Veteran executive producer Bryant Ewing, best known for his tenure at Ultramedia Productions and then its successor shop Luna Pier Films with bases of operation in Detroit, Santa Monica and New York, died on Monday, Feb. 21, at the age of 70.
Ewing had a successful run with Ultramedia and Luna Pier before moving back to his native Michigan from the West Coast in 1993. He had a hand in developing assorted directorial careers, including those of Greg Pike, Gordon MacAlister, Bill Scarlet, Blair Hayes and Phil Morrison. The latter was Luna Pier’s first New York-based director.
Ewing was also active in the postproduction arena, having been one of the founders of edit/post house Postique in Southfield, Mich., before it went on to become part of the Grace & Wild family of companies.
Ewing is survived by his life companion, Suzanne Kuecken, son Jason, siblings Bettina and Kendall Ewing, nephews and nieces Joe, Jacob and Kristin Schmidt and Samantha and Lindsay Maitre, as well as a maternal figure in his life, Nettie Kuecken (Suzanne’s mom).
Services will be held on Friday, Feb. 25, at First United Methodist Church in Birmingham, Mich. Visitation begins at 10 a.m. and the funeral service is slated to start at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations (write “In Memory of Bryant Ewing” in memo line) be made to Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Fund #028184, MGH Development Office, 165 Cambridge St., Suite 600, Boston, MA 02114.
Disney Pledges $15 million In L.A. Fire Aid As More Celebs Learn They’ve Lost Their Homes
The Pacific Palisades wildfires torched the home of "This Is Us" star Milo Ventimiglia, perhaps most poignantly destroying the father-to-be's newly installed crib.
CBS cameras caught the actor walking through his charred house for the first time, standing in what was once his kitchen and looking at a neighborhood in ruin. "Your heart just breaks."
He and his pregnant wife, Jarah Mariano, evacuated Tuesday with their dog and they watched on security cameras as the flames ripped through the house, destroying everything, including a new crib.
"There's a kind of shock moment where you're going, 'Oh, this is real. This is happening.' What good is it to continue watching?' And then at a certain point we just turned it off, like 'What good is it to continue watching?'"
Firefighters sought to make gains Friday during a respite in the heavy winds that fanned the flames as numerous groups pledged aid to help victims and rebuild, including a $15 million donation pledge from the Walt Disney Co.
More stars learn their homes are gone
While seeing the remains of his home, Ventimiglia was struck by a connection to his "This Is Us" character, Jack Pearson, who died after inhaling smoke in a house fire. "It's not lost on me life imitating art."
Mandy Moore, who played Ventimiglia's wife on "This Is Us," nearly lost her home in the Eaton fire, which scorched large areas of the Altadena neighborhood. She said Thursday that part of her house is standing but is unlivable, and her husband lost his music studio and all his instruments.
Mel Gibson's home is "completely gone," his publicist Alan Nierob confirmed Friday. The Oscar winner revealed the loss of his home earlier Friday while appearing on Joe Rogan's... Read More