'Diff'rent Strokes' star Conrad Bain dies at 89
LOS ANGELES: Actor Conrad Bain, best known for his role on the 1970s and '80s television comedy "Diff'rent Strokes" as a wealthy, white New Yorker who adopts two young black boys from Harlem, has died at age 89, his daughter said on Wednesday.
Bain, who starred opposite the young Gary Coleman on the NBC sitcom as his adoptive father, Philip Drummond, died of natural causes at a comfort-care facility in Livermore, California, east of San Francisco, on Monday. He was three weeks shy of his 90th birthday, according to his daughter, Jennifer.
Born
in Alberta, Bain served in the Canadian Army during World War Two,
became a U.S. citizen in 1946 and went on to a career as an actor on
Broadway and television. He often played erudite, professional
characters such as lawyers, executives, politicians or doctors.Following a recurring role on the daytime vampire drama "Dark Shadows" as an innkeeper, Bain broke into prime-time comedy with a supporting role on Norman Lear's "All in the Family" spin-off "Maude," which starred Bea Arthur in the title role.
On "Maude," Bain played a conservative physician and next-door neighbor, Dr. Arthur Harmon, who was frequently at political odds with the outspokenly liberal Maude but was best friends with Maude's husband, Walter.
At the end of that show's six-year CBS run in 1978, Bain landed his own sitcom, "Diff'rent Strokes," in which he played Drummond, a rich, widowed industrialist who takes in the two young sons of his housekeeper after she dies, creating a racially mixed family in an era when depictions of such households were rare on TV.
Joining Drummond's 13-year-old daughter, Kimberly, and a ditzy new housekeeper, Mrs. Garrett, the two boys, precocious 8-year-old Arnold, played by Coleman, and his quieter 12-year-old brother, Willis, find themselves in the lap of luxury as they adjust to a new life on Park Avenue.
The show ran for eight seasons, 1978-1986, on NBC, and went into wide re-run syndication around the world. Coleman's oft-repeated line to his brother, "What you talkin' 'bout, Willis?" became a pop culture catch phrase.
Coleman, who grappled with a series of financial, legal and domestic woes later in life, died in May 2010 at age 42 after suffering a brain hemorrhage.
Bain returned periodically to the stage during the show's network run and reprised the Philip Drummond role on a 1996 episode of "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," which starred Will Smith as a young rapper from a tough Philadelphia neighborhood who ends up living with wealthy relatives in California.
Bain also briefly co-starred on prime-time TV in the 1987-88 season in the Fox network political comedy "Mr. President," as the loyal chief of staff to the title character, played by George C. Scott.
Bain is survived by his daughter and two sons, Mark and Kent. (Reuters)
Elton John has second baby via surrogate
LONDON: British pop star Elton John and his partner David Furnish have become parents for a second time, they confirmed on Wednesday.
The
couple told Hello! magazine that they were "overwhelmed with happiness"
at the birth of their son Elijah Joseph Daniel Furnish-John, who was
born in Los Angeles on Friday to a surrogate mother."Both of us have longed to have children, but the reality that we now have two sons is almost unbelievable," they said.
The couple's first son Zachary was also born via a surrogacy arrangement in California in 2010.
"The birth of our second son completes our family in a most precious and perfect way," John and Furnish told the magazine.
"It is difficult to fully express how we are feeling at this time; we are just overwhelmed with happiness and excitement."
The "Candle in the Wind" singer, 65, has been in a relationship with 50-year-old film producer Furnish for almost 20 years and they have been in a civil partnership since 2005.
Last week the couple's spokesman denied reports they had become parents again, but they have often spoken of their desire for Zachary to have a sibling.
The baby shares his middle name, Daniel, with one of John's 1970s hits. (AFP)
'Argo' wins at Golden Globes, letdown for Spielberg
Affleck won both best dramatic film and director for his movie about a CIA mission to rescue diplomats in Tehran in 1979, while "Les Miserables" won best film, actor and supporting actress in the musical/comedy category.
As expected Daniel Day-Lewis won best drama actor for
his portrayal of Abraham Lincoln, but that was the only top award for
Spielberg's film, which had topped the nominations tally with seven at
the 70th annual Globe awards.And favorite Jessica Chastain meanwhile won best drama actress as a relentless CIA agent tracking down Osama bin Laden in Kathryn Bigelow's "Zero Dark Thirty," while Quentin Tarantino's "Django Unchained" won two key prizes.
But the night, to the surprise of some, belonged to Affleck, who took the top two prizes.
The actor-director, who plays a CIA agent who rescues six US diplomats from the Canadian ambassador's residence in Tehran in 1979, paid tribute to real-life agents and diplomats, including the actual character he played.
"Really this award is about Tony Mendez. You saw him. He's an American hero. He represents the (US) foreign service making sacrifices every day for Americans. Our troops overseas. I want to thank them very much," he said.
The movie has been accused of taking liberties with history, notably by exaggerating the role of the CIA in getting the US diplomats out, at the expense of the Canadian envoy in Tehran at the time.
But it was a vindication of sorts for Affleck, who was snubbed in the Oscar nominations announced last week, failing to win a best director nod.
Speaking backstage, George Clooney, a producer on "Argo," admitted he was "disappointed," and that Affleck "should have been nominated" for the February 24 Oscars show. "It's disappointing, but we're not dead yet," he added.
Meanwhile "Les Miserables," a musical adapted from the Victor Hugo book, won best musical/comedy movie, and Australian Hugh Jackman won best actor for his all-singing role, and co-star Anne Hathaway won best supporting actress.
Hathaway won for her portrayal of the young mother and prostitute Fantine, beating fellow nominees Amy Adams in "The Master," Sally Field in "Lincoln," Helen Hunt in "The Sessions" and Nicole Kidman in "The Paperboy."
Day-Lewis, who had been widely expected to win for his turn in "Lincoln," had to make do with being the only big winner for Spielberg's movie -- which has also topped nominations for next month's Oscars.
Former president Bill Clinton provided one of the biggest surprises of the night, taking the stage to pay tribute to Spielberg's movie and to the iconic 16th US president.
"A tough fight to push a bill through a bitterly divided House of Representatives -- winning it required the president to make a lot of unsavory deals ... I wouldn't know anything about that," he quipped.
Tarantino's blood-soaked spaghetti Western tribute "Django Unchained" meanwhile won two Globes: best supporting actor for Austrian Christoph Waltz, and best screenplay for the "Pulp Fiction" director himself.
"This is a damn surprise, and I'm happy to be surprised," said Tarantino, whose film tells the story of a freed slave (Jamie Foxx) who teams up with a dentist-turned-bounty-hunter a few years before the American Civil War.
British songstress Adele, making her first red carpet appearance since giving birth in October, won best song for the theme tune from James Bond blockbuster "Skyfall."
"Hunger Games" star Jennifer Lawrence won best musical/comedy actress for rom-com "Silver Linings Playbook," while best original score went to Ang Lee's Life of Pi." Scottish-themed "Brave" won best animated feature.
Best foreign language film went to Austrian Michael Haneke's "Amour," which won the Cannes Palme d'Or last year.
On the small screen, terrorism-themed thriller "Homeland" and the quirky Brooklyn hipster comedy "Girls" took top television honors.
"Homeland," which wrapped its second season on the Showtime cable channel last month, won for best dramatic series, as well as best actress and best actor for its two stars, Claire Danes and Damian Lewis.
One of the most intriguing moments of the night came from Jodie Foster.
Receiving a special award, the "Silence of the Lambs" star teased the Globes, hailing her female ex-partner as "one of the deepest loves of my life" - but then denying she was confirming longstanding rumors that she is lesbian.
"Seriously, I hope that you're not disappointed that there won't be a big coming-out speech tonight, because I already did my coming out about a thousand years ago, back in the Stone Age."
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