There has been a spate of deaths recently. All elderly and famous people, and, amazingly, all beautiful - even the men.
87 year-olds
Two of the most beautiful film actors ever have left us in the past month.
Claudia Cardinale, surely the most beautiful of the Italian actresses who were high profile in the 20th century. Sophia Loren was stunning and Gina Lollobrigida too, but Claudia was the one for me.
However, as with many beautiful women, she did not age well. Look at Brigitte Bardot and Kathleen Turner.
Claudia Cardinale [CNN]
Star of films which include "81/2", "The Leopard", and "Once Upon a Time in the West", she graced our screens for several decades.
Terence Stamp, widely regarded as the most beautiful man to appear on film.
He made some 60 films, including Star Trek and Star Wars, but he was best known for roles as "The Collector" and the love interest opposite Julie Christie in "Far From the Madding Crowd".
Unlike many beautiful women, Terence Stamp did not lose his looks as he got older.
Terence Stamp [Instagram]
88 is no great age
Jilly Cooper, who died suddenly yesterday, was a pioneer of the "bonkbuster".
She made a whole generation of teenagers keen to read again, albeit clandestinely.
Her tales of sex and intrigue created a whole new literary genre.
Jilly Cooper [Photo: elDiario.es]
89 is too young
Robert Redford, also regarded as a beautiful man, played a whole range of significant roles.
His films include Barefoot in the Park (1967), Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), The Candidate (1972) and The Sting (1973), with the latter earning him an Academy Award nomination.
His stardom continued with films such as The Way We Were (1973), The Great Gatsby (1974), All the President's Men (1976), and Out of Africa (1985).
Later credits include Sneakers (1992), Indecent Proposal (1993), All Is Lost (2013), Truth (2015), Our Souls at Night (2017) and The Old Man & the Gun (2018).
[El Pais]
Redford made his directorial debut with the family drama Ordinary People (1980), which won four Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director. His later directing credits include A River Runs Through It (1992), Quiz Show (1994), and The Horse Whisperer (1998).
A major advocate for independent cinema, Redford co-founded the Sundance Institute and the Sundance Film Festival in 1978.
91 is no great age
Jane was a famous English primatologist and anthropologist who studied chimpanzees and gorillas.
Her sudden death took everybody by surprise.
[BBC]
Described by many publications as "the world's preeminent chimpanzee expert", she was best known for more than six decades of field research on the social and family life of wild chimpanzees in the Kasakela chimpanzee community at Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania.
Goodall's research demonstrated that chimpanzees share many key traits with humans, such as using tools, having complex emotions, forming lasting social bonds, engaging in organised warfare, and passing on knowledge across generations, which redefined the traditional view that humans are uniquely different from other animals.
In 1965 Goodall was awarded a PhD in ethology from the University of Cambridge. In the 1960s, Goodall published several accounts of her research in Tanzania, including a series of articles in National Geographic.
Goodall established wildlife sanctuaries and reforestation projects in Africa and campaigned for the ethical treatment of animals in animal testing, animal husbandry and captivity.
She was appointed a United Nations Messenger of Peace in 2002, and advised organisations such as Save the Chimps and the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks.
Throughout her career Goodall wrote 32 books, 15 of them for children, and was the subject of over 40 films. She remained an active lecturer, travelling extensively to promote conservation and climate action.
She was an honorary member of the World Future Council. Among other honours, she was a recipient of the National Geographic Society's Hubbard Medal, the Kyoto Prize, the Templeton Prize and the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom.
In 2003 she was named a dame commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II.
© The Culture Vulture (aka Paul Whitelock)
Pictures:
BBC, CNN, ElDiario.es, El Pais, Instagram,
Tags:
"81/2", Brigitte Bardot, BBC, CNN, Claudia Cardinale, ElDiario.es, El Pais, "Far From the Madding Crowd", Gina Lollobrigida, Instagram, Jane Goodall, Julie Christie, Kathleen Turner, "Once Upon a Time in the West", Robert Redford, Sophia Loren, "Star Trek", "Star Wars", Terence Stamp, "The Collector", "The Leopard", she graced our screens for several decades.