RIP Matthias Wendlandt

 

"Hello Dad. Why don't you shoot Karl May!" – Matthias Wendlandt has died unexpectedly

Karl May & Co.

By Michael Kunz

May 31, 2026

 

Matthias Wendlandt is dead. The Berlin producer died unexpectedly on Friday during a stay in Los Angeles, shortly before his 74th birthday on June 2.

Since the death of his father Horst in 2002, Matthias Wendlandt has been managing the business of Rialto Film, together with his son Felix. He himself became legendary in the early 60s in a newsreel when he went to his father with a cowboy hat on his head and formulated the legendary request: "Hello Daddy. Why don't you shoot Karl May!"

Later, he didn't want to remember the truth of the moment for sure, but with a smile he thought it was quite possible. He worked as an actor and cinematographer before moving into the producer's chair. Matthias Wendlandt is in the credits of films such as "Troublemakers", the last joint western of Bud Spencer and Terence Hill, "Palmetto" and the Winnetou three-parter from RTL.

When it came to Karl May, he was always welcome as an interview guest, supported the group of Berliner Filnfreunde (KMFF) in many projects and in this way also KARL MAY & Co. on several occasions.

On May 2, he had attended the latest event of the Film Friends, who were shocked by the bad news. He had flown to California the next day. His return flight was planned for this weekend in view of his birthday and that of his sister on June 1. Now he has not returned to Germany. Matthias Wendlandt is survived by his wife Rosi, the aforementioned son Felix and daughter Laura.

WENDLANDT, Matthias

Born: 6/2/1952, Berlin, Berlin, Germany

Died: 5/29/2026, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

 

Matthias’ Wendlandt’s westerns – producer, himself

Troublemakers – 1994 [producer]

In the Footsteps of Winnetou (TV) – 2004 [himself]

Lex Barker Documentary – 2010 [himself]

Bud's Best - Die Welt des Bud Spencer – 2012 [himself]

85! Das Bud Spencer Spezial (TV) – 2014 [himself]

Winnetou: the Myth Lives (TV) – 2016 [producer]

The Terence Hill Story – 2019 [himself]

Lex Barker – Western Hero and Playboy – 2023 [himself]

RIP Lau Shun

 Hail the Judge actor Lau Shun dies at 87

asia one

By Drima Chakraborty

May 29, 2026

Veteran Hong Kong actor and Cantonese opera director Lau Shun has died aged 87.

News of his death was shared by fellow opera and film actor Law Kar-ying, who wrote on Weibo today (May 30): "My senior Lau Shun passed away at 6pm yesterday.

"He was born in the Year of the Rabbit and was 87."

Kar-ying also paid tribute to Lau Shun, saying that the latter made great contributions to the Cantonese opera scene, and helped many others improve their acting over the years.

Born in Beijing in 1939, Lau Shun graduated from the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts in 1958 before embarking on an illustrious opera career. He moved to Hong Kong in the 1980s.

His notable movie appearances include Swordsman (1990), for which he earned a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the 10th Hong Kong Film Awards, Dragon Inn (1992), and Hail the Judge (1994), where he played a eunuch opposite Stephen Chow.

One of his latest movies was 2013's The Grandmaster.

Though he was rarely cast in a leading role, Lau Shun's versatility earned him the moniker "Thousand-Faced Buddha" as well as "Golden Supporting Actor".

According to the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts, Lau Shun devoted the later part of his career to adapting and directing Chinese operas and was appointed their Programme Coordinator and Artistic Advisor in 2000.

The Academy also awarded him an honorary fellowship in 2019.

SHUN Lau

Born: 4/10/1939, Beijing, Republic of China

Died: 5/29/2026, Hong Kong, China

 

Shun Lau’s western – actor:

Paradise Hotel – 1995 (blind musician)

RIP Howard Storm

 

Howard Storm Dies: Veteran TV Director Of ‘Mork & Mindy,’ ‘Valerie’ And More Was 95

DEADLINE

By Tom Tapp

May 26, 2026

 

Howard Storm, a veteran television director who shot many episodes of Mork & Mindy, Rhoda, Valerie and many other shows, passed away on May 26. He was 94.

Storm’s career included an extraordinary 59-episode run on Mork & Mindy as well as episodes of ALF, Full House, Head of the Class, Major Dad, Perfect Strangers, Kenan & Kel, Everybody Loves Raymond, Angie and Doc.

Storm got his start as a a stand-up comedian. He performed in Las Vegas, opened for Andy Williams and appeared on The Merv Griffin Show more than a dozen times.

His TV acting career began in the early sixties with appearances on shows such as The Untouchables and later Love, American Style and That Girl.

At about the same time, he began crafted scripts for The Partridge Family, Happy Days and The Bob Newhart Show. He also forged an early creative bond with Woody Allen, serving as Allen’s assistant and collaborator on Bananas and Take the Money and Run.

In 1975, Storm transitioned into directing. He became closely associated with TV legends James L. Brooks and Garry Marshall, helming episodes of their classic shows, including Laverne & Shirley and Taxi.

He directed his only theatrical feature film in 1985: Once Bitten. It starred Lauren Hutton and a then-unknown Jim Carrey.

In the early aughts, Storm served as National Awards Chairman for the DGA.

Storm is survived by his sons Anthony and Casey Storm, his daughter-in-law Julia and his grandsons Leo and Sidney. He was preceded in death by his wife, Patricia.

STORM, Howard (Howard Sobel)

Born: 12/11/1931, New York City, New York, U.S.A.

Died: 5/26/2026, Beverly Hills, California, U.S.A.

 

Howard Storm’s westerns – actor, director:

The Good Guys and the Bad Guys – 1969 (Harry)

Best of the West – 1981-1982 [director]

Tall Tales & Legends (TV) – 1985-1988 [director]

RIP Sergio Smacchi

 

Highly respected stuntman and actor Sergio Smacchi died in Rome on February 22, 2026. Born in Rome on April 5, 1940, Smacchi appeared in well over 100 films as both an actor and stuntman and in many cases both in the same film. His first film was in 1964’s “Anthar l'invincibile” as an actor and performing stunts. He was part of the stunt group Il team di Musumeci Greco. Sergio would continue his career up until his final film in 2005 “Romanzo Criminale” where again he was both an actor and performed stunts.

Smacchi worked on 21 films with Terrence Hill and Bud Spencer as well as the 33 Spaghetti westerns listed below.

SMACCHI, Sergio

Born: 4/5/1940, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Died: 2/22/2026, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Sergio Smacchi's westerns - stuntman, actor:

Zorro the Rebel – 1966 (wedding guest)

Ballad of a Gunman – 1967 (saloon brawler)

Don’t Sing, Shoot! (TV) – 1967 [stunts]

Stranger Say Your Prayers – 1967 (man outside Jefferson Bank)

The Longest Hunt – 1968 (saloon patron) [stunts]

The Forgotten Pistolero – 1969 [stunts]

The Unholy Four – 1969 (gambler)

Fistful of Lead – 1970 (Mantas’ henchman) [stunts]

A Man Called Apocalypse Joe – 1970 (Berg henchman)

They Call Me Trinity – 1970 (Mescal henchman)

The Twilight Avengers – 1970 (saloon patron)

The Ballad of Ben and Charlie – 1971 [stunts]

Blazing Guns – 1971 (soldier) [stunts]

Guns for Dollars – 1971 (Krantz henchman) [stunts]

His Name was King – 1971 (smuggler) [stunts]

The Price of Death – 1971 (miner)

Trinity is STIL My Name – 1981 (Parker henchman)

Two Sons of Trinity – 1971 (Django)

Alleluia and Sartana, Sons of God – 1972 (brawler)

Jesse and Lester, Two Brothers in a Place Called Trinity – 1972 (saloon brawler)

On the Third Day Arrived the Crow – 1972 (Sloane brother)

The Return of Hallelujanh – 1972 (Drake henchman)

Stay Away from Trinity When He Comes to Eldorado – 1972

Trinity & Sartana Those Sons of Bitches – 1972 (‘El Tigre’/Tiger henchman)

Where the Bullets Fly – 1972 (General Cagoso/Colonel Hotshot henchman)

Karate, Fists and Beans – 1973 (Chinese eatery dinner) [stunts]

The Man Called Invincible – 1973 (monk) [stunts]

Challenge to White Fang - 1974 (Beauty Smith henchman)

The Crazy Bunch – 1974 (‘Pimple Nose’ Stryker)

White Fang and the Gold Diggers – 1974 (Garrick)

White Fang to the Rescue – 1974 (Benjamin ‘Ben’ Dover)

Buddy Goes West – 1981 (Colorado Slim henchman) [stunts]

Thunder Warrior – 1983

RIP Peter Helm

 

Peter Helm, Actor in ‘Inside Daisy Clover’ and ‘The Andromeda Strain,’ Dies at 84

He appeared on Broadway with Jane Fonda and Joey Heatherton and was busy on TV in the 1960s, with turns in ‘Wagon Train,’ ‘The Donna Reed Show,’ ‘The Fugitive’ and more.

The Hollywood Reporter

By Mike Barnes

May 23, 2026

 

P eter Helm, the actor from Toronto who appeared on such 1960 shows as Naked City, Wagon Train and Ironside and in films including The Longest Day, Inside Daisy Clover and The Andromeda Strain, has died. He was 84.

Helm died Thursday in his sleep at his home in West Hills, his friend David Timmerman told The Hollywood Reporter.

Survivors include his sister, actress Anne Helm (Follow That Dream, The Magic Sword, The Iron Maiden), and a daughter, actress Tiffany Helm (Friday the 13th: A New Beginning).

The colorful Helm appeared alongside Jane Fonda, Dean Jones and Joey Heatherton on Broadway in 1960 in the Josh Logan-directed There Was a Little Girl, a drama about rape, then acted onstage with Myrna Loy in a 1962 production of James Kirkwood’s There Must Be a Pony that aimed for Broadway but missed.

He and Heatherton would enjoy a great friendship while traveling the world together over the years, and she told THR that he was “a great actor and a great person, top of the world.” The pair also worked with George Carlin at the start of his career, and the comedian once called Helm one of the funniest men he had ever met.

On the big screen, Helm portrayed an ill-fated G.I. in the Darryl F. Zanuck-produced The Longest Day (1962) and the social climber Milton Hopwood opposite Natalie Wood in Robert Mulligan’s Inside Daisy Clover (1965), then sent the sci-fi plot in motion as one of the two Air Force officers who spot a U.S. satellite going down in Robert Wise’s The Andromeda Strain (1971).

Peter John Helm Jr. was born on Dec. 22, 1941. After the death of his banker father, John, his mother, Isabel, brought his older sister to New York in 1952 to support her ballet ambitions, and he and his half-brother, David, came along.

Helm made his onscreen debut on a 1959 episode of the NBC sitcom Too Young to Go Steady, then showed up as fresh-faced types on such series as Dr. Kildare, The Donna Reed Show, Tales of Wells Fargo, Naked City, Rawhide, The Fugitive, Combat!, Mr. Novak, The Farmer’s Daughter, Perry Mason and Bonanza through the mid-1960s.

His final onscreen credit came on a 1971 episode of The Smith Family.

In 1991, Helm founded Vancouver-based GeoMediapro, working as a director and producer, and he taught at the Vancouver Film School and was a Teamster for more than 20 years. Away from show business, he was an enthusiastic aviation photographer and the founder of a Ferrari club in L.A. who liked to drive fast.

His first wife was actress Brooke Bundy (two Nightmare on Elm Street films); they were married from 1962 until their 1966 divorce. His survivors include another daughter, Brandee, and seven grandchildren. His son, Dustin, died of complications from a motorcycle accident in 2014.

HELM, Peter (Peter John Helm Jr.)

Born: 12/22/1941, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Died: 5/21/2026, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

 

Peter Helm’s westerns – actor:

The Last Sunset – 1961 (saloon patron)

Tales of Wells Fargo (TV) - 1962 (Jason Moore)

Wagon Train (TV) – 1962, 1963 (Ethan Clay, Leland Barber, Tom O'Neal)

Rawhide (TV) - 1963 (Grover)

Stoney Burke (TV) - 1963 (Todd Purvis)

Bonanza (TV) – 1965 (Gwylem)

The Legend of Jesse James (TV) - 1966 (Zeb Hicks)

RIP George Eastman

 George Eastman (Luigi Montefiori), an actor of spaghetti western but not only

Among his films were Pupi Avati and Fellini, he was 83 years old

 

ilNordEst.

May 20, 2026

Italian actor and screenwriter George Eastman (stage name of Luigi Montefiori) died yesterday, May 19 at Gemelli Medical Center in via Bagliasco in Rome, home of the hospice of the Catholic University at the age of 83. Luigi Montefiori has starred in numerous spaghetti westerns and genre films, as well as having played one of the legendary poker players in the Christmas Gift film by Pupi Avati. His name in films such as "Boot Hill" and "Hate Your Neighbor." He worked with Mario Bava and Joe D'Amato, then was a TV series writer such as "The Marshal Rocca" and "Honor and Respect". Ligurian origins, two meters high, former rugby player, Montefiori has had a career that has gone through numerous genres: western, horror, thriller, science fiction and popular television. He had chosen an American name sensing that he would take more hold on the audience. Born in Genoa on August 16, 1942, he moved to Rome and attended the Experimental Center of Cinematography under the guidance of Nanni Loy, except to abandon him almost immediately for the sets of Cinecittà. So he contributed to hits like Bill il taciturno (1967), Odia il prossimo tuo (1968), Preparati la bara! (1968), Il mio corpo per un poker (1968), La collina degli stivali (1969), Quel maledetto giorno della resa dei conti (1971), Amico, stammi lontano almeno un palmo (1972), Tutti per uno, botte per tutti (1973). He also worked in Mario Bava's “Angry Dogs” (1974), with Joe D'Amato, for whom he worked as a screenwriter and protagonist. He was also the character of the Minotaur in “Satyricon” by Federico Fellini (1969), the poker player in the diptych “Christmas Gift” (1986) and The “Christmas Rematch” (2004) by Pupi Avati, who also directed him in “Bordella” (1976), until an appearance in “King David” by Bruce Beresford (1985), but also in a moonlight night, by Lina Wertmuller (1989) In those years his activity focused on the production side of screenplays for famous series such as ‘The Team’ and ‘The Marshal Rocca’. Since the years as screenwriter of ‘La team’, ‘Il marshal Rocca’, ‘Il cuore nel pozzo’, has collaborated on the screenplay of the “White One”, but not only up to popular melodramas such as “Honor and Respect” and “Sin and Shame”. He leaves his three children Evelina, Arianna and Tommaso, his wife Manuela and his two grandchildren, Giulio, the son of the eldest Evelina, and Allegra, daughter of Arianna and singer Briga. (ANSA).

EASTMAN, George (Luigi Montefiore)

Born: 8/16/1942, Genoa, Liguria, Italy

Died: 5/20/2026, Rome, Lazio, Italy

 

George Eastman’s westerns – actor, writer:

Django Shoots First – 1966 (Jeff Kluster/Custer) [as George Eastman]

My Name is Pecos – 1966 (Kline/Clain henchman) [as Gigi Montefiore]

Django Kills Silently – 1967 (Bill/Django) [as George Eastman]

Django, the Last Killer – 1967 (Ramón /Chico) [as George Eastman]

Poker With Pistols – 1967 (Lucas) [as George Eastman]

Viva Django! – 1967 (Lucas) [as George Eastman]

Belle Starr – 1968 (Larry Blake/Blackie) [as George Eastman]

Hate Your Neighbor – 1968 (Gary Stevens)

Boot Hill – 1969 (Baby Doll) [as George Eastman]

The Unholy Four – 1969 (Hondo) [as Luca Montefiori) [writer]

The Ballad of Ben and Charlie – 1971 (Charlie Logan) [as George Eastman] [writer]

Bastard, Go and Kill – 1971 (Chaco) [as George Eastman]

Vendetta at Dawn – 1971 (Doctor George Benton/Sabata) – 1971 [as George Eastman]

The Call of the Wild – 1972 (Black Burton) [as George Eastman]

The Three Musketeers of the West – 1973 (Mac Athos/Mercathos) [as George Eastman]

Keoma – 1975 [writer]

Red Coat – 1975 [writer]

The New Land - !9?? [writer for TV series that was never made]

The Tiger from the River Kwai – 1975 (Sheriff Sam) [as George Eastman]

2020 Texas Gladiators - 1982 [director, writer as Alex Carver]

RIP Péter Scherer

 The Jászai Mari Award-winning artist was 64 years old.

Euro News

By Rita Konya

5/19/2026

 

Péter Scherer was born on 16 November 1961 in Ajka. In 1987, he graduated as a civil engineer from the Budapest University of Technology. In 1995 he received an acting diploma from the Hungarian Chamber of Actors. From 1984 to 1995 he was a member of the Arvisura Theatre Society.

Between 1995 and 1997 he worked as a freelance actor, and from 1997 to 2001 he was a member of the Bárka Theatre. Between 2002 and 2008 he was a member of the Krétakör company. He has been a freelancer since 2008, and a member of the Nézőművészeti Kft. since 2009. He often appeared in TV series and also worked a lot as a voice actor.

His main roles include Pilate (The Master and Margarita); Dávid Hornyák (Babelna); Claudius (Hamlet); Friar Francis (Much Ado About Nothing); Macduff (Macbeth); Béla Ormándi (A Midsummer Night's Dream); Lajos Matyik (Titanic Water Revue); N lad (Fun); Dokter (Tótferi); Prezli (Blue, Blue, Blue); Cardinal (Princess of Amalfi); Stage Manager (Six Actors Looking for an Author); Zoltán Csordás (The Bird of Danger); Red (My Homeland); Samrayev (Shirai); Oronte (Misanthrope); Heimdall/ Volker (The Nibelungen Housing Estate); Theseus (Fédra Fitness); The Ice (National Theatre); Papa Ubu (King Ubu and the Hungarians - Budapest Puppet Theatre).

He played in several films, including Kontroll, Argo, Magyar vándor, Valami Amerika, and Amerika Meg (The Lord Gave Me a Lantern in Pest).

His work has been recognized with numerous awards: in 1995 he received the Theatre Critics' Award, in 1999 the Film Critics' Award, in 2007 the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary, and in 2009 he received the Mari Jászai Award. In 2020, he was awarded the Karinthy Ring, and in 2024, he was awarded the For Budapest Award. In 2025, he was awarded the Antal Páger Actor Award of the Makó Municipality.

Its company, the Nézőművészeti Kft., will hold a vigil on Tuesday evening from 9 p.m., the commemoration will be hosted by the B32 Gallery and Cultural Space. The organizers are waiting for everyone who would like to say goodbye with a candle, a quiet thought or personal presence, they wrote.

SCHERER, Péter

Born: 11/16/1961, Ajka, Hungary

Died: 5/19/2026, Budapest, Hungary

 

Peter Scherer’s western – actor:

Four Souls of Coyote (TV) – 2023 [Hungarian voice of Kacsa]