Francesco Maselli, Influential Italian Auteur, Dies at 92

A post shared by Sam Lerner (@samlerner)“Everyone that knows him knows how insane he was— in the best way. I’m so lucky I got to spend so much time with him, and we’re all lucky we can continue to watch his work for the rest of time.

“The Goldbergs,” announced his death in an Instagram post shared Sunday afternoon.“We lost a legend last night. It’s hard to put into words how brilliant my uncle Michael was, and how influential he was to me,” Sam wrote.

Comedian Gareth Richards, a former radio co-host of Frank Skinner, has died almost two weeks after suffering brain injuries in a motorway crash. Skinner broke down in tears live on his show in the days after the collision as he told listeners that his friend was fighting for his life. Richards died of his injuries on Friday, his wife Laura said in a post on social media paying tribute.

Jacques Haitkin, the cinematographer on the first two Nightmare on Elm Street films as well as myriad other horror and action movies, has died. He passed on March, 21 after a battle with ALS and Leukemia, according to a Facebook post by his son Zak Haitkin. He was 72.

Sara Foster, daughter of legendary musician David Foster, disavowed "liberal politicians" as details emerged about the death of tech entrepreneur Bob Lee. Lee, the 43-year-old founder of Cash App, was fatally stabbed at around 2:30 a.m.Tuesday in the Rincon Hill area of San Francisco. Authorities have not identified a suspect in the attack.

Sophia Scorziello editor Leo D. Sullivan, an Emmy-winning pioneer in animation with a career of over 50 years and work on dozens of cartoons, has died. He was 82. Sullivan died March 25 of heart failure at Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles Medical Center. Throughout his career, Sullivan helped bring characters to life through his animation, storyboarding, directing and producing. His work spanned numerous television shows, including “Hey, Hey, Hey, It’s Fat Albert,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “My Little Pony” and “Flash Gordon,” along with companies like Hanna-Barbera, Warner Brothers and Spunbuggy Works. Sullivan contributed to the opening animation on “Soul Train” which premiered in 1971.

The founder of the mobile payment service Cash App was fatally stabbed on a San Francisco street yesterday, his family confirmed today.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Bob Lee, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur, investor and executive who created Cash App, died Tuesday after he was fatally stabbed in San Francisco, according to reports. He was 43. Lee was formerly CTO of Jack Dorsey’s payments company Square (which is now called Block) and most recently was the chief product officer at cryptocurrency company MobileCoin, which he joined in late 2021. The San Francisco Police Department said in an announcement that it responded to a report of a stabbing near the 300 block of Main Street on April 4 at about 2:35 a.m. SFPD did not identify the victim. NBC Bay Area and other outlets subsequently reported that the victim of the stabbing was Lee.

A well-known tech executive was stabbed to death in San Francisco on Tuesday. Bob Lee, who was one

Cash App founder Bob Lee has been killed.

Disney+ and Hulu, and on the Nat Geo TV and ABC apps.Starring Bel Powley as Miep and Liev Schreiber as Otto Frank, “A Small Light” also stars Amira Casar as Edith Frank, Billie Boullet as Anne Frank, Ashley Brooke as Margot Frank, Andy Nyman as Hermann van Pels, Caroline Catz as Auguste van Pels, Rudi Goodman as Peter van Pels and Noah Taylor as Dr. Fritz Pfeffer.

J. Kim Murphy Stefan Grygelko, a pillar of the San Francisco drag community who performed under the persona Heklina, was found dead Monday in London. Heklina was 54. Heklina was discovered by Peaches Christ (fellow drag performer Joshua Grannell) on Monday morning. The pair had been touring with their stage production “Mommie Queerest,” a parody of the 1981 cult feature “Mommie Dearest,” which was slated for a two-week run at the Soho Theatre. No official cause of death has been released. “I am shocked and horrified to bring this news to you. I am living in a real-life nightmare so forgive me if I don’t have all the answers just now. This morning, in London, England I went to collect my dear friend Heklina, who is costarring with me in a Mommie Queerest show here, and found her dead,” Peaches Christ wrote in a statement on social media. “Heklina is not just my best friend, but a beloved icon of our community. I am a mess.”

Sharon Acker, best known as Lee Marvin’s unfaithful wife in the 1967 film Point Blank, died March 16 in a Toronto residential home. She was 87 and her death was confirmed by daughter Kim Everest, a casting director. 

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Bobby Moresco, who won an Oscar as co-writer of “Crash,” and more recently directed “Lamborghini – The Man Behind the Legend,” is set to direct the biopic “Maserati: A Racing Life” about the family that in 1914 started making the high-performance Maserati automobiles in a garage in Bologna. Like “Lamborghini,” the Maserati origins movie is being produced by Andrea Iervolino’s ILBE Group, in which he is partnered with Monika Bacardi. ILBE has taken a liking for films about Italy’s iconic automakers. They are also among producers of Micheal Mann’s upcoming “Ferrari” with Adam Driver, Penélope Cruz and Shailene Woodley. 

HYBE Labels subsidiary ADOR, home to K-pop girl group NewJeans, have opened online auditions for a potential new boyband.Today (March 28), ADOR unveiled several posters and videos on social media and YouTube announcing its ‘The Real Hype Boys’ audition. The label will be accepting online auditions on ador.world from now until 1pm KST on April 14.An unnamed male trainee as well as the members of NewJeans feature in the promotional video for the auditions, which details the online application period and host countries where in-person auditions will take place.Per ADOR’s guidelines, the auditions are open to boys born between 2004-2012.

Author Bill Zehme, the last person to interview Johnny Carson and biographer of Frank Sinatra and Andy Kaufman, has died. He was 65 and passed in Chicago after a long battle with colorectal cancer.

statement on the SFPD’s Facebook page, Vandergrift was considered “at-risk” when he was first reported as missing. In a March 1 message to and for Vandergrift’s fans, his wife Natasha Yi thanked iHeart Radio and his listeners for staying with her through his disappearance.  “I can feel your love and energy for JV, and I am so grateful for it,” Yi’s statement reads.

Thania Garcia The body of San Francisco radio host Jeffrey Vandergrift was found at Pier 39 on Wednesday, nearly one month after he went missing. He was 55. The San Francisco Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed his death to Variety in a statement, while Vandergrift’s radio station confirmed the loss on Thursday in a statement posted to their website and social media. “With a heavy heart, we must confirm that the body found near Pier 39 on Wednesday afternoon has been identified as our dear friend, family member & colleague, JV,” the statement reads. “We are devastated to know now that JV is gone. Please keep his wife Natasha, his family, and close friends in your thoughts and prayers.”

Jeffrey Vandergrift, a longtime and beloved San Francisco radio host and disc jockey known as DJ JV, has been confirmed dead after going missing last month.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Italian director Susanna Nicchiarelli, whose trilogy of female biopics, “Nico, 1988,” “Miss Marx,” and “Chiara” all launched from the Venice Film Festival, is set to direct the TV series “Fireworks” depicting the struggle of Italy’s partisans against Nazis and Fascists through the point of view of a twelve-year-old girl named Marta. Shooting is set to start on May 8 in the Piedmontese Alps on “Fireworks,” which is being produced by Domenico Procacci’s Fandango and Rome shingle Matrioska. Fandango, who is the show’s lead producer, is in advanced talks with Italian state broadcaster RAI to come on board. Fandango is also talking up the six-episode limited series at the Series Mania confab in Lille, France, where they are seeking prospective international partners.