Legendary bluegrass musician Ralph Stanley died Thursday night at the age of 89. According to a message posted to Facebook by his grandson, Stanley succumbed to skin cancer after a long battle. The Bluegrass Hall of Famer and Grand Ole Opry member has a legacy that stretches back to the 1940s, but his musical contributions to the Coen Brother's 2000 film O Brother, Where Art Thou? introduced him to a new generation of fans. Known affectionately as "Doctor Ralph" after receiving an honorary Doctorate of Music from Lincoln Memorial University in 1976, Stanley was born in Dickenson County, Virginia, on Feb. 25, 1927. According to music lore,...
- 6/24/2016
- by Jordan Runtagh, @jordanruntagh
- PEOPLE.com
Gale Sayers’ life rights and his memoirs, I Am Third and Sayers: My Life And Times, have been optioned by Nicholas Sparks' production company with the goal being to produce a feature film that will, not strictly tell Sayers' story, but instead one that will focus primarily on the friendship between Sayers and his friend and Chicago Bears teammate Brian Piccolo. You might recall the 1971 made-for-television movie, Brian's Song, which told the story of that friendship - one that shattered racial boundaries (Sayers is black and Piccolo, white, in case it's not obvious) - and Piccolo's final days. Gale Sayers was played by Billy Dee...
- 3/14/2014
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Exclusive: Nicholas Sparks and Theresa Park have acquired Gale Sayers‘ life rights and his memoirs I Am Third and Sayers: My Life And Times and have partnered with Michael Costigan to produce a feature film that focuses primarily on the friendship between the NFL Hall of Famer and teammate Brian Piccolo when both started out in the backfield of the Chicago Bears. Although Piccolo led the nation in rushing at Wake Forest in 1964, he was considered undersized and didn’t get drafted but made the Bears as a free agent. Sayers came out of the University of Kansas considered the most talented running back in the draft crop and the Bears made him a first-round draft pick. His career took off immediately and he scored 22 touchdowns as a rookie, while Piccolo struggled just to hang on. In an atmosphere where white players and black players didn’t congregate much, the...
- 3/13/2014
- by MIKE FLEMING JR
- Deadline
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