Tuesday, October 26, 2004
Wife's death leads Allanto cancel some concerts
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Country singer Gary Allan has canceled the rest of his concerts this month after his wife's death.
A statement on Allan's Web site says his wife, Angela, died Monday morning.
"We ask you to please keep Gary and the family in your thoughts and prayers," the statement says.
According to news reports, the medical examiner ruled that Allan's wife shot herself at the couple's home early Monday.
Allan has canceled three concerts: Thursday in Portland, Maine; Friday in Uncasville, Conn.; and Saturday in Burgettstown, Pa.
Allan's hits include "Nothing On But the Radio."
LaLanne, birthday partiesare still going strong
LOS ANGELES -- Jack LaLanne keeps going and going, and so do the parties celebrating his 90th birthday. On Saturday, nearly a month after the fitness guru turned 90, friends gathered to honor him near Muscle Beach on Venice Beach, Calif., which LaLanne and his bodybuilding colleagues made famous in the 1940s.
"I'm so flattered and honored," LaLanne said before a luncheon began at the Hotel Casa Del Mar. "Who the heck am I? I'm just a guy trying to help people."
LaLanne later became a household name by hosting a television exercise show that ran from 1951-85, and by performing outrageous feats such as towing boats while swimming across Long Beach Harbor handcuffed.
"This was an incredible place," LaLanne said of Muscle Beach. "I was living in San Francisco and would drive all night to get here for the weekend, then perform acrobatic tricks on the beach. People would come from all over to see us; we were teaching kids how to get their bodies and minds active."
The party was attended by celebrities such as David Carradine and Lou Ferrigno, and followed similar celebrations in recent weeks in New York and San Francisco, where LaLanne was born Sept. 26, 1914.
Opera baritone Merrilldies at home in New York
NEW YORK -- Acclaimed singer Robert Merrill, the opera baritone who felt equally comfortable on opening night at the Metropolitan Opera House or opening day at Yankee Stadium, died Saturday. Merrill died at his home in suburban New York City, family friend Barry Tucker said Monday. Reference books gave conflicting ages for Merrill, 87 or 85.
Merrill performed around the country with Tucker's father, tenor Richard Tucker, the younger man said. "My father felt that he had the greatest natural voice that America created," he said.
Merrill, once described in Time magazine as "one of the Met's best baritones," became as well-known to New York Yankees fans for his season-opening rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" -- a tradition that began in 1969.
In his 31 consecutive seasons with the Metropolitan Opera, Merrill performed virtually every baritone role in the operatic repertoire. He earned admiration for his interpretations of dozens of roles, including Escamillo in "Carmen" and Figaro in "The Barber of Seville," reportedly his favorite opera.
Merrill was known for a velvet-smooth voice. Critics wrote that Merrill "worked hard to polish his natural rich baritone" and that he "noticeably improved each season." He retired from the Met in 1976 but returned to its stage in 1983, when the company marked its centennial.
Notable death
George Silk, a photojournalist who spent 30 years with Life magazine, earning fame for his coverage of World War II and later pioneering the use of a special camera for depicting athletes in motion, has died. He was 87. Silk died at a Norwalk, Conn., hospital Saturday of congestive heart failure, family members said Monday.
Today's birthdays
Actress Shelley Morrison ("Will and Grace") is 68. Actor Bob Hoskins is 62. Author Pat Conroy is 59. TV host Pat Sajak is 58. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., is 57. Actress Jaclyn Smith is 57. Singer Maggie Roche (The Roches) is 53. Musician Bootsy Collins is 53. Rock musician Keith Strickland (The B-52's) is 51. Actor D.W. Moffett is 50. Actress Rita Wilson is 46. Actor Dylan McDermott is 43. Actor Cary Elwes is 42. Singer Natalie Merchant is 41. Country singer Keith Urban is 37. Actor Tom Cavanagh ("Ed") is 36. Singer Mark Barry (BBMak) is 26.