Death Wish director Michael Winner dead at 77 - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Vahan · 01-21-2013, 12:02 PM

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_2520346.html

LONDON -- "Death Wish" director Michael Winner, a British filmmaker, restaurant critic and bon vivant, has died at the age of 77.

Winner's wife Geraldine said he died Monday at his London home after an illness.

Winner's 30 movies included three "Death Wish" films starring the late Charles Bronson.

Born in London in 1935, Winner worked with Hollywood icons including Marlon Brando, Burt Lancaster, Robert Mitchum and Faye Dunaway – although many of his films sit at the schlockier end of the spectrum.

One of his earliest films was the 1962 nudist feature "Some Like It Cool"; later he specialized in thrillers and action movies, including "The Mechanic," "Scorpio" and the violent vigilante "Death Wish" series.

Winner never took criticism of his films too seriously.

"If you want art, don't mess about with movies," he once said. "Buy a Picasso."

He had a second career as restaurant critic with the "Winners Dinners" column in the Sunday Times newspaper. His acerbic verdicts got him barred from some eateries, and his highest praise was to declare a meal "historic."

In later years he was famous for a series of insurance ads with the catchphrase "Calm down, dear!" Prime Minister David Cameron once used the phrase to a female lawmaker in the House of Commons, prompting howls of outrage.

He also founded and helped fund a campaign to erect a London memorial to police officers killed in the line of duty.

Winner had experienced health problems since getting a bacterial infection from bad oysters in 2007.

He wrote his final column in December, but refused to say goodbye forever.

"Who knows, after Christmas I might make a comeback," he wrote. "How many times did Sinatra do it?"

His wife, a former dancer who married Winner two years ago, said he was "a wonderful man, brilliant, funny and generous. A light has gone out in my life."

Steve_uk · 01-26-2013, 08:36 PM

I'm surprised nobody has commemorated the death of British film director,newspaper columnist and raconteur Michael Winner,so I would like to make amends.

He was born in Hampstead,London in 1935 to an affluent Jewish family in the same era and not far geographically from Elizabeth Taylor and Jerry Springer. He graduated from Cambridge with a law degree and joined Motion Pictures Limited in 1956 as a writer and editor. His main claim to fame for American viewers was directing the film Death Wish starring Charles Bronson. He was a serial womaniser and once remarked:"Thank heavens Charles Bronson never found out I slept with his wife".

He led a turbulent life of luxury,then penury gambling away the family £10 million fortune then making money again. He starred in a series of commercials for insurance on British television becoming famous for his catchphrase "Calm down dear..it's a commercial". He also became a food critic for a national newspaper and became a television personality in the process. He exuded a warmth which belied his promiscuous activities.

He met his wife 56 years ago at the age of 21 but did not marry until 2011,in a wedding witnessed by Michael Caine and his wife Shakira. He died in Kensington,London earlier this month of liver disease with his wife by his side.http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...=feeds-newsxml

Vahan · 01-26-2013, 08:46 PM

I did, but the thread sank into oblivion.

Steve_uk · 01-26-2013, 08:53 PM

Oh thanks vahan for that mark of respect. It took me longer to find out where to post this than it did in writing the piece. Maybe we could have a thread reserved for obituaries.

JamesG · 01-26-2013, 10:05 PM

It's a good idea to use the "Search" feature to see if a topic has already been mentioned before creating a new thread.

Zoneboy · 01-26-2013, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vahan

I did, but the thread sank into oblivion.

Your thread is still on the first page of topics in the movies forum so it hasn't exactly sank into oblivion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve_uk

Maybe we could have a thread reserved for obituaries.

We have this one which will probably be updated for 2013 plus when a celebrity passes on there's an appropriate place for a thread and some more than one.

Zoneboy · 01-26-2013, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesG

It's a good idea to use the "Search" feature to see if a topic has already been mentioned before creating a new thread.

Agreed.

Steve_uk · 01-26-2013, 10:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zoneboy

Agreed.

Well there is so much drivel to search through on this site;some of it comes to one's inbox unsolicited..at least you now have two quality threads to read on the death of Michael Winner and just be grateful for that.

JamesG · 01-26-2013, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve_uk

Well there is so much drivel to search through on this site;some of it comes to one's inbox unsolicited..at least you now have two quality threads to read on the death of Michael Winner and just be grateful for that.

One thread now since they've been merged. There's no need for more than one thread about the same topic.

You just had to search "Michael Winner" in the Movies Search box. You can search through specific forums and not the whole board.

Even if you searched the whole website Vahan's thread would have been the first one to appear since it was a recent topic.

01-21-2013, 12:02 PM	#1
Vahan Member Senior Member Join Date: Jan 14, 2008 Posts: 2,712	Death Wish director Michael Winner dead at 77 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_2520346.html LONDON -- "Death Wish" director Michael Winner, a British filmmaker, restaurant critic and bon vivant, has died at the age of 77. Winner's wife Geraldine said he died Monday at his London home after an illness. Winner's 30 movies included three "Death Wish" films starring the late Charles Bronson. Born in London in 1935, Winner worked with Hollywood icons including Marlon Brando, Burt Lancaster, Robert Mitchum and Faye Dunaway – although many of his films sit at the schlockier end of the spectrum. One of his earliest films was the 1962 nudist feature "Some Like It Cool"; later he specialized in thrillers and action movies, including "The Mechanic," "Scorpio" and the violent vigilante "Death Wish" series. Winner never took criticism of his films too seriously. "If you want art, don't mess about with movies," he once said. "Buy a Picasso." He had a second career as restaurant critic with the "Winners Dinners" column in the Sunday Times newspaper. His acerbic verdicts got him barred from some eateries, and his highest praise was to declare a meal "historic." In later years he was famous for a series of insurance ads with the catchphrase "Calm down, dear!" Prime Minister David Cameron once used the phrase to a female lawmaker in the House of Commons, prompting howls of outrage. He also founded and helped fund a campaign to erect a London memorial to police officers killed in the line of duty. Winner had experienced health problems since getting a bacterial infection from bad oysters in 2007. He wrote his final column in December, but refused to say goodbye forever. "Who knows, after Christmas I might make a comeback," he wrote. "How many times did Sinatra do it?" His wife, a former dancer who married Winner two years ago, said he was "a wonderful man, brilliant, funny and generous. A light has gone out in my life."
	Last edited by Vahan; 01-21-2013 at 02:10 PM.

01-26-2013, 08:36 PM	#2
Steve_uk Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Jun 29, 2012 Location: Manchester UK Posts: 5,803	Michael Winner:1935-2013 I'm surprised nobody has commemorated the death of British film director,newspaper columnist and raconteur Michael Winner,so I would like to make amends. He was born in Hampstead,London in 1935 to an affluent Jewish family in the same era and not far geographically from Elizabeth Taylor and Jerry Springer. He graduated from Cambridge with a law degree and joined Motion Pictures Limited in 1956 as a writer and editor. His main claim to fame for American viewers was directing the film Death Wish starring Charles Bronson. He was a serial womaniser and once remarked:"Thank heavens Charles Bronson never found out I slept with his wife". He led a turbulent life of luxury,then penury gambling away the family £10 million fortune then making money again. He starred in a series of commercials for insurance on British television becoming famous for his catchphrase "Calm down dear..it's a commercial". He also became a food critic for a national newspaper and became a television personality in the process. He exuded a warmth which belied his promiscuous activities. He met his wife 56 years ago at the age of 21 but did not marry until 2011,in a wedding witnessed by Michael Caine and his wife Shakira. He died in Kensington,London earlier this month of liver disease with his wife by his side.http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...=feeds-newsxml

01-26-2013, 08:46 PM	#3
Vahan Member Senior Member Join Date: Jan 14, 2008 Posts: 2,712	I did, but the thread sank into oblivion.

01-26-2013, 08:53 PM	#4
Steve_uk Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Jun 29, 2012 Location: Manchester UK Posts: 5,803	Oh thanks vahan for that mark of respect. It took me longer to find out where to post this than it did in writing the piece. Maybe we could have a thread reserved for obituaries.

01-26-2013, 10:05 PM	#5
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,168	It's a good idea to use the "Search" feature to see if a topic has already been mentioned before creating a new thread.