Alain Bernheim, Oct. 5, 1922 – Oct. 2, 2009, literary agent and producer, has died while vacationing in Paris from complications during dialysis treatment according to his wife, Marjorie. He was 86.

What does a blockbuster movie, a big time Hollywood movie star, hundreds of millions in box office ticket sales, two big movie studios and an uncredited Pulitzer Prize-winning author and a literary agent have in common? How about a 5-million dollar lawsuit along with the bringing to light of the dark underbelly of Hollywood politics.

It was in 1983 when agent and producer Alain Bernheim and Pulitzer Prize-winning author and columnist Art Buchwald pitched a script called “King for a Day” to Paramount Pictures (who had Eddie Murphy under contract at the time) about an African prince visiting the United States looking for a wife. Paramount optioned the treatment and commissioned several unsuccessful scripts. Then, in 1986, Warner Bros optioned the pair’s treatment but, in an odd twist, Paramount started developing a movie again using the theme of an African prince in search of a wife. Warner Bros decided to drop it citing Paramount’s project as the reason and “Coming To America” subsequently hit the box office in 1988. The movie was credited as having been written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein from a story by Eddie Murphy. No other credit was given.

Buchwald and Bernheim filed a breach-of-contract action against Paramount claiming that the plot of "Coming to America" came directly from their original treatment. They asked for $5 million in contract damages along with punitive damages for allegedly plagiarizing the story. They actually won. At least they won $900,000. But Hollywood wasn’t done yet. The studio appealed claiming that the hit movie grossing well over $200 million in ticket sales, hadn’t made any net profits, therefore, they didn’t owe any royalty money to the writers. In 1999, seven years later, they settled for $825,000.

Movie producer Peter Katz said that Bernheim "felt that the studio had taken advantage of him… The lawsuit wasn't a wonderful thing, but he felt it had to be done."

Bernheim had maintained a close relationship with the studios up until the lawsuit was filed. He was the executive producer on director Billy Wilder’s dark comedy "Buddy Buddy" starring Jack Lemmon and acted as a producer on "Racing With the Moon" with Sean Penn and Nicolas Cage.

"A lot of people felt that he was their best friend, he was that kind of person," Katz said. "It wasn't so much that he was outgoing -- he was a great listener. He had great stories, but he wouldn't tell them until after you had told yours."

In addition to his wife, Alain Bernheim leaves behind his son, Nick. His other son Daniel died of a heart attack in June.

Bhandit Rittakol, March 21, 1951 – Oct. 1, 2009, contemporary Thai film director, has died of a heart attack in Vajira hospital after a long battle with heart and kidney disease. He was 58.

He was in pre-production of “Boonchu 10” when he died and, for Bhandit Rittakol, the “Boonchu” film series that he created in the 1980s and 1990s will be what fans will miss most.

So what exactly is “Boonchu?” Boonchu Pu Narak is a Suphanburi rice farmer who, in the original movie goes to Bangkok to study. The resulting film series became one of the hottest teen comedies of its time. The first one, “Boonchu 1” spawned five sequels numbered Boonchu 2, Boonchu 5, Boonchu 6, Boonchu 7 and Boonchu 8. Boonchu 3 and 4 were never made as part of a marketing gimmick the studio, Five Star came up with, skipping past parts 3 and 4.

When “Boonchu 9” was released in 2008, it was the number one film at the weekend box office at Thailand’s biggest cinema chain clearing 15 million baht over the four day period.

"He was a legend and definitely one of Thailand's best directors," said a spokesman for Five Star.

Syed Kamal, April 27, 1937 – Oct. 1, 2009, prolific actor and director, has died of a heart attack in a private hospital in Karachi. A month before, Kamal had fallen at his home and had been bedridden since. He was 79.

He dominated South Asia cinema during the 1960s becoming known as the “Raj Kapoor of Pakistan,” mostly because he resembled India’s top actor of the same era. As an actor, he appeared in such popular works as “Tauba,” “Thandi Sarak,” “Sawera,” and many others. He directed several films – “Shehnai,” “Yahan Say Wahan Tak,” “Doosri Maan,” “Meray Bacchay Meri Aankhein,” “Dard-i-Dil,” and “Aaliya.”

Syed Kamal involved himself in politics, fighting election from Karachi. Mushtaq Gazdar’s book Pakistan Cinema 1947-1997 states, “In such a situation, while others avoided venturing into Urdu films, Syed Kamal took a bold step and produced “Yahan Say Wahan Tak,” inspired by an English novel.” The film starred Waheed Murad, Mumtaz and Kamal himself.

He leaves behind a wife, a son and three daughters.

Robert S. Baker, 1916 – Sept. 30, 2009, British film and television producer, has died from cancer at the age of 93.

What can be more exciting that Roger Moore and Val Kilmer as lead men playing the “famous Simon Templar” in Leslie Charteris’s “The Saint”? The show and all of its renditions is Baker’s cornerstone for fame. The long-running mystery spy thriller aired trans-Atlanta in primetime and proved popular beyond just the UK and the US eventually showing in over 60 countries. With almost 120 episodes, “The Saint” is exceeded only by “The Avengers” as the most productive show of its genre produced in the UK.

Some might say that if the series hadn’t existed, then perhaps there never would have been a Roger Moore as James Bond in the 007 movies or, at least, Moore as “Bond” would not have been the same. Roger Moore was actually offered the 007 role at least twice during the filming of “The Saint” but had to turn it down. Undoubtedly, “The Saint” would have to have a training ground for Moore to eventually take on Bond. Ironically, the two roles of Templar and Bond were so intertwined that they actually wrote it into an early “Saint” episode, having Templar be mistaken for James Bond.

In 1997, “The Saint” was remade with Val Kilmer and it has been announced that it will be remade for television by BrightLight Pictures with Scottish actor Dougray Scott lined up to play Simon Templar.

A quote from Roger Moore was posted up on the Leslie Charteris Fan website:

“My friend Bob was one of the kindest men I have ever had the privilege of knowing and working with. I little realized when Bob and I first met back in 1961 how our lives were destined to become a long and happy association. That of course was when I arrived back in England to shoot what I then thought would be just twenty-six episodes of the Saint. It became over a hundred episodes, in the course of which Bob and I became partners in the production company which went on to produce “The Persuaders” and also a feature film for UA, Crossplot…I shall miss my dapper friend and business partner tremendously. I am sure that he is now reunited with his beloved wife, Alma, who died many years ago from cancer, the same dreaded disease that has finally taken Bob…His daughters, Marilyn, Geraldine and their children have my deepest condolences.”

Daniel Martin, May 12, 1935 – Sept. 28, 2009, Spanish actor noted for his many appearances in Spanish-lensed European genre films of the 1960s and 70s, has died in Zaragoza, Spain at the age of 74.

His real name was Jose Daniel Martinez Martinez and he is perhaps most familiar to American movie goers as the Mexican peasant father of Jesus in the Clint Eastwood movie, “Fistful of Dollars.” Martin’s career began in 1962 and he went on to appear in over 60 films. Quite a few were notable including “Los Tarantos” which was nominated for an Oscar award. In Lucio Fulci’s “White Fang,” Martin took on the role of Charlie. As a duo, Martin appeared a couple of times with Italian spaghetti western actor Anthony Steffen. The pair gained widespread popularity with “Two Much Gold For One Gringo” released in 1972 where Martin played the illiterate character Paco.

But the main body of Daniel Martin’s work is that of the solid, mainstay actor that is capable of playing in everything from B-films, television, spaghetti westerns, police dramas and more.

Nihat Nikerel, 1950 – Sept. 27, 2009, star of “Valley of the Wolves,” has died at his apartment in Beşiktaş after suffering a heart attack He was only 59 years old.

Best known as a star of television shows and mini-series, Nikerel gained popularity with the 2003 hit “Kurtlar vadisi” or, by the international literal title, “Valley of the Wolves.” He appeared in 63 episodes of the television crime drama playing character Seyfo.

The show, arguably one of the biggest hits of Turkish television, is about a giant mafia organization that is infiltrated by a secret agent who has a face change operation giving him a new identity. As he works his way up the mafia hierarchy, the story becomes more complex with flashbacks, gunfights, government conspiracy, and, of course, love & treachery .

Nihat Nikerel was currently acting at the Kerem Alışık Theater on “72 Koğuş” (72^nd Ward). He was also an author with eight books to his credit including his collection of essays “Yalansız Yalnızlığım” (My True Solitude).

Ivan Dykhovichny, Oct. 16, 1947 – Sept. 27, 2009, screenwriter and director of film dramas, has died in Moscow at the age of 61.

Dykhovichny’s work was often set in beautiful places and dealt with love and conflict. The films – nearly a dozen during the 1980s through early 2000 – were perhaps so popular due to the contrast between old Russia and the new. His characters were often caught in between, struggling to find themselves as they longed for the past.

For instance, his film “Muzyka dlya dekabrya” (screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival in 1995) centers on the character Alexandre Larin. A famous artist and former Soviet citizen, Larin comes back to Russia after being away for some years in an attempt to see Masha Bersenjeva, a young beautiful woman whom he knew when she was a child. At the time he was going to marry her mother Anna, but instead fell in love with the daughter. Frightened of the situation he found himself in, he betrayed both women and left.

How much Ivan Dykhovichny’s characters represent new, future and old Russia, I don’t know. The synopsis of his films sound intriguing especially since the character “Larin” came back to Russia to take the young Masha to America – could it be new Russia moving towards capitalism? It sounds that way as an outsider looking in.

Ivan Dykhovichny will be laid to rest in the exclusive Noviodevichy cemetery in Moscow.

Pierre Falardeau, Dec. 28, 1946 – Sept. 25, 2009, Quebec nationalist who made controversial film, has died of cancer at The Universite de Montreal hospital in the palliative-care wing of the hospital. He was 62.

"He was a man who liked controversy, who had very strong opinions and who expressed them using a shock formula. But his artistic works were significant."

So said Quebec’s Premier Jean Charest of Pierre Falardeau, and this sentiment is one that politicians of Canada roundly shared.

So, were the contributions made by this controversial director truly artistic or were they only popular due to the shock value he created that surrounded them? Was he just another Michael Moore or worse, like shock jock Howard Stern, both of whom seem to only have shock value while giving little substance to support their outrageous viewpoints?

Falardeau once suggested that all Federalist Anglophones leave the Quebec province. He called the environmentalist, David Suzuki "a bearded little Jap, just another nuisance from the West Coast" after he said he was disappointed in the Quebecers who voted Conservative in the 2008 federal election. He slammed Canada calling his country a “colonizing power.” He warred with Telefilm Canada accusing them of censorship (they gave in). And on it goes.

Yet, Falardeau did win awards for his political films and documentaries, works that all were singularly in line with the viewpoints he routinely espoused. He did win a Genie Award in 1983 for the first film in his "Elvis Gratton" trilogy. He was given serious acclaim for his Front de liberation du Quebec thriller "Octobre" and also for the 1993 documentary "Le Steak", about boxer Gaetan Hart.

In true Falardeau style and despite winning that Genie in 1983, he still decided to boycott the competition in 2002.

"To be recognized for 'my genius' in Flin Flon or Saskatoon or Corner Brook leaves me as cold as their Rockies, mounted police and their Governor General," he wrote as way of explanation of the boycott.

Still those that strived to separate themselves from him politically do not deny his work. Former Quebec Premier Bernard Landry stated, “His death is a considerable loss for our nation… I used to be say to him: ‘Pierre, I think the same thing as you do on pretty well everything, but I never say it the same way you do.'"

Scruffy in appearance, outspoken and denying any and all forms of elitism in either speech or appearance, Pierre Falardeau never backed down from a fight. The validity of his contribution and the merit of the message his films portrayed is solidified by the praise of his enemies.

He leaves behind is partner Manon Leriche and three children.

István Frenreisz, May 5, 1936 – Sept. 25, 2009, Budapest-born actor, director, producer and writer, has died at a Budapest hospital after transferring there from Veszprém. The cause of death was reportedly from coccidiosis, kidney failure and septic shock. He was 73.

Born into a rather famous family, his grandfather was the legendary host Károly Gundel and his half-brother was the famous Hungarian actor Zoltán Latinovits – one of the most famous Hungarian actors of the 20^th century and who committed suicide in 1976. Another sibling was the composer and bass guitarist Károly Frenreisz of the rock band Locomotiv GT – one of the most influential bands of Hungarian rock music.

Like his brother István Frenreisz, known as István Bujtor in film, was an accomplished basketball player and sailor. He actually played professionally for a time and, as a yachtsman, he won six Hungarian championships with his 1936-built yacht Rabonbán.

In entertainment, Bujtor takes on a bit of a different role. Terence Hill and Bud Spencer were Italian actors who teamed up to make what they call “Spaghetti Westerns.” The films were widely popular throughout Europe with a variety of different voice actors dubbing in the language for whichever country the movies were playing. For Hungary, the voice of Bud Spencer was dubbed by István Bujtor.

Later a series of Hungarian comedies were created in the Bud Spencer/Terence Hill genre where Bujtor played a hard-hitting detective Csöpi Ötvös along with partner, Hungarian actor András Kern.

All told, István Frenreisz (Bujtor) appeared in over 100 Hungarian films with a career that began in the 1960’s.

Jewell Jordan Mason, 1917 – Sept. 24, 2009, extra, double and stuntwoman in Hollywood during the 1930s and '40s, has died in Camarillo, Calif. She was 92.

Body doubles and stuntmen – even less, stuntwomen – are mostly unknown to the general public. I guess that is the reason it is called a “double,” so you don’t realize that the person you are watching is different. But that is the life that Jewell Jordan Mason led beginning when she was just eight years old at MGM Studios. She made $3.50 a day for two half days work. But she went on to appear onscreen with all the big time actors of her era, rarely credited, sometimes working as a double, often doing stunts

In her repertoire, the names drop like legends through time. There was Clark Gable, Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, Paul Muni, David Niven, Bing Crosby, Maureen O'Sullivan (her classmate at St. Augustine's Catholic School in Culver City) and Johnny Weissmuller. She did hit it big with the 1937 “The Good Earth” working as Luise Rainer’s stunt double. Two years later, she worked as Merle Oberon’s double in one of my favorite movies, “Wuthering Heights.”

A stunt actor in Hollywood without injuries, however, would be one that probably that didn’t have any work. Mason had broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder and hip as well as wrist and back problems – a testament to her popularity as a stuntwoman? Stunt actors back then didn’t have health insurance either.

It is my understanding that there will be a book, written by Mollie Gregory, about stuntwomen and Jordan’s career will be featured.

She is survived by her daughter, Mardi Bren; granddaughter Ashley Palmer and her husband, Dan; great-granddaughter Grace; and her sisters Linda Jordan and Pat Montgomery.