John Morris, ‘Blazing Saddles’ and ‘Young Frankenstein’ Composer, Dies at 91 John Morris, Oscar-nominated, Emmy-winning composer for many of the classic Mel Brooks comedies including “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein,” died Thursday at his home in Red Hook, N.Y. He was 91. Morris was Oscar-nominated for co-writing, with Brooks, the title song for “Blazing Saddles” – a sendup of classic movie cowboy tunes sung by Frankie Laine for the opening of Brooks’ 1974 film. Morris was nominated again in 1980 for his dramatic score for the Brooks-produced “The Elephant Man.” Morris served as Brooks’ composer beginning with “The Producers” in 1967; he wrote the original arrangement for Brooks’ famous “Springtime for Hitler” song, and composed the rest of the underscore. Morris’ most famous score is undoubtedly “Young Frankenstein,” for which he composed a memorable violin theme that plays a key role in the story. Under the title “Transylvanian Lullaby,” it has even been performed by top classical artists from violinist Gil Shaham to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The composer credited Brooks for the idea. “Mel is smarter than anybody,” Morris said in 2006. He quoted Brooks as saying: “This is about the monster’s childhood. Write the most beautiful Middle European lullaby.” Morris added: “So I wrote this tune, and it was perfect for violin. It’s that kind of melody.” “Young Frankenstein” now ranks among only a handful of comedies on the American Film Institute’s list of the 250 greatest film scores. His other scores for Brooks included “The Twelve Chairs,” “Silent Movie,” “High Anxiety,” “History of the World Part I,” “To Be or Not To Be,” “Spaceballs” and “Life Stinks.” When members of Brooks’ 1970s repertory company went on to direct their own films, Morris scored those too. For Gene Wilder, Morris did “The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes’ Smarter Brother,” “The World’s Greatest Lover,” “The Woman in Red” and “Haunted Honeymoon.” He also scored Marty Feldman’s “The Last Remake of Beau Geste” and “In God We Trust.” Morris’ other film scores were a mix of comedy and drama including “Bank Shot,” “The In-Laws,” “Table for Five,” “Johnny Dangerously,” “Clue,” “Dirty Dancing,” “Ironweed” and “Stella.” The composer wrote considerable music for television during the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, including the theme for Julia Child’s popular public-TV series “The French Chef” and the theme for Craig T. Nelson’s long-running sitcom “Coach.” He also scored four miniseries – “The Adams Chronicles,” “The Scarlet Letter,” “Fresno” and “Scarlett” – and several high-profile TV movies in the 1990s and early 2000s including “The Last Best Year,” “World War II: When Lions Roared” and “The Blackwater Lightship.” He won a Daytime Emmy Award for his 1978 score for the afterschool special “The Tap Dance Kid,” and received a Grammy nomination for his soundtrack album of “The Elephant Man.” Morris was born Oct. 18, 1926, in Elizabeth, N.J., and studied at New York’s Juilliard School of Music and the New School for Social Research. He was active on Broadway throughout the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, doing dance arrangements for more than a dozen musicals including “Bells Are Ringing,” “Bye Bye Birdie” and “Mack and Mabel,” and incidental music for such Shakespeare productions as “King Lear” and “Hamlet.” He wrote one Broadway musical of his own, “A Time for Singing,” a musical version of “How Green Was My Valley” which ran in May-June 1966. He wrote the music and shared duties on the book and lyrics with Gerald Freedman. He also contributed two movements to a ballet, “The Informer,” for Agnes de Mille and the American Ballet Theater in 1988. Survivors include his wife, a daughter, five grandchildren and two great- grandchildren.
Olivia Cole, ‘Roots’ and ‘Women of Brewster Place’ Co-Star, Dies at 75 Actress Olivia Cole, best known for her performances in “Roots” and “The Women of Brewster Place,” has died. She was 75. Cole died Jan. 19 in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, her agent, Susie Schwarz at SBB Partners, told Variety. Her cause of death is currently unknown. “She was a very eccentric woman and a wonderful woman,” Schwarz said of Cole, who didn’t own a cell phone and shied away from technology. Cole was born in Memphis, Tenn., and trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. She won a supporting actress Emmy Award for her performance as Matilda in the 1977 miniseries “Roots.” Cole also received an Emmy nomination for her lead performance as real-life presidential maid Maggie Rogers in “Backstairs at the White House.” In 1989, she starred alongside Oprah in the TV miniseries “The Women of Brewster Place,” based on Gloria Naylor’s book of the same name. Her television credits also include “L.A. Law” and “Murder, She Wrote.” In addition to her small screen career, Cole appeared in films like Ice Cube’s “First Sunday” and 1978’s “Coming Home.” Her most recent performance was in Emily Mann’s play “Having Our Say” at the Hartford Stage in Hartford, Conn. Cole’s mother also died recently and her ex-husband, actor Richard Venture, died in December.
John Gavin, Actor and Ambassador to Mexico Under Reagan, Dies at 86 John Gavin, a strikingly handsome Hollywood actor who played romantic leads in the 1950s and ′60s and was the Reagan administration’s ambassador to Mexico for five years, a rocky tenure notable for its diplomatic controversies, died on Friday at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif. He was 86. His death was confirmed by Budd Burton Moss, Mr. Gavin’s former agent and the manager of Mr. Gavin’s wife, the singer and actress Constance Towers. He did not specify a cause but said Mr. Gavin had been ill for months. They took one look at Mr. Gavin at Universal-International Pictures and saw the next Rock Hudson. Tall, dark-eyed, with a mellow baritone voice and the face of a heartbreaker, he was cast opposite leading actresses — Lana Turner in “Imitation of Life” (1959), Sophia Loren in “A Breath of Scandal” (1960), Susan Hayward in “Back Street” (1961) and Katharine Hepburn in “The Madwoman of Chaillot” (1969). But in a score of films, including parts as Janet Leigh’s lover in Alfred Hitchcock’s classic “Psycho” (1960), Julius Caesar in “Spartacus” (1960) and Julie Andrews’s singing boss in “Thoroughly Modern Millie” (1967), critics often found his performances wooden, and he achieved only modest success. He migrated to television, starring in movies and episodes of the western series “Destry” (1964) and the war drama “Convoy” (1965). But talk of another Rock Hudson faded, as did Mr. Gavin’s opportunities. He was slated to play James Bond in two movies — “Diamonds Are Forever” in 1971 and “Live and Let Die” in 1973 — but lost out to Sean Connery and Roger Moore. He later made guest appearances on “The Love Boat,” “Fantasy Island” and other television series. As his entertainment career ebbed, Mr. Gavin became increasingly involved in inter-American political affairs. In the 1960s and early ′70s, he was a special adviser to the secretary general of the Organization of American States, which fosters democracy and regional security. He also undertook assignments promoting American and Latin American film production for the Alliance for Progress, established by President John F. Kennedy. Mr. Gavin was president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1971 to 1973. He was named ambassador to Mexico when Ronald Reagan, a like-minded conservative Republican who had also been president of the actors guild, entered the White House in 1981. Mr. Gavin had been active in Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign.
Kenneth Haigh, 86, ‘Angry Young Man’ of British Stage, Dies Kenneth Haigh, the English actor whose starring role in the play “Look Back in Anger,” as well as his own blistering persona, defined the rebellious postwar “angry young man,” died on Feb. 4 in England. He was 86. --- He appeared in a dozen films, including “Cleopatra” (1963), with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, in which he played Brutus, and “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964), in which he had a hilarious uncredited cameo role as a cocky television producer interrogating George Harrison. He was also seen frequently on British and American television, including as a ruthless corporate climber in the early-1970s series “Man at the Top” and as the British explorer Richard Burton in the 1971 mini-series “The Search for the Nile.” But he was most acclaimed for his stage roles — and none more than that of Jimmy Porter, the choleric antihero of John Osborne’s “Look Back in Anger.” When “Look Back” opened at the Royal Court Theater in London in 1956, a publicist for the theater popularized the phrase “angry young men” to describe its focus: the disaffected generation that came of age in Britain after World War II. Kenneth Haigh as the misplaced RAF pilot in the classic Twilight Zone episode "The Last Flight" Haigh with Alan Bates and Mary Ure in the original Broadway production of Look Back In Anger: Kenneth Haigh and John Osborne, around the time of the premiere of Look Back In Anger
[This obit is included for completeness. Please no religious or political comments] Billy Graham, Evangelist Who Harnessed the Power of TV, Dies at 99 Rev. Billy Graham, the charismatic preacher who harnessed the power of TV to spread his gospel around the world, has died. He was 99. --- Graham was also a frequent guest on mainstream TV talk shows. He made numerous appearances on “The Tonight Show” during Jack Paar’s tenure as host and made four visits during Johnny Carson’s reign. He appeared as the “mystery guest” on a 1960 installment of “What’s My Line.” Graham also produced several feature films, including, believe it or not, a film noir called Wiretapper: Wiretapper - Wikipedia Billy Graham - IMDb
Award-winning actress Nanette Fabray has died at 97 Tony- and Emmy-winning actress Nanette Fabray has died, her son has confirmed. She was 97. Fabray, who was the aunt of actress Shelley Fabares, died in her home in Palos Verdes, California, on Thursday from natural causes. Her family was with her when she died. Born Ruby Nanette Bernadette Theresa Fabares, her career began at age 3 in vaudeville. She became a Broadway star in the '40s, winning a Tony for her role in "Love Life." She appeared in several movies, most notably in the classic 1953 musical "The Band Wagon" opposite Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse, but she was best known for her TV work. Fabray won three Emmys for her regular appearances on Sid Caesar's "Caesar's House" in the 1950s. She also appeared on variety shows, talk shows and game shows from the '50s through the late '70s, including "Your Show of Shows," "The Ed Sullivan Show," "The Carol Burnett Show," "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In," "The Hollywood Squares," "What's My Line" and "Match Game." Fabray also had a recurring role as Grandma Katherine Romano, mother of Bonnie Franklin's character Ann Romano, in "One Day at a Time." In addition, she guest-starred on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "Maude," "Murder, She Wrote," "Coach" and "Love, American Style." Having overcome hearing loss herself, Fabray became an advocate for the rights of the deaf and hard of hearing, for which she received the President’s Distinguished Service Award and the Eleanor Roosevelt Humanitarian Award. She also won the SAG Life Achievement Award in 1987. Fabray is survived by her son Jamie MacDougall, his wife, and two grandchildren, as well as Fabares. Argument to Beethoven's 5th
James Bond director Lewis Gilbert dies Lewis Gilbert, the British director of Alfie, Educating Rita and three James Bond films, has died at the age of 97. Born in London in 1920, he started out as a child actor before directing war films including Reach for the Sky and Carve Her Name with Pride. He made his Bond debut with 1967's You Only Live Twice, going on to direct The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker.
Harvey Schmidt, Composer of Longest-Running Musical in History, Dies at 88 Harvey Schmidt, the composer of The Fantasticks, the longest-running musical in history, has died. He was 88. His death on Wednesday was confirmed by Dan Demello, a publicist for the off-Broadway show. Schmidt famously teamed up with lyricist, director and storywriter Tom Jones on The Fantasticks, which opened off-Broadway in May 1960 and closed in 2002. It returned in a 2006 revival that ran for 11 years. Jerry Orbach landed his first major New York stage role in the original off-Broadway cast of the whimsical musical allegory, while other notable actors who appeared during the run or in touring productions included Liza Minnelli, Elliott Gould, F. Murray Abraham, Glenn Close and Kristin Chenoweth. The show yielded such standards as "Try to Remember," "I Can See It" and "Soon It's Gonna Rain." Schmidt and Jones also collaborated on the Broadway shows 110 in the Shade, an adaptation of N. Richard Nash's The Rainmaker, which was Schmidt's first show on Broadway; and I Do! I Do!, adapted from Jan de Hartog's The Fourposter. Schmidt and Jones' last collaboration on Broadway was 1969's Celebration, which ran for 109 performances. 110 in the Shade was revived on Broadway in 2007 in a Tony-nominated production that starred Audra McDonald alongside her future husband Will Swenson, as well as Steve Kazee and John Cullum. Schmidt also occasionally forayed into writing for Hollywood, composing scores for the 1964 short film A Texas Romance, 1909 and the 1972 feature Bad Company. Jones, who grew up in Texas as the son of a Methodist minister, met Schmidt at the University of Texas, Austin, where both men were members of the campus' "Curtain Club." After graduation, the pair shared an apartment in New York City in 1955 and began collaborating professionally in 1956 on a play called Joy Comes to Dead Horse. In 1959, a mutual friend offered them the opportunity to stage the show at Barnard College's summer theater program if it could be cut to one act. At that point the pair altered the play and renamed it The Fantasticks, borrowing elements from Edmond Rostand's 19th-century burlesque, Les Romanesques. Both Schmidt and Jones were inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 1998 and received a 1992 special Tony Award for The Fantasticks. In 2012, the pair also was inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame.
Hubert de Givenchy Dies at 91; Pillar of Romantic Elegance in Fashion Hubert de Givenchy, the French couturier who upheld a standard of quintessentially romantic elegance in fashion for more than four decades, dressing the likes of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Grace Kelly and memorably Audrey Hepburn, in a little black dress, in the movie “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” died on Saturday at his home in Paris. He was 91. --- His very first show — a smash hit with retailers and the press when it was seen in February 1952, when he was just 24 — included the “Bettina blouse,” a tribute to his original muse, Bettina Graziani, Paris’s leading model of the day, who had joined his fledgling company as the director of public relations, saleswoman and fit model. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Givenchy came to the attention of the young Ms. Hepburn, a rising star who was so charmed by his youthful designs that she insisted that he make her clothes for nearly all of her movies, and help mold her sylphlike image in the process. In 1961, Ms. Hepburn and Mr. Givenchy created one of the most indelible cinematic fashion moments of the 20th century in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”: when her character, Holly Golightly, approaches the titular Fifth Avenue jeweler wearing oversize sunglasses, four strands of sparkling pearls, long evening gloves and a black Givenchy dress — a slender, shoulder-baring column — that looks startlingly out of place for the early morning hour.
Siegfried Rauch, Steve McQueen's Racing Rival in 'Le Mans,' Dies at 85 Siegfried Rauch, the German actor who portrayed Steve McQueen's ruthless racing rival Erich Stahler in the 1971 classic film Le Mans, has died. He was 85. Rauch died Sunday night as a result of a fall in his hometown of Untersochering, Bavaria, his agency announced. Rauch also appeared in the war films Patton (1970), directed by Franklin J. Schaffner; John Sturges' The Eagle Has Landed (1976); George P. Cosmatos' Escape to Athena (1979); and Sam Fuller's The Big Red One (1980).
Susan Anspach, ‘Five Easy Pieces’ and ‘Blume in Love’ Actress, Dies at 75 Susan Anspach, the blonde actress known for her roles in ‘70s films including Bob Rafaelson’s “Five Easy Pieces,” Paul Mazursky’s “Blume in Love,” and Woody Allen’s “Play It Again, Sam,” died Monday at her home in Los Angeles. She was 75. Anspach’s son, Caleb Goddard, announced her death to the New York Times and said the cause was coronary failure. In “Five Easy Pieces,” Anspach played a serious pianist who had a steamy sex scene with Jack Nicholson despite being engaged to his brother; in “Play It Again, Sam,” she played Allen’s critical ex-wife. In Dusan Makavayev’s 1981 “Montenegro,” she played a disturbed housewife, and in “Blume in Love” she portrayed the ex-wife of George Segal’s character who he tries to win back. Later in her career, Anspach landed recurring roles on television series. She appeared in the family drama “The Yellow Rose,” the 13-hour mini-series “Space” and the comedy “The Slap Maxwell Story.” Raised in Queens, New York, Anspach graduated from William Cullen Bryant High School before becoming involved with musical theater. She starred in multiple Broadway and off-Broadway shows, such as “Hair” and “A View from the Bridge” with Robert Duvall, Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight. Her first feature role was in Hal Ashby’s “The Landlord.” Anspach last appeared in the family drama “Wild About Harry” and the 2010 thriller “Inversion.” She publicly claimed Jack Nicholson as Goddard’s father, but “The Shining” actor has never confirmed the paternity, and later tangled with Anspach in court over repayment of substantial loans he made to her. She was married to actor Mark Goddard, who adopted her children, from 1970 to 1978; her second husband was musician Sherwood Ball, whom she divorced in 1986. She is survived by son Caleb Goddard; daughter, Catherine; and three grandchildren.
Tim O'Connor, Star on 'Peyton Place' and 'Buck Rogers,' Dies at 90 Tim O'Connor, the busy character actor who portrayed Elliot Carson, Mia Farrow's father and Dorothy Malone's husband, on more than 400 episodes of the 1960s ABC primetime soap Peyton Place, has died. He was 90. O'Connor died April 5 at his home in Nevada City, California, The Union newspaper reported. O'Connor also starred as Dr. Elias Huer on the 1979-81 NBC sci-fi series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, starring Gil Gerard, and on a memorable 1975 episode of All in the Family, he guest-starred as a former sweetheart of Edith's (Jean Stapleton) from Scranton, Pennsylvania, who's interested in rekindling their childhood romance. In The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear (1991), O'Connor had a super-brief stint as Fenzwick, "the head of the Society of Petroleum Industry Leaders, better known as S.P.I.L.," and he was twice on Columbo, notably in 1973 as a family lawyer in "Double Shock," in which Martin Landau played twins. The lanky actor also starred as the captain of a ship hoping to rescue earthlings mired on a distant planet on the 1963 Twilight Zone episode "On Thursday We Leave for Home." Born on July 3, 1927, on the South Side of Chicago, O'Connor enrolled in a school to study radio acting and engineering. He quickly landed a scholarship at the renowned Goodman Theatre, then worked in local television. In 1953, he came to New York and did several installments of prestigious DuPont Show of the Month for producer David Susskind, appearing alongside the likes of Jessica Tandy, Boris Karloff and Maureen O'Hara. O'Connor joined Peyton Place three months into its first season as Elliot, who had been imprisoned for 18 years for murdering his wife (he was innocent, however; the real killer was Mary Anderson's Catherine Peyton Harrington). Elliot then took over the town newspaper, but those days behind bars cast a shadow over him. As an entry on the Classic TV blog notes: "O'Connor played Elliot as a sage, a man with a new lease on life and a reason to exude optimism, but during the show's long run neither he nor the writers neglected the subterranean well of resentment that Elliot nursed over his lost years in prison. O'Connor's flawless interweaving of these contradictory strands turned into perhaps the most satisfying exercise in character continuity on television during the '60s." In its heyday, Peyton Place aired as many as three times a week, and O'Connor appeared on 416 episodes, according to IMDb, from 1965-68 until he and Malone were written off the show because, he said, the series was getting too expensive to make. O'Connor also was on other series like The Fugitive, The Outer Limits, The Rockford Files, Maude, The Streets of San Francisco, Barnaby Jones, M*A*S*H, Gunsmoke, Wonder Woman, Dynasty, Doogie Howser, M.D. and Star Trek: The Next Generation. More recently, O'Connor co-founded the Children's Theater in Nevada City, served as a director for the town's Foothill Theater Company and appeared with Buck Rogers co-star Erin Gray in Dreams Awake (2011). He moved to Nevada City in 1982 with his second wife, Sheila. She survives him, as does his son, Timothy.
I am not very familiar with Anspach's movie career, but I liked her reading of the short story 'The Yellow Wallpaper'.
Michael Anderson, Director of 'Logan's Run' and 'Around the World in 80 Days,' Dies at 98 Michael Anderson, the British director who received an Oscar nomination for overseeing the sprawling spectacle Around the World in 80 Days and later helmed the cult sci-fi classic Logan’s Run, has died. He was 98. Anderson, who also demonstrated a command of war films by directing The Dam Busters (1955) — often cited as an inspiration for the climax of the first Star Wars film — The Yangtse Incident (1957) and Operation Crossbow (1965), died Wednesday in Vancouver, a spokeswoman for his family said. A native of London, Anderson called the shots for such British leading men as Michael Redgrave (Dam Busters, 1984, The Wreck of the Mary Deare), Alec Guinness (Operation Crossbow, The Quiller Memorandum), Peter Ustinov (Logan’s Run), Richard Todd (Chase a Crooked Shadow), Laurence Olivier (The Shoes of the Fisherman) and, of course, David Niven, the urbane star of Around the World in 80 Days (1956). A review in The Hollywood Reporter called the three-hour United Artists film, based on Jules Verne’s 1873 adventure novel, “the greatest show ever seen on stage or screen,” and it captured the best picture Oscar as one of its five Academy Awards. Anderson was born Jan. 30, 1920. His father was a stage actor, and his grand-aunt was American actress Mary Anderson (Lifeboat, Gone With the Wind). He served in the British Army’s Royal Signal Corps, where he met Ustinov; the two soon co-wrote and co-directed Private Angelo (1949), a war comedy about an Italian soldier (Ustinov) in World War II who tries, rather unsuccessfully, to avoid violence. Anderson returned to the theater of war with the highly regarded Dam Busters, about a British demolition team led by Redgrave and Todd that tries to blow up a Ruhr dam in Germany. The film garnered an Oscar nomination for best effects. Anderson with producer Mike Todd and Frank Sinatra on the ATWIED set.
You’ll recognize this name who worked on The Golden Girls and many other shows. SitcomsOnline.com News Blog: Sitcom Star to Renovate Home on HGTV; Remembering Golden Girls Producer Paul Junger Witt
Philip D’Antoni, ‘The French Connection’ Producer, Dies at 89 Philip D’Antoni, who won an Oscar as producer of “The French Connection” and produced another memorable crime drama with a classic car chase,”Bullitt,” died at age 89 on April 15 at his home in New York. D’Antoni was best known for the 1971 “The French Connection,” which won three Golden Globes and five Oscars, including best picture. Gene Hackman won for best actor and William Friedkin for director and the film also won best adapted screenplay and film editing. Three years earlier, he had produced the Steve McQueen action film “Bullitt,” which won an Oscar for film editing. In the early 1960s, he was co-producer of TV documentary-travelogues like “Elizabeth Taylor in London” and “Sophia Loren in Rome.” He also produced several episodes of “Proud Land,” a documentary miniseries. “Bullitt” in 1968 marked his first feature film producing credit, and from there he went on to produce “The French Connection.” His third and final bigscreen credit was the 1973 “The Seven-Ups,” a spinoff film focusing on Roy Scheider’s character from “Connection.” D’Antoni also directed the film, his sole helming credit. In the early 1970s he also produced TV titles like “Mr. Inside/Mr. Outside” and “Strike Force.” His final TV series, “Movin’ On,” ran for two seasons on NBC from 1974 to 1976. D’Antoni created and wrote for the show, which followed a team of truckers on their cross-country adventures. His final producing credit was the 1977 comedy TV pilot, “The Rubber Gun Squad.”
PATRICIA O'GRADY's Obituary on New York Times Patricia O'Grady, an obscure Off-Broadway actress, named publicly by esteemed director, Herbert Berghoff, one of the best actresses in the United States, died on March 12. She was 84 years of age. She died from injuries after being hit by a car near her home in Greenwich Village, New York City, according to her sister, Roberta O'Grady. Ms. O'Grady had a 50 year career in the theater, starting with a lead in an original high school musical in 1950 and ending in 2000 with "The Dora Project," a play at the HB Studio on the later life of Dora Maar, one of the mistresses of Pablo Picasso. Ms. O'Grady often said that she "made a life in the theater without making a living in it," (A quote not original with her) and this was made possible by her Village apartment where she lived for over 60 years and paid under $30 per month rent! A friend once dubbed it a 'dump with character,' and as primitive as it was, it enabled her to do exactly what she wanted to do. https://nypost.com/2018/05/09/how-a-late-actress-paid-only-28-in-rent-for-an-nyc-apartment When Patricia O’Grady moved into the top floor of a Greenwich Village walk-up in 1955, she and her three roommates helped sweep the hallway in exchange for a discounted rent of $16 a month. The unit was bare, no more than floor and walls, so the girls, all aspiring actresses, slowly improved it themselves, installing a sink and other modest amenities. While her roommates moved on, O’Grady never left the unit, and for that she received the ultimate New York City prize: unbelievably affordable rent. Until March, when O’Grady, 84, was fatally struck by a car just a few feet from her home, she paid $28.43 a month for the apartment. “I consulted with an attorney to find out if this rent was possible,” recalls Adam Pomerantz, who bought O’Grady’s building, which also houses his business, Murray’s Bagels, in 2002. It was legit, he found, but using a rent-control-formula worksheet, he was able to increase her rent a whopping $1.98 — it had previously been $26.45.--- “I didn’t even know that [cold-water flats] existed anymore,” Ava Farkas, executive director of the Metropolitan Council on Housing, said in a phone interview, “I think that’s highly, highly rare.” Farkas had not heard of a lower current rent in New York City. O’Grady spent her days at the 14th Street YMCA, where she swam, showered, and read the New York Times, friends remember. With O’Grady gone, Pomerantz will be gutting and renovating the apartment, renting it out as a two-bedroom in the $5,000 range.
