Legally embattled actor Alec Baldwin has asked fans to focus on late Hollywood outcast Robert Blake’s contributions to film and TV rather than Blake’s “legal entanglements.”
“Robert Blake has died. I realize that many people have had harsh feelings toward him,” Baldwin wrote on Instagram. “His life seemed to involve many dramatic legal entanglements.”
Baldwin continued, “Today, I want [to] remember him as the incredibly gifted actor he was. A child actor who made countless films in the ’40s.” He went on to name the films Treasure of the Sierra Madre, A Town Without Pity, Electra Glide in Blue, and more, as well as Blake’s Emmy-winning role in the ABC detective series Baretta.
According to Baldwin, however, Blake’s performance in 1967’s In Cold Blood “cemented his place in movie history.” He added, “The brooding, baby-faced Blake had a difficult life. However, when you watch In Cold Blood,...
“Robert Blake has died. I realize that many people have had harsh feelings toward him,” Baldwin wrote on Instagram. “His life seemed to involve many dramatic legal entanglements.”
Baldwin continued, “Today, I want [to] remember him as the incredibly gifted actor he was. A child actor who made countless films in the ’40s.” He went on to name the films Treasure of the Sierra Madre, A Town Without Pity, Electra Glide in Blue, and more, as well as Blake’s Emmy-winning role in the ABC detective series Baretta.
According to Baldwin, however, Blake’s performance in 1967’s In Cold Blood “cemented his place in movie history.” He added, “The brooding, baby-faced Blake had a difficult life. However, when you watch In Cold Blood,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Eddie Fu
- Consequence - Film News
Emmy-winning actor Robert Blake died Thursday (March 9) at age 89, surrounded by family at his home in Los Angeles. His niece Noreen Austin said that he had been battling heart disease. Blake had a career lasting 60 years but will forever be remembered for the dramatic murder trial and his acquittal over the shooting death of his second wife Bonny Lee Bakley in 2001. Blake’s best known role was as star of the ABC show Baretta in which he played undercover New York City detective Tony Baretta. It aired for four seasons in the mid 1970s. His quirky character was fond of disguises and carrying a pet cockatoo on his shoulder. The show had often quoted catchphrases, including “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time” and “You can take that to the bank.” Following Blake’s death Alec Baldwin posted a tribute on Instagram, urging people to...
- 3/10/2023
- TV Insider
Robert Blake — the actor best known for his roles on “Baretta” and in the film “In Cold Blood”, as well as for being tried and acquitted of his wife’s murder in a high-profile case — has died. He was 89.
Blake’s niece, Noreen Austin, confirmed the news in a public obituary, sharing that Blake died from heart disease in Los Angeles on Thursday, surrounded by his family.
Blake’s career began in childhood when he started acting in MGM’s “Our Gang” short films, a.k.a “The Little Rascals”. Blake managed to maintain his career through his teens, and after getting drafted into the Army, Blake returned to acting in his mid-20s.
Read More: Tom Jackson, 'Queer Eye' Season 1 Fan Favorite, Dead at 63 After Cancer Battle
He was one of the first child stars to gain fame and take on serious roles as an adult actor,...
Blake’s niece, Noreen Austin, confirmed the news in a public obituary, sharing that Blake died from heart disease in Los Angeles on Thursday, surrounded by his family.
Blake’s career began in childhood when he started acting in MGM’s “Our Gang” short films, a.k.a “The Little Rascals”. Blake managed to maintain his career through his teens, and after getting drafted into the Army, Blake returned to acting in his mid-20s.
Read More: Tom Jackson, 'Queer Eye' Season 1 Fan Favorite, Dead at 63 After Cancer Battle
He was one of the first child stars to gain fame and take on serious roles as an adult actor,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Melissa Romualdi
- ET Canada
Robert Blake, the Emmy-winning actor who became a Hollywood outcast when he was tried and acquitted in the 2001 murder of his second wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, has died at 89.
A statement by his niece on Thursday (March 9th) via The Associated Press shared that “Blake died from heart disease, surrounded by family at home in Los Angeles.”
Robert Blake, born Michael James Gubitosi on September 18th, 1933, launched his acting career as child star on The Little Rascals series Our Gang. After serving in the army and suffering from drug addiction, he transitioned to mature roles in films like 1967’s In Cold Blood.
From 1975 to 1978, Blake played the titular detective on ABC’s Baretta, which earned him an Emmy for Lead Actor in its debut season and another nomination in 1977. The role also made catchphrases out of “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time” and “You...
A statement by his niece on Thursday (March 9th) via The Associated Press shared that “Blake died from heart disease, surrounded by family at home in Los Angeles.”
Robert Blake, born Michael James Gubitosi on September 18th, 1933, launched his acting career as child star on The Little Rascals series Our Gang. After serving in the army and suffering from drug addiction, he transitioned to mature roles in films like 1967’s In Cold Blood.
From 1975 to 1978, Blake played the titular detective on ABC’s Baretta, which earned him an Emmy for Lead Actor in its debut season and another nomination in 1977. The role also made catchphrases out of “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time” and “You...
- 3/10/2023
- by Bryan Kress
- Consequence - Film News
Michael James Gubitosi, more famously known as Robert Blake, died at the age of 89 in Los Angeles from heart disease. The news comes from Blake's niece Noreen Austin and was reported by Deadline. Blake was a Hollywood lifer, getting his start as a child in the MGM film "Bridal Suite" before assuming the role of Porky in the "Our Gang" and "The Little Rascals" shorts from 1939 to 1944. He continued performing well into his teen years, taking a brief hiatus in his 20s after he was drafted into the United States Army.
Blake reportedly developed a severe substance abuse problem in the years that followed but turned back to acting to get his life on track. He re-emerged playing more adult, dramatic roles, appearing in films like "Treasure of the Sierra Madre," "In Cold Blood," and a string of studio Westerns under the stage name "Bobby Blake." He would eventually pivot...
Blake reportedly developed a severe substance abuse problem in the years that followed but turned back to acting to get his life on track. He re-emerged playing more adult, dramatic roles, appearing in films like "Treasure of the Sierra Madre," "In Cold Blood," and a string of studio Westerns under the stage name "Bobby Blake." He would eventually pivot...
- 3/10/2023
- by BJ Colangelo
- Slash Film
It was announced today that controversial actor Robert Blake has died at the age of 89. His niece, Noreen Austin, confirmed that he died at his Los Angeles home after a longtime battle with heart disease. Blake was best known for his roles in Richard Brooks’ adaptation of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood, David Lynch’s Lost Highway, and for starring in the 1970s detective series Baretta.
Robert Blake got his start as a child actor, appearing as Mickey in forty installments of MGM’s Our Gang short films. He also played Little Beaver in twenty-three installments of the Red Ryder film series. He also appeared in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre as a young Mexican boy who sells a lottery ticket to Humphrey Bogart. Although many child actors can’t transition to adult roles, Blake managed to pull it off. His biggest break came with In Cold Blood,...
Robert Blake got his start as a child actor, appearing as Mickey in forty installments of MGM’s Our Gang short films. He also played Little Beaver in twenty-three installments of the Red Ryder film series. He also appeared in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre as a young Mexican boy who sells a lottery ticket to Humphrey Bogart. Although many child actors can’t transition to adult roles, Blake managed to pull it off. His biggest break came with In Cold Blood,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Kevin Fraser
- JoBlo.com
Robert Blake, the Emmy-winning film and television star who participated in over half a century’s worth of Hollywood history, has died at the age of 89. The news was confirmed by the Associated Press.
Born in New Jersey in 1933, Blake began working in film as a child actor in the late 1930s. His first onscreen role came in the form of an uncredited appearance in Wilhelm Thiele’s 1939 film “Bridal Suite.” He continued to work steadily throughout the 1940s and 1950s, memorably appearing as a child selling lottery tickets who gets a drink thrown in his face in 1948’s “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.”
Blake was one of the first child stars to successfully transition into adult roles. After a string of guest spots on popular 1960s TV shows, he was working as a leading man by the end of the decade. He memorably played Perry in Richard Brooks’ 1967 adaptation of “In Cold Blood,...
Born in New Jersey in 1933, Blake began working in film as a child actor in the late 1930s. His first onscreen role came in the form of an uncredited appearance in Wilhelm Thiele’s 1939 film “Bridal Suite.” He continued to work steadily throughout the 1940s and 1950s, memorably appearing as a child selling lottery tickets who gets a drink thrown in his face in 1948’s “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.”
Blake was one of the first child stars to successfully transition into adult roles. After a string of guest spots on popular 1960s TV shows, he was working as a leading man by the end of the decade. He memorably played Perry in Richard Brooks’ 1967 adaptation of “In Cold Blood,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
Actor Robert Blake, who starred in the 1967 classic film In Cold Blood and Treasure of the Sierra Madre in 1948, has died at the age of 89, Deadline reports.
The controversial actor died from heart disease in Los Angeles, his niece Noreen Austin confirmed to the outlet.
Born Michael James Gubitosi on Sept. 18, 1933 in Nutley, New Jersey, Blake began acting at a young age with his two siblings as the “The Three Little Hillbillies.” His family moved to California in 1938, and Blake, along with his siblings, worked as movie extras in Los Angeles.
The controversial actor died from heart disease in Los Angeles, his niece Noreen Austin confirmed to the outlet.
Born Michael James Gubitosi on Sept. 18, 1933 in Nutley, New Jersey, Blake began acting at a young age with his two siblings as the “The Three Little Hillbillies.” His family moved to California in 1938, and Blake, along with his siblings, worked as movie extras in Los Angeles.
- 3/10/2023
- by Charisma Madarang
- Rollingstone.com
Actor Robert Blake, who starred in the 1970s cop show Baretta and was later acquitted of killing his wife in a high-profile murder trial, has died at the age of 89. He died on Thursday from heart disease, his niece tells our sister site Deadline.
Blake began his Hollywood career as a child actor, playing Mickey in MGM’s Our Gang shorts, later known as the Little Rascals. The young Blake also appeared in a Laurel and Hardy film and shared a scene with Humphrey Bogart in the 1948 classic The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
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Blake began his Hollywood career as a child actor, playing Mickey in MGM’s Our Gang shorts, later known as the Little Rascals. The young Blake also appeared in a Laurel and Hardy film and shared a scene with Humphrey Bogart in the 1948 classic The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
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- 3/10/2023
- by Dave Nemetz
- TVLine.com
Actor Robert Blake, born Michael James Gubitosi, died Thursday at the age of 89 in Los Angeles from heart disease.
Blake’s 60-year-plus career in Hollywood included a gig in “Our Gang” as a child, and a role in “The Treasure of Sierra Madre” in 1948 all the way through David Lynch’s cult classic “Lost Highway” in 1997.
In terms of his onscreen work, he is best known for playing convicted murderer Perry Smith in the feature film adaptation of “In Cold Blood.” The 1967 classic is based on Truman Capote’s groundbreaking nonfiction book, which is often considered the first modern true crime novel.
His most iconic television work included four seasons playing the title role in ABC’s undercover cop action drama “Baretta,” for which he earned an Emmy for Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 1977. Blake also appeared on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” as a reoccurring guest...
Blake’s 60-year-plus career in Hollywood included a gig in “Our Gang” as a child, and a role in “The Treasure of Sierra Madre” in 1948 all the way through David Lynch’s cult classic “Lost Highway” in 1997.
In terms of his onscreen work, he is best known for playing convicted murderer Perry Smith in the feature film adaptation of “In Cold Blood.” The 1967 classic is based on Truman Capote’s groundbreaking nonfiction book, which is often considered the first modern true crime novel.
His most iconic television work included four seasons playing the title role in ABC’s undercover cop action drama “Baretta,” for which he earned an Emmy for Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 1977. Blake also appeared on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” as a reoccurring guest...
- 3/10/2023
- by Scott Mendelson
- The Wrap
Robert Blake, who played the crazed real-life killer Perry Smith in Truman Copote’s In Cold Blood and the popular TV cop Tony Baretta before a sensational Hollywood murder trial destroyed his career, has died. He was 89.
Blake, who got his start as a child star in the 1940s in the Our Gang comedy shorts at MGM, died Thursday at his Los Angeles home after a long battle with heart disease, his niece, Noreen Austin, told The Hollywood Reporter.
On the night of May 4, 2001, Bonny Lee Bakley, Blake’s wife of six months and the mother of his young daughter, was fatally shot twice at point-blank range while she sat in their car after they had dined at Vitello’s, an Italian restaurant in Studio City. (The actor said he had gone back into the restaurant to retrieve a revolver he had left behind.)
Nearly four years later, including a year spent in jail,...
Blake, who got his start as a child star in the 1940s in the Our Gang comedy shorts at MGM, died Thursday at his Los Angeles home after a long battle with heart disease, his niece, Noreen Austin, told The Hollywood Reporter.
On the night of May 4, 2001, Bonny Lee Bakley, Blake’s wife of six months and the mother of his young daughter, was fatally shot twice at point-blank range while she sat in their car after they had dined at Vitello’s, an Italian restaurant in Studio City. (The actor said he had gone back into the restaurant to retrieve a revolver he had left behind.)
Nearly four years later, including a year spent in jail,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Actor Robert Blake, a man with a long and complex legacy, has died, a representative for his son-in-law Gregg Hurwitz confirmed to Variety. The former child actor was best known for his Emmy-winning role as the cockatoo-owning undercover cop in the popular 1970s TV series “Baretta” and, more infamously, for his trial following the 2001 murder of his wife. He was 89.
As reported by the Associated Press, Blake died from heart disease on Thursday at his home in Los Angeles.
These two aspects of Blake’s legacy were inseparable in some ways, and the personal turmoil that made the latter at least circumstantially plausible (the case against Blake hinged on motive — he may have wanted to be free of his rocky marriage) fueled his acting.
Blake was acquitted of the murder charge, as well as of one count of soliciting murder, in his criminal trial in 2005, but in a civil trial later that year,...
As reported by the Associated Press, Blake died from heart disease on Thursday at his home in Los Angeles.
These two aspects of Blake’s legacy were inseparable in some ways, and the personal turmoil that made the latter at least circumstantially plausible (the case against Blake hinged on motive — he may have wanted to be free of his rocky marriage) fueled his acting.
Blake was acquitted of the murder charge, as well as of one count of soliciting murder, in his criminal trial in 2005, but in a civil trial later that year,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Carmel Dagan
- Variety Film + TV
Robert Blake, the controversial actor who won a Lead Actor Emmy for Baretta and starred in films including In Cold Blood and Lost Highway before a murder trial ended his career, died today of heart disease in Los Angeles. He was 89. His niece, Noreen Austin, confirmed the news.
Blake’s long career ranged from a childhood stint in “Our Gang” at age 5 through major films and television before he was acquitted of murder in the 2001 death of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley.
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Over the course of 60+ years of working in Hollywood, Blake appeared in such classic films as Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) alongside Humphrey Bogart; In Cold Blood (1967) with John Forsythe...
Blake’s long career ranged from a childhood stint in “Our Gang” at age 5 through major films and television before he was acquitted of murder in the 2001 death of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley.
Related Story Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2023: Photo Gallery & Obituaries Related Story Tom Jackson Dies: 'Queer Eye' Reboot Season One Makeover Recipient Was 63 Related Story Ed Fury Dies: Bodybuilder Actor Of 'Ursus' Sword & Sandal Low-Budget Epics Was 94
Over the course of 60+ years of working in Hollywood, Blake appeared in such classic films as Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) alongside Humphrey Bogart; In Cold Blood (1967) with John Forsythe...
- 3/10/2023
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Crime Junkie, the true-crime podcast led by THR Next Gen 2022 honoree Ashley Flowers, was the most popular show on Apple Podcasts this year, the tech giant said on Monday.
To populate the lists, Apple looked at user listenership and engagement between November 1, 2021, through Oct. 31, 2022. Crime Junkie, the flagship show of Flowers’ Audiochuck company, also took the top spots in the top followed and top shared categories, while Audiochuck was honored as the top free channel on Apple Podcasts for the year.
For podcast subscriptions, Morbid — a true-crime show hosted by Alaina Urquhart and Ashleigh Kelley that has an exclusive ad sales and one-week windowing deal with Wondery and Amazon Music — landed at No. 1. Wondery retained its spot as the top subscriber channel on the platform.
Meanwhile, on Spotify, which released its annual Wrapped list on Nov. 30, the most listened-to podcast shows were led...
Crime Junkie, the true-crime podcast led by THR Next Gen 2022 honoree Ashley Flowers, was the most popular show on Apple Podcasts this year, the tech giant said on Monday.
To populate the lists, Apple looked at user listenership and engagement between November 1, 2021, through Oct. 31, 2022. Crime Junkie, the flagship show of Flowers’ Audiochuck company, also took the top spots in the top followed and top shared categories, while Audiochuck was honored as the top free channel on Apple Podcasts for the year.
For podcast subscriptions, Morbid — a true-crime show hosted by Alaina Urquhart and Ashleigh Kelley that has an exclusive ad sales and one-week windowing deal with Wondery and Amazon Music — landed at No. 1. Wondery retained its spot as the top subscriber channel on the platform.
Meanwhile, on Spotify, which released its annual Wrapped list on Nov. 30, the most listened-to podcast shows were led...
- 12/5/2022
- by J. Clara Chan
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The novelization of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood” is here, with some shocking revelations about its amiable, hippie-beating hero, Cliff Booth.
Although the 2019 film shows the veteran stuntman — played by Brad Pitt in an Oscar-winning performance — casually exchanging blows with Bruce Lee and pounding the Manson Family to a pulp, many fans will be surprised to learn that not only has Cliff killed before, but many times.
One of the lingering questions posed by the movie was what exactly happened to Cliff’s wife, whose fate is hinted at in a brief, ambiguous flashback. If you believe the on-set gossip in the movie, then he did kill her. But if you’re like Cliff’s pal/employer Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), then you’d much rather believe he saves his fists of fury for the bad guys.
Well, according to the new novel written by Tarantino himself,...
Although the 2019 film shows the veteran stuntman — played by Brad Pitt in an Oscar-winning performance — casually exchanging blows with Bruce Lee and pounding the Manson Family to a pulp, many fans will be surprised to learn that not only has Cliff killed before, but many times.
One of the lingering questions posed by the movie was what exactly happened to Cliff’s wife, whose fate is hinted at in a brief, ambiguous flashback. If you believe the on-set gossip in the movie, then he did kill her. But if you’re like Cliff’s pal/employer Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), then you’d much rather believe he saves his fists of fury for the bad guys.
Well, according to the new novel written by Tarantino himself,...
- 6/29/2021
- by Alex Noble
- The Wrap
[Editor’s note: Spoilers follow for the plot of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” novel.]
One of the biggest mysteries of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” is whether Brad Pitt’s Cliff Booth murdered his wife, Billie. Rumors about his wife’s mysterious demise swirl around the stuntman, with Mike Moh’s Bruce Lee showing recognition when a crew member says Booth “killed his wife and got away with it.” But it’s only in Tarantino’s “Hollywood” novel, out now, which the director has described as a “complete rethinking of the movie,” that we get a definitive answer about what happened.
Cliff’s culpability for the crime has been hotly debated since the film was released in July 2019. Brad Pitt himself said he knew the definitive answer — that Tarantino had told him — and certainly characters in the world of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” believe Cliff is guilty. Husband...
One of the biggest mysteries of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” is whether Brad Pitt’s Cliff Booth murdered his wife, Billie. Rumors about his wife’s mysterious demise swirl around the stuntman, with Mike Moh’s Bruce Lee showing recognition when a crew member says Booth “killed his wife and got away with it.” But it’s only in Tarantino’s “Hollywood” novel, out now, which the director has described as a “complete rethinking of the movie,” that we get a definitive answer about what happened.
Cliff’s culpability for the crime has been hotly debated since the film was released in July 2019. Brad Pitt himself said he knew the definitive answer — that Tarantino had told him — and certainly characters in the world of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” believe Cliff is guilty. Husband...
- 6/29/2021
- by Christian Blauvelt
- Indiewire
In 2000, Bonnie Lee Bakely married actor Robert Blake. The marriage was Bonnie’s tenth, and Robert’s second. Within a year of making their vows, Bonnie was shot while sitting in Blake’s car outside a Los Angles restaurant. Blake was subsequently charged with murder, solicitation of murder, and conspiracy. Seven months after a jury acquitted him of all crimes, Blake was found liable of wrongful death during a lawsuit instigated by Bonnie’s surviving children. Her death, however, remains officially unsolved. 1. She dreamed of becoming a model Bonnie was born to Marjorie and Edward Bakely in New Jersey. At the age
10 Things You Didn’t Know about Bonnie Lee Bakley...
10 Things You Didn’t Know about Bonnie Lee Bakley...
- 10/23/2019
- by Dana Hanson-Firestone
- TVovermind.com
Robert Blake has filed for divorce from his third wife, Pamela Hudak, just a year after the two strolled into Beverly Hills City Hall to obtain their marriage license. Blake filed docs in Los Angeles Friday to call the relationship quits ... the 85-year-old got hitched to Hudak in Spring of 2017. The couple had known each other for decades and even dated years ago. Blake was accused of murdering his second wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley, who...
- 12/7/2018
- by TMZ Staff
- TMZ
Bill Cosby just scored one of the best criminal defense lawyers in the country to defend him in his sexual assault retrial ... Tom Mesereau. We're told Mesereau will be lead counsel in the retrial, set for November. Mesereau has won some legendary cases ... he repped Robert Blake, who beat the rap for allegedly murdering his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley. And he successfully defended Michael Jackson in the singer's child molestation trial. We're told Bill and...
- 8/21/2017
- by TMZ Staff
- TMZ
[[tmz:video id="0_gbrh7691"]] Robert Blake and Pamela Hudak not only took out a marriage license earlier this month ... they appear to be married. We got the two hand in hand up in Beverly Glen Sunday and our photog congratulated them on their "marriage." Robert acknowledged with a nod. A nod, however, is all we got. Robert was acquitted in 2005 the murder of his second wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley. Read more...
- 3/20/2017
- by TMZ Staff
- TMZ
Robert Blake will take a walk down the aisle a third time ... 12 years after a jury acquitted him of murdering his second wife. We've learned the 83-year-old "Baretta" star was at the Beverly Hills Courthouse Thursday and filled out a marriage license application. He was there with the woman he will marry ... 55-year-old Pamela Hudak. We're told the 2 have known each other for decades and dated back in the day. Blake and his second wife,...
- 3/10/2017
- by TMZ Staff
- TMZ
Story of bounty hunters transporting prisoners through 19th-century Wyoming would have been shot in 70mm format
Quentin Tarantino's cancelled western The Hateful Eight would have centred on two bounty hunters plying their trade in bloody 19th-century Wyoming, according to reports.
Tarantino was left seething earlier this weak after the draft screenplay for his new film was leaked by an unnamed Hollywood agent. He has declared the project defunct, and says he will publish the script in text form instead.
Now the Wrap reports that it has seen the screenplay, which has now been photocopied a number of times and is said to be circulating in Hollywood. Tarantino planned a film in 70mm, an unusual and expensive format recently used by Paul Thomas Anderson for The Master, and there would have been plum roles for Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, Christoph Waltz and Samuel L Jackson, the site says.
The Hateful Eight...
Quentin Tarantino's cancelled western The Hateful Eight would have centred on two bounty hunters plying their trade in bloody 19th-century Wyoming, according to reports.
Tarantino was left seething earlier this weak after the draft screenplay for his new film was leaked by an unnamed Hollywood agent. He has declared the project defunct, and says he will publish the script in text form instead.
Now the Wrap reports that it has seen the screenplay, which has now been photocopied a number of times and is said to be circulating in Hollywood. Tarantino planned a film in 70mm, an unusual and expensive format recently used by Paul Thomas Anderson for The Master, and there would have been plum roles for Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, Christoph Waltz and Samuel L Jackson, the site says.
The Hateful Eight...
- 1/24/2014
- by Ben Child
- The Guardian - Film News
On an unforgettable episode of CNN's "Piers Morgan Tonight," Robert Blake -- who's promoting a self-published memoir -- denieshe killed his wife and got royally annoyed when Morgan even asked about the topic. Blake was acquitted in the death Bonnie Lee Bakley in 2005, but later found guilty in a civil suit.
"What the hell are you doing?" asks Blake when Morgan broaches the subject of the night of Bakley's death.
"It sounds boring as hell, but go ahead ... are you sure the people of Tibet give a f*** about this," he says before accusing Morgan of parroting questions fed to him by a producer in his earpiece.
Morgan removes his earpiece and argues that it is interesting and relevant since Blake is there to promote a memoir. In fact, he suggests, it's the most significant event of Blake's life.
"I didn't murder my wife," replies Blake. "It may be significant to you,...
"What the hell are you doing?" asks Blake when Morgan broaches the subject of the night of Bakley's death.
"It sounds boring as hell, but go ahead ... are you sure the people of Tibet give a f*** about this," he says before accusing Morgan of parroting questions fed to him by a producer in his earpiece.
Morgan removes his earpiece and argues that it is interesting and relevant since Blake is there to promote a memoir. In fact, he suggests, it's the most significant event of Blake's life.
"I didn't murder my wife," replies Blake. "It may be significant to you,...
- 7/12/2012
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Pop2it
Actor Robert Blake sat down for his first TV appearance in over a decade with Piers Morgan on CNN tonight, The interview started out normally enough, but as it went on and Morgan asked more probing questions about the death of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley and the subsequent trial where he ended up being acquitted for her murder, the interview grew incredibly tense, and Blake lashed out at Morgan his questions, confronting the CNN host about his supposed accusatory tone and dismissing the questions as "boring."...
- 7/12/2012
- by Josh Feldman
- Mediaite - TV
Robert Blake erupted at Piers Morgan on Wednesday when the CNN primetime host questioned whether Blake was telling the truth about the circumstances surrounding the death of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley. Blake appeared on Morgan's program to promote his upcoming memoir, which covers his extensive acting career as well as his personal life. Also read: Amanda Knox Acquitted Of Murder, Sexual Assault Though Blake was once best known for his appearances in the TV series "Baretta" and the film "In Cold Blood," he gained new notoriety after the murder of Bakley in 2001.
- 7/11/2012
- by Lucas Shaw
- The Wrap
Actor Robert Blake was booted out of an autograph signing session over his unruly behaviour, according to a U.S. report.
The In Cold Blood star, who was tried and acquitted of murder in 2005 following the death of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley, was invited to meet-and-greet fans at a memorabilia convention called The Hollywood Show at the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel & Convention Center in California over the weekend (12-13Feb11).
However, Blake soon upset organisers with his demanding ways, and complained about the lack of fans interested in getting his signature, according to TMZ.com.
The website reports Blake was escorted out of the event due his behaviour, but when he started signing autographs in the car park, he was kicked off the premises.
The In Cold Blood star, who was tried and acquitted of murder in 2005 following the death of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley, was invited to meet-and-greet fans at a memorabilia convention called The Hollywood Show at the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel & Convention Center in California over the weekend (12-13Feb11).
However, Blake soon upset organisers with his demanding ways, and complained about the lack of fans interested in getting his signature, according to TMZ.com.
The website reports Blake was escorted out of the event due his behaviour, but when he started signing autographs in the car park, he was kicked off the premises.
- 2/14/2011
- WENN
Filed under: Wacky & Weird
Somehow a simple "How ya doing?" to Robert Blake turned into his thoughts on spending a year in prison, some poem about his daughter, and a verse from "Someone to Watch Over Me."Somewhere, Bonnie Lee Bakley Ella Fitzgerald is rolling over in her ...
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Somehow a simple "How ya doing?" to Robert Blake turned into his thoughts on spending a year in prison, some poem about his daughter, and a verse from "Someone to Watch Over Me."Somewhere, Bonnie Lee Bakley Ella Fitzgerald is rolling over in her ...
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- 8/17/2009
- by TMZ Staff
- TMZ
A California Superior Court judge has rejected a motion for a new trial in actor Robert Blake's civil wrongful death case. Last year, Blake was acquitted of murdering his wife Bonnie Lee Bakely in a criminal trial. In November, a jury in the civil suit brought by the victim's family found Blake was guilty of intentionally causing her death in 2001. In February, the Bakely family was awarded $30 million in damages in the wrongful death case. Bakely was found shot dead in the actor's car in May 2001, outside a Studio City, California restaurant where the couple had just dined.
- 4/11/2006
- WENN
Robert Blake's lawyers yesterday asked for a new trial, alleging jury misconduct in last year's civil court case which found the actor "intentionally caused" the death of his wife. In a new motion filed in Los Angeles, the Baretta star's defense team claim one juror failed to disclose that her daughter was in prison for murder, while others disregarded instructions from the judge. It is also alleged that the jury found Blake liable for the 2001 death of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley in order to send a message to celebrities. The jury also discussed details relating to Blake's criminal trial in March 2005, in which he was acquitted of murdering Bakley, which the lawyers claim had no relevance to his civil trial. In November, a civil court ordered to Blake to pay $30 million in damages to Bakley's children. He then filed for bankruptcy.
- 3/29/2006
- WENN
Baretta star Robert Blake is planning an acting comeback, one year after he was acquitted of murdering his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley. The 72-year-old actor, real name Michael James Gubitosi, was arrested one year after his wife was found shot to death in their car in May 2001, close to a Studio City, California restaurant where they had just dined. But the 1970s TV star, who is currently working as a stable-hand for friends, claims he is ready to take on the world once again. He says, "I want to live. I've woken up some nights and wanted to drive till the car goes off a cliff. And an hour later, poetry is coming to me. I want to go act. I want to go teach. I want to dance. I can be an actor no matter what happens. I was in the middle of a job when my father committed suicide and I went to work the next day." Blake pleaded not guilty to the charges, telling police he had returned to Vitello's Italian restaurant to collect a gun he had left at the table when Bakley was shot outside. He was forced to declare bankruptcy in 2005 when a court asked him to pay his wife's family $30 million damages in a civil suit.
- 3/21/2006
- WENN
The jury in actor Robert Blake's civil trial are expected to take charge of the case Friday as attorneys wrap up their closing arguments. The Baretta star, who was acquitted of the murder of his wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley, earlier this year is being sued for the wrongful death by his stepchildren. Turning up to the court house in Burbank, California alone yesterday morning, Blake was philosophical about the ongoing trial, stating, "This ain't my first day at the rodeo, it won't be my last day at the rodeo." In court yesterday, Blake took the stand to declare again that he had no hand in the death of his wife.
- 11/4/2005
- WENN
Marlon Brando's son refused to answer questions at the civil wrongful death trial against Robert Blake, who is accused of being responsible for his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley's murder. Christian Brando was called as a witness on Tuesday at the Burbank, California trial, where Bakley's adult children are suing Baretta star Blake, whose wife was shot to death in his car outside Vitello's Restaurant in Studio City, California, in May 2001. Blake's lawyers have cited Brando as a possible suspect in the murder, alleging Bakley at one point claimed Brando was the father of her and Blake's daughter Rosie, who was born in June 2000. In the stand on Tuesday, Brando confirmed his name, date of birth and agreed his voice was on a tape recording of phone conversations with Bakley. After admitting he had "met" Bakley, Brando invoked the Fifth Amendment when pressed for information about their relationship. He said he was unaware Bakley had recorded their conversation, but refused to speak further about her. While Superior Court Judge David M. Schacter gave Brando leave to invoke the Fifth Amendment on some questions, he was required to answer others, such as admitting he had spent five years behind bars for the manslaughter of his sister's boyfriend Dag Drollet. Brando's lawyer Bruce Margolin says, "He didn't want to take part in this charade that somehow implies he's involved in this matter. He would prefer to have nothing to do with this matter." In both his criminal and civil trials involving Bakley, Blake has always insisted the killing happened as he returned to Vitello's to collect a handgun he had left behind. The trial continues.
- 10/27/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake finished testifying at a wrongful death lawsuit brought against him by his late wife's children on Wednesday , after seven days on the witness stand. The Baretta star again described what he says happened on the night of Bonnie Lee Bakley's murder in May 2001. Bakley was shot in Blake's car outside a restaurant in Studio City, California. The 72-year-old actor was acquitted of fatally shooting Bakley in March, but her grown-up kids claim he is responsible for her death. Blake says the killing happened as he returned to the eatery to collect a handgun he had left behind. During his testimony on Wednesday, Blake showed jurors how he picked up the gun from the restaurant's floor. On Tuesday, the actor's attorney Peter Ezzell told the Burbank, California, court how a letter written by Bakley to her probation officer said, "I've almost been killed a half a dozen times." Ezzell indicated this letter pointed towards the theory that many people wanted Bakley dead. The trial continues.
- 10/21/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake on Monday testified there are at least three witnesses who can confirm his alibi that he was not present when his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley was murdered - the first time the actor has made this claim. Bakley was shot in May 2001 in Blake's car outside a restaurant in Studio City, California. Blake says the killing happened as he returned to the eatery to collect a handgun he had left behind. At the restaurant, the Baretta star told the court he was seen by three workers who never went to the police. The 72-year-old is battling a civil lawsuit brought by the children of Bakley. Blake was acquitted of fatally shooting Bakley in March, but her grown-up kids claim he is responsible for her death. Blake told the Los Angeles court three workers standing by a cash register saw him walk back into the restaurant. He claims they never gave police a statement because they did not speak English and were not legally allowed in the US. Eric Dubin, representing Bakley's children, dismissed Blake's testimony. He said, "It's a new jury, so I guess we have a new alibi. I would call it a desperate and insulting attempt to create an alibi that had never been there for four years." Earlier this month, Blake defended his decision to take a gun to the restaurant, telling the civil jury he was worried about people, including a man he called 'Buzz Cut', loitering outside his house. Yesterday, Blake described his late wife as someone desperate for fame and fortune. He also said Bakley had a relationship with Marlon Brando's son Christian while she was with him. In one of her letters presented in court, Bakley wrote: "I don't feel it would be worth it to sever that relationship for anything less than an engagement. It might not be just your money I miss out on, it might be Marlon's as well via Christian."...
- 10/19/2005
- WENN
Actor Robert Blake Monday told a civil court he never asked anybody to kill his wife Bonny Lee Bakley. Blake is currently facing a civil lawsuit brought by the children of Bakley, who was found murdered in his car in Studio City, California, in May 2001. The Baretta star was acquitted of fatally shooting Bakley in March, but her grown-up kids claim he is responsible for her death. Yesterday, Bakley's lawyer Eric Dubin introduced sections of a testimony by witness Frank Minucci, who is not appearing at the civil trial. New York-based actor Dubin claimed Blake had discussed plans to kill Bakley with him - an allegation the 72-year-old contests. Blake was also quizzed as to whether he only wed Bakley for custody of their five-year-old daughter Rosie. Dubin asked, "Was the reason you married Bonnie Lee Bakley to get custody of Rosie Blake?" Blake replied, "No. We got married to get to know each other and see if we could make it together." The trial continues.
- 10/5/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake's allegedly told his late wife Bonny Lee Bakley "he had a bullet with her name on it", the actress' daughter told jurors in a civil trial on Monday. Blake is currently facing a civil lawsuit from the children of Bakley, who was found murdered in his car in Studio City, California in May 2001. The Baretta star was acquitted of fatally shooting Bakley in March, but her grown-up kids claim he was responsible for her death. Holly Gawron, 25, told the Burbank, California court, "We discussed what it would be like to get shot in the head. He told her he had a bullet with her name on it and she asked me if I thought it would hurt. What it would feel like." Gawron and Bakley had the alleged conversation after the aspiring actress admitted he had tricked the veteran actor into getting her pregnant. The couple's first child together, Rosie was born in June 2000 and is currently being raised by Blake's adult daughter Delinah. Speaking in court again on Tuesday, Gawron testified her mother told her, "I told him I was on the pill. I just didn't say what pill." before admitting she had been taking fertility pills instead of contraceptives. Gawron admitted she helped Bakley to use a fertility device so she could calculate the best time to conceive. The trial continues.
- 9/29/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake has scored a court victory, after a judge in the actor's wrongful death case ruled that his late wife Bonny Lee Bakley's colorful past can be detailed during the trial. In making the ruling yesterday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Schacter rejected a request by Bakley family attorney Eric Dubin to bar information about her past, including her practice of selling nude photos of herself. The judge wrote, "This evidence is directly relevant to determine the issue of damages and to Blake's defense." The ruling is seen as a victory for members of Blake's defense team, who want to prove that others had motives to kill Bakley. The Baretta star, 72, was acquitted in March of charges of murder and solicitation of murder in the 2001 shooting death of Bakley outside a Los Angeles restaurant. During his criminal trial, both sides portrayed Bakley as a con woman who trapped Blake into marrying her by becoming pregnant. Prosecutors conceded Bakley sold nude photos of herself through the mail to lonely men. Jury selection in the civil case is set to begin on Monday. The lawsuit was filed in 2002 on behalf of Bakley's four children. Blake's former handyman, Earl Caldwell, is also named as a defendant.
- 8/26/2005
- WENN
The first wife of Robert Blake has claimed the actor tried to have her and her new boyfriend killed following their separation in the 1970s. In a court deposition given in a Los Angeles attorney's office in May, Sondra Kerr Blake says several people told her Blake had taken out a "contract" to murder her and her then lover, actor Steve Railsback. Part of her testimony reads: "He had put a contract out on me and the other man that I was seeing at the time." Blake allegedly planned to blame the killings on followers of Charles Manson, as Kerr Blake and Railsback were then filming the 1976 TV movie Helter Skelter, about the Manson 'family'. Kerr Blake says the Baretta star wanted them murdered in the same Los Angeles mansion where Manson's followers slaughtered five people, including the actress Sharon Tate, in August 1969. His intention was to make the deaths look like retribution for filming a Manson movie, says the witness. Kerr Blake claims she was told of Blake's plans by a friend of the actor's manager, director Bernard Kowalski - who filmed several Baretta episodes - and his wife Helen. She made her statement as part of an ongoing civil case brought against Blake by the family of his murdered second wife, Bonny Lee Bakley. Blake was acquitted of the murder of Bakley in March, but his slain wife's family still maintain he is guilty. Kerr Blake was married to Blake, whom she had two children with, from 1961 until their divorce in 1983.
- 8/5/2005
- WENN
Actor Robert Blake is set to face one of his toughest days in court to date, as he faces testimony from his first wife again in the ongoing civil case brought against him by his murdered wife's family. Attorney Eric Dubin, who is representing the family of Blake's slain wife Bonny Lee Bakley, has called on Sondra Kerr - the actor's ex-wife - to testify about her violent encounters with the Baretta star. The former husband and wife came face to face briefly on Friday as the civil case against Blake heated up. Kerr's attorney Gloria Allred entered the court on Friday insisting there was little she could say about the proceedings, but she revealed, "It wouldn't surprise me if they asked about whether or not there were any acts of violence during the relationship." Dubin explained to US news show Celebrity Justice that he called on Kerr because he hoped Blake's behavior towards her could establish a pattern of violence. He explained, "I think there's a lot of conduct that occurred with Bonny and we're going to talk about it." Blake was acquitted of the murder of Bakley in March, but his slain wife's family still maintain the actor is guilty.
- 5/31/2005
- WENN
Actor Robert Blake claims he once offered $250,000 to settle a wrongful-death lawsuit brought by the children of his murdered wife - a sum he no longer can afford. The former Baretta star, who was acquitted in March of killing Bonny Lee Bakley, was in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday for a hearing on motions in the civil case, which also names former handyman Earl Caldwell as a defendant. Both men are scheduled to give depositions today. Judge David M. Schacter denied a request by Blake's attorneys for a gag order and also refused to seal records. Outside the courtroom, Blake, 71, said he now has only $150,000 in assets, adding he has authorized an inspection of his finances at his accountant's office. He said, "And if anybody ever finds that there's $5 hidden anywhere, I'm willing to go to Folsom (State Prison). There is no agenda here." Eric Dubin, who represents Bakley's four children, countered that Blake had $25 million as of late 2003. Bakley, 44, was shot to death in May 2001 as she sat alone in a car outside a Los Angeles restaurant where she and Blake had just dined.
- 5/9/2005
- WENN
Actor Robert Blake returned to court yesterday morning to hammer out details of his upcoming civil trial. The former Baretta star, who was acquitted of the murder of Bonny Lee Bakley last month, still faces a civil suit filed by her family, who still maintain the actor is guilty. As the trial gets closer, the attorneys are fighting over the evidence and over what the two defendants - Blake and his former handyman Earl Caldwell - can say in court. This morning, Blake and his attorney Peter Ezzell and Caldwell arrived in court. The two defendants are scheduled for depositions over the next few weeks, but their attorneys want them to claim their Fifth Amendment rights and refuse to answer certain questions. The attorney for the Bakley family is arguing that the defendant should be able to answer all questions. The judge wants to wait until the trial. The case is scheduled for July 5.
- 4/22/2005
- WENN
Actor Robert Blake is aiming for an out-of-court settlement with the family of his murdered wife to avoid a civil trial into her wrongful death. The Baretta star was found not guilty on March 16 murdering wife Bonny Lee Bakley in a car outside a Los Angeles restaurant they had just dined in. In the upcoming civil case Blake is accused of killing his wife alongside co-defendant Earle Caldwell. Lawyers for both sides are keen to reach a mutual agreement and are due to meet in the next few days to discuss Blake's finances. Blake's lawyer M Gerald Schwartzbach has told Bakley family attorney Eric Dubin not to expect a huge payout as his client is in tax debt. However, Dubin is convinced Blake is just as interested in avoiding bad publicity, as OJ Simpson was shunned when he was found innocent of killing his wife and her friend, but later lost a $33.5 million civil settlement.
- 4/1/2005
- WENN
The jurors who acquitted American actor Robert Blake have slammed Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley after he branded them "incredibly stupid" Thursday - but he remains unrepentant. Last week, the jury found the former Baretta star not guilty of the 2001 slaying of Bonny Lee Bakley, who was shot in a car outside a restaurant where the couple had dined. But Cooley remains convinced Blake is "guilty as sin". Former jury foreman Thomas Nicholson counters, "I'm just disgusted. It appears to me he has no faith in the jury selection. After all, it was his people who helped choose us." Fellow juror Roberto Emerick adds, "If Mr. Cooley thinks there was enough evidence to convict, then he should spend more time doing his job and less time trying to make excuses." Cooley remains in defiant mood and added Thursday night, "There was a failure in this case. It was not my prosecutor. It was not the work of LAPD. It was the jurors didn't quite get it." He did concede, "I could have phrased it differently. But bottom line it was the wrong verdict."...
- 3/28/2005
- WENN
A day after Robert Blake celebrated his acquittal on charges of murdering his wife, a lawyer for the victim's family announced plans to "wipe that smile off his face" in a civil case. The former Baretta star, 71, was elated after being found not guilty on Wednesday in the May 2001 shooting death of his wife of six months, Bonny Lee Bakley. Blake was also acquitted of soliciting a former stuntman to murder Bakley, and the jury deadlocked 11-1 in favor of finding him not guilty of asking a second stuntman to kill her. But now Blake's legal woes have entered a fresh chapter, after a wrongful death civil lawsuit was brought by Bakley's family, which was held over until the conclusion of the three-month criminal trial. Eric Dubin, the lawyer for Bakley's family, says, "I'm going to wipe that smile off his face." Dubin adds the family felt Bakley, portrayed in court as a star-struck grifter who ran a mail-order sex business, had been murdered twice - "once in the car and once on the stand". Blake was charged with fatally shooting Bakley, 44, in his car outside a Los Angeles-area restaurant. The evidence was largely circumstantial, based on the testimony of the two stuntmen whom jurors said they found unreliable. Dubin plans to take testimony for the civil case from Blake within two weeks and have him back in court in July. In civil cases, a verdict is based on the "preponderance of evidence" and the jury's verdict does not have to be unanimous - a lower standard of proof than a criminal trial where a case has to be proved beyond reasonable doubt.
- 3/18/2005
- WENN
According to CNN, a Los Angeles jury has acquitted actor Robert Blake today of the murder of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley. Blake was reported to have wept at the verdict, which also acquitted him of the charge of attempting to hire someone to kill Bakley, but deadlocked on a secondary solicitation charge. The former child star and lead in the Baretta TV series was facing up to life in prison if he had been found guilty of the May 4th, 2001 slaying of his spouse, as she waited in a car outside of the actor's favorite Italian restaurant. The trial, which was fodder for tabloids, included the testimony of two former stuntmen who claimed Blake had attempted to hire them to kill his wife of less than six months. Evidence to convict Blake was deemed circumstantial. There were no eyewitnesses, blood or DNA evidence to conclusively link Blake to the crime and the murder weapon, found in a trash bin, could not be traced to him. The stuntmen were successfully depicted as drug users whose testimony was unreliable. The prosecution claimed that Blake had murdered Bakley because he believed she had trapped him into a sham marriage with a real pregnancy. Bakley was characterized in court as a gold-digger, who had been married several times and had an appointment book full of marital prospects. Her handwritten notes detailing the financial pros and cons of potential husbands cast an unflattering picture of the deceased woman. Blake, however, had taken up with Bakley after a brief romance, and she was soon carrying his child and exchanging vows with the then 67 year-old actor. Though admitting that the marriage was a mistake, Blake had fallen in love with the result of that pregnancy, a daughter named Rosie, and the prosecution further claimed that Blake would do anything to separate his girl from Bakley, whom he believed to be an unfit mother. Rosie, now four, is being raised by Blake's adult daughter.
- 3/16/2005
- IMDb News
Robert Blake expressed normal behavior for someone involved in a traumatic event the night his wife was killed, his trial has been told by a key witness. Los Angeles Fire Department captain Kevin Bailey, whose team was the first to respond to the reported assault near Vitello's Restaurant on May 4, found Bonnie Lee Bakley shot and the actor sitting on a curb in a distressed state. Bailey told the court in Van Nuys, California, last Thursday that Blake's behavior was not "out of the ordinary" when questioned by defense attorney M Gerald Schwartzbach. Bailey said, "He had his head in his hands. I recall some moaning and at one point he may have gotten physically sick." When Bailey noticed Blake carrying a gun, the actor told him he carried it around "for security or protection, that his wife wanted him to do that". It was not the gun that killed 44-year-old Bakley as she sat in her husband's car. Blake is charged with the murder of Bakley, lying in wait and soliciting two stuntmen to kill his late spouse.
- 2/22/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake's lawyer attacked the credibility of stuntman Gary McLarty in a California court on Tuesday, after McLarty testified the actor had tried to hire him to kill Bonny Lee Bakley. Blake is currently on trial in Van Nuys, California, for the murder of his wife Bakley, who was fatally shot in the Baretta star's car in May 2001. McLarty's son Cole McLarty testified yesterday his father was paranoid, delusional and constantly under the influence of cocaine. Cole admitted his father had met with Blake, but the actor's request was very different from the one McLarty alleged. Cole says, "He just said that Mr. Blake had somebody stalking him and he wanted their eyes blackened and he offered money." Blake's attorney M Gerald Schwartzbach asked Cole, "Do you recall your father saying anything about Mr Blake wanting his wife killed?" Cole answered, "No". McLarty's estranged wife Karen McLarty says the stuntman used cocaine for the majority of their 30-year marriage, although they have been separated for 16 years. Also in court yesterday was Blake's former maid Lidia Benavides, who claims she saw a "suspicious" car parked near the actor's house twice in the weeks leading up to the murder. During Benavides' cross-examination by Deputy District Attorney Shelli Samuels, she admitted she had been "a little" worried about the vehicle. The case continues.
- 2/17/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake was escorted from his murder trial at Van Nuys, California court on Monday, after breaking down in tears at the sound of his own voice. The prosecution wrapped up their case against the former Baretta star by playing jurors a jailhouse interview the actor recorded with TV interviewer Barbara Walters which aired on US news show 20/20 in February 2003, and audio recordings of Blake talking with an unnamed visitor while he was in jail. Blake broke down after he heard himself saying, "What the f**k are they going to do to me? God's been on my shoulder since I was born. God's been on my shoulder since Rosie (his daughter) was born. When this s**t is over, no matter what happens, they're going to be all right financially. Rosie is safe. Those monsters will never get her." Deputy District Attorney Shellie Samuels argued "monsters" was a direct reference to Blake's late wife Bonny Lee Bakley's family. Blake was removed from the courtroom by his concerned legal team, but his distress could be heard down the hallway. He later returned looking calm and composed. The 71-year-old is charged with shooting Bakley on May 4, 2001 as she sat in a car near their favorite restaurant.
- 2/16/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake withdrew $126,000 from two accounts months before his wife was killed - triggering a suspicious activity report from his bank, an official has testified. Prosecutor Shellie Samuels suggested at the outset of the trial that the troubled actor may have made the withdrawals as part of a plot to hire someone to kill his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley. The checks were cashed in mostly $5,000 increments between September 2000 and March 2001, Helga Shattuck, a compliance specialist for City National Bank, testified yesterday. When the total reached $126,000, federal banking officials were notified of "suspicious activity". Blake, 71, is charged with shooting Bakley, 44, in 2001, as she sat in a car parked near his favorite Los Angeles restaurant. On cross-examination by the defense, Shattuck testified that Blake withdrew nearly $138,000 from an account between January 1999 to June 2000. She said these withdrawals did not trigger any reports of suspicious activity. Shattuck told the court the bank handled accounts for many celebrities and that she is accustomed to seeing large withdrawals.
- 2/15/2005
- WENN
Robert Blake's former stuntman testified Monday that the actor asked him to murder his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley two months before she was shot dead on May 4, 2001. Gary McLarty, who worked as Blake's double on 70s TV drama Baretta, told the jury Blake met him in March and offered to take Bakley to a restaurant, and leave her in the car while McLarty shot her. Prosecutors insist McLarty's evidence proves Blake - who stands accused of killing his wife outside Vitello's restaurant in Studio City, California - was forced to do the job himself, after McLarty refused. But the defense believes McLarty's evidence is invalid because he admitted heavy cocaine use had triggered serious hallucinations. Under questioning by Blake's attorney Gerald Schwartzbach, McLarty said, "I believe he talked about going up a set of stairs at night, and pop her. Blake showed me a small gun, asked if I could obtain a silencer, and then offered $10,000 for the job. I turned Blake down a few days later, and he asked why. I said, 'Hey, just your notoriety alone.' And he hung up."...
- 2/9/2005
- WENN
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