Emmy-Winning Star of 'Family' Dies

An Emmy-winning star of the 1970s television show "Family," also known for her stage career and the winner of a Tony Award, has died, reports The New York Times. Sada Thompson died of lung disease, according to her daughter. She was listed in various reports as either 81 or 83.Thompson made her reputation in Off Broadway and regional theater productions as well as on Broadway, where she won a Tony in 1972 for playing four roles in "Twigs," the story says.On television, she played matriarch Kate Lawrence in "Family," which ran from 1976 to 1980 and focused on the strains and issues in families, such as marital problems. Thompson was nominated four times for an Emmy during the show's five seasons, and won in 1978.Thompson also performed in feature films, including “Pollock" in 2000.

Playwright Who Wrote Two of the Most Famous Musicals of All Time--'West Side Story' and 'Gypsy'--And Directed Award-Winning Revivals of Them, Dies at 93

The author of the books of two of the most famous musicals ever presented--"West Side Story'" and "Gypsy"--has died at his home in Manhattan. He was Arthur Laurents and he was 93-years-old when he died on Thursday, May 5, 2011.He also directed revivals of these popular shows and others. For his directon of the original Broadway production of "La Cage aux Folles" in 1983, Laurents received a Tony Award.Laurents wrote screenplays as well, the most notable of which was the 1973 hit "The Way We Were," the memorable romance that starred Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand and was directed by Sydney Pollack.In the 1950s and 1960s Larurents also wrote several TV dramas that appeared on various  anthology series.The New York Times' obituary about Laurents recalls that Lauents wrote in a 1995 essay in The Times, “Entertainment is dessert. [I]t  needs to be balanced by the main course: theater of substance.”