Stock Markets

Mitzi Gaynor, star of Hollywood musicals, dies at 93

Published

1 month ago

October 18, 2024

By Bill Trott

(Reuters) – Mitzi Gaynor, whose singing and dancing brightened Hollywood musicals throughout the 1950s, including trying unsuccessfully to “wash that man right outa my hair” as nurse Nellie Forbush in “South Pacific,” has died at the age of 93.

Gaynor died peacefully of natural causes, her management team said on Thursday.

“For eight decades she entertained audiences in films, on television and on the stage… Off stage she was a vibrant and extraordinary woman, a caring and loyal friend, and a warm, gracious, very funny and altogether glorious human being,” they wrote on X.

Gaynor had prominent roles in “There’s No Business Like Show Business” in 1954 with Ethel Merman and Marilyn Monroe and in the 1957 films “Les Girls” with Gene Kelly and the “The Joker Is Wild” with Frank Sinatra. The previous year she starred with Bing Crosby and Donald O’Connor in “Anything Goes,” singing Cole Porter’s title song.

Gaynor’s movie career lasted a little more than a decade but she went on to success as a nightclub performer and put on a series of annual television variety specials in the 1960s and 1970s. She was still performing an autobiographical stage show – a mix of singing, dancing and remembrances titled “Razzle Dazzle! My Life Behind the Sequins” – in her 80s.

Gaynor was born Francesca Marlene de Czanyi von Gerber in Chicago. Her mother was a dancer and her father a violinist and musical director. After a move to California she became part of the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera (NASDAQ:), adding three years to her age to make the company believe she was 16. Executives from 20th Century Fox spotted her and offered her a contract.

Actor George Jessel told her that her last name brought to mind a delicatessen or the Gerber baby food company and she followed his suggestion to change it to Gaynor.

NO LACK OF ENERGY

Her first film was the Betty Grable-Dan Dailey musical “My Blue Heaven” in 1950 and she would go on to make nearly 20 movies that called for a singer or dancer with lots of energy.

Gaynor, discussing her enthusiasm for performing, once said, “If there were four people waiting for the streetcar, I’d put on an entire act.”

Pianist Oscar Levant, watching Gaynor dance on the set of “The I Don’t Care Girl,” said of her: “There’s nothing wrong with being an exhibitionist – if you’ve got something to exhibit.”

As her career was building, Gaynor dated industrialist-studio chief Howard Hughes (NYSE:).

“He was dashing, handsome, rich, mysterious,” she said. “I fell madly in love with him. There were airplanes, a whirlwind courtship and, after five months, he proposed.”

She broke it off and instead married Jack Bean, who would become her manager and only husband.

Gaynor’s Hollywood highlight was the film version of Richard Rodgers’ and Oscar Hammerstein’s 1949 stage musical “South Pacific,” which had won 10 Tony Awards and a Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The 1958 movie had been long awaited and Gaynor was cast in the prized role that Mary Martin had played on Broadway.

She played Nellie Forbush, a naive young nurse from Arkansas stationed in the Pacific during World War Two who falls in love with Emile De Becque, a French expatriate planter played by Rossano Brazzi. Nellie turns down De Becque’s marriage proposal because he has two mixed-race children but when he goes missing during a Navy-backed mission against the Japanese, Nellie realizes her racial prejudice is misguided and grows to love the children.

The film was not a critical success but still was one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1950s. Gaynor’s performance earned her a Golden Globe nomination.

The movie soundtrack was brimming with songs that became popular standards, such as “Some Enchanted Evening,” “Bali Ha’i,” “There Is Nothing Like a Dame,” “I’m in Love With a Wonderful Guy” and “Younger Than Springtime.” Gaynor singing the bouncy “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair” on the beach was one of the film’s standout scenes as her character tried to get over De Becque.

With the era of Hollywood musicals fading, Gaynor’s last screen role was “For Love or Money,” which paired her with Kirk Douglas, in 1963.

She then concentrated on live stage shows and became a regular performer in the big Las Vegas resorts. She also staged frequent television variety specials, starting in 1967, with titles such as “Mitzi … A Tribute to the American Housewife,” “Mitzi … And a Hundred Guys” and “Mitzi … What’s Hot, What’s Not.”

She also appeared as a performer at the Academy Awards several times, notably singing the theme song from “Georgy Girl” at the 1967 ceremony when it won an Oscar for best original song.

It was during her Las Vegas run that Gaynor teamed up with a young Bob Mackie and helped him start his career as a costumer with a flair for rhinestones, sequins, beads, feathers and tassels. Mackie also created the gowns she wore on her television specials.

Gaynor and Bean, who were married for 52 years until his 2006 death, had no children.

Stock Markets

Needham initiates coverage on On Holding with buy rating

Published

21 hours ago

November 23, 2024

Investing.com — Needham on Friday initiated its coverage on On Holding AG (NYSE:) with a “buy” rating and a target price of $64.

Brokerage said On has shown industry-leading growth, with impressive revenue increases and healthy margin expansion. The company is likely to keep growing as it increases brand awareness and gains space with top sneaker retailers worldwide.

“We believe the company has a continued runway for strong growth, as they increase brand awareness and gain shelf space with the biggest and best sneaker retailers in the world,” analyst Tom Nikic wrote in the note.

Needham analyst noted that Roger Federer-backed On was valued at 5 times its expected 2025 revenues, which make stock may seem expensive but strong fundamentals could support continued stock momentum.

“Although valuation metrics are lofty, we believe the shares can continue to exhibit momentum as long as fundamentals”

ON is the fastest growing company in Needham’s coverage, with expected 32% revenue growth in 2024. Its Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) growing 43% year-to-date, compared to 24% growth for wholesale sales.

Brokerage highlighted despite this growth, the brand’s awareness is still relatively low. In major markets like the U.S., U.K., France, and Australia, awareness was under 10% a year ago. However, it’s increasing rapidly, with U.S. awareness doubling to around 20%, and tripling in France.

Stock Markets

Toll Brothers Announces Final Opportunity at Verona Estates Community in Chatsworth, California

Published

21 hours ago

November 23, 2024

CHATSWORTH, Calif., Nov. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Toll Brothers , Inc. (NYSE:), the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes, today announced the final opportunity to own a new home at Verona Estates, an exclusive gated community in Chatsworth, California. Only a few homes remain available for sale in this prestigious community, including the professionally decorated Siena Modern Farmhouse model home.

The intimate gated enclave of Verona Estates is a rare find showcasing award-winning architecture and innovative home designs. Nestled in an established Chatsworth neighborhood south of the Santa Susana Mountains and adjacent to the Vineyards at Porter Ranch, this exceptional community offers a serene and relaxed atmosphere with the convenience of nearby shopping and easy access to freeways, entertainment, and recreation.

Toll Brothers residents in Verona Estates will enjoy distinctive architecture, quality craftsmanship, luxurious home designs with open floor plans, expansive home sites, and proximity to the future 50-acre Porter Ranch community park. Verona Estates offers generous two-story home designs ranging from 4,700 to 6,000+ square feet, with 5 to 6 bedrooms, 4.5 to 6.5 bathrooms, and 3-car garages. The homes also feature popular floor plan options including prep kitchens, guest suites, floating staircases, indoor and outdoor fireplaces, and more. Move-in ready homes in the community are priced from $1,979,995.

We are thrilled to offer the final opportunity to own a home in the exclusive Verona Estates community, said Nick Norvilas, Division President of Toll Brothers in Los Angeles. The Siena model home is a showcase of luxury and design, and we encourage interested home buyers to visit and experience this exceptional home along with the final few quick move-in homes remaining in the community firsthand.

The Siena Modern Farmhouse model home features designer upgrades throughout, including fully landscaped and furnished interiors, offering an unparalleled living experience. The professionally decorated model home is priced at $2,999,995.

For more information, call 844-700-8655 or visit TollBrothers.com/LA. The Sales Center for Verona Estates is located at 20508 Edgewood Court in Chatsworth and is open by appointment only.

About Toll Brothers

Toll Brothers, Inc., a Fortune 500 Company, is the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes. The Company was founded 57 years ago in 1967 and became a public company in 1986. Its common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TOL. The Company serves first-time, move-up, empty-nester, active-adult, and second-home buyers, as well as urban and suburban renters. Toll Brothers builds in over 60 markets in 24 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington, as well as in the District of Columbia. The Company operates its own architectural, engineering, mortgage, title, land development, smart home technology, and landscape subsidiaries. The Company also develops master-planned and golf course communities as well as operates its own lumber distribution, house component assembly, and manufacturing operations.

In 2024, Toll Brothers marked 10 years in a row being named to the Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies™ list and the Company’s Chairman and CEO Douglas C. Yearley, Jr. was named one of 25 Top CEOs by Barron’s magazine. Toll Brothers has also been named Builder of the Year by Builder magazine and is the first two-time recipient of Builder of the Year from Professional Builder magazine. For more information visit TollBrothers.com.

Contact: Andrea Meck | Toll Brothers, Director, Public Relations & Social Media | 215-938-8169 | ameck@tollbrothers.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/cbb8cf4a-a018-4df0-955e-3cf4ab63edeb

Sent by Toll Brothers via Regional Globe Newswire (TOLL-REG)

Verona Estates by Toll Brothers

Toll Brothers announced the final opportunity to own a new home at Verona Estates, including the designer-decorated Siena model home, in Chatsworth, California.

Source: Toll Brothers, Inc.

Stock Markets

Northvolt crisis may be make or break for Europe’s EV battery ambitions

Published

21 hours ago

November 23, 2024

By Marie Mannes, Alessandro Parodi and Stine Jacobsen

STOCKHOLM/GDANSK (Reuters) – Northvolt’s financial collapse deals a blow to Europe’s plan to set up its own battery industry to power electric cars, stirring a debate about whether it needs to do more to attract investment as startups struggle to catch up with Chinese rivals.

Europe’s biggest hope for an electric vehicle battery champion filed for U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Thursday after talks with investors and creditors including Volkswagen (ETR:) and Goldman Sachs for funding failed.

The Swedish company, whose motto is “make oil history”, has received more than $10 billion in equity, debt and public financing since its 2016 start-up. Volkswagen and Goldman Sachs each own about one fifth of its shares.

Northvolt said on Friday it needed $1.0-$1.2 billion in new funds under the restructuring process, which it hopes will end by the end of March.

In recent months, it has shrunk the business and cut jobs in a bid to shore up its finances. But it has struggled to produce sufficient volumes of high-quality batteries, and lost a 2 billion euro ($2.1 billion) contract from BMW (ETR:) in June.

That has left Europe’s ambitions to build its own battery industry looking a distant dream.

In recent years, Northvolt led a wave of European startups investing tens of billions of dollars to serve the continent’s automakers as they switch from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles.

But growth in EV demand is moving at a slower pace than many in the industry projected, and China has taken a huge lead in powering EVs, controlling 85% of global battery cell production, International Energy Agency data shows.

Making batteries and cells, the units that store and convert chemical energy into electricity, is a delicate process and doing so at scale is a challenge for any battery maker.

Northvolt has missed some in-house targets and curtailed production at its battery cells plant in northern Sweden, underscoring the difficulties, Reuters reported on Monday.

“The biggest issue is that batteries are not easy to make and Northvolt haven’t satisfied the supply demands of their customers – that is a management issue,” said Andy Palmer, founder of consultancy Palmer Automotive said.

“The Chinese are technologically 10 years ahead of the West in batteries. That’s a fact,” he said.

At least eight companies have postponed or abandoned EV battery projects in Europe this year, including China’s Svolt and joint venture ACC (NS:), led by Stellantis (NYSE:) and Mercedes-Benz (OTC:).

In 2024, Europe’s battery pipeline capacity out to 2030 has fallen by 176 gigawatt-hours, according to data firm Benchmark Minerals. That’s equivalent to almost all the current installed capacity in Europe, according to Reuters calculations.

RETHINK

Some executives say Europe should do more to attract and support home-grown projects so they can compete with Chinese rivals such as CATL and BYD (SZ:).

“Europe needs to rethink how it supports a nascent sector before China eats up the entire value chain, which is due to smart planning,” said James Frith, European head of Volta Energy Technologies, which specialises in battery and energy storage technology.

Among its $5.8 billion in debts, Northvolt owes the European Investment Bank (EIB) some $313 million.

EIB vice president Thomas Östros said it had been a constructive partner to Northvolt, but it needed to safeguard the EIB and EU’s interests.

“It remains the case that Europe has a strategic interest in a European battery industry for electric cars and we will follow developments very closely. But it is much to early to say what the outcome will be,” he said.

The Swedish government has repeatedly said it does not plan to take a stake in Northvolt.

On Friday, Northvolt’s outgoing CEO and co-founder Peter Carlsson said he was a “little worried” Europe is giving up on its dream of competing with China.

He said Europe would regret it in 20 years time if it retreated.

“It’s not a straight journey and right now, we’re all in a bit of a down in that journey where there’s more hesitations, there’s more questions on the speed of the transition from the carmakers, from policymakers, from the investor community,” he told reporters in a call.