"Adieu Diana Sowle": Another star from the (original) movie, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Passes Away

Diana Sowle, the lady who played Charlie's Mom, Mrs Bucket, in the beloved 1971 film, *Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, has just died - at the good 'ole age of 88; we are told this morning. **'Famously singing "Cheer up Charlie" in one memorable scene', the American actress apparently made her onscreen debut therein, and passed away overnight surrounded by friends and family at her hospital bedside. **'She was one of the last surviving 'adult cast' members of the beloved movie, co-star Gene Wilder...Willy Wonka, dy[ing] in 2016 of complications from Alzheimer's Disease.'

Interviewed over recent times, according to USA Today Sowle was reported to have made a number of personal comments observations about the film's enduring success (and Gene Wilder's ongoing popularity), such as:

#"It's nice it's still so popular, and the reason I think it's so popular is - if you're a parent, you can send your child to that movie, there's no violence, there's no bad language, there's no sex." (Italics mine.)

#"And kids love the thought of going to a chocolate factory and someone wins the golden ticket and they have all these bad kids and good kids, and the bad kids lose out because they try to grab (everything) for themselves." (Italics mine.)

#"[Gene Wilder] was so nice, he never acted like, "Oh, I'm a bigger star than the rest of you", and "he'd join us on a lunch break and we'd have lunch".

#"Gene Wilder was always friendly and courteous and funny and told nice stories...I'm very sorry he's passed away because I think he was a great talent and I think he was liked by many, many people."

Corny as, cliche-ridden remarks, d'ya think? Perhaps. But as trite and old-fashioned as such sentimental-laden remarks may well seem to today's 'been there and done (all of) that' generation, I suspect...within some of that (i.e. this current) generation...there's an inner - if entirely unconscious and never-to-be-admitted-in-a-thousand-years - yearning that such corny, 'fuddy-duddy' values were a little bit more in vogue than they seem to be these days...though, yes, they'd sooner die than admit it!

*An adaptation, of course, of renowned author Roald Dahl's book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory...which I've gotten ahold of in recent years, but, regrettably, have still to get onto/into...

**Various online news stories/obituaries published over recent hours, especially the BBC report and Maeve McDermott's piece for USA Today.

Mahatma Gandhi: India's Great Man of Destiny

(This is) simply to note (what is apparently) the 70th anniversary of the death (by assassination) of India's global colossus, Mohandas (Karamchand) Gandhi...

*Having (simply) heard tale of such (anniversary) the other day...

*In the context of New Zealand's ongoing 'Jami Lee Ross' political saga/drama, to wit, The NZ National Party's abject (if entirely understandable) grovelling before our ethnic Indian community in penance for the recorded comments of JLR in particular, but - moreover - unrepudiated (at the critical time/juncture) by National's leader (then and now), the hapless (and then evidently helpless) Simon Bridges...to wit: the awful/appalling/atrocious suggestion that their parliamentary representation by two Chinese was worth somewhat/appreciably more than that of two or three 'equivalent' Indians...which comment their two Indian MPs evidently felt not significant enough to publicly speak out about in criticism of Mr Bridges...

*Having (35 years ago) seen a deeply affecting film, 'Gandhi', the three-hour-plus movie docudrama by Richard Attenborough, the late brother of longtime and justly-celebrated TV filmmaker/nature doco star David Attenborough...which film graphically and powerfully depicts the life and times of Mahatma Gandhi in gripping and unforgettable fashion...

*Though having also - thus far only cursorily - surveyed another far less favourable and flattering depiction of his life in the magazine, Natural Medicine, (The New Zealand Journal of), Nov. 2016.

*Having also long been an admirer of the Gandhi clan/political dynasty (of Congress Party fame) which long ruled India, in particular Indira Gandhi, also sent from this life by an assassin's bullet (33 years ago, I believe)...

Epilogue:
And would'ya believe that today (Oct 23rd) I happened to bump into and chat with two local Indian-born contractors, and that one of them was actually surnamed 'Gandhi'?!?!? 

Honesty, It's Such a Lonely Word...For Everyone Is So Untrue

'The greatest want of the world is the want of men,
-men who will not be bought or sold;
men who in their inmost souls are true and honest;
men who do not fear to call sin by its right name;
men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole;
men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.' Education, p.57. (1903)
[From a compilation, Corporteur Ministry (1953), also based on the writings of Ellen G White.]

*And due (grateful) acknowledgement to the **oft-underrated singer-songwriter Billy Joel, to wit the ?opening line/refrain? of his classic hit 'Honesty'.

**Methinks likely due to the fact that he didn't buy into the drug culture so 'popular' and 'celebrated' amongst celebrity stardom in (especially America's) modern music industry's pop culture.

Pretty Well All I Ever Wanted/Needed - and that anyone could reasonably wish - to Know/Learn about Health...I learnt from my Dear 'Ole Gram (Granny)...[and also Ellen Gould White and Adelle Davis]

Upon the Blessed *Birth-Anniversary of my all-time-favourite Grandparent (of **long ago yesteryear)

Though not - ever -  a subscriber to the views of Christian Science's Mary Baker Eddy, to wit her staunch, core belief - to rather ruthlessly paraphrase her - that all sickness/illness/disease is only really a figment of the [or rather a, and febrile] imagination...which views - alongside ***'Unity' (I believe, with substantial qualifications, stipulations and provisos - and all the rest) - Gram did hold for a significant period of her (later) life, especially following the untimely death of her second son, my own namesake David...

...some of the most important nutrition (including drinking water) principles that I ever learnt/ that ever graced my own life and times...I learnt by (unconscious) osmosis...from my beloved Grandmother ('Gram')...who lived next door (from my middle childhood on)...to her penultimate month upon Earth...

She wasn't far off the ball in her views of the medical fraternity/establishment either...not seeing a doctor for a large part of her later life...at least not until she was at length taken to a hospital and then a hospital/resthome a mere month-and-a-half before her death at 93-and-three-quarter-years of age.

Always considered somewhat remarkable by various and assorted visitors - and oftentimes remarked upon as looking every bit 20-30-plus years younger than she admitted she actually was...Grandma Billie was the very epitome of good health and longevity...

...but sadly, even she - at length - could not escape the pitiless hand of the Grim Reaper...though she lives on - to this very day even - in a substantial proportion of my dreams...

Whether it be - was - her buckwheat pancake breakfasts - with oodles of home-made apricot jam and buttermilk margarine; the fave veggie yams sown (and harvested) by me and my younger sister around Gram's incredible yard/ecosystem; her fabulous lemon whipped cream ('a-topping' homemade ice cream); her classic vegetarian chilli accompanied with homemade cornbread...or her famous fruit blends...she could cook (& bake) like few others I've ever met or I dare say, ever again will...

*115 years to be precise.

**My last Grandparent (Grandma 'Billie') died 21-plus years ago, my Mum's two parents 23-24 years ago, and Grandma Billie's hubby, my Dad's Dad, 39/40-some years ago...(though arguably he was the healthiest of the lot!)

***'The Unity School of ['Christianity'].