Clinic denies Joan Rivers had a biopsy
The endoscopy clinic that was treating Joan Rivers when she went into cardiac and respiratory arrest is refuting a report that it occurred during a biopsy, reports CNN.
Manhattan’s Yorkville Endoscopy clinic says there is no truth to a New York Daily News story that said Rivers’ doctor made an impromptu decision to cut out a polyp on the comedian’s vocal cord.
Their statement also denied rumours that general anesthesia contributed to the situation: “General anesthesia has never been administered at Yorkville Endoscopy,” it said.
Nevertheless, the clinic is under review by the New York State Health Department.
After Rivers’ breathing and circulation stopped during the Aug. 28 procedure, she was rushed to Mount Sinai Medical Center and put into a medically induced coma to guard against brain damage.
After several days on life support, she died on Sept. 4. USA Today
Actor who played ‘Jaws’ dead at 74
The actor who played Jaws, the indestructible James Bond villain, has died.
Richard Kiel, the legendary villain in 1977’s The Spy Who Loved Me and 1979’s Moonraker, died on Wednesday afternoon at age 74, his longtime representative confirmed.
“A giant man has now left the stage,” said Steve Stevens. “Richard Kiel was a giant talent, a great family man and he was also a giant friend.”
Stevens would not specify the cause of death. The website TMZ.com originally broke the news, saying the actor had broken his leg last week and was in a Fresno, Calif., hospital.
The 7-foot-2 actor portrayed a multitude of characters during his 50year acting career. But none was more famous than Jaws, the steeltoothed Bond hit man trying to kill 007 ( Roger Moore).
The actor also starred in the Adam Sandler golf film Happy Gilmore, played Voltaire in The Wild, Wild West, the giant alien Kanamit in The Twilight Zone and voiced the villain Vlad in 2010’s Tangled. USA Today
Music, comedy part of Walk of Fame fest
From rock ’n’ roll superstars to a country crooner and an actor who keeps us in stitches, some of Canada’s biggest talents will grace the stage at Canada’s Walk of Fame Festival next week.
Burton Cummings will headline the first night of the festival, performing at Massey Hall with guest LeE Harvey Osmondon Thursday, Sept. 18.
The festival will switch to country on Friday night, when Nova Scotiabased Dean Brody headlines at Massey Hall. Canadian country duo Doc Walker will open the show with an acoustic set.
Saturday’s show promises “a little bit of mayhem” as Matthew Good and Jay Baruchel take the stage in an unscripted performance called “Not So Private Banter.” Good will provide acoustic accompaniment to Baruchel’s musings.
The festival will also feature free shows at David Pecaut Square from Sept. 22 to 24.
Mystery writer Maureen Jennings will give a reading on Sept. 22 and comedian Glen Foster will perform on Sept. 24.
More than a dozen musical acts will also appear, including Montreal’s Karl Wolf and Toronto songstress Jessica Mitchell.
A full schedule of events can be found on the festival’s website. Gemma Karstens-Smith
Canadians part of World Ballet Day
The National Ballet of Canada is one of five ballet companies to take part in the first ever World Ballet Day. On Oct.1, each of the five companies will stream several hours of live behind-the-scenes video from their rehearsal studios, beginning with the Australian Ballet in Melbourne. The streaming will cross time zones to the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow, the Royal Ballet in London, the National Ballet in Canada and the San Francisco Ballet. In a news release, the National Ballet said each company’s streaming will begin with morning classes and move on to rehearsals for upcoming performances in “a celebration of dance, the athleticism and unparalleled dedication of all those involved in creating a world-class ballet company.” Viewers will be able to ask questions of dancers, choreographers and coaches. In Toronto’s case, the dancers will be rehearsing Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s Manon, which opens the 2014-15 season on Nov. 8, and John Neumeier’s Nijinsky, which runs Nov. 22 to 30. The day’s streaming will be repeated on YouTube and edited highlights will be made available. Star staff
TV show is Survivor for U.S. senators
Two freshmen U.S. senators from opposite sides of the political aisle said Thursday they survived and even co-operated while spending a week marooned together on a remote island for a new reality show, Rival Survival. New Mexico Democrat Martin Heinrich and Arizona Republican Jeff Flake said they hope their adventure, scheduled to air Oct. 29 on Discovery, inspires their colleagues in Washington to work together. Discovery says the show was filmed on the island of Eru in the Marshall Islands while Congress was on its August break. It describes the island “as an utterly unforgiving deserted destination where the reefs alone are fraught with dangers that include venomous stonefish, lionfish and scorpion fish.” The senators were each allowed to pick three survival items from what Discovery called a modest list then were left to find food, water and shelter.