newsmakers

September 28, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

newsmakers

‘Titanic’ co-star Stuart dies at 100

LOS ANGELES

Gloria Stuart, the Hollywood actress of the 1930s who gained an Oscar nomination 60 years later for her role as the spunky survivor in “Titanic,” has died. She was 100. Her grandson, Benjamin Stuart Thompson, says Stuart died in her sleep Sunday night at her Los Angeles home.

In her youth, Stuart was a blond beauty who starred in B pictures as well as higher-profile ones such as “The Invisible Man” and two Shirley Temple movies. She resumed acting occasionally in later years and was selected to play the elderly Titanic survivor portrayed by Kate Winslet as a young woman. The 1997 “Titanic” became the biggest modern blockbuster up to that point. Both Winslet and Stuart, then 87, were nominated for Oscars.

‘Sound of Music’ cast to reunite

CHICAGO

The hills are alive again 45 years later, this time on the small screen. Harpo Productions says the entire cast of the 1965 Academy Award-winning movie musical “The Sound of Music” will appear Friday, Oct. 29, on “The Oprah Winfrey Show.”

That includes stars Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. Andrews had noncancerous throat nodules removed in 1997, an operation that initially left her unable to sing. She will not sing on the TV program.

Plummer will talk about his relationship with the film over the decades.

The show will include a performance from the singing group The von Trapp Children, which features members of the real von Trapp family.

Weinberg won’t follow Conan to TBS

NEW YORK

Conan O’Brien’s longtime bandleader, Max Weinberg, isn’t following him to TBS. O’Brien confirmed Monday that Weinberg won’t be joining him on “Conan,” his new late-night program set to debut in November. Weinberg had been O’Brien’s musical sidekick for 17 years, on both “Late Night” and the “Tonight Show.”

In a statement, O’Brien said Weinberg has been “a huge part of my life for the past 17 years.” He says he hopes Weinberg still finds time to visit the new show “and pretend to find my monologue funny.”

Weinberg said his time with O’Brien and crew has been “a deeply rewarding experience” and that he does “look forward to dropping by.”

Kidnap survivor writing memoir

NEW YORK

Jaycee Dugard, who survived being kidnapped at age 11 and held captive for 18 years, is writing a memoir.

Dugard’s book is scheduled to come out next year, Simon & Schuster announced Monday. Financial terms were not disclosed.

According to the publisher, the 30-year-old Dugard will write the currently untitled book herself and cover her life from her abduction in 1991 to how she is doing now.

“When I read the pages, I was moved and inspired by the raw power of Jaycee Dugard’s voice, her strength and her resilience,” Simon & Schuster publisher and executive vice president Jonathan Karp said of what she has written so far.

Placido Domingo to leave opera company

WASHINGTON

Placido Domingo says he will leave the Washington National Opera when his contract expires next year.

The famed 69-year-old Spanish tenor announced his plans Monday. He has been artistic director of the Washington National Opera since 1996 and general director since 2003. He holds the same title with the Los Angeles Opera.

In a letter to the opera’s board obtained by The Washington Post, Domingo writes that it’s time for the company to go in a new direction. He raises the possibility of a merger with the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The opera has struggled financially in recent years as a stand-alone company.

Domingo pledged to help with any transition. He brought more big productions and international stars to Washington as the opera’s director.