RIP Anna Ranalli

 

Farewell to Miss Europe, Anna Ranalli: from sheiks to the spider, style icon. She was 84 years old

Corriere Adriatico

By Laura Ripani

February 15, 2026

 

SAN BENEDETTO To welcome her on Viale Buozzi, fresh from the title of Miss Europe, the escort of the traffic police was even mobilized. Anna Ranalli, the symbolic woman of the Sixties in a city that was exploding on the wave of the Economic Miracle, died yesterday at the age of 84.

The election

Her name will forever remain linked to the election that saw her triumph in 1960 in Beirut. She had been chosen by Ezio Radaelli on the advice of Mimmo del Moro out of over 200 contestants to represent Italy at the Miss Europe contest. It was the evening of June 11, 1960 when she was elected. On her way back, she paraded along the streets in an open car: next to her was the deputy mayor, Luigi Sciarra: confetti was thrown at her. She was the daughter of a taxi driver and had 3 sisters. Fabulous rumors immediately spread in the city, that she had even been courted by some sheikhs and her return was worthy of a Hollywood star.

She was a sort of testimonial ante litteram, with several tourists admitting that they had chosen San Benedetto because of this wonderful woman.

Ranalli - who in 1958 had interrupted her studies to enroll at the Experimental Center of Cinematography - was hired by the best Italian directors and made 7 films. The best known was "The Magnificent Three" with Walter Chiari, Ugo Tognazzi and Raimondo Vianello. After achieving popularity, she studied singing with the masters Francesco Ferrari and Bruno Zambrini, recorded some records and participated in the television program "Tempo di musica".

At the cinema she played some roles in comedies and mythological films such as Rocco and the sisters also directed by Giorgio Simonelli (1961), Le ambiziose, directed by Antonio Amendola, Maciste contro lo sceicco by Domenico Paolella (1962) and I 4 tassi, directed by Giorgio Bianchi (1963) then Perseo l'invincibile, directed by Alberto De Martino. As a singer she participated with Amore mio-mao in the "Six Days of Song" in 1961.

Private life

She left the cinema to devote herself to her family after marrying Gianfranco Battelli, a rally driver who had abandoned racing for her. He followed him to manage two hotels in Chianciano Terme. In recent years she had retired to private life between San Benedetto and Martinsicuro, unforgotten.

RANALLI, Anna (Anna Maria Ranalli)

Born: 1/21/1942, San Benedetto del Tronto, Marche, Italy

Died: 2/14/2026, Italy

 

Anna Ranalli’s western – actress:

The Magnificent Three – 1961 (Dolores)

RIP Tom Noonan

 

Tom Noonan Dies: ‘Robocop 2’, ‘Manhunter’, ‘Monster Squad’ Actor Was 74

DEADLINE

By Greg Evans

February 18, 2026

 

Tom Noonan, an actor who launched his career on the New York stage in the original 1978 Off Broadway production of Sam Shepard’s Buried Child before pivoting to indelible film performances as menacing villains in Manhunter, Robocop 2, Last Action Hero and The Monster Squad, died Saturday, February 14. He was 74.

His death was confirmed on social media by Karen Sillas, his co-star in the 1992 play What Happened Was… and its 1994 Sundance award-winning film adaptation, and Fred Dekker, director of 1987’s The Monster Squad. Additional details on his passing, including a cause of death, were not immediately available, but Silas noted in her post that Noonan passed away peacefully.

“Tom’s indelible performance as Frankenstein in The Monster Squad is a highlight of my modest filmography,” Dekker wrote on Facebook, adding, “Having been knocked out by his performance as Francis Dollarhyde in Michael Mann’s Manhunter, I desperately wanted Tom to read the script and consider the part, but I knew that nabbing him was probably a long shot. Nonetheless, he agreed to meet me at his Hollywood apartment to discuss the role.

“I knew the first thing a serious actor would want to know was that my vision for Frankenstein was serious and not ‘campy.’..In the end, he found the make-up ardous and annoying (he was fond of tearing it off after we wrapped, and one night didn’t even bother to take it off; just drove home in his Frankenstein appliance). But all in all, he was the proverbial gentleman and scholar, and the world has lost a great talent. R.I.P. Tom. Thanks for the great work.”

A noted playwright (in addition to What Happened Was…, he wrote 1993’s Wifey and 1999’s Wang Dang, among others), Noonan was born April 12, 1951 in Greenwich, Connecticut, the younger brother of John Ford Noonan Jr., who himself would go on to a successful playwriting career (A Coupla White Chicks Sitting Around Talking, The Year Boston Won the Pennant) and TV success (the elder Noonan was Emmy-nominated for his screenwriting work on St. Elsewhere).

The younger Noonan would become even more recognizable than his brother, with scene-stealing performances as a serial killer in Manhunter (1986), as Frankenstein’s Monster in The Monster Squad (1987), crime boss Cain in RoboCop 2 (1990), the assassin The Ripper in Last Action Hero starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, (1993), hacker Kelso in Heat (1995), Sammy Barnathan in Synecdoche, New York (2008), Mr. Ulman in The House of the Devil (2009), and the peace-seeking Reverend Nathaniel in Hell on Wheels (2011–2014). In the SyFy series 12 Monkeys, he played the villain variously known as The Tall Man and The Pallid Man (2015–2018) and he provided voices for the Charlie Kaufman-Duke Johnson animated film Anomalisa (2015).

Noonan’s earliest film roles were small parts in a trio of 1980 films helmed by heavyweight directors: Paul Mazursky’s Willie & Phil, Michael Cimino’s Heaven’s Gate and John Cassavetes’ Gloria.

Noonan also was a prolific TV presence, with appearances on The X-Files (he played an incarcerated serial killer in the notable “Paper Hearts” 1996 episode), Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Tales from the Darkside and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, the latter seeing his reteaming with Manhunter star William Petersen).

Other TV credits include Damages, Louie, The Leftovers, Monsters, The Equalizer and Early Edition, among many others.

Noonan was married to actor Karen Young from 1992 until their divorce in 1999. Complete information on survivors was not immediately available.

NOONAN, Tom

Born: 4/12/1951, Greenwich, Connecticut, U.S.A.

Died: 2/14/2026,

 

Tom Noonan’s westerns – actor:

Heaven’s Gate – 1980 (Jake)

Seraphim Falls – 2006 (Minister Abraham)

Hell on Wheels (TV) – 2011-2012, 2014 (Reverend Nathaniel Cole)

RIP Michel Charrel

This actor of the 1960s has left us at the age of 89, he rubbed shoulders with Lino Ventura and other personalities of the time

Purepeople

By Bertrand Bielle

February 16, 2026

 

French cinema is in mourning after the death of an emblematic actor at the age of 89. This familiar face to the audience had distinguished himself by his many supporting roles alongside big stars. A look back at the rich career of a generous and versatile actor.

French cinema is in mourning. "It is with infinite sadness that the Stéphane Lefebvre Artistic Agency announces the death of actor Michel Charrel, which occurred in Paris on February 14, 2026, at the age of 89. An exceptional talent and a man of great generosity, his departure leaves a huge void for all those who had the chance to know him. All our thoughts are with his family and loved ones," we have just learned this Monday, February 16, 2026.

Michel Charrel began his career in the early 1960s, and quickly established himself as an actor known for his supporting roles. He made brief appearances in notable productions of the time: we think of his participation in the Fantomas saga, carried by Louis de Funès and Jean Marais.

Michel Charrel has also distinguished himself on the small screen, and was notably in the cast of The Tiger Brigades, a cult series of the 70s, of which he will mark several episodes with his presence. "Like many actors of his generation, he made the television series a natural extension of his career in the cinema, accepting all registers with the same professionalism," underline our colleagues at Télé-Loisirs.

Michel Charrel, the big names in cinema with whom he played

His last film appearance was in 2020, when he played a hotel receptionist in Philippe Garrel's The Salt of Tears. In 2018, he appeared in the series Hippocrates, where he played Joseph Pires. Michel Garrel rubbed shoulders with legends of the 7th art in France, such as Jean Gabin in Le Pacha in 1968, or Lino Ventura and Bourvil three years earlier in Les grandes gueules. Or Catherine Deneuve in Belle de Jour, in 1967.

We can also highlight his collaborations with great directors, such as Claude Lelouch with The Good and the Bad (1975), to name but one. Michel Charrel was born on September 13, 1936 in Tarare (Rhône), near Lyon. An actor unknown to the general public, he has nevertheless had a great career, he who, as indicated by Télé-Loisirs, was known for "his ability to blend into all universes, from thrillers to comedies, including adventure films".

Over time, his name has come up regularly in the program schedules, in a TV movie, an episode of a series or a rerun of a classic where his familiar face reappears. It is therefore a striking figure of French cinema, who has just left us. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones.

CHARREL, Michel (Michel Pierre Victor Charrel)

Born: 9/13/1936, Tarare, Rhône, France

Died: 2/14/2026, Paris,

 

Michel Charrel’s westerns – actor:

Convoi de femmes – 1974 (captain)

 The Girls of the Golden Saloon – 1975 (Ringo)

RIP Delova Lence

 

Prominent Yugoslav actress dies: Lence Delova dies at the age of 77, sad news announced

Blic

February 15, 2026

 

At the age of 77, the prominent theater, film and television actress Lence Delova has passed away. The sad news was confirmed by the Drama Theater, her home stage where she left an indelible artistic mark over the decades of her work.

On the occasion of the departure of its long-time member, the Drama Theatre issued a statement: "It is with deep sadness and disbelief that we received the news that our dear colleague and actress, Lence Delova, has passed away."

- Her beauty, warmth and smile will forever be in our hearts and memories. The theater has lost an artist, and we have lost a friend and a wonderful person. Rest in peace. My condolences to his family and loved ones, he added.

Lence Delova was born on June 15, 1948, in Skopje, where she began her stage career as a youth actress in 1964. Since 1970, she has been a permanent member of the Drama Theatre ensemble, where she worked until her retirement in 2013.

On the theatre stage, she has created a rich opus of over 60 plays, interpreting roles in classical and contemporary works, including "Macbeth", "The Cherry Orchard" and "Whose Are You". In addition to theatre, she has also left a strong mark on film and television, with roles in more than 30 films, including "Wild Meat", "Ilinden", "Thessaloniki Patrigias" and "Before the Rain".

Throughout her career, she has performed numerous roles in drama and television. She won the 1978 October 13 Award for her performance in Hamlet as Ophelia. 1996: Award for Best Acting Achievement, awarded during the International Film Festival "Vojdan Chernodrinski" in Prilep, for the role of Trajanka in the film "Ni qar

LENCE, Delova

Born: 6/15/1948, Skoplje, Macedonia, Yugoslavia

Died: 2/15/2026, Skopje, Macedonia

 

Delova Lence’s western – actress:

Dust – 2001 (woman)

RIP Juan Carlos Desanzo

 

Juan Carlos Desanzo, emblematic director of Eva Perón and El Polaquito, died at the age of 88

The work of the renowned filmmaker leaves an artistic and ethical mark on generations that today value his commitment. His last appearance in Congress against the labor reform

infobae

By Iván Basso

February 16, 2026

Juan Carlos Desanzo, a key figure in Argentine cinema, has died at the age of 88, according to Argentine Film Directors (DAC). As a director, screenwriter and director of photography, his work spanned several generations and genres fundamental to national culture.

The news is an irreparable loss for the industry, recognized as one of the greatest authors of national cinema and for his permanent contribution to the identity of the sector.

Desanzo began his career in the 60s as a cinematographer in emblematic films. Among his most outstanding works are Un guapo del 900, La hora de los Hornos, The Players vs. Ángeles Caídos, Crónica de una señora, Los gauchos judíos, Juan Moreira, La Tregua, No toquen a la nena, El muerto, Los pasajeros del jardín and El infierno tan temido.

His work on these titles was praised for his variety of styles and a recognized technical ability within the medium. DAC described him as a constant companion and firm defender of the cinematographic work.

Since 1983, Desanzo has established himself as a director and screenwriter, adding essential titles for national cinema. Among them are El desquite, En retirada, La búsqueda, Al filo de la ley, Eva Perón, Hasta la victoria siempre, La venganza, El amor y el espanto, El Polaquito and Verano amargo.

 

Less thaa week before his death, Desanzo participated in a press conference at the National Congress next to the National Audiovisual Space. The director expressed significant support for the claim against the labor reform promoted by the Executive Branch. The renowned director, an emblematic figure of Argentine cinema, thus joined a diverse group of artists and legislators concerned about the fate of local cultural production. "When I made my film Eva Perón I was fervently supported by the Peronist deputy Patricia Bullrich," he said, with pure irony in his presentation.

The National Audiovisual Space brought together personalities from different areas of cinema, television and culture. Desanzo's participation strengthened the legitimacy of the claim, since his career as a filmmaker made him a respected voice inside and outside the audiovisual field.

For Juan Carlos Desanzo, cinema was much more than a vocation, it was his daily refuge. The photographer, also recognized for his extensive career and for having collaborated with central figures of Argentine cinema, defined his link with films and cameras from his earliest years.

"At the age of five I had to start working, my reality was very lacking," Desanzo said during a conversation with Coco Blaustein on Radio Nacional in 2020. The director recalled that his first tasks included distributing ice in a cart with ball bearings, an image that illustrates the precariousness of his environment.

The opportunity to discover cinema came by chance. "Once I had to talk to a man who asked me if he could deliver his brochures of his cinema to all the homes where he delivered the ice. So in exchange he let me enter the cinema as many times as he wanted for free. Every day of my life I went to the movies," he confessed, synthesizing in that experience the root of his love for the seventh art.

Throughout his career, he established himself as one of the most sought-after cinematographers in the country. He worked with Fernando "Pino" Solanas in projects with strong political and social content, such as La Hora de los Hornos (1968). About that experience, Desanzo defined the film as "a clandestine film" and recognized it as "an act of liberation." A statement that sums up the climate of the time and the risks taken by the filmmakers.

The farewell to the filmmaker will be in a private ceremony. Juan Carlos Desanzo's impact, commitment and strength will live on in the industry he helped build.

DESANZO, Juan Carlos

Born: 1/15/1938, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Died: 2/16/2026, Buenos Aires, Argentina

 

Juan Carlos Desanzo’s westerns – cinematographer:

Juan Moreira – 1973

Cacique Bandeira - 1975

RIP Robert Duvall

 

Actor Robert Duvall has died — he brought a compassionate center to edgy hard roles

NPR

By Glen Weldon

February 16, 2026

 

Over his long career, Robert Duvall brought a wide range of characters to life, from tough Marines to wistful, tender-hearted cowboys.

Duvall died on Sunday. His wife Luciana posted on Facebook on Monday, "Yesterday we said goodbye to my beloved husband, cherished friend, and one of the greatest actors of our time. Bob passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by love and comfort."

He was 95 years old.

In his first major movie role, in 1962, Robert Duvall appeared in only a handful of scenes. He didn't have a single word of dialogue. Yet the actor managed to make an indelible, star-making impression. The film was To Kill a Mockingbird. The role was Boo Radley.

Boo is the small town's recluse; he spends the movie as little more than a mysterious shape, cloaked in shadows. But in the film's final moments, he steps out nervously, into the light.

Duvall's features soften, he smiles slightly — and the menacing presence of Boo Radley transforms before our eyes into a figure radiating kindness and concern. The pure, elegantly nuanced physicality of that moment launched his career.

Robert Duvall came from a military family. He told NPR's All Things Considered in 2010 that he didn't so much discover acting as have it thrust upon him by his parents.

"I was at a small college in the Midwest," he said. "It was the end of the Korean war. I did go in the army eventually but [only] to get through college, to find something that would give me a sense of worth, where I got my first 'A'. It was my parents I had to thank for that."

As a young actor, he ended up in New York City, where he palled around with Gene Hackman, James Caan and his roommate Dustin Hoffman. It was over many coffees and conversations with them at Cromwell's Drug Store on 50th and 6th Avenue that he struck upon his personal philosophy of acting. His approach was direct and unpretentious, as he explained to the TV series Oprah's Masterclass in 2015: "Basically just talk and listen, and keep it simple. And however it goes, it goes."

After Mockingbird, his parts grew bigger: Films like Bullitt, True Grit, and M*A*S*H, in which he originated the role of the uptight Major Frank Burns.

But it was his role in 1972's The Godfather, as Tom Hagen, the Corleone family lawyer, that changed everything. Amid the film's operatic swirl of emotion, Tom Hagen was an island of calmness and restraint, so it might seem odd that Duvall often said it was one of his favorite roles of his career.

But his strength as an actor was always how unforced he seemed, how true. Others around him emoted, showily and outwardly — he always directed his energy inward, to find a character's heart. This was true even when he played roles with a harder edge.

In two films that came out in 1979 — The Great Santini and Apocalypse Now, both of which earned him Oscar nominations — Duvall played military men. In Santini, he was a bluff, belligerent Marine who bullied his sensitive son in an attempt to harden him into a man.

In Francis Ford Coppola's epically trippy Vietnam War film Apocalypse Now, Duvall was all charismatic swagger as Lieutenant Colonel Kilgore, who calls down an airstrike and delivers one of the most quotable lines in film history: "I love the smell of napalm in the morning. ... It smells like ... victory."

As he told Terry Gross on Fresh Air in 1996, the words followed him for the rest of his life.

"Yeah, that was a wonderful line," he said. "People come up to me and quote it to me like it's this in thing between me and them. Like they're the only ones who ever thought of it, but it happens with everyone in the same way."

He finally won the Oscar for 1983's Tender Mercies. He played a recovering alcoholic country singer trying to start his life over. Duvall did his own singing in that film.

He directed 1997's The Apostle, which he also wrote, produced and starred in, as an evangelical preacher on the outs with God. It earned him his fifth Oscar nomination for acting.

Over the course of an acting career that spanned decades, Duvall appeared in over 90 films. He took traditional, old Hollywood archetypes of masculinity — soldiers, cops and cowboys — and imbued them with notes of melancholy, a vulnerability that made them come alive onscreen.

DUVALL, Robert (Robert Selden Duvall)

Born: 1/5/1931, San Diego, California, U.S.A.

Died: 2/15/2026, Middleburg, Virginia, U.S.A.

 

Robert Duvall’s westerns - producer, director, writer, actor:

Stoney Burke (TV) - 1963 (Jody Pierce)

The Virginian (TV) 1963 (Johnny Keel)

Shane (TV) - 1966 (Tom Gary)

Cimarron Strip (TV) - 1967 (Joe Wyman)

The Wild Wild West (TV) – 1967 (Dr. Horace Humphries)

True Grit – 1969 (Ned Pepper)

Lawman – 1971 (Vernon Adams)

The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid – 1972 (Jesse James)

Joe Kidd – 1972 (Frank Harlan)

Lonesome Dove (TV) – 1989 (Augustus 'Gus' McCrae)

Convicts – 1991 (Soll Gautier)

Geronimo: An American Legend – 1993 (Al Sieber)

Open Range – 2003 (Boss Spearman)

Broken Trail (TV) – 2006 (Prentice Ritter) [producer]

A Night in Old Mexico – 2013 (Red) [producer]

Wild Horses – 2015 (Scott Briggs) [producer, director, writer]

In Dubious Battle – 2016 (Bolton)

 

RIP Dolores Munoz Ledo

 

Dolores Muñoz Ledo Ortega, icon of Mexican dubbing, dies at 107

The ANDA confirms the death of Dolores Muñoz Ledo Ortega, dubbing icon, at 107 years of age

Municipios Puebla

February 13, 2026

 

The artistic community of Mexico mourns the departure of Dolores Muñoz Ledo Ortega, known in the world of dubbing as "Marcela Septien", who died at the age of 107. The news was confirmed by the National Association of Actors (ANDA), which expressed its condolences to the actress's family and friends. So far, the cause of his death is unknown.

Dolores Muñoz Ledo Ortega will be remembered for her extensive career in dubbing films and radio soap operas, both in Mexico and in New York. Her career dates back to the 1940s, when she was hired by Metro Goldwyn Mayer to participate in the first dubbing of Spanish-language films.

Her most notable roles include the Spanish-language voice of Swedish actress Signe Hasso in productions such as Dangerous Partners, The Seventh Cross and Assignment in Brittan. In addition, she voiced characters such as Adrian Pennino in Rocky IV (1985), Mary in Gold in the Mud (1946), and Sandy Davyss in We Were the Sacrificed (1945), as well as numerous roles in films of the 1940s, including The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) and Marie Antoinette (1938).

Her talent also stood out in the field of radio soap operas, where he obtained great recognition in the 1960s for her participation in Kalimán: El juego de la muerte, one of the most emblematic productions of the medium.

On social networks, followers and colleagues of the media expressed their sorrow for the loss of a figure who marked the history of entertainment in Mexico, both in dubbing and radio, leaving a legacy that will be remembered for generations.

Dolores was married to Luis Rodríguez del Río, a radio producer for XEW, and was the mother of two sons: Luis Fernando and Sergio Alberto Rodríguez Muñoz Ledo. His zodiac sign was Aries, a reflection of the energy and determination that characterized his career.

LEDO, Dolores Muñoz (Maria Dolores Muñoz Ledo Ortega)

Born: 4/14/1918, Mexico City, Federal District, Mexico

Died: 2/13/2026, Mexico City, Federal District, Mexico

 

Dolores Muñoz Ledo’s western – voice dubber:

The Harvey Girls – 1946 [Spanish voice of Deborah Andrews]