Showbiz
RIP Present Biz Legend Freddie Ross Hancock MBE, 92, PR and Advertising and marketing Genius, Founding father of BAFTA NY, Widow of Famed UK Comic Tony Hancock
It’s with nice disappointment that I report the demise at present at 92 of a legend, Freddie Ross Hancock. Freddie was a bigger than life member of the worldwide present enterprise group. A Brit, she lived in America for 50 years, introduced BAFTA — the British model of the Academy Awards — to New York, acquired an MBE (offered by then Prince Charles), and counted dozens of celebrities and excessive profile corporations as purchasers and pals.
Within the UK some will recall Freddie because the second and last spouse of a really well-known British comic, Tony Hancock. (From the mid 50s for a decade Tony Hancock was the #1 star on British TV.) They had been collectively for 11 tempestuous years till Tony’s demise age 44 in 1968. The wedding a part of it was solely about three years on the finish, as Hancock — who was just like the Sid Caesar of England — was a raging alcoholic who couldn’t discover solace. A yr after his demise, Freddie revealed a bestselling memoir within the UK known as “Hancock” with revered theater journalist, David Nathan.
Nathan wrote of Freddie in his preface: “Considered one of London’s prime present enterprise PR consultants, she was a well-known determine within the movie and theater circles wherein I more and more labored. She was extra revered than most of she informed the reality about her purchasers, and if that was not all the time doable, she not less than didn’t invent tales to get publicity for them.”
Freda Ross was born in London in 1930. Earlier than going out on her personal and managing Tony Hancock within the Sixties, Freddie labored for 2 years on the Holland America Line, studying public relations. She went on to grow to be Assistant Head of Publicity at Common Photos’ UK places of work the place she labored with stars of the time like Shelley Winters and Rock Hudson. When she began her personal PR agency she turned the first promoter of international movies in England. She additionally started serving to to advertise British movies within the US. Her purchasers included each well-known star of the time, from Julie Andrews to Sean Connery, Sophia Loren and husband Carlo Ponti, Jim Dale, Topol (star of the movie model of “Fiddler on the Roof’), and Theodore Bikel.
After Hancock died, Freddie moved to the US and commenced consulting for US film corporations exporting their movies to the UK, and vice versa. When Miramax turned very concerned with British movies, it was Freddie who gave recommendation the right way to place them, from Service provider Ivory movies to ones like “Mrs. Brown”starring Judi Dench. In 1995 she introduced BAFTA to the States, giving it the next worldwide profile. In 2002, she was thanked for her work by Queen Elizabeth with an MBE (Member of the British Empire). She labored on numerous initiatives with huge names together with Masterpiece Theater’s Alistair Cooke (pictured right here with Freddie), whose eightieth celebration in New York she organized with James Galway and Leonard Bernstein performing. She obtained then-president Ronald Reagan to ship a video greeting, and Reagan responded with a thanks to Freddie.
Freddie filed for divorce and the ink was nearly dry when Tony Hancock dedicated suicide in 1968. Though she was technically his widow she acquired not a dime from his property. (She was portrayed in two completely different UK tv motion pictures.) She informed an interviewer in 1996: . “When Tony was alive, individuals used to say to me: “do you could have kids?” I used to say: “sure, only one.” “How previous?” “Fairly previous – 44.””
She by no means remarried. As an alternative she was a pioneer, a trailblazer as a girl making it on her personal in present enterprise. This was not simple, however her biting wit and insistent loyalty to purchasers stood her in good stead all over the world. Others whom she counted as shut pals ranged by British race automotive famous person Stirling Moss to Tony and Oscar successful composer Marvin Hamlisch.
Within the Nineteen Nineties and 2000s she additionally labored as Senior Vice-President of Acquisitions for the film distributor American Video Movies, the place she was a beloved presence on the Cannes Movie Pageant. Apart from founding BAFTA, she was additionally Vice-Chairman of the US wing of the Royal Tv Society.
Freddie actually had an excellent thoughts. Even into her 80s she by no means stopped screening movies for BAFTA, giving shrewd recommendation about the right way to market them. She additionally had a devilish humorousness and knew, as we prefer to say, the place all of the our bodies had been buried. Thanks partly to a longtime friendship with gossip columnist Cindy Adams (and with whom she shared an actual birthday month), Freddie was present on each topic til the top. There was nothing I may inform her that she didn’t know. It was very irritating!
Firmly ensconced within the US with no rapid household close by, Freddie Ross Hancock correctly handpicked a bunch of youthful pals whom she selected her adopted household. It was a sensible transfer. This group on this facet of the Atlantic is counted as her survivors, most particularly CNN correspondent Richard Quest, who acted as a faithful surrogate son, and lots of others. (She was nonetheless linked within the UK to her beloved sister-in–legislation, Shannie Ross, to whom she spoke day-after-day for 50 years.) We couldn’t have been luckier than to rely her as our pal. She shall be sorely missed and by no means forgotten.
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Kim Porter handed away on the age of 47 in 2018, with preliminary stories citing cardiac arrest, in keeping with TMZ. Practically two months later, the Los Angeles coroner’s workplace confirmed that the mannequin and actress had died from pneumonia.
Nevertheless, the mother of four—sons Quincy Taylor Brown, Christian Combs, and twin daughters D’Lila Star and Jessie James Combs—has lately returned to the highlight following the arrest of Sean “Diddy” Combs, the organic father of three of her youngsters. Diddy was arrested on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution in Manhattan on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in keeping with a federal indictment. In gentle of his arrest, producer Chris Todd has revealed a 60-page e book titled Kim’s Misplaced Phrases, which claims to be a set of Porter’s diaries. “It is a harmful scenario, and I didn’t wish to declare possession of Kim’s phrases. However now I’m keen to return ahead due to the latest arrest of Sean Combs,” Todd acknowledged.
Right here’s every thing it’s worthwhile to find out about Porter.
Who Was Kim Porter?
Born in Columbus, Georgia, Kim graduated from highschool in 1988 and moved to Atlanta, in keeping with her IMDb bio. In 1991, she had her first youngster, Quincy, with Al B. Sure. Quincy was named after his godfather, legendary musician and producer Quincy Jones. When Quincy was 3 years outdated, he was adopted by Diddy after Kim started courting the rapper and Dangerous Boy Information founder.
All through her profession, Kim appeared in a number of movies and TV reveals, together with Single Women, The Brothers, and Depraved Depraved Video games.
How Was Porter and Diddy’s Relationship?
Kim and Diddy had an on-and-off relationship for years. Although they formally break up in 2007, they reunited a number of instances and had been even pictured collectively on a Caribbean getaway in 2010, as reported by the Daily Mail.
Regardless of their break up, Kim and Diddy remained shut associates. In a 2007 interview with Essence, Kim defined, “You know the way when two folks go their separate methods, more often than not there’s animosity? It’s not like that with us. Sean and I’ve this bond, this friendship. It’s not about ‘should you’re trustworthy to me, if I’m being trustworthy to you.’ We’re associates. I’m the particular person he can inform his innermost ideas to, and he’s that particular person for me.”
Combs praised Porter in an E! News interview, saying, “Kim is an unimaginable mom to our youngsters. We’ve been a part of one another’s lives for a few years, and I’ve at all times admired her braveness and energy. We’re one of the best of associates.”
In case you or anybody you realize has been sexually abused, name the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). A skilled workers member will present confidential, judgment-free help in addition to native sources to help in therapeutic, recovering and extra.
In case you or somebody you realize is experiencing home violence, please name the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential help.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has been sentenced to greater than 4 years in jail and a fantastic of $500,000 after being convicted on prostitution-related costs.
The disgraced music trade government was arrested from a lodge in Manhattan, New York, final September, on costs spanning sex trafficking by pressure, fraud or coercion to racketeering conspiracy, and extra.
Nonetheless, throughout a high-profile court docket listening to over a number of weeks this summer time, Diddy was cleared of a few of these critical costs.
A jury discovered the 55-year-old responsible of two counts of transportation for engagement in prostitution, a violation of the Mann Act, which outlaws interstate commerce associated to prostitution.
In the present day (October 3), Choose Arun Subramanian in New York sentenced Combs to the hefty fantastic in addition to 50 months behind bars after claiming the defence’s proposal of a sentence of not more than 14 months wouldn’t be enough.
The decide mentioned Combs’ time in jail could be ‘exhausting’ for him to spend away from his household, however he would nonetheless ‘have a life afterwards’.
The court docket beforehand heard all about Combs’ extensive ‘freak-offs’; drug-fueled and sometimes days-long intercourse events, the place the Dangerous Boy Information founder would watch and movie male intercourse staff and his girlfriends.
It’s alleged the rapper ‘orchestrated’ the encounters that befell in several states throughout the US and overseas. It’s also believed he paid the ladies and the sex staff to journey for the occasion.
Combs has now been sentenced (ANGELA WEISS/AFP through Getty Photographs)
Combs was discovered responsible of two costs, one regarding intercourse staff he paid for whereas in a relationship with singer Cassie Ventura, and one other who took half in periods with one other girl he later had a relationship with who has not been named within the trial.
Every rely carried a most penalty of 10 years in jail.
Combs has been stored behind bars since his July conviction, and has protested his innocence in opposition to all the fees introduced in opposition to him.
The sentencing comes as prosecutors urged a New York federal decide earlier this week to ship Combs to jail for greater than 11 years for the crimes, claiming one in every of his accusers says she lives in concern of his launch.
“His crimes of conviction are critical and have warranted sentences over ten years in a number of instances for defendants who, like Sean Combs, engaged in violence and put others in concern,” they wrote in a pre-sentence submission on Tuesday (September 30).
Cassie took to the stand and delivered an emotional testimony in opposition to her former boyfriend (Gilbert Carrasquillo/FilmMagic)
They dubbed Combs ‘unrepentant’ for his acts and that he ‘argues his victims ought to shoulder the blame’ for his habits.
“He isn’t the sufferer,” they wrote. “The Courtroom ought to give attention to the very actual results that the defendant’s conduct had on the lives of the particular victims, his victims.”
Nonetheless, his protection argued he should be sentenced to not more than 14 months in jail, stating he had already suffered throughout his 13-month-long stint behind bars and additional argued his ex girlfriends had been ‘not susceptible or exploited or trafficked or sexually assaulted throughout the freak-offs.’
Additionally they declare he has turn into a modified man whereas locked up, from being below suicide watch to reacting calmly to threats together with a violent altercation the place an inmate reportedly confronted him with a weapon.
His attorneys assert that Combs has realized his exploitation of medication contributed to the violent acts he carried out, however Diddy’s bid to have his conviction overturned completely was refused.
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