Monday Reads

 Obituary:  Actor Leslie Jordan, 67, the same age as yours truly, has died following a car accident this morning.  He is best remembered for his role on the sitcom Will & Grace.

Snip:

In his 2009 book “My Trip Down the Pink Carpet,” Jordan documented his move from Tennessee to Hollywood in 1982. He “boarded a Greyhound bus bound for LA with $1,200 sewn into his underpants and never looked back,” a publisher’s description of the book read.

The actor found work on television in shows like “The Fall Guy,” “Designing Women” and “The People Next Door.”

Jordan originated the role of Earl “Brother Boy” Ingram in the award-winning play “Sordid Lives,” which he reprised in the 2000 independent film adaption.

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Co-founder of a company promoting one of the world's worst concoctions, Red Bull, has died.   Dietrich Mateschitz, 78, died after a long bout with cancer.

I never understood the drink's popularity.  It is even worse than Dr. Pepper.  It is total shit.

Snip:

At the time of his death Mateschitz had a fortune estimated at $27.4 billion by Forbes. He co-founded Red Bull in 1984 alongside Thai businessman Chaleo Yoovidha after drinking Yoovidha's hyper-caffeinated drink Krating Daeng to overcome jet lag. The two partnered on a venture to adopt the beverage for Westerners, and in 1987 they debuted the drink in Europe.

Red Bull began selling in the United States in 1997, and its investment in action sports began shortly thereafter. The arena seemed a natural sponsorship fit for the go-go beverage, which by the late 1990s had become a popular mixer in dance clubs and late-night bars. Red Bull branding featured imagery of adrenaline-packed stunts and death-defying action, and Mateschitz himself coined the brand's slogan: "Red Bull gives you wings."

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It is nasty stuff.