Latest news with #SpaghettiWesterns
Mint
2 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Mint
Veteran actor Jack Betts, known for his role in ‘Spider-Man', dies at 96
Jack Betts, the seasoned American actor best known for his role in 'Spider-Man' (2002) and numerous 'Spaghetti Westerns', has died at the age of 96. As confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter, Betts passed away peacefully in his sleep on Thursday at his home in Los Osos, California, according to his nephew, Dean Sullivan. Born Jack Fillmore Betts on April 11, 1929 in Jersey City, New Jersey, he often joked that he was distantly related to the 13th U.S. President, Millard Fillmore. Raised in Miami, Betts studied theatre at the University of Miami before moving to New York City. He made his Broadway debut in 1953 with 'Richard III'. His journey took a pivotal turn when he assisted a friend at an audition for the prestigious Actors Studio. The director was so impressed that Betts was awarded a three-year scholarship. It was here that legendary director Elia Kazan cast him in 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof', followed by 'Sweet Bird of Youth' and a late-1970s revival of 'Dracula', where he served as standby for Raúl Juliá in the title role. Betts' first film credit came in 1959 with 'The Bloody Brood'. In 1966, he took on the lead in Franco Giraldi's 'Sugar Colt', adopting the stage name Hunt Powers. This launched a prolific run in 'Spaghetti Westerns', earning him a cult following through the 1970s. On television, Betts was a familiar face in soap operas such as 'General Hospital', 'All My Children', 'Guiding Light', and 'The Young and the Restless'. He also had guest roles in 'Perry Mason', 'Gunsmoke', 'Friends', 'Seinfeld', 'Frasier', 'The Mentalist', and 'Monk'. A close friend of 'Everybody Loves Raymond' star Doris Roberts, the two shared a home for nearly three decades until her passing in 2016. Modern audiences will remember Betts for his appearance in 'Spider-Man' (2002) as Oscorp's board chairman Henry Balkan, delivering the line to Norman Osborn: 'You're out, Norman.' Jack Betts in 'Spider-Man', alongside Willem Dafoe's Norman Osborne. Jack Betts' legacy endures through a body of work that reflects the dedication and versatility of a true character actor.
Metro
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Metro
Friends and Spider-Man star Jack Betts dies aged 96
Jack Betts, known for starring in Spider-Man, Friends, and several Spaghetti Westerns, has died aged 96. The actor died in his sleep at his home in Los Osos, California, on Thursday. His nephew, Dean Sullivan, confirmed the news to The Hollywood Reporter. He had previously shared a home with Everybody Loves Raymond star Doris Roberts, to whom he was a great friend. She invited him to move from New York into an appartment with her in the Hollywood Hills, where he escorted her to high-profile events from the late 80s until 2016 when she died. After Roberts died, Betts said they were 'best friends to the very end' and praised the 'wonderful times' they shared. Betts, born in Miami, Florida, in 1929, was most famous for appearing as Henry Balkan in the 2002 Spider-Man film alongside Tobey Maguire. His other film roles included a cameo in 1995's Batman Forever, plus one in Batman & Robin two years later. More Trending TV-wise, he appeared in Seinfeld, Frasier, and Power Rangers. Betts also popped up in Friends in 2001, playing Tom in The One with Joey's New Brain. He enjoyed an incredibly successful and varied career, which was kick-started on Broadway in an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Richard III. However, things rocketed when he played Hunt Powers across the Italian Spaghetti Western films. This is a breaking news story, more to follow soon… Check back shortly for further updates. If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. For more stories like this, check our entertainment page. Follow Entertainment on Twitter and Facebook for the latest celeb and entertainment updates. You can now also get articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here. MORE: Hailey Bieber and Selena Gomez 'feud' reignited after fans spot social media move MORE: Hee Haw actor Gailard Sartain 'dies aged 78' weeks after co-star MORE: Fat Joe sued for $20,000,000 over claims of underage sex with minors
Business Wire
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Wire
Jeymes Samuel Unveils 'Spaghetti Western' – a Bold New Compilation of Soundtracks Celebrating the Iconic Era of Italian Western Cinema
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Visionary filmmaker, musician, and creative force Jeymes Samuel proudly unveils Spaghetti Western, an electrifying new compilation of rare and essential tracks from the golden era of Italian Western cinema (1963-1972). Created in partnership with legendary Italian soundtrack label CAM Sugar, the compilation will be available on all digital streaming platforms starting June 20, with Deluxe Boxset, 2LP vinyl and CD editions via CAM Sugar/UMe. Personally overseeing every aspect of the release—from handpicking the 20 tracks from CAM Sugar's archive vault of over 2,000 original scores and designing the official artwork, to producing original compositions and penning liner notes—Jeymes Samuel offers an immersive and intimate perspective on one of cinema's most musically memorable genres. In addition to his musical contributions, Samuel adds a deeply personal visual element to the collection through the hand-painted cover and inside sleeve art, created exclusively for this release. The project blends music and art, uniting timeless Spaghetti Western scores with Samuel's own creative interpretations. Each track was carefully curated to evoke the rugged landscapes and heightened drama of the genre, while the artwork captures what these films ignite in his imagination- a visceral, visual journey into the wild, surreal beauty of Spaghetti Westerns. 'This isn't just a compilation - it's a love letter to the Spaghetti Western and the artists who transformed cinema forever. These soundtracks shaped my creative soul, and with this collection, I've blended timeless scores with my own interpretations to honor the genre's raw beauty and bold spirit. It's music, memory, and homage - an invitation into a world that continues to inspire,' said Jeymes Samuel, creator of Spaghetti Western. The album features compositions by legendary names including Ennio Morricone, Piero Umiliani, Nico Fidenco, Gianni Ferrio, and Carlo Rustichelli, as well as unforgettable vocal performances by Alessandro Alessandroni, Caterina Caselli, Jula De Palma, and others. Among its treasures are three tracks that have never been released on vinyl before, along with three more that are making their digital debut. Adding a fresh layer to the collection are two entirely new songs written, produced, and sung by Jeymes Samuel. ' The Light ' is a hauntingly modern Spaghetti Western anthem, and ' Unbroken ', which features a moving spoken word performance by Regina King layered over a sample of Daniele Patucchi's ' Lo Ammazzo' come un cane (seq.14). ' 'Collaborating with Jeymes on this project has been a true honor; his work transcends the idea of curation: it is a cultural statement, a poetic homage to Italian composers, and a profoundly human tribute to a genre often misunderstood. "Throughout this journey, we've come to know not only a remarkable creative mind but a rare artistic voice, curious, generous, and boundlessly multidimensional. In Jeymes' hands, a genre once overlooked or reduced to parody is reawakened in all its emotional and cinematic grandeur. His curation restores Spaghetti Western its dignity, reaffirming its rightful place in the cultural legacy of music and film,' said CAM Sugar. The Deluxe Boxset offers a truly immersive experience, including a standard 2LP, exclusive 7' and 10' vinyl editions with the unreleased tracks by Jeymes Samuel, and an exclusive storyboard from The Harder They Fall illustrated by Dwayne Turner. The package also includes a beautifully designed booklet featuring Samuel's liner notes and exclusive interviews with Regina King and David Oyelowo, along with a custom-designed dollar note featuring Samuel's own portrait. Pre-order Jeymes Samuel's Spaghetti Western Collection now: Jeymes Samuel's Spaghetti Western Collection will also be available on all principal Digital Streaming Platforms from June 20 ABOUT CAM SUGAR Founded in Rome, in 1959 and boasting over 2,000 original scores, CAM Sugar is the most extensive and representative catalogue of Italian and French Soundtracks, winner of over 500 international awards, including Oscar winning films like La Dolce Vita, Il Postino, Mondo Cane, 8 1/2 , Amarcord and more. CAM Sugar's archive includes work by some of the greatest Italian and French composers ever like Ennio Morricone, Nino Rota, Riz Ortolani, Philippe Sarde, Piero Piccioni, Alain Goraguer, Stelvio Cipriani, Piero Umiliani, Armando Trovajoli and many others. CAM Sugar celebrates the heritage of Italian cinema's golden age with a series of remastered releases in digital, vinyl and CD directly from original master tapes. Moreover, CAM Sugar interacts with international and intragenerational audiences by organizing listening sessions, DJ Sets and curations. Major international producers and directors pick and choose from our archive with hundreds of samples and synchronizations from movies to fashion campaigns.
San Francisco Chronicle
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
As Clint Eastwood turns 95, is the America that made him slipping away?
America has changed a lot since 1930, but Clint Eastwood hasn't. Or so it would seem. The cinema legend, who turns 95 on Saturday, May 31, was born in San Francisco, raised in the East Bay and spent most of his life as a resident of Monterey County. He was always an outsider in Hollywood — he had to go to Europe to find his breakthrough as a film star — and cultivated an aura of rugged individualism as an action antihero, including his iconic roles as the Man With No Name in Sergio Leone's ' Spaghetti Westerns ' in the 1960s and San Francisco cop 'Dirty Harry' Callahan in five movies. He's the kind of man who built America, one school of thought goes; the kind of guy you could count on to fight valiantly in the Civil War, or tame the western frontier, like he did in his movies. He doesn't have time for your bull—, and when he stares at you with that Clint Squint, he's daring you to 'make my day.' He's a man of law and order, upholding American values. 'Dirty Harry' (1971), produced by Eastwood and directed by Don Siegel, was the conservative antidote to the hippie, free love ideals of 'Easy Rider' (1969) as Hollywood was remaking itself during a remarkable decade of cinematic change. But what if we're looking at Eastwood the wrong way? What if, in his own way, Eastwood has been questioning America all along? We all know Eastwood is conservative, aligning with the party that claims to be defenders of traditional American values. Although he has said he's a registered Libertarian, he has supported mostly Republican politicians, including most presidential candidates (remember his anti-Obama talking-to-the-empty-chair moment at the 2012 Republican National Convention?), and ran as a Republican in becoming mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea in the 1980s. Yet he is liberal on most social issues, including abortion, same-sex marriage and, surprisingly, gun control — ironic for a guy whose most famous character openly bragged about his .44 Magnum, 'the most powerful hand gun on Earth, which can you blow your head clean off.' He has supported Democratic politicians in the past, including late Sen. Dianne Feinstein and former California governor Gray Davis, and broke from President Donald Trump during his first term. But while he might have liked Feinstein off-screen, he hated most of the San Francisco mayors he dealt with as Dirty Harry. The Civil War-set 'The Outlaw Josey Wales' (1976), which Eastwood starred in and directed, can be read as a diatribe against the military industrial complex, a theme echoed in his espionage thriller 'Firefox' (1982). Government corruption and incompetence are at the heart of 'In the Line of Fire' (1993), directed by Wolfgang Petersen, and 'Absolute Power' (1997), directed by Eastwood. Indeed, many of Eastwood's movies, both as star and director, have questioned the system itself. Like most artists, however, Eastwood's films are also concerned with the human condition. He won Oscars for best picture and director for the revenge western 'Unforgiven' (1992) and 'Million Dollar Baby' (2004), both moving emotional experiences. He has some surprising films on his resume, too. Who would have thought that as a much younger man he would sensitively explore a May-December romance in 1973's underrated 'Breezy,' starring William Holden? Or that he would explore the jazz legend Charlie Parker in 1988's 'Bird,' starring Forest Whitaker? (Eastwood once said America's two greatest artistic inventions were jazz and the western movie genre.) And then there is 1995's 'The Bridges of Madison County,' one of the great modern weepy romances in which he starred opposite Meryl Streep. As he's aged, Eastwood's films have deepened with a sense of changing times and of characters who are isolated or lost, at least temporarily. In ' Gran Torino ' (2008), he channels his own tough-guy persona to portray a hardened conservative white guy's journey to embracing immigration. While reconnecting with his daughter (Amy Adams) in ' Trouble With the Curve ' (2012), he's an aging baseball scout traversing the small town trappings of a sport and an America he no longer recognizes. In 'The Mule' (2019), he's an elderly man forced to turn to drug running during tough economic times. In retrospect, Eastwood's heroes and antiheroes alike have valued one undisputed ideology: competence. Perhaps the system isn't really corrupt, it's just run by buffoons. The line between societal order and anarchy is a thin one manned by the capable — Dirty Harry vs. the mayor and the San Francisco political machine, for example. But increasingly, Eastwood's competent heroes are working quietly, and unspectacularly, in the shadows until history demands they reveal themselves in a series of heartfelt ripped-from-the headlines stories. His films have celebrated the heroism of Iraq War hero Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper in 2014's ' American Sniper '), East Bay commercial pilot Sully Sullenberger (Tom Hanks in 2016's ' Sully '), the soldiers who foiled a terrorist plot (2018's 'The 15:17 to Paris') and the unlikely misfit who saved lives during the Atlanta Olympics (Paul Walter Hauser in 2019's 'Richard Jewell'). All the while, Eastwood's box-office drawing power remains vibrant with his films reliably turning a profit. 'American Sniper' made a half-billion dollars, while 'Sully' and 'The Mule' each took in about four times its budget. It's a notable feat in an ever-changing Hollywood theatrical and streaming model that often struggles to identify what an audience wants. Take last year's courtroom thriller ' Juror No. 2,' said to be Eastwood's last film as director. Even with an unprecedented record as an A-list director and star stretching back for more than nearly 60 years, his longtime studio, Warner Bros., made the film available in just a few theaters without much of an advertising push. Now, it's a streaming hit on Max since its debut there in December.
