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Roscoe Lee Browne RIP
Anthony Zerbe and Roscoe Lee Browne
Actor Roscoe Lee Browne, whose rich voice and dignified bearing brought him an Emmy Award and a Tony nomination, has died. He was 81.
Browne died early Wednesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after a long battle with cancer, said Alan Nierob, a spokesman for the family.
Browne’s career included classic theater to TV cartoons. He also was a poet and a former world-class athlete.
His deep, cultured voice was heard narrating the 1995 hit movie “Babe.” On screen, his character often was smart, cynical and well-educated, whether a congressman, a judge or a butler.
Born to a Baptist minister in Woodbury, N.J., Browne graduated from historically black Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, where he later returned to teach comparative literature and French. He also was a track star, winning the 880-yard run in the 1952 Millrose Games.
Browne was selling wine for an import company when he decided to become a full-time actor in 1956 and had roles that year in the inaugural season of the New York Shakespeare Festival in a production of “Julius Caesar.”
In 1961, he starred in an English-language version of Jean Genet’s play “The Blacks.”
Two years later, he was The Narrator in a Broadway production of “The Ballad of the Sad Cafe,” a play by Edward Albee from a novella by Carson McCullers. In a front page article on the advances made by blacks in the theater, the New York Times noted that Browne’s understudy was white.
He won an Obie Award in 1965 for his role as a rebellious slave in the off-Broadway “Benito Cereno.”
In movies, he was a spy in the 1969 Alfred Hitchcock feature “Topaz” and a camp cook in 1972’s “The Cowboys,” which starred John Wayne.
“Some critics complained that I spoke too well to be believable” in the cook’s role, Browne told The Washington Post in 1972. “When a critic makes that remark, I think, if I had said, ‘Yassuh, boss’ to John Wayne, then the critic would have taken a shine to me.”
On television, he had several memorable guest roles. He was a snobbish black lawyer trapped in an elevator with bigot Archie Bunker in an episode of the 1970s TV comedy “All in the Family” and the butler Saunders in the comedy “Soap.” He won an Emmy in 1986 for a guest role as Professor Foster on “The Cosby Show.”
In 1992, Browne returned to Broadway in “Two Trains Running,” one of August Wilson’s acclaimed series of plays on the black experience. It won the Tony for best play and brought Browne a Tony nomination for best featured (supporting) actor.
The New York Times said he portrayed “the wry perspective of one who believes that human folly knows few bounds and certainly no racial bounds. The performance is wise and slyly life-affirming.”
Browne also wrote poetry and included some of it along with works by masters such as Lawrence Ferlinghetti and William Butler Yeats in “Behind the Broken Words,” a poetry anthology stage piece that he and Anthony Zerbe performed annually for three decades.
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One of Flap’s fondest memory of his University of Southern California undergraduate days was having Roscoe Lee Brown read poetry to his Freshman English class. It was ee cummings this Fall 1969 day.
Roscoe Lee Browne will be missed……..
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Giuliani Notes: Time Magazine – Rudy 35% McCain 20% Gingrich 11% Romney 10% Thompson 10%
Edwards’ Momentum Continues/Giuliani Still Leads Among Republicans
Giuliani Continues to Lead Among Republicans
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani continues to hold a double-digit lead over John McCain, the next closest Republican candidate. When registered Republicans are asked to choose among McCain, Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich or Fred Thompson for the nomination, Giuliani holds a 15 point lead over McCain with Gingrich, Romney and Thompson continuing to trail behind (35% Giuliani vs. 20% McCain vs. 11% Gingrich vs. 10% Romney and 10% Thompson).
When asked for a second choice for the Republican nomination McCain and Giuliani are on top at 22% and 21% respectively. Behind them are Gingrich (15%), Romney (14%) and Thompson (9%).
Trial Heats: Giuliani and McCain Edge Clinton, Giuliani and Obama Dead Heat
The GOP NUTS:
Rudy – 35%
McCain – 20%
Gingrich – 11%
Romney – 10%
Thompson – 10%
If the reader wants to read
Wonkette’sAna Marie Cox’ lame analysis it is here.The previous Time Poll GOP NUTS: (March 23-26)
Rudy – 35%
McCain – 22%
Romney – 11%
Gingrich – 12%
Thompson Not polled
Another good poll for the Mayor.
No candidate is threatening his double digit lead in the polls – even with the “gloves off” media bashing of the past 2-3 weeks.
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Giuliani Notes: More California Endorsements Announced
Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D Antonovich – Governor Schwarzenegger – Christine Antonovich
From the Giuliani campaign: Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s California Team Continues to Grow
The Giuliani Campaign announced today that Mayor Rudy Giuliani bolstered his California team by picking up more key endorsements throughout the state.
Assemblyman Greg Aghazarian, Assemblyman Cameron Smyth, and Assemblywoman Sharon Runner today signaled their support for Rudy Giuliani for President. Los Angeles County Supervisors Michael Antonovich and Don Knabe also announced their endorsement for Mayor Giuliani.
Mayor Giuliani has garnered significant support among key Republican leaders at all levels of government, including county, state, and federal representatives. Recently, U.S. Congressmen Ed Royce and George Radanovich joined Rep. David Dreier, Rep. Mary Bono, Rep. Devin Nunes, and Rep. Jerry Lewis as part of Team Rudy.
“Republicans across California continue to join our growing team,†said Giuliani’s campaign manager Mike DuHaime. “Mayor Giuliani’s positive message and record of results is resonating in California, which will play a prominent role in deciding the next Republican nominee.â€
Latest California Endorsements:
Assemblyman Greg Aghazarian – 26th Assembly District
- Served as Republican Caucus Chair in 2006, the second highest ranking Republican in the Assembly.
- Vice Chair of Public Safety Committee and serves on Rules Committee and Natural Resources Committee.
- Has received 100% job approval ratings from the California Chamber of Commerce and the California Taxpayers Association.
Assemblyman Cameron Smyth – 38th Assembly District
- Serves Los Angeles County, specifically parts of the city of Los Angeles and the cities of Santa Clarita, Simi Valley and Glendale.
- Former Mayor of Santa Clarita.
- Vice Chairman of the Environmental Safety and Toxic Material Committee.
Assemblywoman Sharon Runner – 36th Assembly District
- Represents the Antelope Valley and Victor Valley.
- Vice-Chair of Assembly Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism and Internet media
- Chair of Republican Women’s Caucus.
- Principal sponsor of Jessica’s Law, a statewide initiative in 2006 which passed overwhelmingly. The initiative provided comprehensive public safety measures to protect children and adults from sexual predators, and received national attention in 2006.
Board of Supervisors Member, Michael Antonovich – Los Angeles – 5th District
- Has served the two million residents of Los Angeles County’s Fifth Supervisorial District since 1980, including all or parts of the San Gabriel, Pomona, San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope Valleys.
- Former Chairman of the California Republican Party and former member of the California State Assembly.
- Appointed by Former Presidents Reagan and Bush to numerous presidential committees and commissions, including: Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, the U.S.-Japan Advisory Committee, the Commission on Privatization, the Missing Children Advisory Board and the U.S. Delegation to the United Nations International Conference on Indo-Chinese Refugees.
- Serving on the Board of Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the Southern California Regional Authority (Metrolink), the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority and the Southern California Air Quality Management District.
Board of Supervisors Member Don Knabe – Los Angeles County – 4th District
- His area covers over two million residents, the port of Los Angeles, the port of Long Beach, and Los Angeles International Airport.
- Following 9/11, he was appointed by the White House as a member of the State and local Officials Senior Advisory Committee to the President’s Homeland Security Advisory Council, the only person from California to be appointed to such a position.
- In 2006, he was appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger to the California Emergency Council.
- Leader on transportation issues, serving on the Board of Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the Southern California Regional Authority (Metrolink) and the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority.
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Rudy continues to gather up California endorsements. More will be forthcoming.
The BIG QUESTION: Will Arnold ENDORSE Rudy?
Flap bets YES.
The Governator wants to be a player and it is apparent from the polls that McCain, Romney et. al. are NOT going to win on February 5th 2008 in California.
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Stop the ACLU Blogburst Watch: Parents Can Stop ACLU Lawsuit Against Wilson Co. Schools
NewsChannel5.comA federal judge has granted permission to a group of parents to try to stop a lawsuit filed by the ACLU.
The suit claims Wilson County schools violated constitutional separation of church and state.
It alleges Lakeview Elementary school in Mt. Juliet and the Wilson County school board endorsed and promoted religious activities on campus that led to constitutional violations.Very short article, lacking much information, but here is an Oct.2006 piece from Alain’s Newsletter that gives a bit more detail.
Old Hickory, TN –
U.S. Senate candidate Bob Corker today said the Tennessee chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is woefully wrong to have filed what he called a “frivolous liberal lawsuit†against the Wilson County School District alleging a morning prayer endorsed by Lakeview Elementary School officials is a constitutional violation of church-state separation.“When the President declared September 14, 2001 — just two days after the attacks of 9-11 — a National Day of Prayer, no one sued him for crossing some arbitrary line between church and state,†said Corker. “We just bowed our heads and prayed. When a school in Wilson County or anywhere in our country allows children to do the same on the National Day of Prayer, or at a gathering at the flagpole, the courts ought to stay out of the way.â€
Corker said he supports the efforts of Mt. Juliet Commissioner Glen Linthicum, who said it was time for the community to take a stand against the ACLU lawsuit recently filed against the Wilson County School District. Linthicum co-sponsored a resolution unanimously approved last Monday night by the Mt. Juliet City Commission that encourages the elementary school and the Wilson School District to fight for their rights to religious expression.
“Like many parents across our state, I pray for my family everyday,†Corker stated. “We should never force anyone to believe a certain faith or pray a certain way,†Corker continued, “but if a school decides to set aside some time to allow children who wish to pray to do so, we ought to support that school and community. That is precisely what it means to protect our freedom of religious expression — and I will fight to do just that in the U.S. Senate if elected.â€
It appears that the ACLU has set it’s sights on this school district…The ACLU Targets Christians
This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 240 blogs already on-board.
Others Blogging:
Woman Honor Thyself linked with Stop the ACLU
Jo’s Cafe linked with Stop the ACLU BlogBurst
Stuck On Stupid linked with Stop The ACLU Blogburst: April 12, 2007
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Iraq War Watch: DNC Cannot Spell Baghdad
You bet and at least get the spelling right……… Undermine the troops and support America’s enemies – NICE!
Brought to you by the MORONS at the Democrat National Committee.
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Michael Ramirez on Don Imus
MSNBC said Wednesday it will drop its simulcast of the “Imus in the Morning” radio program, responding to growing outrage about the radio host’s racial slur against the Rutgers women’s basketball team.
“This decision comes as a result of an ongoing review process, which initially included the announcement of a suspension. It also takes into account many conversations with our own employees,” NBC news said in a statement.
Talk-show host Don Imus triggered the uproar on his April 4 show, when he referred to the mostly black Rutgers women’s basketball team as “nappy-headed hos.” His comments have been widely denounced by civil rights and women’s groups.
The decision does not affect Imus’ nationally syndicated radio show, and the ultimate decision on the fate of that program will rest with executives at CBS Corp. (CBS) In a statement, CBS reiterated that Imus will be suspended without pay for two weeks beginning on Monday, and that CBS Radio “will continue to speak with all concerned parties and monitor the situation closely.”
CBS puts off any further action…
Obama calls for Imus to be fired…
Hillary: ‘I’ve never wanted to go on his show…
Rosie on Imus: ‘Thought police’ are coming…
Pa. DJ Fired for Repeating Imus Comments…
Imus this morning: “These bastards went after me. They got me. But they didn’t catch me asleep”…..
Young Jeezy Ft. R.Kelly – Go GettaPrevious:
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Day By Day by Chris Muir April 12, 2007
