Richard Thorp R.I.P.

Richard Thorp, who appeared in the classic film The Dam Busters (1955) and was on the soap opera Emmerdale for decades, died 22 May 2013 at the age of 81.

Richard Thorp was born on 2 January 1932 in Purley, Surrey. He made his film debut in Melody in the Dark in 1949. He was cast as Squadron Leader H. E. Maudslay in The Dam Busters, primarily because of his resemblance to the real life Henry Maudslay (who died in the raid), after trying out for a smaller role. For the remainder of the Fifties Mr. Thorp appeared in such films as The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1957), There's Always a Thursday (1957), The Good Companions (1957), and The Last Train (1960). In 1957 he was cast in the role of Dr. John Rennie on the TV programme Emergency – Ward 10, a role that he played until 1967. He was also a regular on the show All Aboard in 1958. He aso guest starred on the programmes Life with the Lyons, Overseas Press Club--Exclusive, The Adventures of Robin Hood, and 4 Just Men.

In the Sixties Mr. Thorp was a regular on the series 24-Hour Call, Watch the Birdies, and Market on Honey Lane. He guest starred on such television shows as Danger Man, Call Oxbridge 2000, The Edgar Wallace Mystery Theatre, The Avengers, Maupassant, No Hiding Place, and Love Story. He appeared in the films Bitter Harvest (1963), Mystery Submarine (1963), The Iron Maiden (1963), and Sword of Lancelot (1963).

In the Seventies Richard Thorp guest starred on such TV shows as Timeslip, A Family at War, Thirty Minute's Worth And Mother Makes Three, Public Eye, and  Whodunnit.  He was a regular on the shows Crossroads and The Cedar Tree. He appeared in the film Suburban Wives (1972). In the Eighties he guest starred on To the Manor Born and Strangers. In 1982 he was cast as Alan Turner on Emmerdale. He remained with the show until this year.

Although given his years spent on Emmerdale there can be no doubt Richard Thorp will be best remembered as  farm manager Alan Turner, he was a versatile actor who played a wide variety of parts over the years. On The Avengers episode "School for Traitors" he played a rather unfortunate researcher. On the Danger Man episode "The Island" he appeared as a security officer.  He was a bit of a heart throb in the late Fifties and early Sixties, playing Dr. John Rennie on the medical soap Emergency – Ward 10. While he played Alan Turner on Emmerdale for three decades, his career actually consisted of much, much more.

The Late Great Ray Manzarek of The Doors

Ray Manzarek, keyboardist for The Doors, died on 20 May 2013 at the age of 74. The cause was bile duct cancer.

 Ray Manzarek was born Raymond Manczarek Jr. (he later simplified the spelling of his surname by dropping the "c") on 12 February 1939 in Chicago, Illinois. He attended Everett Elementary School and St. Rita High School in Chicago. Growing up he studied piano. He also played basketball, but abandoned the sport when his coach insisted he play guard when he wanted to play forward or centre. He attended DePaul University and graduated with a degree in economics.

In 1962 Mr. Mazarek moved to Los Angeles to attend the film school at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). There he joined his brother Rick and Jim's band Rick & the Ravens as vocalist and occasional pianist. It was in 1965 that Ray Manzarek met Jim Morrison, who also attended UCLA. The two shared a number of interests in both music and art. Eventually Mr. Manzarek invited Mr. Morrison to sing with Rick & the Ravens at one of their performances. It was not long afterwards that he joined the band. John Denismore, who had been the drummer with The Psychedelic Rangers, joined Rick & the Ravens in August 1965. It was this line up that recorded a demon on 2 September 1965 that included songs that would later be played by The Doors (most notably "Hello, I Love You" and "Moonlight Drive"). Rick and Jim Manczarek were disappointed with the lack of response from the record industry that the demo received. They also did not particularly care for Jim Morrison's new songs. The two then left the band, as well as Patricia Sullivan, leaving Ray as the last of the Manczareks as a member. Guitarist Robby Krieger, who had been playing with The Psychedelic Rangers, was later recruited into the band. Of course, with Rick Macnzarek no longer a member of the band, the group needed a new name. It was Jim Morrison who suggested the name "The Doors," taken from the title of Aldous Huxley's book The Doors of Perception.

In early 1966 The Doors, now consisting of the classic line up of Ray Manzarek, Jim Morrison, John Densmore, and Robby Krieger, began playing regularly at the night club London Fog in Los Angeles. It was not long before they became the house band of the Whisky a Go Go. Love vocalist Arthur Lee suggested to Elektra Records president Jac Holzman that he go see The Doors perform at the Whisky a Go Go. Mr. Holzman did so on 10 August 1966. He saw more sets of the band with producer Paul Rothschild and The Doors were signed on 18 August 1966. Despite having scored a record contract, The Doors would not remain at the Whisky a Go Go long. They were fired after a performance of "The End," complete with the "F" word.

The Doors recorded their eponymous first album from 24 August to 31 August 1966 at Sunset Sound Recording Studios in Hollywood. Released in January 1967, The Doors steadily climbed the Billboard albums chart until it peaked at #2 in September 1967. It was helped considerably the success of the single "Light My Fire". Although now regarded as a classic, The Doors' first single "Break On Through (To the Other Side)" only went to #126 on the Billboard singles chart. On the other hand, "Light My Fire" would go all the way to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for three weeks.

The Doors' second album, Strange Days, was recorded between March and May 1967, and it was released in September 1967. Strange Days performed extremely well, going to #3 on the Billboard albums chart. It produced two hit singles: "People are Strange," which went to #12 on the Billboard singles chart and "Love Me Two Times," which went to #25 on the Billboard singles chart.

The Doors' third album, Waiting for the Sun, would see tensions begin developing within the band, as Jim Morrison's dependence on drugs and alcohol grew. Most notably, producer Paul Rothschild and the other members of The Doors opposed recording the entirety of Jim Morrison's epic suite of poems "Celebration of the Lizard" for the album. In the end one portion of "Celebration of the Lizard," the song "Not to Touch the Earth," did appear on Waiting for the Sun. Regardless, Waiting for the Sun proved very successful upon its release in July 1968. It went to #1 on the Billboard albums chart. It also produced one hit single, "Hello, I Love You," which went to #1 on the Billboard singles chart.

In December 1968 The Doors released the single "Touch Me," which went to #3 on the Billboard singles chart. It would be included on the group's fourth album The Soft Parade. The album was recorded from July 1968 to May 1969 and released in July 1969. The album departed from previous Doors albums in two respects. The first was the inclusion of both brass and string sections, a sharp contrast to the more basic approach of their earlier albums. The second was the appearance of individual writing credits. On the first three albums the songs were simply credited to The Doors. The Soft Parade peak at #6 on the Billboard albums chart.

It was on 1 March 1969, prior to the release of The Soft Parade, that The Doors gave what is likely their most notorious concert. At the concert the Dade County Sheriff's office alleged that Jim Morrison had exposed himself to the audience and issued a warrant for his arrest on 9 March 1969. In September 1970 Mr. Morrison would be sentenced to six months in prison and a $500 fine. He remained free on a $50,000 bond, awaiting an appeal. Jim Morrison would die before the matter was ever resolved. Regardless, Ray Mazarek, Robby Krieger, and John Densmore have all stated that Jim Morrison never exposed himself.

The Doors' fifth album, Hard Rock Café/Morrison Hotel (side one was titled Hard Rock Café and side two was titled Morrison Hotel) was mostly recorded in November 1969 and released in February 1970. Hard Rock Café/Morrison Hotel produced no hit singles ("You Make Me Real" peaked at #50 on the singles chart), but the album did very well. It peaked at #4 on the Billboard albums chart. The Doors' first live album, Absolutely Live, was released the following July.

Unfortunately, while The Doors continued to be a successful recording act, their days of performing live with Jim Morrison would be numbered. On 12 December 1970, midway through a performance at the warehouse in New Orleans,  Jim Morrison smashed a hole in the stage with the microphone and then simply sat down and refused to perform for the rest of the concert. After the show John Densmore, Robby Krieger, and Ray Manzarek agreed that they would no longer perform live as Jim Morrison had simply become too unpredictable.

It was from December 1970 to January 1971 that The Doors recorded their sixth studio album, L. A. Woman. It was their final album with Jim Morrison, who would die on 3 July 1971. L. A. Woman did well, going to #9 on the albums chart. It also produced two hit singles: "Love Her Madly," which went to #11 on the Billboard singles chart and "Riders of the Storm," which went to #11 on the singles chart.

As mentioned above, Jim Morrison died on 3 July 1971. The remaining members of The Doors discussed replacing him with a new lead vocalist, but ultimately they decided to remain a trio with Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger taking over the vocals. The Doors recorded their first album without Jim Morrison, Other Voices, from June to August 1971. Unfortunately Other Voices did not meet with the success of The Doors' earlier albums. It went to #31 on the Billboard albums chart. Its single, "Tightrope Ride," only went to #71.

The Doors' final album (unless one counts An American Prayer, in which the remaining Doors recorded backing tracks for Jim Morrison's recitation of his poetry), Full Circle, was recorded in the spring of 1972. It peaked at #68 on the Billboard albums chart. One of its singles, "The Mosquito," peaked at #92. "Get Up and Dance" did not even chart. It was then in 1973 that The Doors disbanded.

Following the break up of The Doors, Ray Manzarek released his first solo album, The Golden Scarab, in 1973. His second solo album, The Whole Thing Started with Rock & Roll Now It's Out of Control, was released in 1974. The album included Joe Walsh on guitar, Flo & Eddie providing backing vocals (on the song "The Whole Thing Started with Rock and Roll Now It's Out of Control"), and Patti Smith (providing vocals on "I Wake up Screaming").

Afterwards Ray Manzarek formed the supergroup Nite City with Paul Warren on guitar, Nigel Harrison on bass, Jimmy Hunter on drums, Noah James on vocals, and himself on keyboards an vocals. Nite City released their eponymous debut album in 1977. A second album, Golden Days Diamond Night, was released in 1978, without Noah James on vocals. In 1978 An American Prayer was released, with the reunited Doors providing backing tracks to Jim Morrison's poetry.

Ray Manzarek produced X's first four albums: Los Angeles (1980), Wild Gift (1981), Under the Big Black Sun (1982), and  More Fun in the New World (1983). In 1983 Ray Manzarek released a rock adaptation of Carl Orff's Carmina Burana. In 1987 he produced Echo & The Bunnymen's cover of The Doors' "People are Strange" for the film The Lost Boys (1987). He also provided keyboards for the track. In 1989 he produced The Escape Club's cove of The Doors' "20th Century Fox". In 1995 he worked with Prong on their cover of The Doors' Strange Days for the 1995 film of the same name.

Over the years Mr. Manzarek would occasionally reunite with the remaining members of The Doors. They reunited for the first time since An American Prayer when The Doors were inducted into the Rock and' Roll Hall of Fame in 1993. They reunited again in 1997 to complete Jim Morrison's unfinished  "Orange County Suite" for a Doors boxed set. In 2000 they reunited for a performance on VH1's Storytellers and again that year for the Doors tribute album Stoned Immaculate: The Music of The Doors. They reunited one last time  in 2011 for Re:GENERATION music project, a documentary which followed various artists collaborating with producers DJ Premier, Mark Ronson, Skrillex, Pretty Lights, and The Crystal Method. The Doors collaborated with Skrillex on the track "Breakn' a Sweat," which also sampled a Jim Morrison interview from the Sixties.

In 2002 Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger reunited to form a band generally referred to as "Manzrek-Krieger". Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger maintained that they had invited John Densmore to be a part of the band, although Mr. Densmore has said otherwise. They had initially meant to perform under the name "The Doors of the 21st Century," but were prevented from continuing to do so because of legal reasons. They have then performed as variously as D21C, Riders on the Storm, Manzarek-Krieger, and simply Ray Manzrek and Robby Krieger of The Doors. Over the years Stewart Copeland, Angelo Barbera, Ian Astbury, Brett Scallions, Miljenko Matijevic, Ty Dennis, Phil Chen, and Dave Brock have performed with them. Manzarek-Krieger exclusively performed Doors material. Sadly, the band would come to an end with Ray Manzarek's death.

Ray Manzarek also released more solo albums. He released Love Her Madly in 2006. He collaborated with  slide guitarist Roy Rogers on the albums Ballads Before The Rain (2008) and Translucent Blues (2011).

In addition to his music, Ray Manzarek also wrote books. His biography, Light My Fire: My Life with The Doors, came out in 1998. In 2001 he published The Poet in Exile, a novel that examines the urban legend that Jim Morrison faked his death. In 2006 he published Snake Moon, a novel set during the War Between the States and dealing with ghosts.

In my humble opinion, Ray Manzarek was one of the greatest keyboardist in rock music, if not the greatest. Indeed, as The Doors did not have a regular bassist, it was often the case that Mr. Manzarek would play a keyboard bass with one hand while playing an organ with the other. To me it is impossible to think of The Doors without thinking of Ray Manzarek's keyboard work. Indeed, it is Mr. Manzarek's singular organ playing that opens "Light My Fire," for many the quintessential Doors track. He provided an emulation of rain with his electric piano in the song "Riders on the Storm." Mr. Manzarek's piano also provides much of the mood for the song "L. A. Woman." For me, however, the stand out track for Ray Manzarek's keyboard work will always be "People Are Strange (also my favourite Doors song)." It is the jangly sound of Ray Manzarek's piano that give the song much of its creepiness, the perfect soundtrack for things that go bump in the night. Of course, Ray Manzarek was also a talented producer. It is in a large part because of him that X's first four albums sound as good as they do.

In the end, while many, perhaps most, people are drawn to The Doors because of Jim Morrison, for me it was mostly Ray Manzarek's keyboard work that made me a Doors fan. He was a skilled keyboardist who brought with him influences from such diverse sources as jazz, blues, Bach, Dvorak, and others. In the end he made The Doors sound unlike any other rock band in the Sixties. While Robby Krieger and John Densmore also made their contributions, I think the argument can be made that The Doors would not be The Doors without Ray Manzarek. He was the only possible keyboardist for the band.

Christine White Passes On

Christine White, an actress who made frequent guest appearances on American television in the Fifties, died 14 April 2013 at the age of 86. She may be best known for playing the wife of Robert Wilson (played by William Shatner), the frantic passenger who believes he has seen a gremlin on the wing of a plane in the classic Twilight Zone episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet."

Christine White was born on 4 May 1926 in Washington, D.C. She studied at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she graduated with a degree in English in 1947. After graduation she moved to New York City to pursue a career in acting. She made her television debut in an episode of The Web in 1952. During the Fifties she made guest appearances on such shows as Hallmark Hall of Fame,  Father Knows Best,  M Squad, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Suspicion, Man Without a Gun, State Trooper, Have Gun - Will Travel, Alcoa Theatre, The Ann Sothern Show, The David Niven Show, Perry Mason, The Untouchables, The Rifleman, Bonanza, and Thriller. She made her film debut in Vice Squad (1953) and appeared in the films Man Crazy (1953), Panama Sal (1957), and Macabre (1958).

In the Sixties she was a regular on the short lived sitcom Ichabod and Me. She guest starred on the shows Bachelor Father, The Roaring 20's, Outlaws, The Twilight Zone, and The Fugitive. She retired from acting in the mid-Sixties, but appeared in the film Magnum Force (1973) and the television film James Dean in the Seventies.

Actor Aubrey Woods R.I.P.

Actor Aubrey Woods died 7May 2013 at the age of 85.

Mr. Woods was born in London on 9 April 1928. He attended The Latymer School in Edmonton, North London. He was only 17 when he made his film debut, playing Smike in The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (1947).  In the late Forties and into the Fifties he appeared in such films as The Greed of William Hart (1948), The Queen of Spades (1949), Guilt Is My Shadow (1950), and Father Brown (1954). On television he appeared in such programmes as Nicholas Nickleby, Bleak House, and No Hiding Place.

In the Sixties he appeared in such TV programmes  Rob Roy, Z Cars, Maigret, The Old Curiosity Shop, Sexton Blake, Thicker Than Water, and Freewheelers. He appeared in the films Spare the Rod (1961), A Home of Your Own (1964), San Ferry Ann (1965), Just Like a Woman (1967), Futtocks End (1970), Loot (1970), and Wuthering Heights (1970).  In the Seventies he appeared in such films as All the Right Noises (1971), Up the Chastity Belt (1971), Up Pompeii (1971), The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971), Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971), The Darwin Adventure (1972), Z.P.G. (1972), That Lucky Touch (1975), Operation: Daybreak (1975), and Quincy's Quest (1979). He appeared on such TV shows as Doctor Who, Late Night Theatre, Mr. Big, My Honourable Mrs., Blake's 7, and Cowboys. He was a regular on the series Nice Work.

From the Eighties into the Nineties Aubrey Woods appeared in the shows Cribb; Hallmark Hall of Fame; Auf Wiedersehen, Pet; Ever Decreasing Circles; Til We Meet Again; and London's Burning. He appeared in the film Cloak and Dagger (1985).

Aubrey Woods was an excellent actor with a gift for playing characters that made an imperssion. Although he isn't on screen for that long, Mr. Woods' goldsmith is among the most memorable characters in The Abominable Dr. Phibes. He also made a big impression with little screen time in Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory, in which he played Bill the sweets shop owner. He also gave an impressive performance as the Controller in the Doctor Who serial "Day of the Daleks." While many of his film and even television appearances were brief, his performances were always memorable

How to Make the New Google+ Layout More Bearable

Yesterday +Google+  rolled out a new layout. My initial reaction was somewhat negative, as can be seen in my blog post from yesterday. While there are still things about which I am very unhappy (namely, the way they have redone chat), I am quite a bit happier than I was yesterday. That having been said, I am only happier because I made adjustments to improve my experience on Google+.

Those of you who use Google+ might have noticed that the default setting in this new layout is for one's streams to be displayed in multiple columns. If you are like me, you will find this highly annoying and want to do away with it immediately. Fortunately, one can set one's stream (and hence the streams of one's circles as well) by clicking "More" towards the top of the page and then scrolling down to "Stream Layout." Unfortunately, this will only set one's stream and circle streams in single column--one's profile and any searches one might do will all still be in multiple columns. Fortunately there is a fix for this as well. Simply go under setting and click the box under "Accessibility." Once you do this everything will be in a single column. I am hoping that Google+ will come up with a more intuitive means of forcing everything into single column or at least set it so that if one sets his or her streams to single column, then everything else will be as well.

Another potential annoyance is that Google+ can now automatically add hashtags to posts. Now once Google+ automatically adds a hashtag one can delete it, so people do not have to worry about having hashtags that they might not want on posts. While I know some people who like this feature, I know that I would find it annoying myself.  And while I happen to like hashtags myself, I know that there are those who do not like hashtags and would probably hate this features. Fortunately, one can shut off Google+'s ability to automatically add hashtags. One simply goes under settings and uncheck the box under "Hashtags" marked "Add related hashtags from Google to my newly created posts."

While people might vary in their opinion in Google+ automatically adding hashtags to post, I rather suspect most of us want Google+ to leave any photos we upload alone. Unfortunately Google+ has two new features that won't do this unless they are disabled. The first is "Auto Enhance," which automatically adjusts brightness, saturation, and so on. If you are like me you'll want to control how your photo looks and will have already done this in Paintshop Pro or Photoshop, if at all. The other feature is the rather poorly named "Auto Awesome," which basically blends photos together to create a brand new picture. Quite frankly this sounds even more annoying to me than Auto Enhance and I can't see that many people liking it. To disable both "Auto Enhance" and "Auto Awesome," simply go under settings and uncheck the boxes under "Auto Enhance" and "Auto Awesome."

I wish there was a solution to my major pet peeve about the new Google+ layout, which is the way they revamped chat (which is now called "Hangouts"). The new chat lacks any sort of status modes, so that one cannot set himself or herself to available, busy, or invisible. And while on the old chat one could make oneself visible to certain circles, but invisible to others, the best one can do with the new chat (I really don't like calling it "Hangouts") is set certain circles to "Can Hangout with Me" or "Send Request." Now there is the "Snooze" function, but unfortunately it cannot be set to only certain circles--one either appears to be "snoozing" to all circles or none. Worst of all is the chat bar. Whereas the chat bar used to show only those people to whom one had made himself or herself available to chat, the new one might not show people with whom one regularly checks and show people with whom one never chats. There is no fix for any of this, so my only advice is to send feedback to Google+ and complain. I consider the new chat so bad that it is hard too believe it was Google and not Facebook who developed it.

For the most part I have to say I do not hate the new Google+ layout as I did yesterday. That having been said, I think that they should have developed a means for people to force single columns throughout Google+ without having to go to settings. And while things such as Auto Enhance and Auto Awesome are minor irritations, I think they have basically ruined chat and gave us no means  to fix it. Google+ really ought to give us status modes back and they also ought to give us control over who is displayed in the chat bar. While I know people who like the multiple columns and there are probably even people who like Auto Enhance and Auto Awesome, I know of no one who likes the new chat!

Google+ Drops the Ball

Of the various social networks out there,  +Google+  is my favourite. I have always found it easy to use, easy to control what one sees, and easy to control what others see. What is more, it has always seemed to me that there is generally more worthwhile content and discussion than on other social networks. Unfortunately, today Google+ rolled out a new layout that I think seriously compromises the usability of the site for many of us.

Among the biggest changes is to Google+'s stream, the continuous feed of updates from everyone has circled (I won't explain circles here, but it is similar to following someone on Tumblr or Twitter).  While the original Google+ stream was single column, the new stream can be double to even triple column depending on one's screen size and resolution. Now that is not so bad, as one can set his or her stream to single column. The problem is that one's profile (as well as everyone else's is automatically double columned and there is no was to change it to single column. As someone who prefers for his profile to be linear in fashion, with the newest posts at the top and the oldest at the bottom, this is a very unacceptable. I wish Google+ had given us the ability to view our own profiles and others' profiles as a single column, much as we can with the stream.

Another change was to Google+ Chat, merging it with Google+ hangouts (essentially video chat). With the old Google+ chat one could make himself or herself visible to only certain circles or totally invisible to everyone, or one could even set himself or herself to "Busy". Sadly, with today's update all of this seems to have been done away with. One is visible to everyone, inviting unwanted chat invitations, and there is no way to set oneself to "Busy", let alone "Invisible" . Worse yet, the hangout bar that replaced the chat bar at the right of the screen may display people with whom one never chats while not displaying people with whom one regularly chats. This makes the chat/hangout bar nearly useless, as one cannot tell if those with whom regularly chats are even online. Google+ should really change chat back to the way it was or the way it still is on GMail.

Another change to the Google+ layout that is extremely problematic is the fact that the stream no longer automatically refreshes. Instead there is a blue alert button in the upper left hand corner that displays the number of new posts on the stream. One has to press this button to see the new posts. In the end this makes it more difficult to keep track of new posts.

While I consider these major complaints, I do have some minor ones as well. Neither people's birthdays nor the trending topics are displayed on the home page any longer. I liked having birthdays displayed on the home page as it made it easy to keep track of them. For someone like me who can easily forget dates, that was very handy to have. As to the trending topics, I just enjoyed seeing what was trending on Google+. It's not that important that they are not displayed, but it did add a bit to my enjoyment of the site.

My last complaint about the new Google+ layout is a rather petty one. Others might think differently and yet others might not care either way. That having been said, I think the new Google+ layout is just plain ugly. There is a good deal more white space (well, grey space, to be literal about it) on either side of one's stream. The same is true of one's profile (which is even uglier due to the double column). Quite frankly, the old Google+ layout was much better looking.

Now there are a few people who like the new layout, so unfortunately I don't  think Google+ can do away with it entirely. That having been said, I do think they can make some very dramatic improvements. First, give us the ability to see profiles in a single column. Second, change Google+ chat/hangout so it is more like the old chat, so that one only sees those with whom he or she regularly chats and not everyone in one's circles. Third, restore the ability of the stream to auto-refresh. Fourth (and many might disagree with this one), make the new layout look more like the old layout, or at least figure out a way to pretty it up!

Google+ is my favourite social network and this is the first time I can say that I am very unhappy with it. I honestly think they dropped the ball on this new layout and I worry that people might stop using Google+ entirely if they don't make changes and fast. I won't stop using Google+, but I can say right now that my enjoyment of the site decreased considerably with today's changes. And unless they make the changes I recommend above, I can't see my enjoyment of Google+ returning to what it was when we had the old layout.

The 15th Anniversary of Frank Sinatra's Death

It was fifteen years ago today that Frank Sinatra died at the age of 82. The cause was a heart attack. Rather than writing a long blog entry on how great Mr. Sinatra was, I thought instead I would let his singing do that for him. Here is his version of "I've Got You Under My Skin." The song was written by Cole Porter and introduced by Eleanor Powell in the film Born to Dance (1936). Frank Sinatra first sung the song on his radio show in 1946. He recorded it in 1956 for his album Songs for Swinging Lovers and again in 1962 for Sinatra's Sinatra. This is the version from Songs for Swinging Lovers.