Neeson's Return to Film 'Extraordinary': Director

He's already punched so many things, but the possibilities are endless

(NEWSER) - Liam Neeson used to star in movies that can best be described as "fancy-pants," notes Linda Holmes on NPR . (Think Schindler's List, Rob Roy, and Ethan Frome.) But nowadays, all he seems to do is punch people. He punches people for kidnapping his daughter (Taken) and for not recognizing him (Unknown); he punches people vicariously by releasing the Kraken (Clash of the Titans) and he punches them via boats (Battleship). Tomorrow, when The Grey is released, he may very well punch a wolf. So what should he punch next? Holmes has some ideas: More»

Liam Neeson stars in survival thriller

(NEWSER) - The Grey, a survival-in-the-wilderness thriller starring Liam Neeson, is earning a wealth of literary comparisons. The film tells the story of a group of men stranded in the snow after a plane crash, and critics are mostly impressed.

• In the New York Times , AO Scott applauds the "fine, tough little movie, technically assured and brutally efficient, with a simple story that ventures into some profound existential territory without making a big fuss about it." The film is "as blunt and effective—and also, at times, as lyrical—as a tale by Jack London or Ernest Hemingway."

Arid climate, lack of moisture all helped

(NEWSER) - How did Yvette Vickers, former Playboy playmate and cult horror film star, turn into a real-life mummy ? After all, she didn't have anyone to wrap her in linen bandages. But mummification does not actually refer to the process undertaken by ancient Egyptians—it refers to the effect that process has on the body, writes Adam Martin in the Atlantic . Namely, preserving the skin, organs, and soft tissue and halting decay. More»

Yvette Vickers had apparently been dead for nearly a year

(NEWSER) - Yvette Vickers, a former Playboy playmate and B-movie star, was found dead in her Los Angeles home last week, the Times reports. A neighbor, concerned when she noticed yellowing letters and cobwebs collecting in Vickers' mailbox, found the 82-year-old woman's mummified body. Police say she could have been dead close to a year. "We've all been crying about this," says the neighbor. "Nobody should be left alone like that." More»

Grief 'hits me in the middle of the night'

(NEWSER) - Nearly two years after his wife's death , Liam Neeson is finally ready to talk about Natasha Richardson. In Esquire , Tom Chiarella offers a touching account of his interview with Neeson. Highlights:

• On Neeson's arrival at the hospital after the accident: "I walked into the emergency ... and for the first time in years, nobody recognizes me. Not the nurses. The patients. No one. And I've come all this way, and they won't let me see her." Finally, a nurse recognized him and directed him to Richardson's room. "I'll tell you, I was so f***ing grateful—for the first time in I don't know how long—to be recognized. ... So I get there, just in time. And all these young doctors, who look all of eighteen years of age, they tell me the worst. The worst."
• Why he went back to work right after her death: "I just think I was still in a bit of shock. But it's kind of a no-brainer to go back to that work. It's a wee bit of a blur, but I know the tragedy hadn't just really smacked me yet. I think I survived by running away some. Running away to work."