The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen began as a 1958 novel, then a 1960 British film, which inspired a comic book series from 1999-2019, and another film in 2003. It might be set to return to the screen in the future. Let’s go back to the beginning before we go back to the future. British author Bertram…
Category: Men of Cultural Arts
Hugo Weaving – advocate for epilepsy awareness
Australian actor Hugo Weaving is best known for his work in movies such as The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994), three of The Matrix movies (1999-2003), The Lord of the Rings movies (2001-2003), Captain America (2011), and The Dressmaker (2015). He is less known for promoting awareness about his epilepsy. His British parents were working in Ibadan, Nigeria, when Hugo Wallace Weaving…
Sir Michael Caine – forever iconic, forever imitable, forever a gentleman
Double Oscar-winning British actor Michael Caine is often described as “the pin-up for gentlemen around the world.” There’s something about his laconic accent, his youthful charm, and his sharp style, that has kept in in the spotlight for seven decades, appearing in more than 160 films – he says as many as 175 if uncredited…
Idris Elba – promoter of diversity
British actor Idris Elba is not afraid to take on epic roles. Think of his biographical portrayal of Nelson Mandela in the 2013 film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom – the life of anti-apartheid activist and the first black head-of-state and president of South Africa (1994-1999) and the 2015 American war drama Beasts of No Nation about a young…
Clint Eastwood at 91 brings modern masculinity to the screen
At 91 years old, actor and director Clint Eastwood is still bringing his quiet intensity and modern masculinity to the big screen. His latest film is “Cry Macho” in which the nonagenarian filmmaker returns to 1970s drama. Film critic Eric Neuhoff says of “Cry Macho” that “there is in this pure and simple film, a…
Jean-Paul Belmondo and Stephen Vizinczey: Non-conformist, great and late at 88
Two men, who found fame in the 1960s – one in film and the other in literature – died in the past month in 2021 at the age of 88: Jean-Paul Belmondo, the French actor known for his portrayal in the 1960 film Breathless, and Stephen Vizinczey, the Hungarian-American author, for his novel In Praise of Older…
Mad Al Jaffee folds in at 99 years of age
Al Jaffee is the world’s longest-working comic artist. And he has just retired at the age of 99 years. Al Jaffee worked at the satirical Mad magazine for 65 years, drawing comics and creating the back-page Fold-In. His career at Mad began in 1955 and will end after his June 2020 retirement announcement. Throughout…
The man who wrote 1,001 novels: Kovvali Lakshmi Narasimha Rao
Kovvali Lakshmi Narasimha Rao, from Andhra Pradesh in India, wrote about 1,001 novels in his lifetime. He was born in Tanuku in the West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. In his 63 years, Kovvali Lakshmi Narasimha Rao (1912-1975) was a prolific story-teller, writing in his native Telugu language. His aim was to bring reading to…
Rami Malek: from flamboyant Freddy to supervillain Safin
Rami Malek will play the villain in the next James Bond film, No Time to Die, to be released in November 2020. He will play supervillain Safin. The audience will know Malek from his award-winning role as Freddy Mercury, the lead singer of the rock band Queen in the 2018 movie biopic Bohemian Rhapsody….
Lin-Manuel Miranda: from jingles to Jack
Lin-Manuel Miranda, the American composer, rapper, and actor, is taking a giant leap of faith into a children’s musical about a British nanny – a far cry from the hip hop, pop, rap, show-tune music of the award-winning 2015 Hamilton: An American Musical. From the history of the founding fathers to the diversity of character…
Lee Holley, cartoonist of Ponytail, a teenage girl, researched real life
American cartoonist, Lee Holley, was famous for his depictions of a teenage girl, Ponytail Johnson, from the 1960s to 1980s, which he researched by going to pizza parlors
Alan Root, wildlife filmmaker, dies at 80
Alan Root, wildlife filmmaker and famed for his innovative shots of animals made his home in Kenya