Latest news with #Rebel
Boston Globe
17 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Kenneth Colley, 87, ‘Star Wars' actor with a commanding presence, dies
Advertisement In a 2014 interview, he recalled that when he walked into an office to meet Irvin Kershner, the director of 'The Empire Strikes Back,' Kershner told him he was looking for 'someone that would frighten Adolf Hitler.' Colley, with his gaunt face and steely eyes, fit the bill. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Admiral Piett is appointed top commander of the Imperial fleet after his superior is killed by Darth Vader (whose physical presence is played by David Prowse) for his poor judgment. Mr. Colley often said that he saw Admiral Piett as a shrewd operator who followed orders for the sake of survival in Darth Vader's world. In his interpretation of the character, he reinforced the severity and tension felt in the camp as the Rebel alliance evades capture. Advertisement The film grossed more than $200 million in its original release, according to the site Box Office Mojo, with Admiral Piett emerging as an unexpected crowd pleaser. As Mr. Colley liked to recall, the creator of Star Wars, George Lucas, asked him to come back for 'Return of the Jedi' (1983) after he received a flood of fan letters curious about Admiral Piett's backstory. Although the character wasn't included in the original script, Lucas wrote him into new scenes while on set. In the finished film, Admiral Piett leads the Imperial fleet until he is shot down by a Rebel fighter at the Battle of Endor. Mr. Colley relished the popularity of his role and appeared at conventions and fan events in the subsequent decades. He continued to interpret a wide assortment of roles, including an impudent left-wing journalist in a 1987 stage adaptation of John Hale's spy novel 'The Whistle Blower' (1984), but he mostly played villains, which, he told the magazine Star Wars Insider in 1987, was 'fine by me.' 'If you can burrow in deep and find some life there,' he said, 'that makes it interesting — you want to know more about this uniform.' Kenneth Colley was born Dec. 7, 1937, in Manchester, England. He began acting at the Bromley Repertory Company, where he worked as an assistant stage manager, according to The Guardian, and joined The Living Theater in Leicester in the early 1960s. He also trained with the Royal Shakespeare Company and with Laurence Olivier's National Theater Company. In the 1960s, he played bit roles in various TV series and televised theater productions, including 'ITV Play of the Week'; the anthology drama series 'Thirty-Minute Theater,' taking on the parts of Charles I and Hitler; and 'BBC Play of the Month.' He played a stammering accordion player in 'Pennies from Heaven' (1978), a major in 'The Danedyke Mystery' (1979) and Jesus in the film 'Monty Python's Life of Brian' (1979). Advertisement Mr. Colley married Mary Dunne in 1962. She died in 2018. Information on his survivors was not immediately available. His other notable performances include the Duke of Vienna in 'Measure for Measure,' a 1979 BBC Shakespeare production; Adolf Eichmann in 'Wallenberg' (1985); and a cranky recluse in a Nancy Meckler 2000 revival of Brecht's 1939 play 'Mother Courage and Her Children,' a role he 'brilliantly played for one scene only,' as Sheridan Morley wrote in The International Herald Tribune. In a hot streak during the 1980s, he acted in Clint Eastwood's 'Firefox' (1982); 'Giro City' (1982), as the titular vice admiral in the British miniseries 'I Remember Nelson' (1982); and alongside Gregory Peck in the TV movie 'The Scarlet and the Black' (1983). 'In one year, I worked with Clint Eastwood, Gregory Peck, and David Prowse,' he recalled in 1987. 'I got a crick in my neck from always looking up toward the stars!' This article originally appeared in
The 42
a day ago
- Sport
- The 42
Working with Pat Ryan: 'The resilience he has shown is something exceptional'
GIVEN EVERYTHING PAT Ryan has done for this Cork team, it's no wonder they are all so willing to return the favour in spades. Wayne Sherlock's relationship with the Rebel chief goes back to their time as U21 teammates in 1997, while they worked together in Pfizer for over a decade between 2002 and 2013. When he got the call from Ryan to join his backroom team as a selector, the three-time All-Ireland winner had no doubts. 'We're happy to stay in the background,' says Sherlock. 'When Pat speaks, people listen because he doesn't speak bullshit. He just speaks from the heart, and the players respect him hugely. 'It frustrates all of us when fellas make mistakes because they shouldn't be making them, even if you're 20 points up. But Pat has high standards, and he expects the same from the players. 'You could see him after the Dublin match speaking to one particular player who just did something that he shouldn't have. Nothing major, he just missed a pick-up or something. Pat went to him straight away and said, 'Look, you should have done this because it's what we've been doing in training.' 'Rob Downey said it after the (Munster) final that everyone loves Pat and we'd do anything for him. 'I suppose the resilience he has shown this year to come back and row in behind his team is something exceptional.' Ryan had to deal with personal tragedy following the passing of his brother, Ray, in February. Sherlock says the manner in which the manager has handled such a loss is a huge testament to his character. 'Pat is the man that we know, but his family have been unbelievably strong too. Advertisement 'We were at his house that tough week, and the first thing he said was, 'I'm going to be at the game on Saturday.' 'Look, we respected him, we didn't try and change his mind. He said he'd be there, that we had a job to do, and that's the way it was. 'It's something that he hasn't brought into the group here at all. How he's done it is absolutely phenomenal. I actually don't know how he's done it, but it just shows the man he is. 'When he's tuned in and he has a job to do, and he has a very strong family behind him too, I suppose what he's doing is making them proud and giving them good memories in a tough year.' As a tight-marking defender, Sherlock is always happy to work closely with the current Cork rearguard. Cork selector Wayne Sherlock. James Crombie / INPHO James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO While the game has changed so much, the fundamentals remain the same. 'That's one thing about defending – you have to want to be there. 'It's a very, very hard place to play because you're marking the best players in the game. You have to want to get the ball first. But if you don't get the ball, if the forward gets it, you have to want to get it back off him. 'As I say to the corner-backs sometimes, if you don't touch the ball and your man doesn't touch the ball, you're the best player on the pitch. Some of the basics just don't change. 'Sometimes it's not pretty and you don't get all the plaudits that the forwards get, but you have to really want to be there. I think this group love defending. They really do. I hope they do anyway because they're not moving anywhere soon!' The supporters have played their part too, following the team in huge numbers across the past three seasons. 'If you look at our first year here, we didn't qualify out of Munster, but the amount of people who said 'Thanks for a great year' was incredible,' Sherlock says. 'Even though they meant well, in another way, it was an insult when you're from Cork. But I know exactly what they meant. The team put in an incredible effort. 'I'll never forget coming down to the Limerick match last year, and you could tell that the Cork crowd are absolutely starving for it. You could just feel it coming in on the bus. 'There's a new generation of people who haven't seen Cork win. Twenty years is a long time so you probably have teenagers now completely buying into it. But it's not even just that. And I hope that they're enjoying the hurling we're playing, which is fast and exciting. 'The roar before the Dublin game was unbelievable. It's hairs-on-the-back-of-your-neck stuff. 'They've just taken to this team, and the effort the players have put in has been incredible. 'It's a team that won nothing until this year, but they've backed the team. Even last year, we lost the first two games, but we came down here to play Limerick and the place was full.' As for Tipperary in the final? 'It's going to be super,' Sherlock says. 'Cork and Tipp games take on a life of their own. 'I suppose we both have a lot of homework done on each other because we played each other in a league final as well. 'Look, I'd say Tipp are probably happy they're playing us, to be honest. I think there's no doubting that. But if our attitude is good, and I think it is at the moment, we'll be in with a great shout.' Check out the latest episode of The42′s GAA Weekly podcast here
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Residents of Cork-Tipperary border show true colours as local rivalry heads for Croke Park turf
Sunday's All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship final between Cork and Tipperary might be taking place in one of Europe's most impressive stadiums, TV channels and column inches filled with analysis of the big match, and thousands are due to tune in across the world, but… 'This is where you'll get the real story here now!' Emmett Allen says with a big, broad, welcoming smile, gesturing to one of the delivery men, dropping off goods to his garage-come-corner shop in Araglen. 'This is a nephew of one of the coaches, now, he'll give you the inside track!'. Kevin O'Rourke is, in fact, the nephew of Dónal, AKA Ducky, coach of Cork hurlers, and a man that Pat Ryan has said has done a 'fantastic job' with his group of players over this championship. 'I'm getting plagued with tickets, it's hard to get any work done this week!' 'Dónal has been coming here right throughout the winter, so we've been getting the inside track in here all along!' Emmett says. He's one of the very many characters, passing in and out of this tiny yet throbbing heartbeat of one of a few parishes caught in the crossfire ahead of Sunday's enormous hurling clash. Two customers, who live 10 minutes away but are situated on the Waterford side of this three-county conglomerate, are rolling their eyes and bracing themselves for the inevitable exercise in brave face come Sunday, when once again their more storied neighbours are standing on the steps of the Hogan Stand. 'I don't care which one wins, to be honest,' one of them says, 'I'm sitting on the fence,'. Figuratively, and almost quite literally. 'The border has been a great addition to the sport this week,' says Emmett, who is the current occupier of the shop his Dad first opened over four decades ago. 'There's great rivalry in the three counties, even great banter, and hopefully the best team win on Sunday. 'I have Rebel blood, Cork born and bred,' says Emmett, who will be heading to Croke Park on Sunday with his daughter Niamh, hoping she will finally see the Rebels lift Liam MacCarthy in the flesh for her first ever time in three decades on the planet. 'I've offered my stand ticket to be with her on the terrace this Sunday, and it would be brilliant for her to finally see Cork win an All-Ireland. 'I had Seamus Harnedy in there the last week; he was probably out with Mike Fitzgerald to get hurleys. There's a great buzz, and we do stir the aul' pot from time to time, throw in the spanner and get the boys going in all three counties!' he says, with a cheeky grin on his face, as the Cork GAA flag flies proudly outside. 'It goes on all through the year, you could be down the pub, and even some of the lads got up early in the morning to put up colours on the Tipperary side, and then the Cork lads as well. 'This is the man you need to talk to here now, he's a Tipperary man,' Emmett says, interrupting his train of thought, as another delivery comes to the door, along with a few more customers, picking up lotto tickets, cuts of beef, and the gossip ahead of Sunday's final. Michael Hoolihan is a Grangemockler man, but very briefly crosses into the Rebel County on one of his weekly runs, as he tries to keep a low profile behind enemy lines. I suggest calling in sick should Cork win at Croker. 'Ah, no, we couldn't be doing that!' he says, 'You have to take it on the chin like a man. They're a very young team, and Cork are definitely underdogs. If Tipp start like they did against Kilkenny the game will be over, Cork have a lot more goals in them than Kilkenny!' Michael is also one of the lucky few with a ticket, but has a quick request for Emmett as he goes out the door. 'Do you know anyone who would swap a stand ticket for two terrace tickets? 'TWO terraces, for ONE? That now would be very hard,' he responds, as Michael packs up to head back into more familiar territory. With Michael, I too head out the door and take a quick trip back along the road to Kilworth, a commuter village on the outskirts of Fermoy. 'The Village Inn' also has both Cork and Tipperary flags hanging out the window, as I enter to investigate. Tom O'Brien's mother, Chrissy, is behind the counter, whose late husband, Mick, is the reason behind the Premier flag. 'My father is from Ballyporeen,' explains Tom, a village just across the border further north, whose claim to fame is being the birthplace of Ronald Regan's great-grandfather. Regan himself visited the village on his Presidential visit in 1984. 'He took over the pub in 1976 and passed away in 2012, so we have the flag up in his memory', said Tom, who only took over the pub himself three years ago. 'We have a good few Tipperary fans now that would stop off in the pub on the way back from Páirc Uí Chaoimh with my Dad's roots, so we have great craic in fairness now between the two sets of fans. 'There's been serious craic and banter around this week now. It's the only thing people are talking about, the match, and getting tickets. The world could be falling around us, and that's still all they'd be talking about!' The day is soft, but nonetheless people are in good spirits. I cross a young man selling bunting, flags, and the ubiquitous 'hats, scarves, and headbands,' on the main street of Mitchelstown. Once a bottleneck for traffic heading up to Dublin, now anticipating a mass exodus on Sunday from those on either side of the nearby county bounds. 'I'm down here from Galway since last Monday week,' says Calvin Ward. 'There's great craic here now in fairness, I'd say we're selling 50/50 Cork and Tipp,' he says, as another interested customer comes over and picks up a large flag, destined for display outside a nearby house, 'Up Tipp' is shouted in the background. 'I'm a Galway man myself, but I'll be selling here until late Saturday evening.' And for Sunday? 'Oh, I'm staying in Cork, so hopefully Cork wins!' Half-and-half jerseys are also being sold in the town, a bright idea by local sports store 'ID Sports', which has leveraged its own manufacturing facility to churn out the special edition jerseys right in time for the big match. 'It's been absolutely crazy, the buzz around town has been absolutely unreal,' says manager Vicki Murphy, whose own sister has postponed flights home to Australia to get to the match. 'The fact that we just got these made up last week, and they hit our store on Monday, and we've had massive interest. 'It's absolutely brilliant, and it's great for the town as well, the fact that we're smack bang in the middle – we also share a border with Limerick, but we won't say anything about that! 'The All-Ireland is a different ball game, people literally have goosebumps talking about it. It is a friendly rivalry, I'm firmly rooted like an aul chestnut tree in the Cork camp, but the half and half jerseys have taken off, especially with the kids being caught in the middle, trying to plamás one child and then the other! 'My nephew is 100% Tipp, and he even asked me to make him a birthday cake the other day. Of course, he wanted Tipp colours! 'I said to him, 'my house will go up in flames, I can't have Tipperary on my table!', but sure he was delighted. 'You even pass people in the shop and you give them an aul 'Up Cork!' and then they shout back 'Gowan the Prem!', it's just brilliant!'
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Cork and Tipperary rivalry may play out in Croker, but its roots are right here
Sunday's All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship final between Cork and Tipperary might be taking place in one of Europe's most impressive stadiums, TV channels and column inches filled with analysis of the big match, and thousands are due to tune in across the world, but… 'This is where you'll get the real story here now!' Emmett Allen says with a big, broad, welcoming smile, gesturing to one of the delivery men, dropping off goods to his garage-come-corner shop in Araglen. 'This is a nephew of one of the coaches, now, he'll give you the inside track!'. Kevin O'Rourke is, in fact, the nephew of Dónal, AKA Ducky, coach of Cork hurlers, and a man that Pat Ryan has said has done a 'fantastic job' with his group of players over this championship. 'I'm getting plagued with tickets, it's hard to get any work done this week!' 'Dónal has been coming here right throughout the winter, so we've been getting the inside track in here all along!' Emmett says. He's one of the very many characters, passing in and out of this tiny yet throbbing heartbeat of one of a few parishes caught in the crossfire ahead of Sunday's enormous hurling clash. Two customers, who live 10 minutes away but are situated on the Waterford side of this three-county conglomerate, are rolling their eyes and bracing themselves for the inevitable exercise in brave face come Sunday, when once again their more storied neighbours are standing on the steps of the Hogan Stand. 'I don't care which one wins, to be honest,' one of them says, 'I'm sitting on the fence,'. Figuratively, and almost quite literally. 'The border has been a great addition to the sport this week,' says Emmett, who is the current occupier of the shop his Dad first opened over four decades ago. 'There's great rivalry in the three counties, even great banter, and hopefully the best team win on Sunday. ADVERTISEMENT 'I have Rebel blood, Cork born and bred,' says Emmett, who will be heading to Croke Park on Sunday with his daughter Niamh, hoping she will finally see the Rebels lift Liam MacCarthy in the flesh for her first ever time in three decades on the planet. 'I've offered my stand ticket to be with her on the terrace this Sunday, and it would be brilliant for her to finally see Cork win an All-Ireland. 'I had Seamus Harnedy in there the last week; he was probably out with Mike Fitzgerald to get hurleys. There's a great buzz, and we do stir the aul' pot from time to time, throw in the spanner and get the boys going in all three counties!' he says, with a cheeky grin on his face, as the Cork GAA flag flies proudly outside. 'It goes on all through the year, you could be down the pub, and even some of the lads got up early in the morning to put up colours on the Tipperary side, and then the Cork lads as well. 'This is the man you need to talk to here now, he's a Tipperary man,' Emmett says, interrupting his train of thought, as another delivery comes to the door, along with a few more customers, picking up lotto tickets, cuts of beef, and the gossip ahead of Sunday's final. Michael Hoolihan is a Grangemockler man, but very briefly crosses into the Rebel County on one of his weekly runs, as he tries to keep a low profile behind enemy lines. I suggest calling in sick should Cork win at Croker. 'Ah, no, we couldn't be doing that!' he says, 'You have to take it on the chin like a man. They're a very young team, and Cork are definitely underdogs. If Tipp start like they did against Kilkenny the game will be over, Cork have a lot more goals in them than Kilkenny!' Michael is also one of the lucky few with a ticket, but has a quick request for Emmett as he goes out the door. 'Do you know anyone who would swap a stand ticket for two terrace tickets? 'TWO terraces, for ONE? That now would be very hard,' he responds, as Michael packs up to head back into more familiar territory. With Michael, I too head out the door and take a quick trip back along the road to Kilworth, a commuter village on the outskirts of Fermoy. 'The Village Inn' also has both Cork and Tipperary flags hanging out the window, as I enter to investigate. Tom O'Brien's mother, Chrissy, is behind the counter, whose late husband, Mick, is the reason behind the Premier flag. 'My father is from Ballyporeen,' explains Tom, a village just across the border further north, whose claim to fame is being the birthplace of Ronald Regan's great-grandfather. Regan himself visited the village on his Presidential visit in 1984. 'He took over the pub in 1976 and passed away in 2012, so we have the flag up in his memory', said Tom, who only took over the pub himself three years ago. 'We have a good few Tipperary fans now that would stop off in the pub on the way back from Páirc Uí Chaoimh with my Dad's roots, so we have great craic in fairness now between the two sets of fans. 'There's been serious craic and banter around this week now. It's the only thing people are talking about, the match, and getting tickets. The world could be falling around us, and that's still all they'd be talking about!' The day is soft, but nonetheless people are in good spirits. I cross a young man selling bunting, flags, and the ubiquitous 'hats, scarves, and headbands,' on the main street of Mitchelstown. Once a bottleneck for traffic heading up to Dublin, now anticipating a mass exodus on Sunday from those on either side of the nearby county bounds. 'I'm down here from Galway since last Monday week,' says Calvin Ward. 'There's great craic here now in fairness, I'd say we're selling 50/50 Cork and Tipp,' he says, as another interested customer comes over and picks up a large flag, destined for display outside a nearby house, 'Up Tipp' is shouted in the background. 'I'm a Galway man myself, but I'll be selling here until late Saturday evening.' And for Sunday? 'Oh, I'm staying in Cork, so hopefully Cork wins!' Half-and-half jerseys are also being sold in the town, a bright idea by local sports store 'ID Sports', which has leveraged its own manufacturing facility to churn out the special edition jerseys right in time for the big match. 'It's been absolutely crazy, the buzz around town has been absolutely unreal,' says manager Vicki Murphy, whose own sister has postponed flights home to Australia to get to the match. 'The fact that we just got these made up last week, and they hit our store on Monday, and we've had massive interest. 'It's absolutely brilliant, and it's great for the town as well, the fact that we're smack bang in the middle – we also share a border with Limerick, but we won't say anything about that! 'The All-Ireland is a different ball game, people literally have goosebumps talking about it. It is a friendly rivalry, I'm firmly rooted like an aul chestnut tree in the Cork camp, but the half and half jerseys have taken off, especially with the kids being caught in the middle, trying to plamás one child and then the other! 'My nephew is 100% Tipp, and he even asked me to make him a birthday cake the other day. Of course, he wanted Tipp colours! 'I said to him, 'my house will go up in flames, I can't have Tipperary on my table!', but sure he was delighted. 'You even pass people in the shop and you give them an aul 'Up Cork!' and then they shout back 'Gowan the Prem!', it's just brilliant!'
Pink Villa
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
Telugu actor Fish Venkat, 53, succumbed to kidney failure due to lack of funds for transplant? Report
Telugu actor and renowned comedian Fish Venkat has now passed away at 53. The actor had been hospitalized for a long time now, and his family had requested fund support from the many actors with whom the former had worked. Fish Venkat passes away Fish Venkat, a.k.a. Venkat Raj, passed away in Hyderabad on July 19. The actor was on ventilator support and was supposed to get a kidney transplant. However, his family had a lack of funds for the same; as a result, they had urged noted actors from the film fraternity to help them out. Unfortunately, due to the lack of funds, the actor could not get the kidney transplant and has passed away. He is survived by his wife and daughter. Fish Venkat's daughter pleaded for financial support for his father Speaking with One India previously, Fish Venkat's daughter had shared the health update of her father with everyone and revealed that he was in ICU and was battling a kidney ailment. She had even called out actors like Pawan Kalyan, Jr NTR, Allu Arjun and others and pleaded for help for his father. In her words, 'Be it Chiranjeevi, Pawan Kalyan, Allu Arjun, or Jr NTR, I hope they help us find a donor for my father. He has worked in such good films with all of them. No one seems to care about him now. I request everyone to please help my father.' When Fish Venkat's family got a false call for help from Prabhas Amid Fish Venkat's daughter's statement stirring headlines, a report claimed that Prabhas had reached out to the family and offered them financial aid of Rs. 50 lakhs. The comedian's family initially revealed that the Rebel star's assistant had called and confirmed the same. But it was not true. A person close to Fish Venkat's family later remarked that the call was fake and was the work of an imposter. The person said, 'Some unknown person called us pretending to be Prabhas Anna's assistant. We found out after that it was a fake call. He doesn't even know something like this is happening. We have not received any financial help yet.'
