Jamie Babbit has signed on to direct an upcoming episode of Lena Dunham’s hit HBO series Girls. Babbit is repped for commercials by MRB Productions, Hollywood. Her episodic TV credits span such shows as Pretty Little Liars, Drop Dead Diva, Smash, Revenge, Rizzoli & Isles, The Middle, Cougar Town, Castle, Bunheads, and Go On. Feature credits include Sundance darling, But I’m a Cheerleader, starring Natasha Lyonne and Clea DuVall; the Edie Falco and Elisha Cuthbert thriller, The Quiet; and a Jury Prize winner at SXSW, The Itty Bitty Titty Committee. Babbit is on a directorial roster at MRB that includes Stephen Gyllenhaal, Jody Dwyer, Mark Teitelman, Branson Veal, Chuchie Hill and Jeremy Haft….The directing team crush+lab–consisting of director David Solomini, producer Alexander Kafi and creative director/stylist Paula Tabalipa–has come aboard the roster of East Pleasant, a production company founded in 2004. The studio is active in commercials, films, web projects, episodic TV, music videos and documentaries. Company principals include exec producer Michelle Cuccuini Hicks and directors/founders Damien Drake, Stash Slionski, Xander Strohm and David Weinstein….
Gene Hackman Died Of Heart Disease; Hantavirus Claimed His Wife’s Life About One Week Prior
Actor Gene Hackman died of heart disease a full week after his wife died from hantavirus in their New Mexico hillside home, likely unaware that she was dead because he was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease, authorities revealed Friday. Both deaths were ruled to be from natural causes, chief medical examiner Dr. Heather Jarrell said alongside state fire and health officials at a news conference. "Mr. Hackman showed evidence of advanced Alzheimer's disease," Jarrell said. "He was in a very poor state of health. He had significant heart disease, and I think ultimately that's what resulted in his death." Authorities didn't suspect foul play after the bodies of Hackman, 95, and Betsy Arakawa, 65, were discovered Feb 26. Immediate tests for carbon monoxide poisoning were negative. Investigators found that the last known communication and activity from Arakawa was Feb. 11 when she visited a pharmacy, pet store and grocery before returning to their gated neighborhood that afternoon, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said Friday. Hackman's pacemaker last showed signs of activity a week later and that he had an abnormal heart rhythm Feb. 18, the day he likely died, Jarrell said. Although there was no reliable way to determine the date and time when both died, all signs point to their deaths coming a week apart, Jarrell said. "It's quite possible he was not aware she was deceased," Jarrell said. Dr. Michael Baden, a former New York City medical examiner, said he believes Hackman was severely impaired due to Alzheimer's disease and unable to deal with his wife's death in the last week of his life. "You are talking about very severe Alzheimer's disease that normal people would be in a nursing home or have a nurse, but she was taking care... Read More