. 1 Album in Over a Decade with 'Live at Pompeii' Throughout his decades-long career, Rondell Jr. appeared in numerous films, including How the West Was Won (1962), Lethal Weapon (1987) and The Matrix Reloaded (2003). To music fans, however, he is most famously remembered as the man engulfed in flames on the cover of Pink Floyd's 1975 album, Wish You Were Here. The striking image was shot on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, Calif., and features a half-burning Rondell Jr. shaking hands with fellow stuntman Danny Rogers, both dressed in business suits. 'I'd been doing a lot of fire work in those days, and I had the special suits and all this stuff for fully enveloped fire,' Rondell Jr. recalled in the documentary Pink Floyd: The Story of Wish You Were Here (via Rolling Stone). 'It was pretty easy to do, not too life-threatening, and paid well.' The iconic photo, created by Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell of the English art design group Hipgnosis, took around 15 attempts to shoot due to wind and other factors — and even resulted in Rondell Jr. having part of his eyebrow and mustache burned off. 'We repeated the process 14 times, took the shot, and then on the 15th a gust of wind blew up and wrapped the fire around his face and burnt him,' Powell told The Guardian in 2020. 'He threw himself to the ground and his whole team piled on blankets to put him out.' He added, 'I knew I had got a special picture. It took a long time to persuade Ronnie to stand exactly as I wanted but in the end he was very brave and it was a perfect composition.' Rondell Jr.'s extensive list of film credits includes Kings of the Sun (1963), Shenandoah (1965), Grand Prix (1966), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), Blazing Saddles (1974), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), They Live (1988), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Thelma & Louise (1991), Last Action Hero (1993), Speed (1994) and The Crow (1994). He also worked as a stunt coordinator on several Aaron Spelling-produced television series, including The Rookies, S.W.A.T., Charlie's Angels, Fantasy Island, Dynasty, Vegas, Hart to Hart and T.J. Hooker, according to THR. Rondell Jr. retired in 2000 but returned to perform in a chase scene for The Matrix Reloaded (2003), where his son R.A. Rondell was the supervising stunt coordinator. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart Solve the daily Crossword
San Francisco Chronicle
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
California stuntman set on fire for Pink Floyd album cover dies at 88
Ronnie Rondell Jr., a Hollywood stuntman whose daring career spanned five decades and who was famously set ablaze for the cover of Pink Floyd's 'Wish You Were Here' album, has died at 88. His family said he died on Aug. 12 at a senior living facility in Osage Beach, Mo. A cause of death was not provided. Rondell was born in Hollywood on Feb. 10, 1937, the son of Ronald R. Rondell, an actor and assistant director. Drawn to stunts early, he trained in gymnastics and diving before serving in the U.S. Navy, where he specialized in scuba diving and demolition. After his service, he turned to film work, launching a career that would see him doubling for stars and designing action sequences across television and film. He was a co-founder of Stunts Unlimited, a collective formed in 1970 that became a proving ground for Hollywood's elite stunt performers. His credits included films such as 1962's 'How the West Was Won,' 1974's 'Blazing Saddles,' 1987's 'Lethal Weapon,' 1991's 'Thelma & Louise' and 2003's 'The Matrix Reloaded,' his final stunt credit. He also coordinated for television staples including 'Charlie's Angels,' 'Dynasty' and 'Baywatch.' But Rondell's most enduring image came in 1975, when he donned a fire-retardant suit beneath a business jacket, shook hands with another stuntman and was set alight for the Pink Floyd album shoot. 'Ronnie was very gracious about it, considering,' said photographer Aubrey Powell. On the 15th take, a gust of wind blew fire into Rondell's face, singeing his mustache and eyebrow, prompting him to roll on the ground before the flames were extinguished. 'There's a funny thing about fire,' he later said. 'When it gets in your face, you're going to move.' Rondell broke bones, suffered concussions and endured countless injuries throughout his career, but was revered for his precision and professionalism. Stunts Unlimited remembered him as 'not just a legend — he was legendary.' He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Mary; his son, R.A. Rondell; three grandchildren; a great-grandson; and his brother, Ric. His son Reid, also a stuntman, died in 1985 during a helicopter crash on the set of the CBS series 'Airwolf.'
New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Ronnie Rondell, Stuntman Set on Fire for Pink Floyd Cover, Dies at 88
Ronnie Rondell, a stuntman who was set alight on the cover of a Pink Floyd album, and who performed in movies such as 'Twister' and 'The Matrix Reloaded,' died on Tuesday at a senior living center in Osage Beach, Mo. He was 88. His family announced the death in an online obituary but did not provide a cause. Mr. Rondell grew up in Hollywood as the son of a stuntman and became known for his own gymnastics and diving skills. He drove exploding cars, flipped over flaming cannons and was at times set on fire, including in the 1968 film 'Ice Station Zebra.' For the cover of Pink Floyd's 1975 album, 'Wish You Were Here,' Mr. Rondell, wearing a fire-retardant layer beneath a business suit, was dowsed with gasoline and lit ablaze. Yet even he acknowledged the anxiety that sometimes came with the job. 'I think everybody has a fear of fire,' he said in an interview posted online. 'We know what it's like to be burned.' He performed in dozens of films, including the 1962 film 'How the West Was Won,' the 1987 film 'Lethal Weapon' and the 1991 film 'Thelma and Louise,' and coordinated stunts for many other productions, including the television series 'Charlie's Angels,' which ran from 1976 to 1981, and the 1997 film 'Batman & Robin.' Ronald Reid Rondell was born on Feb. 10, 1937, in Hollywood, Calif., to Ronald S. and Ruth (Durham) Rondell. His fascination with stunt work began when he visited sets with his father and was allowed to play with props including swords and guns, he said in a video from 1991. In high school, Ronnie was a diver who competed on the three-meter springboard. He later joined the U.S. Navy. 'When I got out of the Navy, I told my dad I wanted to be a stuntman,' he said in the same interview. His father responded, 'Well, go ahead.' On May 23, 1969, Mr. Rondell married Mary Smith in Palms Spring, Calif. The couple had two sons, R.A. Rondell and Reid Rondell. Both children became involved in the stunt industry. In 1985, Reid Rondell, 22, was killed when his helicopter crashed during the filming of the CBS television series 'Airwolf.' A producer, Donald Bellisario, informed Mr. Rondell of the death, according to a news report at the time. 'He was obviously broken up by it, but he told me, 'You know, it goes with the territory,'' Mr. Bellisario said. In addition to his wife and son, he is survived by his brother, Ric; three grandchildren; and a great-grandchild. Mr. Rondell was also a director and a co-founder of the company Stunts Unlimited. Despite his daredevil feats, he was known for prioritizing safety. In a 1983 interview, he opposed the use of live ammunition on sets. His final performance was in the 2003 film 'The Matrix Reloaded,' in which his son R.A. Rondell was the supervising stunt coordinator. But what he remained best known for was the Pink Floyd cover. The shoot took place on a Hollywood studio lot. Mr. Rondell was lit on fire about 15 times before a gust of wind blew the flames toward his face, he and others recalled in the 2012 documentary 'Pink Floyd: The Story of Wish You Were Here.' 'There's a funny thing about fire,' Mr. Rondell said. 'When it gets in your face, you're going to move.'
