Bud Cort and Ruth Gordon in the Hal Ashby-directed 1971 film, ‘Harold and Maude.’ (FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty Images)
Bud Cort, the actor known for his co-starring role in the 1971 film Harold and Maude, has died. He was 77.
Dorian Hannaway, a television producer and friend of Cort, confirmed Cort’s death to ABC News on Wednesday. Cort died of what was described as a long illness.
Cort was born Walter Edward Cox on March 29, 1948, in Rye, New York. Director Robert Altman discovered the actor and cast him in two 1970 films, M*A*S*H and Brewster McCloud, which both went on to be hits.
He earned a Golden Globe nomination for his role as Harold Chasen, a young man who falls in love with a 79-year-old Holocaust survivor played by Ruth Gordon, in director Hal Ashby’s Harold and Maude. The movie was selected to be preserved in the National Film Registry in 1997, as the Library of Congress deemed it to be “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.”
Other notable roles of his include parts in Michael Mann’s 1995 film Heat, the 1999 movie Dogma and Wes Anderson’s 2004 film The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. He also appeared in Coyote Ugly, Pollock, She Dances Alone and Electric Dreams.
Cort is survived by his brother, Joseph Cox, and his family; his sister Kerry Cox; his sister Tracy Cox Berkman and her family; and his sister Shelly Cox Dufour and her family.
The movie about Bruce Springsteen’s efforts making his 1982 solo album, Nebraska, is set to hit digital platforms, including Amazon, Prime Video and Apple TV, on Dec. 23. It will also be released on 4K Blu-ray on Jan. 20, with the release including the four-act documentary Making Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere.
The documentary’s four parts cover the process of adapting Warren Zanes’ 2023 book, Deliver Me from Nowhere: The Making of Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska, for the big screen; a look at the album Nebraska; a deep dive into actor Jeremy Allen White’s process of becoming Springsteen for the film; and what it took to capture Springsteen’s New Jersey during the era of the movie.
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere, directed by Scott Cooper, opened in theaters in October.
Rob Reiner and Nick Reiner attend the AOL Build Speaker Series in New York City, May 4, 2016. (Laura Cavanaugh/FilmMagic via Getty Images)
Nick Reiner will be charged with the murders of his parents, renowned director Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer, Los Angeles officials announced on Tuesday.
The charges of two counts of first-degree murder, with special circumstance of multiple murders, will be filed on Tuesday afternoon, LA County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said at a news conference on Tuesday.
The charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty, Hochman said.
“No decision at this point has been made with respect to the death penalty,” the DA said.
The Reiners’ daughter found her parents stabbed to death in their Brentwood home on Sunday, sources told ABC News.
Asked if a murder weapon was recovered, Hochman confirmed a knife was used, but he added, “As to where and how the weapon was located, or will be located, that will actually be evidence we’ll present in court.”
Nick Reiner, 32, had been living on his parents’ property, according to a former family security guard, but was not at home when his parents’ bodies were discovered, law enforcement sources told ABC News.
He was found near the University of Southern California on Sunday night thanks to “good, solid police work” and was taken into custody, police said. He is in jail on suspicion of murder and is being held without bail, police said.
Nick Reiner’s attorney, Alan Jackson — who helped defend Karen Read in Massachusetts — told reporters on Tuesday that the 32-year-old had not yet completed the standard medical clearance to appear in court.
Nick Reiner had been open about battling drug addiction since he was a teenager. In 2016, he worked with his dad on the movie Being Charlie, which was based largely on his struggle with drug addiction.
On Saturday night, Rob Reiner and Nick Reiner got into an argument at a holiday party; Nick Reiner was seen acting strangely at the party, sources told ABC News.
Rob Reiner, a famed director, producer and actor, is known for massive Hollywood hits, including The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally…, Stand By Me, This is Spinal Tap and A Few Good Men.
Rob Reiner and Singer, who met while Rob Reiner was directing When Harry Met Sally …, married in 1989 and share three children, Jake Reiner, Nick Reiner and Romy Reiner.
Rob Reiner is also survived by daughter Tracy Reiner with his first wife, Penny Marshall, who died in 2018.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Steve Martin, Selena Gomez and Martin Short in ‘Only Murders in the Building.” (Disney/Patrick Harbron)
Only Murders in the Building star Martin Short nearly ruined co-star Selena Gomez’s wedding with music producer Benny Blanco last September when he almost sliced a piece of the wedding cake, in an act of faux pas.
Short made an appearance Wednesday on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, telling host Jimmy Kimmel that as he was sitting with a group of the Only Murders cast, he noticed a small cake by their section.
“I just assumed there was a wedding cake for each section in the back. So, after a few hours, they haven’t cut their wedding cake yet, Steve [Martin] said he’s gonna leave,” Short says.
“I said, ‘Steve, you can’t leave yet without a piece of wedding cake!’ and I cut the wedding cake one side, cut it the other, and then all the people in our group screamed, ‘Marty!’ It was the wedding cake. I tried to fix it with a fork,” says Short.
Kimmel showed a photo of the accidentally cut cake. However, the cake was repaired by the couple’s wedding coordinator and chef. While Short and Martin tried to keep it a secret so as not to ruin Gomez’s night, Gomez had the last laugh.
“I kept saying, ‘No, guys, we can’t let Selena know,’” Short said. “And Steve said, ‘Yeah, maybe we tell her in a month or something.’ And then as I was leaving, Selena came by [and said], ‘Hey Marty, I heard you tried to eat my cake.’”
Despite the mishap, Short was just happy to celebrate Gomez and Blanco’s wedding.
“You know, Selena is like an extra child of mine. I adore her so much,” says Short. “And she found this guy, and he’s the greatest guy, and they have the greatest hang, and they’re wildly in love.”
