Hollywood Week: Music World Loses Brian Wilson and Sly Stone, Frances Ford Coppola, Harvey Weinstein, Harris Yulin

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Category: Entertainment News

Published on Saturday, 14 June 2025 10:02

Written by Janet Walker

Music fans, the world over, are mourning the loss of two pillars, Sly Stone and Brian Wilson, each known for transforming the sound of a generation and ushering in broader cultural changes across the entertainment industry.

Sly Stone, Rock-Funk, Pioneer Dies

Sly Stone, singer, song writer, music producer, and founder of the band Sly and the Family Stone, and pioneer of the psychedelic rock, funk, sound, died this week. He was 82.

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Integrating brass and a horn section into his sound, Sly Stone's tunes defined a summer sound, back in the day when the harshness of much of the civil rights violence was limitedly in the rear view, Sly and The Family Stone pushed this big band sound mixed with electronic funky beats, ushering in the psychedelic sounds of the 1970s.

And audiences responded to this new sound. America was convulsing with leftover call to action tunes, and in 1969 Sly and The Family Stone played Woodstock, and for non-musical historians, what was supposed to be a small, intimate gathering of some music folk, turned into a defining music history moment of 1960s, at Max Yasgur's farm in Bethal New York, some 500,000 strong in attendance, and became the beat of a generation. And Sly and The Family Stone were there, bringing this new funky beat to a weather weary generation who absorbed it.

Sly and The Family Stone played Woodstock and "Hot Fun in the Summertime," rose to number 2 on the Top 40 Billboard charts, and certified Gold, with 500,000 records sold. The music was a get up dance to the beat, not the folk melodies that had come to symbolize much of the anti-war movement. "Hot Fun in the Summertime" was also covered by The Beach Boys. His bold sound, the mix of horns, drums, and electric synthesizers, paved the way for bands like Funkadelic, the Ohio Players, and KC and The Sunshine Band.

The New York Times writer, Wesley Morris, describes another of Sly and The Family Stones' power hits, "Dance to the Music," saying "Harmony and tambourine lilt to earth, whereupon we're exhorted to … dance to the music. Lyrically, all that's happening here is instruction, pronouncement. "I'm gonna add some bottom," bellows Larry Graham, "so that the dancers just won't hide," before his motorific bass lick starts peeling wallflowers off the wall."

Sly and The Family Stones tunes are tucked away in the psyche of a certain generation, and we, who do remember "Hot Fun in the Summertime," and "Dance to the Music," have a responsibility to share the musical genius in remembrance.

Sly's rise was hamstrung by the usual trappings available when the artists achieve greatness, and in the 1960s the pipeline of enticements was free flowing, however, every for every summer road trip that has a playlist, Sly and The Family Stone should be included.  

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Brian Wilson, Founder of The Beach Boys, Dies

Brian Wilson, singer, songwriter, music producer and founder of The Beach Boys, another group of musical pioneers created what will forever be known as The California sound, died this week. He was 82.

The Beach Boys, with songs seemingly removed from the pulse of unrest that plagued the country, rose to fame during the troubled early 1960s, and projected a different vibe, one of endless sunny days, long intoxicating stretches of beautiful white-sand beaches, and a life free of entanglements, and a sport unique to California, surfing.

Their hits  "Surfin' U.S.A.," "California Girls" and "Good Vibrations," provided escapism for much of the nation, and the world. The ability to conjure through the lyrics, a feeling, and vision, that created a carefree feeling resonated and catapulted the five original members, Brian Wilson, Dennis Wilson, Carl Wilson, Mike Love and Al Jardine, to the top of the charts and the Beach Boy brand was born.

"Brian, a classic "indoor kid," wrote about those adventures from a position of voyeurism. In a 1965 interview with The Los Angeles Times, he mentioned "our West Coast sound, which we pioneered." The songs, he added, tell stories about teenagers. "We base them on activities of healthy California kids who like to surf, hot rod, and engage in other outdoor fun." He saw these activities the same way he saw the ocean — through a window," The New York Times reported.

The Beach Boys became a brand which integrated every aspect of entertainment. Hollywood capitalized on the success of the surfin' sound with a decade of hit movies and television shows featuring alluring bikini clad women, and well-built muscular men living the California dream and enticed a population growth.

The Beach Boys sound become the sound of a generation, shaking off the sober and dull, black and white, lifestyle of the 1950s, and ushered in a colorized new sound, filled with life.

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Francis Ford Coppola Lifetime Achievement Award Tribute

The 50th Afi Life Achievement Award: A Tribute To Francis Ford Coppola premieres on TNT on Wednesday, June 18 at 10:00 p.m./ 9:00 p.m. CT. The show, which celebrates Coppola's career features tributes from co-stars and friends Robert De Niro, Adam Driver, Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Ron Howard, Diane Lane, Spike Lee, Al Pacino and more.

The show will re-air on TCM on Thursday, July 31 at 8:00 p.m. / 7:00 p.m. CT. Please note that the special will not be available to stream after it airs on TNT but will be available to stream on WatchTCM for 2 weeks following the airing on TCM on July 31.

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Harvey Weinstein Re-Trial Ends in Mistrial

Disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein New York retrial of his overturned 2020 rape conviction ended abruptly in a mistrial as the jury foreman refused to return to the deliberation room, expressing fear and retaliation.

"Weinstein was convicted Wednesday of one count of first-degree criminal sex act for forcing oral sex on former production assistant Miriam Haley at his apartment in 2006. He was acquitted on a separate criminal sex act charge involving Kaja Sokola, a former model who testified that Weinstein sexually assaulted her in 2006 when she was 19 years old," reported The Washington Post.

Having served on a New York jury, the surprising behavioral changes of even the most mild mannered individuals can be disconcerting. Suddenly, the room becomes pressurized as alliances develop, and people want to be finished with their obligation.

In this case, the jury foreperson felt bullied, and afraid and unable to keep the deliberations narrowed to only the charges at hand.

Lawyers are scheduled to meet again in July to set a new trial date for Weinstein's outstanding charges.

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Harris Yulin, Star of Stage and Screen, Dies

Harris Yulin, an unforgettable star of stage and screen, died this week in Manhattan. He was 87. The cause was cardiac arrest.

As many do not know his name, he is one of the working man actors whose face and performances are undeniably etched in American culture. Yulin as the on the take Miami PD Detective Mel Bernstein opposite Al Pacino's Tony Montana in "Scarface," became as synonymous as "Scarface" to the culture.

Yulin also played the corrupt Secret Service Agent Sterling in "Rush Hour 3." He starred opposite Harrison Ford, in "Clear and Present Danger," as a corrupt national security advisor and in "Training Day," as the corrupt LAPD cop Doug Rosselli.

"Although he never found a starring role that made him a household name, Yulin was a familiar face who worked constantly during a career that spanned more than 50 years. "I'm not that high-profile," he admitted in a 2010 interview with The Irish Times. "I just do the next thing that comes along," reported The Hollywood Reporter.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays, "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a former member of the International Federation of Journalists.