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Secret Machines Guitarist Benjamin Curtis Dead at 35 After Battling Lymphatic Cancer

Benjamin Curtis

Secret Machines guitarist Benjamin Curtis sadly passed away at the age of 35 Sunday, Dec. 30.

The musician died of T-cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma cancer after being diagnosed less than a year ago.

The cofounder of the popular indie band School of Seven Bells passed at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, according to the band's manager Brady Brock.

Curtis originally hailed from Oklahoma but lived in Dallas in the recent years where he played in Secret Machines.

Brock told the New York Daily News that Curtis had moved to the Big Apple recently to form Seven Bells with Alejandra Deheza.

The band's Facebook page posted the announcement, saying, "We lost our friend and brother Benjamin Curtis to his fight against cancer."

The statement added, "We kindly ask that his immediate family, friends & bandmates' privacy be respected during this time…We can't thank all of you who supported him and his music through the years enough.

"All of you who attended or participated in the various benefits in and around New York City over the past year since his diagnosis, and of course those who contributed and gave generously to help support him throughout that journey."

'Go mbeire muid beo ar an am seo arís.'

May we be alive at this time next year.

'Athbhliain faoi mhaise duit!'

A prosperous New Year!

In the New Year, may your right hand always

be stretched out in friendship but never in want.

Blessings to all, Jodi

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Joseph Ruskin, who acted in 25 films and 124 television shows, died of natural causes in a Santa Monica, California, hospital Saturday, SAG-AFTRA announced Tuesday. Ruskin was 89.

Ruskin's big screen credits included roles in "The Magnificent Seven," "Prizzi's Honor," "Indecent Proposal" and "Smokin' Aces." His TV credits included "Twilight Zone," "Star Trek," "Mission Impossible" and "Alias."

He began and ended his acting career on the stage. His first professional performances were at the Pittsburgh Playhouse and the Rochester Arena Stage after he left the U.S. Navy following World War II. His last theater performance came this year as a member of the Antaeus Theatre Company of Los Angeles.

He appeared in the 2012 Antaeus production of "You Can't Take It With You." He took his final bow on stage in 2013 in the company's "The Crucible" production.

"Joe was the epitome of the actor who takes care of all the other actors while keeping one foot firmly planted on the stage or the set," SAG-AFTRA President Ken Howard said. "He gave so much for so long it's hard to believe he's gone."

Ruskin "devoted so much of his time in the 1980s" to the merger of the two actors' unions -- SAG and AFTRA, -- which became a reality in 2012, Howard said.

He served on the Screen Actors Guild board from 1976 through 1999, including eight years as 1st national vice president, the SAG-AFTRA release said. He was the first Western Regional Vice President of Actors Equity Association and served a decade on AFTRA's national board.

Ruskin, whose real name was Joseph Schlafman, was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, but attended high school in Cleveland, Ohio. He joined the Navy in 1942.

He studied drama at Carnegie Tech -- now Carnegie-Mellon University -- after the war, which led to his professional acting career.