RIP Ted Egan

 

Vale Ted Egan: Australian Folk Legend & 'The Outback Song Man' Dies Aged 93

A true giant of the Australian music scene, Egan’s career was as vast as the outback he loved.

Countrytown

By Stephen Green

December 4, 2025

 

Australian folk music icon, author, and former Northern Territory Administrator Ted Egan has passed away at the age of 93. The legendary singer-songwriter died peacefully at his home in Alice Springs on the morning of December 4, surrounded by family.

In a statement confirming the news, his partner Nerys Evans and the Egan family expressed their deep loss.

“It is with sadness, but also great pride that Nerys Evans and the Egan family marks the passing of our beloved partner, Dad, grandfather, great grandfather and best mate Ted Egan,” the statement read.

“Ted passed peacefully at home this morning as was his wish. We shared Ted with Territorians, Australians and the wider world. He lived a big and very generous life, spanning 93 years.”

A true giant of the Australian music scene, Egan’s career was as vast as the outback he loved. He released 30 folk albums, starting with his debut in 1969, and penned 17 books. Beyond music, he was a familiar face on Australian television as a co-host of The Great Outdoors and creator of his own six-part series on Australia.

He cracked the ARIA Chart in 1973 with Willie The Whinging Pom, but was well known for many of his songs including Sayonara Nakamura, The Man from Humpty-Doo and The Drover's Boy.

Egan was also fiercely dedicated to social justice. He was a vocal advocate for Aboriginal land rights during the 1960s and 70s, a passion immortalised in his collaboration with former Australian of the Year Galarrwuy Yunupingu on the track Gurindji Blues.

His contributions to the industry were formally recognised in 1995 when he was inducted into the Australian Roll of Renown. He also held Lifetime Achievement Awards from both the Golden Guitar Awards and the National Folk Festival.

Tributes have already begun flowing in from the country and folk community, with the Chief Minister of the NT confirming that Egan will be offered a state funeral.

Egan is survived by his partner Nerys, his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

EGAN. Ted (Edward Joseph Egan)

Born: 7/6/1932 Poburg, Melbourne, Australia

Died: 12/4/2025, Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia

 

Ted Egan’s western – musician:

Australia - 2008

RIP Péter Kálloy Molnár

 

Péter Kálloy Molnár has died

After a short-term illness, Péter Kálloy Molnár, actor, director, writer and musician, died on Monday at the age of 55. 

Blikk

12/1/2025

 

The Alma Ensemble announced on its Facebook page that Péter Kálloy Molnár has passed away at the age of 55; The news was confirmed to our newspaper by several sources.

For a performance on 30 December, Péter Kálloy Molnár was originally supposed to be part of the cast of "This Pure Madness – Improvisational Activity", but the change was announced on Monday afternoon. The improvisation show presented at 6SZÍN will be staged with the participation of Tamás Szabó Kimmel, alongside Erika Náray, Nóra Parti, András Faragó Topy and Levente Harsányi.

The actor has been unable to perform for two weeks due to illness. The organizers of the improvisational game "As it rains, so it pops" reported on it in their Facebook post on November 13: "Unfortunately, Péter Kálloy Molnár has cancelled his performance tonight due to illness. He will be replaced by Viktor Szabó, an artist of the Jókai Theatre of Komárom, in As it rains, so in the thud."

He was an outstanding talent

Péter Kálloy Molnár was an outstandingly talented and versatile creator who was a key figure in Hungarian theatre and film life for decades. His artistic work, special voice, humour and sensitivity have made many roles and works lasting for generations, MTI wrote about the artist.

Péter Kálloy Molnár was born in 1970 in Mezőcsát, graduated from the drama department of the Ady Grammar School in Debrecen, and from 1991 he became a member of the company of the National Theatre. He graduated from the Academy of Theatre and Film Arts in 1993 in the class of István Iglódi. Between 1993 and 1997 he was a member of the company of the Vígszínház, and since 1997 he has been a freelance artist.

The wide audience could get to know him, among other things, from his film roles and as a regular character in the television show Beugró, but he also regularly dubbed. He directed Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and his greatest theatrical success came with Shakespeare's All Abbreviations, which was performed more than 600 times in more than two decades.

He has released three solo albums. He has also appeared in international productions, such as Budapest, American Rhapsody or Shoemaker, Tailor, Spy.

Information on the details of the funeral will be provided later.

MOLAN, Péter Kálloy (Péter Kálloy Molnár)

Born: 6/6/1970, Mezõcsát, Hungary

Died: 12/1/2025, Budapest, Hungary

 

Péter Kálloy Molnár’s western – actor:

Day of the Outlaw – 1959 [Hungarian voice of unknown actor]

Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid – 1971 [Hungarian voice of Bob Dylan]

Shootout – 1971 [Hungarian voice of Robert F. Lyons]

Call of the Wild – 1992 [Hungarian voice of Viton Metcalfe]

Smoke Signals – 1998 [Hungarian voice of Adam Beach]

Jack Bull – 1999 [Hungarian voice of unknown actor]

Buffalo Soldiers – 2001 [Hungarian voice of Michael Peña

800 Bullets – 2002 [Hungarian voice of Enrique Martínez]

Go West! A Lucky Luke Adventure – 2008 [Hungarian voice of Ran Tan Plan]

Cold Mountain – 2003 [Hungarian voice of Philip Seymour Hoffman

Rango – 2011 [Hungarian voice of Señor Flan

American Primeval – 2025 [Hungarian voice of Joe Tippett]

No Hero Here – 2015

Killers of the Flower Moon – 2023 Hungarian voice of Pat Healy

RIP John McCarty

 

Facebook

By Bruce Hallenbeck

November 25, 2025

 

I've just been informed that my old and dear friend John McCarty has passed away. It seems very unreal to me, as I went to meet him for lunch last week and he called me at the restaurant to tell me he couldn't make it because he had fallen in his driveway. He had a neurological disorder which made him dizzy and caused him to fall a great deal, and a few days after that, his wife found him in their house at the bottom of the stairs. He had fallen and hit his head. He was taken to the hospital but passed away shortly after.

I don't know where to begin writing about John. He was, in many ways, a mentor to me. I first came across his name in an issue of the late, lamented CINEFANTASTIQUE Magazine, for which he had written an article about Val Lewton. The article mentioned that he lived not far from me, so I got in touch with him and, both being film buffs, we became fast friends. He was nine years older than me and he took me under his wing, as it were. My first experience of being on radio was thanks to him, when he and I went on WGY in Schenectady, New York to do film trivia shows.

Next, he directed me in two radio plays for WGY Mystery Theater - a local offshoot of CBS Mystery Theater - and in one of which I played Sherlock Holmes. At the age of 22, I must have been one of the youngest to play that role ever!

My first stage appearances were also with John; he and I appeared in Oscar Wilde's LADY WINDERMERE'S FAN. Around that time, I also had my first ride in a passenger jet - to London. We were both huge Hammer fans, and we knew we had to go there. We flew first class, on the same plane with David Frost and his girlfriend. When we got there, we had tickets to two plays, OTHERWISE ENGAGED with Alan Bates and Jacqueline Pearce, and PHAEDRA

BRITTANICA at the Old Vic, with Diana Rigg and Michael Gough. We went to Stonehenge as well. We also spent an afternoon with my pen pal, Hammer's great music composer James Bernard.  It was an amazing trip.

Later that same year, we went to the Famous Monsters Convention in New York, where we met an actor we both adored, Peter Cushing. Another unforgettable experience.

In later years, John became well known for his film-related books, beginning with SPLATTER MOVIES, a term he coined. He kept writing right on up to the end; his latest novel, MASQUERADE, was just published. I'm happy to say that my last words to him were about how much I enjoyed it. I think you will too.

McCARTY, John

Born: 1944, Albany, New York, U.S.A.

Died: 11/25/2025, East Greenbush, New York, U.S.A.

 

John McCarty’s westerns – director, writer, film editor:

Thrist: A Civil War Story – 2013

Dead Horse Trail – 2016

RIP Tony Benedict

 

News From Me

By Mark Evanier

11/29/2025

 

Tony Benedict, R.I.P.

Sad to hear of the passing of Tony Benedict, a great animation writer especially in the early days of Hanna-Barbera. Tony never talked much about his early life but we know that after he got out of the Marine Corps, he drove his 1948 Studebaker out to Hollywood to get into the animation business. He started at Disney in 1956 and worked as an in-betweener (assistant animator) on Sleeping Beauty and on some of the animation done for the Disneyland TV show. In 1959, he moved over to the U.P.A. cartoon studio and worked on several Mr. Magoo cartoons.

Then in 1959, he sold a script to Hanna-Barbera for a new show they had going on the air — The Flintstones. They brought him in on staff and he worked as a storyman and sketch artist on that show and pretty much everything they produced after that for several years including The Jetsons, Top Cat, Yakky Doodle, Magilla Gorilla, Secret Squirrel and many more. Later, he worked for other studios (including DePatie-Freleng) and produced and wrote several animated features.

He was just one of those guys who worked everywhere in town and was liked by everyone. Those of us who got to know him found him to be a talented and very clever gentleman. He'd been ill for some time and we think he was 88 years old. The animation community has lost a beloved figure indeed.

BENEDICT, Tony (Anthony Benedict)

Born: 1936, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.

Died: 11/29/2025, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

 

Tony Benedict’s westerns –

Ricochet Rabbit & Droop Along (TV) – 1964-1966 (writer)

Posse Impossible (TV) – 1977 (writer)

RIP Leticia Roman

 

VOGA

Maria Neve Esposito & Giuseppe Pasquale

August 16, 2025

 

We at VOGA Milano are deeply saddened by the loss of our dear friend, the legendary actress Letícia Román/Letizia Novarese.

She passed away on June 26, 2025, at the age of 83. Just a few days before, we had exchanged messages, and it still doesn't feel real that she's gone...

We had the privilege of knowing her well, and she is already deeply missed. Our hearts go out to her loved ones, and we will cherish the memories of her remarkable life and spirit 🤍

Dear Letizia, we will never forget the first day you left us that voicemail. Your words and your immense love for life will be cherished with great care. Thank you for everything, and rest well up there.

With love, your special friends,

ROMAN, Leticia (Letizia Novarese)

Born: 8/12/1941, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Died: 6/26/2025, Ft. Myers, Florida, U.S.A.

 

Leticia Roman’s westerns – actress:

Gold of the Seven Saints – 1961 (Tita)

Flaming Frontier – 1965 (Judith)

F Troop (TV) - 1966 (Gina Barberini)

The Big Valley (TV) - 1967 (Michelle de Lacaise)

RIP Ingrid van Bergen

 Actress Ingrid van Bergen is dead

Redaktions Netzwerk Deutschland

11/28/2025

 

In the 1950s, Ingrid van Bergen was one of the most famous movie stars. Her role in "Roses for the Prosecutor" from 1959 was probably her most famous role. For many, however, she was simply the “jungle queen”.

The actress Ingrid van Bergen is dead. She died at the age of 94 in Eyendorf. This was confirmed by a confidant of the German Press Agency. “We are infinitely sad,” said the friend. Van Bergen fell asleep in the early hours of the morning. Previously, the “Bild” had reported.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the actress with the distinctive smoky voice was one of the most famous German film stars. In the post-war satire “Roses for the Public Prosecutor” in 1959, she achieved her greatest success in the role of the pension owner Lissy Flemming.

In 2009 she becomes “Jungle Queen”

Van Bergen did cabaret with the Berlin "Stachelschweinen" and shot for cinema and television. She was also in front of the camera for Edgar Wallace film adaptations such as "The Avenger" (1960) and "The Secret of the Yellow Daffodils" (1961). In "City Without Pity" she filmed with Kirk Douglas (1960).

Younger viewers knew Ingrid van Bergen above all as a popular reality star and winner of the RTL show "Ich bin ein Star - Holt mich hier raus!", where she became "Jungle Queen" in 2009.

Several years in prison for manslaughter

In 1977 there was a big scandal about van Bergen. After shooting her lover, the actress spent several years in prison for manslaughter. After her release in the early 1980s, she only gradually managed to re-enter the entertainment industry.

This was followed by many guest appearances, especially in crime dramas and TV series. Again and again she was also seen on talk shows. At the Kammertheater Karlsruhe in 2011, she could be admired as a fun-loving senior citizen in the tragicomedy "Harold and Maude".

The actress lived in the Lower Saxony community of Eyendorf south of Hamburg for the last few years.

van BERGEN, Ingrid

Born: 6/15/1931, Free City of Danzig

Died: 11/28/2025, Eyendorf, Lower Saxony, Germany

 

Ingrid van Bergen’s westerns – actress:

Legend of a Gunfighter – 1964 (Linda)

Prairie-Saloon (TV) – 1964 (Lily)

Alive or Preferably Dead – 1969 [German voice of Sydne Rome]

Support Your Local Gunfighter – 1971 [German voice of Joan Blondell]

The Cowboys – 1972 [German voice of Colleen Dewhurst]

Stadt ohne Sheriff (TV) – 1972-1973 (Mrs. Wallace)

Kung Fu (TV) – 1973 [German voice of Barbara Stuart]

RIP John Eimen

John Eimen, Child Actor on ‘Leave It to Beaver’ and ‘McKeever and the Colonel,’ Dies at 76

He also was set to star as Jane Wyman’s son on another TV show before the Oscar-winning actress backed out.

The Hollywood Reporter

By Mike Barnes

November 24, 2025

 

John Eimen, a child actor in the 1950s and ’60s who appeared on such TV shows as Leave It to Beaver, McKeever and the Colonel and The Twilight Zone, has died. He was 76.

Eimen died Friday of prostate cancer at his home in Mukilteo, Washington, his family announced. He only learned of his cancer diagnosis in September.

After showing up on episodes of Leave It to Beaver, Bachelor Father, The Rebel, Have Gun — Will Travel, Wagon Train, The Untouchables and Lawman, the red-haired, freckle-faced Eimen was hired for a proposed 1961 TV drama from Desilu Productions called Dr. Kate, starring Jane Wyman.

“It seemed that a big break had come my way when I was chosen to play her son Tommy in the series’ pilot,” he recalled. “With a sponsor in place, this show had the possibility to run for many years, considering Ms. Wyman’s status as an Academy Award-winning actress. However, she backed out of the deal, claiming dissatisfaction with the proposed ‘after-primetime’ schedule slot in the channel lineup.”

While the series with Wyman never materialized, the pilot did air as a 1960 episode of CBS’ Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse. “I still get small residual checks from that show, from time to time,” he noted a few years ago.

With Dr. Kate through, Eimen was available to portray Cadet Monk Roberts, a student at a military school, on the 1962-63 NBC sitcom McKeever and the Colonel, starring Scott Lane and Allyn Joslyn as the title characters. (The series, however, lasted just 26 episodes.)

Born in Chicago on Oct. 2, 1949, Eimen was discovered in his Los Angeles-area classroom by an agent who was a friend of his first-grade teacher.

He started acting at age 6, and his TV debut came in October 1957 as a classmate of Theodore Cleaver (Jerry Mathers) on the first episode of CBS’ Leave It to Beaver. He returned for other installments of that series, which ran six seasons through 1963.

In 1962, he played one of the neighborhood kids on the Twilight Zone episode “The Fugitive,” starting J. Pat O’Malley and Susan Gordon. Meanwhile, he also was known for his appearances, complete with a milk mustache, in national print ads for Carnation.

Eimen’s résumé included the 1965 Connie Stevens film Never Too Late and episodes of The Lloyd Bridges Show, Wendy & Me and, for his final onscreen credit, a 1967 installment of Petticoat Junction.

Eimen said he suffered no emotional scars when acting parts became scarce as he grew older. He became a singer, guitarist and songwriter and moved to Japan, where he got married. He spent more than 10 years teaching English and performing in clubs and on Japanese TV before he and his family returned to the U.S. in the mid-1990s, settling in West Seattle and then in Mukilteo.

Aided by his fluent Japanese, he served for 25 years as a flight attendant on international routes for a U.S. airline before retiring at age 71 in 2020.

Survivors include his wife of 51 years, Midori; his sons, Daniel and Chris; and his grandsons, Lucas and Oliver. A memorial service is being planned.

EIMEN, John (John Alan Eimen)

Born: 10/2/1949, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.

Died: 11/21/2025, Mukilteo, Washington, U.S.A.

 

John Eimen’s westerns – actor:

 

Wagon Train (TV) – 1960 (Billy Taylor)

Have Gun – Will Travel (TV) – 1959, 1961 (boy, Larry Decker)

Lawman (TV) - 1960 (young boy)

The Rebel (TV) - 1959 (Ike Simmons)

Law of the Plainsman (TV) - 1960 (little boy)