The Grand Master mystery writer Donald Westlake dies at 75
The world of entertainment bids farewell to one of its brilliantly talented mystery writers Donald Westlake who passed away at the age of seventy five. During his lifetime the gifted writer authored over a hundred books and screenplays. 
Donald Westlake was also famous as Tucker Coe, Richard Stark, Edwin West and Samuel Holt as he wrote under different pen names. He was known for his prolific writing and was recognized as a gifted mystery writer of his time. In fact he is considered to be one of the most versatile mystery writers ever produced by the United States.
The writer was apparently fit and fine the day he exited the world, said his wife speaking to the New York Times. He was on his way to a New Year Eve’s dinner while on his vacation trip in Mexico. During the ride however Westlake suffered a heart attack due to which he collapsed.
The writer’s career spanned nearly half a century during which he managed to claim three Edgar Awards under his belt. Westlake also earned an Academy Award nomination for his awe inspiring screenplay titled “The Grifters.” The organization known as the Mystery Writers of America unanimously gave Westlake the title of “Grand Master” in 1993 which was a great honor for the American writer. Westlake got his first novel published in 1960 called “The Mercenaries” at the Random House.
The over hundred books and screenplays by Westlake were written on a typewriter. The old school writer was not very fond of an electric typewriter as told by his friend Otto Penzler who said “He hated the idea of an electric typewriter because, he said, ‘I don’t want to sit there while I am thinking and have something hum at me.’”
One of the unique things about this writer was the fact that he made use of different pseudonyms. One of the reasons why he did that was because it was hard for people to absorb the fact that he could churn out such high quality work in such quick time. He did this so that he could secure more publishing deals because people were hesitant on publishing more than one book by an author in a year.
2008 the year that entertainment was under the shadows of dark
The young and charming Australian actor Heath Ledger was found dead in his apartment soon after completing his role as the Joker in the latest Batman movie “The Dark Knight”. He died at the age of 28 in the month of January even before he could enjoy the new heights of stardom his performance was bound to take him to. This past year has been one full of dark and depressing news from Hollywood.
Heath Ledger did not merely play the character of the Joker, he actually became full of pure nihilism to catch the spirit of the crazy character. His performance was totally different than what Jack Nicholson had managed to put up in the his role as the Joker. From the ragged hair, the jagged makeup and that daunting smile Heath Ledger gave a new face to the Joker with his acting.
But soon afterwards Heath Ledger was no more. The New York City medical examiner’s report stated “We have concluded that the manner of death is accident, resulting from the abuse of prescription medications.”
As if there wasn’t enough hype set around the release of “The Dark Knight” already, Ledger’s death further catapulted the eagerness and anticipation of the movie watchers. Ledger’s performance in the movie had earned him a Screen Actors Guild award, a Golden Globe nomination and sure looks like he will be getting an Oscar nomination and quite possibly a win as well. Unfortunately Heath Ledger will not be alive to reap the success of his efforts.
“The Dark Knight” with its bleak Gotham City has become a symbol for the way the entertainment industry unfolded itself in the year gone by. The year was stifled with many uncertain and unprecedented events. Britney Spears institutionalization was one of them. Then you had the writers going on a strike which hampered the awards season. Pixar came out with his brilliant “Wall-E” which depicted the Earth being finished off due to unconscious consumerism.
Hollywood has generally served the purpose of providing optimism to the public. This past year however was under the shadows of dark. James Dean died in a car accident at the age of 24. Another young star, River Phoenix died because of a drug overdose at the age of 24. Then came the news of Heath Ledger found dead in his apartment at the age of 28.
Michael Jackson in the news for his health
After a long absence from the spotlight Michael Jackson has once again made it in the news. This time however he it’s not a pop single that’s got him in the news rather it’s his health. The king of pop has been diagnosed with a rare lung ailment that has raised questions about the star’s medical condition.
News about Michael Jackson is always plagued with rumors. One journalist commented saying “rumors are all anyone hears about Michael Jackson these days,” The current news about Michael Jackson’s health has been released by a writer who has been working on Jackson’s biography.
The writer was quoted in Britain’s daily express saying that the king of pop is seriously unwell and may actually be fighting for his life. He has been diagnosed with a rare lung condition that puts him in dire need of a transplant surgery. The problem is that he is too weak to undergo surgery at the moment.
Jackson’s official spokesman has not yet released any official comment on the star’s health. The star’s brother however expressed his concerns saying that Jackson is not doing too well and it’s not a good time for the family.
The king of pop has long been deposed from the scene although the Thriller album continues to be the best selling pop album of all time. He has always been the ultimate showman with his pop singles and dance moves. Although the star will be remembered along the lines of the other greats such as Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra, Jackson’s life story has been plagued by court cases and negative publicity.
There have been unauthorized claims about Jackson’s health saying that he is too weak to even speak. The pop star has been in the court for accusations about child abuse and has spent much of his time retired in his never land which he was forced to step out of due to a lawsuit. He was unable to make it to his current court hearing regarding a big money lawsuit due to a legitimate reason of being physically unwell.
SNL goes over board with its mockery of New York’s blind governor
SNL is a popular slap stick comedy show known for mocking politicians, newsmakers and artists. In a recent episode the show sought to take a strike at David Paterson who happens to be the blind governor of New York. After being enlightened about his role in the program being played by Fred Armisen he claimed that the show had gone too far with its mockery.
The show attempted to show the governor as a disoriented and confused individual that is lost of all direction. The four minute segment in which the governor was portrayed is called the “Weekend Update”. David Paterson was portrayed as a goof who would walk in front of the camera and attempt to speak out of turn.
The crew members of the show attempted to malign the governor’s rise to power by dialogues such as when Armisen playing the governor’s role says regarding his rise to power that came because of a “sex scandal I was miraculously not at the center of.” The skit went further on to make fun of his blindness which was what turned the attempt to make other people laugh into an inhumane act. One of the dialogues has the governor look alike saying “Come on, I’m a blind man who loves cocaine who was suddenly appointed governor of New York. My life is an actual plot from a Richard Pryor movie,”
The background behind Paterson’s rise to power is what paved the way for such a scheme on the part of SNL. It was after the previous governor Eliot Spitzer was forced to step down due to an involvement in a sex scandal that Paterson replaced him as governor of New York.
David Paterson actually managed to make some crude remarks against the show and its sense of humor. He claimed that after Palin’s disappearance the show seems to be at a loss for material and is now desperately seeking for something funny but is failing to find quality material. He said that the way in which he was portrayed is how disabled people are always portrayed and that disability does not equal inability.