#RIP #OTD in 1891 art dealer, younger brother of Vincent, Theo Van Gogh died from dementia paralytica caused by “heredity, chronic disease, overwork, sadness”, in Utrecht, Netherlands, six months after Vincent, aged 33. Cemetery of Auvers-sur-Oise, France, next to Vincent
#RIP #OTD in 1908 novelist (Under Two Flags, Signa) Ouida (Marie Louise de la Ramée) died in Via Zanardelli, Viareggio, Italy of pneumonia, aged 70. English Cemetery in Bagni di Lucca, Italy
On this day in 1990, Oscar nominated actess, Ava Gardner, died from pneumonia, in her London home at the age of 67. Born Ava Lavinia Gardner on 24 December 1922 in Grabtown, North Carolina. Her Academy Award for Best Actress nomination was for her work in Mogambo (1953). Gardner appeared in several high-profile films from the 1950s to 1970s, including; Show Boat (1951), The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1952), The Barefoot Contessa (1954), The Sun Also Rises (1957), On the Beach (1959), The Night of the Iguana (1964), Earthquake (1974), and The Cassandra Crossing (1976). She was married three times; Mickey Rooney (1942 – 1943 divorce), Artie Shaw (1945 – 1946 divorce) and Frank Sinatra (1951 – 1957 divorce). Gardner would later say in her autobiography that of all the men she had had, Sinatra was the love of her life. Sinatra left his wife, Nancy, for Ava and their subsequent marriage made headlines and Sinatra was savaged by gossip columnists, the Hollywood establishment, the Roman Catholic Church, and by his fans. Sinatra’s career was suffering while hers was prospering. Reportedly, Gardner used her considerable clout to get Sinatra cast in his Oscar-winning role in From Here to Eternity (1953). That role and the award revitalized both Sinatra’s acting and singing careers. They reportedly remained friends after the divorce. Gardner had other famous friendships; Howard Hughes and Ernest Hemingway. 
The Final Footprint – Gardner is interred in Sunset Memorial Park in Smithfield, North Carolina. Her grave is marked by an upright granite marker and a granite footmarker. In Tina Sinatra‘s book “My Father’s Daughter: A Memoir”, she writes that after Gardner’s death she found her father in his room crying. Supposedly, a floral arrangement was left at Gardner’s graveside with a card that read: “With My Love, Francis”.
#RIP #OTD in 2017 actor (Midnight Express, Alien, The Elephant Man, Harry Potter, V for Vendetta, Indiana Jones & the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Outlander, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) John Hurt died from pancreatic cancer at home in Cromer, Norfolk, England, aged 77. Cremation
| Mary Tyler Moore | |
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 at Broadway Barks, 2011 |
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On this day in 2017, actress Mary Tyler Moore died from cardiopulmonary arrest due to pneumonia at the age of 80 in Greenwich, Connecticut. Born January 25, 2017 in Brooklyn. Perhaps best known for her roles in the television sitcoms The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970–1977), in which she starred as Mary Richards, a single woman working as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961–1966), in which she played Laura Petrie, a former dancer turned Westchester homemaker, wife and mother. Her film work includes 1967’s Thoroughly Modern Millie and 1980’s Ordinary People, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.
Due to her roles on both The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Dick Van Dyke Show, in which her characters often broke from stereotypical images of women and pushed gender norms, Moore became a cultural icon and served as an inspiration for many younger actresses, and professional women. She was later active in charity work and various political causes, particularly the issues of animal rights, vegetarianism and diabetes. She was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes early in the run of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. She also suffered from alcoholism, which she wrote about in her first of two memoirs. She died from cardiopulmonary arrest due to pneumonia at the age of 80 on January 25, 2017.
in Johnny Staccato, 1960
With Dick Van Dyke, 1964
The original cast of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, 1970. Top: Valerie Harper (Rhoda), Ed Asner (Lou Grant), Cloris Leachman (Phyllis). Bottom: Gavin MacLeod (Murray), Moore, Ted Knight (Ted). The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970–1977
in 1978
at the 40th Primetime Emmy Awards (1988)
At age 18 in 1955, Moore married Richard Carleton Meeker. They divorced in 1961. Moore married Grant Tinker (1926–2016), a CBS executive (later chairman of NBC), in 1962, and in 1970 they formed the television production company MTM Enterprises, which created and produced the company’s first television series, The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Moore and Tinker divorced in 1981.
Moore married Robert Levine on November 23, 1983, at the Pierre Hotel in New York City.
The Final Footprint
She was laid to rest in Oak Lawn Cemetery, in Fairfield, Connecticut, during a private ceremony. Her granite marker is inscribed;
A statue, designed by Gwen Gillen, at Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis replicates the hat-tossing image that opened The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
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