Golden Age Hollywood Star Ann Blyth Dies At The Age Of 98.

Ann (Anne) Marie Blyth, the singer and Oscar-nominated actress remembered for her unforgettable performance as Veda Pierce in the 1945 classic Mildred Pierce, has died at the age of 98.

The Hollywood Golden Age star died of natural causes on Wednesday, according to US media reports.

Blyth became widely known as Joan Crawford’s spoiled and scheming on-screen daughter in Mildred Pierce, a role she played as a teenager. Her performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress and helped make her one of the standout young stars of the era.

The film also brought Crawford the only Oscar of her career, for Best Actress, and remains one of the defining melodramas of 1940s Hollywood.

Born Ann Marie Blyth in Mount Kisco, New York, on 16 August 1928, Blyth began performing at a young age, first as a singer and stage performer before moving into films. Her soprano voice later helped her move naturally into musical roles.

Across the 1940s and 1950s, she appeared in a wide range of films, including Brute Force, Mr Peabody and the Mermaid, The Great Caruso, One Minute to Zero, The World in His Arms, The Student Prince, Kismet and The Helen Morgan Story.

Her career was briefly halted after she suffered a serious back injury in a toboggan accident, but she later returned to the screen and continued to work in film, theatre and television.

After stepping away from cinema in the late 1950s, Blyth made occasional television appearances, including roles in The Twilight Zone and Murder, She Wrote. Her final screen appearance came in a 1985 episode of Murder, She Wrote.

Blyth was married to James McNulty from 1953 until his death in 2007. The couple had five children. In 1973, she and her husband, both Roman Catholics were accorded the honorific rank of Lady and Knight of the Holy Sepulchre in a ceremony presided over by Cardinal Cooke.

She now leaves behind her a legacy as one of the last stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age, remembered for her grace, versatility and a chilling performance in Mildred Pierce that remains a landmark of classic American cinema.

Ms Jessie Buckley Wins UK Critics’ Top Acting Honour for Hamnet.

**“Audacter et Sincere”** – **Boldly and Sincerely**.

Kerry star Jessie Buckley has added yet another major industry prize to her growing list of honours, taking “Actress of the Year” from the Critics’ Circle for her performance in the Shakespearean drama Hamnet. The accolade was announced at the 46th London Critics’ Circle Film Awards, staged at London’s The May Fair 5 Star Hotel, and hosted by broadcaster and critic Mark Kermode.
Ms Buckley was recognised for her role in Chloé Zhao’s film, with Critics’ Circle members singling out her work.

The Critics’ Circle Film Awards are voted on by film writers and reviewers, and are widely seen as a useful barometer of critical consensus at the start of the year’s awards run.
Ms Buckley’s victory came on a night when Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another was named Film of the Year, while Timothée Chalamet collected Actor of the Year.
The ceremony also included prizes spotlighting British and Irish films, and new talent this year.

Here in Ireland, the news has also been welcomed in Thurles, Co. Tipperary, where Buckley is a former pupil of the Ursuline Convent Thurles. The latest honour adds to the sense of momentum around the County Kerry actress, whose recent work continues to place her among the most talked-about performers of her generation.

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‘Friends’ actor, Matthew Perry Found Lifeless.

Sadly, we learn this morning that ‘Friends’ actor, Mr Matthew Perry, who found fame playing the character Chandler Bing, has died in a suspected accidental drowning in a jacuzzi at his home. Mr Bing was aged just 54 years old.

His death comes after he recently published his memoir, informing his fans of how he had overcome drink and drug addictions, which had almost brought about his death.

Mr Perry was discovered dead at his mansion on Saturday morning last, October 28th; his body discovered by his assistant. It is understood that no foul play was involved.

In all Mr Perry spent 10 seasons playing ‘Chandler’ on ‘Friends’, while struggling with a string of addictions. His memoir ‘Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing: A Candid, Darkly Funny Book’ exposed his struggles with addictions that became so severe that 5 years ago, at the age of 49 years, he suffered a gastrointestinal perforation, as a result of his extreme opiate usage. Same issue gave him then just a 2% chance of living after being placed in a coma for some weeks, following which he had to use a colostomy bag, while his colon healed.

At the peak of his addictions he was consuming about 55 Vicodin (Trade Name) tablets a day and weighed just 128 pounds. This combination medication is used to relieve moderate to severe pain. It contains an opioid pain reliever hydrocodone and a non-opioid pain reliever acetaminophen. Same is an antitussive (cough suppressant) and narcotic analgesic agent for the treatment of moderate to moderately severe pain. Hydrocodone works in the brain to change how your body feels and responds to pain and since 2009, has been the second most frequently encountered opioid.

Mr Perry had stated “When I’m carrying weight, it’s alcohol; when I’m skinny, it’s pills; when I have a goatee, it’s a lot of pills.”

“Thank you for the years of laughter. In ár gcroíthe go deo”.

Time Comes For All Of Us.

Don’t let the old man in.

Vocals: American singer-songwriter and actor Toby Keith (Toby Keith Covel).

Lyrics: Toby Keith.

“Not letting the old man in”, could be the secret to living longer.
Song lyrics inspired by a question Toby Keith asked of American actor and film director Clint Eastwood (latter then aged 87 back in 2017). He asked how Eastwood managed to keep going at his age?
Clint Eastwood replied; “I just don’t let the old man in”.

Don’t let the old man in.

Don’t let the old man in,
I wanna leave this alone.
Can’t leave it up to him,
He’s knocking on my door.

And I knew all of my life,
That someday it would end.
Get up and go outside,
Don’t let the old man in.

Many moons I have lived,
My body’s weathered and worn.
Ask yourself how would you be,
If you didn’t know the day you were born.

Try to love on your wife,
And stay close to your friends.
Toast each sundown with wine,
Don’t let the old man in.

Many moons I have lived.
My body’s weathered and worn.
Ask yourself how would you be,
If you didn’t know the day you were born.

When he rides up on his horse,
And you feel that cold bitter wind.
Look out your window and smile,
Don’t let the old man in.

Look out your window and smile,
Don’t let the old man in.

END.