Maxine Cooper Gomberg Film Noir Star, Activist Has Died
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009
The Kiss Me Deadly film actress, Maxine Cooper Gomberg died of natural causes on April 4 at her Los Angeles home, the LA Times reports. The actress was 84 years old. Then Gomberg, as Maxine Cooper, acted alongside Cloris Leachman and Ralph Meekers in the film noir classic. The film itself has been studied and been at the heart of several conspiracy theories, making it one of the most recognized classics of the 1950s. Gomberg also appeared in television shows like Dragnet, Perry Mason and The Twilight Zone.
Gomberg quit acting in the early 1960s to raise her children. It was then that she became a Hollywood activist, organizing the stars to march for Martin Luther King Jr. and protest during the Vietnam War.
The actor who played Walt the trapper on the 1990s TV series Northern Exposure, Moultrie Patten, passed away on Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at his home in Beaverton. He was 89 years old. Patten was not only an actor but a jazz musician who sang and played piano in jazz clubs. He recorded a CD of his favorites in 1997.
Natasha Richardson was a sparkling, beautiful woman whose work on stage and screen was captivating and warm. She had a wonderful smile. Her colleagues in Hollywood and Broadway have come out to send their condolences over the last 24 hours to Liam Neeson, Natasha’s husband, and their two boys.
Actor and political activist Ron Silver died yesterday after battling esophageal cancer for the last two years. Silver was best known for his on-going appearances on the popular television drama, The West Wing. I personally remember Silver for his reoccurring role in the 1990’s drama Chicago Hope, He was also a very vocal republican party activist after the events of September 11, 2001. Silver was 62 years old.
The son of Charlie Chaplin, actor Sydney Chaplin died on Tuesday, March 3, 2009 at his California home. He was 82 years old. Sydney was best known for his Broadway performances, winning a Tony Award for his work in the 1950s musical “Bells are Ringing.” He also performed with Barbra Streisand in the stage performance of Funny Girl. He was also fortunate to act along side his father in two films – Limelight and The Countess From Hong Kong.