Nick Stahl is one of the most interesting young actors working today. Period. While he might not carry as much weight as the rest of the youth’s cream like Michael Pitt or Paul Dano, Stahl has nailed some seriously amazing, challenging roles like Bobby Kent in Bully, John Connor in T3, and the dying Beade in The Thin Red Line. He also starred in HBO’s Carnivàle. And now he’s been missing for a goddamn week. TMZ reports:

Stahl’s wife filed a missing person’s report with the L.A.P.D. on Monday … saying she last saw the 32-year-old actor on May 9. Sources tell TMZ … it is believed Stahl had been frequenting the Skid Row area of Downtown Los Angeles recently … and there are concerns he may have gotten himself involved in some bad stuff. Back in February, Nick’s wife had filed court papers, expressing serious concerns that Nick may be using drugs … and sources say she fears drugs may have something to do with his disappearance. (via TMZ)

The bony hand of death snatches in threes – recently hooking MCA and Maurice Sendak – so I really hope Stahl’s disappearance has a happy ending. He’s had a lot of ups and downs career-wise, but when given the proper role, Stahl is scary good. Anyone who thinks Florida is all newlyweds and nearly deads should watch Bully, and quake in cold disgust at his role as Bobby Kent. Here’s hoping he’s found or makes it home safe, and gets the help he needs.

They’re a funny thing, children’s books. Some people seem to think that to craft a great one is somehow easy, an exercising in pandering and restricting yourself. But let’s just look at the name. We don’t call other books “adult books” (well, not those anyway) and why? Because we understand they just don’t appeal to all adults and are rather books for historians, or depressive, or chick-lit or any number of other things. But a true children’s book has the immense and awe-inspiring power to capture the hearts and minds of all children, to collectively delight the world’s most precious commodity.

Maurice Sendak, author of Where The Wild Things Are, arguably the most enduring children’s book of all time passed away today at the age of 83. Where The Wild Things Are is the story of monsters and dreams, yes, but also of escape, perceived independence, and finally the confidence to know that you’re not alone and indeed don’t want to be. Sendak wrote a book with beauty, intellect, and a deep empathy for the mind of the child. All too often our youngest citizens are condescended too, but Sendak refused this. That’s why his work will endure long after his death.

Truly terrible news this afternoon, as it appears that Adam Yauch, better known as MCA from the Beastie Boys, has passed away at the age of 47, presumably from his ongoing battle with cancer. The reports are not fully confirmed, but I can’t really imagine how else a rumor like this would start. Check back to this post later for an update on the situation and, if it is in fact true, some thoughts about this music legend. Today just got very, very sad.

UPDATE: It appears that the earlier reports are true, and that Adam Yauch has indeed passed away. I’m sort of still a little bit in shock about the whole thing, so apologies if this post isn’t up to the eloquence that MCA most certainly deserves. This is one of those situations where, at least in the early stages, the more time passes the more painful it becomes. Such is the breadth and quality of MCA’s lifes work. Whether it be the untouchable catalogue he put together with the Beastie Boys (one of the best of all time), his directing work as Nathaniel Hornblower, or his huge contribution to the independent film world through Oscilloscope Pictures. All the work he did that made people happy.

More than anything it hurts because it really and truly feels like it wasn’t supposed to happen. I’ve been talking with some friends who agree with me that, when MCA was originally diagnosed with cancer in 2009, the palpable sense of dread that accompanies something like that was conspicuously missing. It just didn’t seem possibly that the raspy voiced genius with the quiet, considering eyes could really go so young. It was inconceivable. Yet here we are, because life is a real shithead sometimes.

It’s easy to become very self centered when something like this happens. The Beastie Boys were such a huge, incredible thing (a true national treasure), a sound and attitude so captivating that almost everyone I know has gone through a period of deep obsession with them. And so with the death of MCA, so comes a little death of your own, as a very distinct and powerful set of memories are suddenly cast in shadow. These songs are accompanied by a certain sadness now. It’s selfish, sure, but that’s okay. Because grieving is weird and difficult. Especially for the people you love the most but never really knew.

I’m listening to Paul’s Boutique right now, and it sounds like the best rap album of all time. R.I.P. MCA.

The news just got out yesterday that uncanny character actor Leonardo Cimino died earlier this month due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He lived a helluva life though – making it all the way to 94 years old. Appearing in a ton of films and stage productions, I’ll always remember him as “Scary German Guy” from the Monster Squad, aka the guy who taught me what “virgin” means. He also had an important role in the original television miniseries of V.

Cimino also had roles in David Lynch’s Dune as the fat slob Baron Harkonnen’s doctor, Woody Allen’s analyst in Stardust Memories, and, in his final role, William in Sidney Lumet’s 2007 underrated crime flick Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead. RIP Cimino. There’s always time for more pie in heaven.

Very sad news today for the comic book and art world in general with the news of the passing of legendary artist Moebius, who’s work over decades was not only consistently incredible but wildly influential. The French artist was perhaps best known as one of the original artists on Metal Hurlant, the monthly that would later be released in the US under the moniker Heavy Metal. He was also widely lauded for his long running Western comic Blueberry.

In addition to his independent work, Moebius made several brief but very memorable dips into the American comic book scene, including his incredible run with Stan Lee on Silver Surfer. His visual style has been a touchstone for artists as varied as Hayao Miyazaki, Ridley Scott, and William Gibson. Total Bummer that he’s gone, but his legacy lives on all over, including the Heavy Metal magazines that populate my (and probably many of your) bookshelves.

I felt a great disturbance in the force last night. Ralph McQuarrie, conceptual artist behind many of the designs of the original Star Wars films as well as other George Lucas/Steven Spielberg projects, passed away at age 82. When Lucas was just a young man trying to tell a story, McQuarrie was the first artist he hired to execute his vision of a space opera that would change the world.

The Academy Award winner is responsible for the design of some of cinema’s most enduring characters, including Chewie, C3P0 and R2, and, most famous of all, the sublimely iconic Darth Vader. He also envisioned interiors of the Death Star, as well as the desolate surface of Tatooine. This man was quite literally a dream maker, sculpting worlds and figures that would define the world’s imagination for generations. His legacy is staggering, and he will be missed.

Well, here’s some shitty news. Actor Daniel von Barden, aka Mr. Kruger from Seinfeld, has diabetes and was supposed to undergo a surgery that would remove his toes. Instead he decided to shoot himself in the head. He survived the suicide attempt, called 911, and is now recovering in an Ohio hospital. Seems he botched his suicide attempt just like Kruger Industrial Smoothing botched the Statue of Liberty job. Remember? They couldn’t get the green stuff off of it.

Von Barden also starred on Malcolm in the Middle and in Super Troopers. Here’s to a full recovery and no more playing around with pistols. We’ve already lost enough Seinfeld  alumni between the rye bread lady, Uncle Leo, and Mr. Pitt.

Damn, it’s been a rough couple of weeks for fans of Destroy All Monsters. First Mike Kelley, and now bassist of both that band and, uh, MC5, Michael Davis, passed away of liver failure at the age of 68. One of the pioneering American punk/garage acts in the mid 1960s, MC5 brought a new style of music to the states. The radical Michigan band behind “Kick Out The Jams” was not only extremely popular and controversial, but ridiculous influential both on counterculture and the musical landscape of the emergent youth for decades to come.

With the loss of Davis, only two original members remain. After the dissolution of MC5, Davis played with many acts including, as mentioned, Destroy All Monsters, with whom he played for almost a decade. Along with being a musician, Davis was also a practiced visual artist. He and his work left and indelible mark on the American music scene. He will be missed. Total Bummer.

First off, a big thanks to commenter Chewyo for bringing this very sad news to my attention. Adam Adamowicz, concept artist for both the Fallout and Elder Scrolls universes passed away today after a battle with cancer. I’m not going to pretend I knew his name before today, but damned if his work hasn’t been incredibly important to me. Especially the Fallout universe, which he was pretty much solely responsible for visually recreating for Fallout 3 and beyond, is such a significant, tangible, real thing to me that it boggles the mind to think it was ostensibly crafted by one man.

Anyway who’s seen the art knows it is of the highest caliber both in concept and execution: iconic, beautiful, rugged, weird, and unforgettable. The people behind many of our favorite games are, for the most part, invisible. But, as the writer of Awesome-Robo points out in a wonderful and heartfelt post, its a time like this where the gaming community should acknowledge the unsung heroes of the field. Adam’s legacy will live on in both the enigmatic order of bits in a save file, and the retrofuture imaginations of a legion of devout fans.

Some more sad news yesterday: famed actor Ben Gazzara lost his battle with pancreatic cancer, passing away at the age of 81 in Bellevue Hospital. One of the finest actors of his generation, the gruff and brooding Gazzara was right on the heels of Marlon Brando during the first wave of New American Acting. After spending time studying under Lee Strasberg, Gazzara broke out as the lead in the original Elia Kazan production of Tennessee Williams’ Cat On A Hot Tin Roof.

Many of you may remember his late career highlight performance in Todd Solondz’s Happiness (or perhaps his cameo as Jackie Treehorn in The Big Lebowski or as Vincent Gallo’s father in Buffalo 66). For me, however, I will always picture him in the films of John Cassevetes, and most specifically with Mr. Cassavetes and Peter Faulk in the incredible and ahead-of-its-time Husbands. It’s very sad to think that all three of them are no longer with us. Nevertheless, he had a long and truly great career. Check out another Cassavetes/Gazzara team-up, The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, on our Saturday Matinee. And be sure to toast a drink to his memory.